By Kaitlyn Syring
ksyring@kansan.com
Stacy Watson wakes up with a jolt. Her heart is pounding, and she vaguely remembers that in her dream, she was falling. She sighs and lays her head back down on her pillow. Frustrated, she thinks about the dark circles she'll have under her eyes tomorrow—a clear sign that she had a sleepless night.
Unfortunately, jolting awake during sleep is not an uncommon experience.
Watson, Topeka senior, is one of millions of people who jerk awake during sleep or right before falling asleep. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 60 to 70 percent of Americans experience this jerking motion, called a hypnic or hypnagogic jerk.
The latest research on hypnic jerks reveals a wide range of potential causes, ranging from anxiety to caffeine.
Barbara Heinz, a technician in the Sleep Disorders Center at the KU Medical Center, says the exact cause of hypnic jerking isn't clear, but hypnic jerks, also called sleep starts, happen most often when a person is just preparing to fall asleep.
During this time, some sleep-seekers experience the sensation of falling."The brain actually thinks the body is falling." Heinz says. The jerking motion is thus caused by the muscles of the body trying to relax before sleep and the brain misinterpreting this muscle relaxation as falling. To keep from falling down, the brain sends an immediate signal to the
arms and legs to jerk back upright. Heinz says such jerking while dozing off is a phenomenon that just seems to accompany the natural sleep process.
But when jerks happen during a deep sleep, the causes are different. Snoring, breathing problems, teeth grinding, leg cramps and even nightmares can cause a person to jerk during deep sleep, Heinz says.
Marianne Middleton, clinical coordinator at the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Sleep Disorders Center, says the occurrence of hypnic jerk can become cyclical. If you lose sleep because you constantly jerk awake, you will become fatigued and may develop anxiety or worry about falling asleep. The more worried and tired you are, the more likely you are to jerk awake. The more you jerk awake, the more sleep you lose. Thus the cycle.
Middleton says this process makes it even harder for the brain to distinguish between whether the body is relaxing for sleep or falling down. When you have sleep anxiety, she says, the muscles continually attempt to relax and shut down for rest, while your brain remains awake. This creates continued misinterpretations of falling or loss of balance.
Hypnic jerks can also occur when a person has had a lot of caffeine or completes strenuous activities in the evening, according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Both make it harder for your body to move through the natural motions of falling asleep.
The Academy also cites emotional stress as a potential cause of hypnic jerking. If you are stressed about school, work or your social life, it is more
difficult to doze. You lie in bed feeling. like your brain is refusing to shut off. The chances of having a hypnic jerk increase if this goes on too long. Emotional stress functions much like sleep anxiety as a cause for hypnic jerks.
Kynan Gibson, Salina senior, says he jerks awake about once a week. He says he thinks this happens more often when he is stressed about finishing homework or when he has been sleeping poorly. Gibson says it's frustrating because it takes him at least half an hour to fall asleep, and after twitching awake, he'll lie in bed for almost an hour trying to go back to sleep. The next day, he says, he feels like he hardly slept at all.
Though there is no cure, the American Academy
of Sleep Medicine has several suggestions about what you can do to prevent jerking awake. All these factors contribute to better "sleep hygiene," or a healthier, more effective sleeping routine. Among these are devoting at least eight hours to sleeping each night, getting up at the same time each morning and setting aside some time for yourself each evening to do a calming activity like reading or taking a warm bath to wind down.
Stacy Watson rubs her eyes and says she plans on adjusting her routine before bed. She says she is going to make time to relax each evening to help her sleep,"I think I deserve a bubble bath tonight." Watson says.
for Better Sleep Hygiene The idea behind sleep hygiene is the same as Make your bedroom dark quiet and cool.
personal hygiene.You make habits that keep you healthy.Try the following things to improve your sleep hygiene:
Don't go to bed unless you're tired.
Avoid taking naps if you can.
Don't write, eat, watch TV or talk on the phone in bed.
Don't go to bed hungry, but don't eat a lot, either. A light snack will do.
Avoid exercising six hours before going to bed.
Avoid drinking soda, coffee or other caffeinated beverages before going to bed.
Avoid smoking right before bed.
Try to rid yourself of stressful thoughts or activities in the afternoon.
Source:American Academy of Sleep Medicine
Photo by Taylor Miller (c) 2015 Larry Volkoff
for more information: www.sleepnet.com
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