How to Stop Talking in Your Sleep: Effective Steps to Quiet Rest

Article:

Various sleep disorders can be associated with neurological diseases, mental disorders and psychological characteristics of a person.
The most common phenomenon is talking while sleeping. These can be meaningful words, mumbles, short phrases and even dialogue. At the same time, children talk in their sleep more often than adults. The exact reasons for this phenomenon are unknown. It is assumed that this may be a variant of the normal condition or a sign of pathology.

Basic information

In the medical and psychological literature, talking during sleep is called sleep-talking. This is a common parasomnic disorder associated with various conditions. Its various manifestations are possible: short screams, muttering, monologues and dialogues. This can be an independent phenomenon or a manifestation of somnambulism, in which motor activity occurs. Doctors consider this condition to be a variant of the norm, but in some cases, a child talking in his sleep indicates the presence of certain problems. To clarify the causes of the disease, it is necessary to conduct an examination.

If your child talks in his sleep, there is no need to panic. This condition occurs in every person at least once in their life and is considered safe. Pronunciation of sounds, screams and muttering occur due to nightmares, sleep paralysis and other parasomnic phenomena. You need to pay attention to other suspicious manifestations, such as increased anxiety, decreased mood, or signs of neurological disorders. Very rarely, sleep talking indicates brain damage.

Oral speech is regulated by the brain. In the area of ​​the vocal cords there are muscle structures on which voice production depends. A person consciously sets muscle fibers in motion and performs articulation with the help of his tongue and lips. During childhood, articulation gradually develops, so conscious functions are not always present. A 2-3 year old child has poor control over the pronunciation of sounds. At 4-5 years of age, vocabulary increases and early features of oral speech are consolidated. As a rule, by the time children enter school, at 6-7 years of age, the nervous regulation of speech function has fully matured. However, some disorders may persist in school-age children.

Stages and severity of sleep talking

Conversation in a dream is determined by both stages and severity.

Stages 1 and 2

During these stages, a person with somniloquy does not sleep as deeply as in stages three and four, and their speech is easier to understand. A sleep talker in stages one or two can have conversations that make sense.

Stages 3 and 4

The speaker is in deeper sleep, so his speech is more difficult to understand. These may be moans, individual sounds, indistinct snatches of words or phrases. The severity of a conversation in a dream is determined by how often it occurs.

• Mild : Sleep talking occurs less than once a month.
• Moderate : Sleep talking occurs once a week, but not every night. Conversations do not disturb the sleep of other people in the room too much.
• Severe : Sleep talking occurs every night and can interfere with the sleep of other people in the room.

Sleep and speech function

The state of sleep is natural. This is a kind of rest mode for the body, when the reaction to external and internal stimuli is reduced. A sleeping person has poor auditory, visual and tactile sensitivity. At this time, a change in activity patterns occurs in the brain, allowing nerve cells to accumulate energy and structure information.

Sleep is also characterized by other physiological changes, including relaxation of skeletal muscles, changes in respiratory rate and heart rate.

Sleep structure:

• Orthodox sleep

Continues for 60-80 minutes. Traditionally divided into four phases. The first phase is characterized by a change in the electrical activity of the brain. Physiological changes occur, such as slower breathing and heart rate. In the second phase, consciousness turns off, but the person is still easy to wake up. During the fourth phase, a deep state of sleep occurs, when it is very difficult to wake a person. At this time dreams appear. It is the fourth phase of slow-wave sleep that is characterized by various parasomnic disorders, including sleep talking.

• Fast wave sleep

This period lasts for 15-20 minutes. Electrical activity in the brain resembles wakefulness, but the person cannot move or think clearly. Vivid dreams arise that can be easily recalled immediately after waking up. Spontaneous motor activity of the eyeballs is characteristic. Hormonal and autonomic changes occur. It is believed that during fast-wave sleep there is an active redistribution of information in consciousness.

Normally, a sleeping child does not move or speak, since motor activity is blocked. The release of a special hormone during sleep helps reduce muscle tone, including the muscles of the oral cavity. This is necessary to ensure that a person does not accidentally injure himself in an unconscious state. At the same time, it is sometimes possible to spontaneously “turn on” certain muscle groups, including muscle fibers responsible for articulation. The exact causes of this phenomenon are unknown, but it is believed that the mechanism of development of sleep-speaking is similar to somnambulism and night paralysis. Muscle tone increases faster than a person returns to clear consciousness.

How to get rid of somniloquy yourself?

• Somniloquy, in addition to causing anxiety to those around them, also causes psychological discomfort to the person himself, who tends to talk in his sleep.
• The news of his own nightly conversations causes him embarrassment and instills fear of falling asleep outside the home with strangers (for example, on a train or hotel).
• If the dreaming is mild, you can help yourself get rid of it yourself.

You can treat it yourself
Sleep specialists recommend using the following simple methods:

• Keep a routine and go to bed at the same time every day. Weekends should be no exception. The fact is that the human body functions in accordance with developed habits. By adhering to a single schedule for falling asleep and waking up, the body will more accurately regulate its work during periods of night rest.
• Don't drink alcohol before bed and try not to smoke.
• Avoid stimulants and caffeine-containing products in the afternoon.
• Get at least 8 hours of sleep a night. Lack of sleep provokes nervous tension and excessive stress on the body. It becomes difficult for consciousness to regulate the phases of sleep. And this leads to its violations, including sleep speaking.
• Don't overload your brain before bed with learning new or very complex information.
• Avoid reading books and watching movies that can cause you emotional arousal.
• If you experience extreme anxiety or stress, take a relaxing bath and drink a mild herbal sedative.
• Minimize emotional stress. Learn techniques to relax and reduce anxiety. Practice meditation, do yoga.

Engage in moderate physical activity daily. This will make all body systems function normally. However, refrain from exercising an hour or two before bed, as the increased blood circulation caused by physical activity can invigorate you and prevent you from falling asleep properly.

• to avoid twilight during the day . Spend at least six hours a day in natural light. Under such conditions, the brain will associate light with wakefulness and darkness with rest. This will promote a deep and restful night's sleep.
• Don't eat 3 hours before bedtime. If you have to have dinner late, then avoid heavy foods and foods that contain a lot of sugar.
• Use the bed only as a sleeping place. When lying down in it, do not watch TV, do not read or surf the Internet. Then the brain will associate the bed only with rest, which will promote deep and restful sleep. For the same purpose, try to fall asleep only in your own bed. If you sleep in different places, the brain cannot relax completely and remains vigilant, which provokes conversations in your sleep.
• Sleep in a cool room. Studies have shown that in a stuffy, hot room a person is more susceptible to attacks of somniloquy.
• If someone else sleeps in the room with you and becomes an unwitting listener to your nightly conversations, ask him to quietly calm you down when you have another attack.

Let them reassure you.
Somniloquy can appear in any person under the influence of various factors. If you 're talking in your sleep, try to take it in your stride. Don't worry too much about this. In fact, this is not such a terrible problem. Don't think that others can know your innermost thoughts. The words spoken in a dream do not at all reflect your real thoughts and feelings, but are only a consequence of dreams. However, to take care of sound, restful sleep , because a person’s well-being and quality of life depend on it.

Why does a child talk in his sleep?

The mechanism for the formation of sleep-speaking may be associated with mental activity and physiological disorders. It should be borne in mind that such an “illness” is typical for most people, so it is important to distinguish the natural pronunciation of sounds in a sleeping state from signs of somnambulism and other disorders. Numerous studies have made it possible to clarify the possible mechanisms of this phenomenon.

Known Causes:

1. Violation of the mechanism of muscle atony. As already mentioned, the body blocks muscle activity during the night. This protective mechanism is associated with the activity of parts of the midbrain. It is assumed that muscle atonia can spontaneously “turn off” during sleep. For example, during REM sleep, movement of the eyeballs occurs. It is possible that it is during this period that sleep talking is possible.
2. Organic brain damage. This is a rare cause of this phenomenon. Damage to the pons and medulla oblongata nuclei is possible. In this case, other signs of pathology will certainly appear that are not related to night rest. These may include movement disorders, decreased intelligence and emotional disorders.
3. Taking medications. If your child suddenly starts talking in his sleep, you need to pay attention to the medications he is taking. For example, psychotropic drugs that affect the exchange of neurotransmitters in the brain often cause sleepiness. First of all, these are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (antidepressants). Taking antidepressants is accompanied by other problems, including a decrease in the duration of night rest and frequent awakenings at night.
4. Other neurological diseases, such as intracerebral hemorrhage, damage to the auditory nerve and multiple sclerosis, in which the myelin sheath of nerve structures is destroyed. As with organic brain damage, the child will have other obvious symptoms.
5. Insomnia or hypersomnia. The patient sleeps too little or too much. The recommended amount of sleep depends on age. At the age of 10-11 years, a child may need the “adult norm” of 8-9 hours. Lack of night rest has a greater effect on the state of the nervous system. Symptoms such as irritability, anxiety, weakness and decreased mood appear.
6. Hormonal changes. This reason is most common for patients aged 12-13 years, when, on average, boys and girls begin the main stages of puberty.
7. Psychological reasons. In this case, sleep talking is not associated with physiological disorders.

Psychological factors

If your child often talks in his sleep, you need to pay attention to his psychological well-being. Many adverse factors increase the risk of developing this disorder. First of all, these are violations in the emotional sphere. Main triggers:

• Chronic stress

The mechanism of adaptation of the nervous system to adverse influences is called stress. If stress factors affect a child for too long and too often, complications develop.

• Constant worry

One of the consequences of chronic stress is anxiety. The patient begins to experience fear for no reason. Anxiety in the evening and at night makes it difficult to fall asleep and provokes frequent awakenings.

• Family troubles

These are constant conflicts with parents, violence from parents, etc.

• Increased psychological excitability

A common condition that most often occurs in children during preschool age. Signs of increased excitability include disobedience, restlessness, hyperactivity and decreased concentration.

Speaking during sleep: features of the phenomenon

Somniloquy is a sleep disorder in which the sleeper talks while dreaming. After waking up, the “speaking” person does not remember what he dreamed and is not even aware of the night monologue. The attack of “talkiness” can be one-time (about 30 seconds) or repeated many times during the night.

It is important to know! This behavior often causes misunderstanding among others: unwitting listeners take what is said in a dream personally. This is an absolute misconception, since the sleeper reproduces individual vocal sounds, snatches of incomprehensible phrases completely unconsciously.

Moreover, the presence of such a feature can provoke a persistent fear in a person of going to bed outside his own home.

Why does a person talk in his sleep? Somnologists consider sleep talking a compensatory process that helps the transition between phases of dreams. It is known that slow and fast sleep alternate several times during the entire rest period. Unsolved "gibberish" usually appears during the shallow stage. It stops when moving to the next “turn of the spiral.” In this way, a person falls asleep deeper.

Manifestations of somniloquy

Among experts and researchers of dream problems, there is a conventional division of conversations in a dream. It is believed that depending on the nature and intonation of the tirade, a specific stage of peace can be determined:

• If the speech is articulate, logically connected and in understandable language, it means that the person is in a state of drowsiness or in the paradoxical phase of a dream.
• Vague interjections, repeated moans, screams, delusional phrases out loud indicate the peak of delta sleep (the deepest stage).

Some experts are inclined to believe that the meaning of what is said in a dream is directly related to the period of wakefulness. However, in practice, another, opposite theory is most often confirmed: scraps of words and sentences mean nothing and have no common meaning with a person’s life.

People who talk in their sleep

Statistics show that for about twenty adult individuals, there is one person who is talkative in their sleep. Most often this is a middle-aged man. Among young children, almost every second one can boast of nightly conversations.

It is important to know! Somniloquy is sometimes inherited by descendants from older relatives. Therefore, if your deceased great-great-grandfather was an oh, you need to mentally prepare for your own nightly “performances.”

The etiology of this fact has not been fully studied, but there is a direct connection between talking with closed eyes and daytime emotional shock. Moreover, stress can have the prefix “-di” (negative) and “-ai” (vice versa). This is explained by excitation in the center of the cerebral cortex, which occurs as a result of a strong “shake”. This area is associated with speech functions, which is why rich, varied literature appears.

Causes of sleep talking at different ages

Dreaming in itself is a normal phenomenon and is not a pathology. People talk in their sleep for a variety of reasons. Some of them are minor and easily eliminated. Others will not disappear without outside medical assistance. Depending on a person’s age, various conditions can serve as the basis for “talkativeness.” This table shows the possible relationship options:

It should be noted that babies who have not yet learned to talk often “chat” in their sleep. In this way they train and develop communication skills. As you grow older, the nervous system stabilizes and nighttime “tongue twisters” disappear.

Is it dangerous or not

In the vast majority of cases, somniloquy does not need to be treated; it does not entail serious consequences.

The exceptions are some variants of serious pathologies:

• Paradoxical sleep phase disorder. Manifests itself in excessive expressiveness, crying, sudden screams, and constantly calling someone by name. Sleepwalking with an eating disorder may develop. (This is when a person goes into the kitchen at night, opens the refrigerator and eats a lot, but in the morning he doesn’t remember anything like that).
• Epilepsy. Additional symptoms: regularity and accuracy of the timing of the seizure, aggressive reactions of the “sufferer”. There is significant confusion of consciousness (impossible to awaken). The famous foreign psychologist Louise Hay associates the appearance of regular attacks with a suppressed desire to escape (from circumstances, problems, unpleasant people). Therefore, it is necessary to analyze recent events, the patient’s environment and ensure maximum emotional comfort. This reason requires immediate medical attention. Treatment should be carried out by a qualified psychotherapist.

Isolated cases link talking in sleep with schizophrenia, psychopathy and other mental illnesses. Their diagnosis and identification is characterized by the presence of other specific signs. A sharp change in habits and behavior, constant doubts, excessive pedantry, perfectionism in small things is a good reason to contact an appropriate specialist.

Additional signs

If the patient begins to talk while sleeping, you need to pay attention to the behavior. Symptoms indicating pathology can appear both during night rest and while awake. Often these are subtle signs that are not associated with any disorders:

• the patient grinds his teeth at night;
• during wakefulness, absent-mindedness and impaired concentration are observed;
• there is a lack of coordination in space;
• decreased cognitive functions, including memory and intelligence;
• the child walks and talks in his sleep;
• signs of restlessness and anxiety appear during the daytime;
• there is a decrease in mood, frequent tearfulness;
• lack of motivation and decreased performance (apathy);
• lack of appetite and weight loss.

If these symptoms appear, it is recommended to consult a neurologist for examination. It is important to exclude diseases of the nervous system and parasomnic disorders. For example, if the patient sleeps with his eyes open and moves around in a sleeping state, somnambulism must be excluded.

How to stop talking in your sleep: preventive measures

Unfortunately, there is no known way to completely overcome somniloquy. However, by avoiding stress and getting enough sleep, you can significantly reduce the number of episodes of talking in your sleep.

Additionally, some lifestyle changes can also help control your sleep. Among them:

• limiting alcohol consumption;
• avoiding heavy meals before bedtime;
• maintaining a regular sleep schedule.

• Author: Maria Minaeva

Associated states

There are comorbid diseases that may be associated with the pronunciation of sounds at night. First of all, these are other parasomnic disorders and mental disorders. There is also a possible relationship with pathologies of the endocrine system. Let's consider the pathologies in which sleep talking often occurs.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

A disorder of mental and neurological activity in children, manifested by increased excitability, impulsivity, decreased concentration, impaired cognitive functions and deterioration in the assimilation of new information. The patient often talks during the night's rest due to insufficient inhibition of the nervous system and increased reaction to external stimuli.

Somnambulism

Motor activity of a sleeping person. A child in a sleeping state talks, screams, gets out of bed, moves around the apartment and even performs meaningful actions. However, after waking up, he cannot remember anything.

Somnambulism (sleepwalking) is a type of mental disorder in which people perform certain actions while in a state of sleep.

Hyperthyroidism

Excessive production of thyroid hormones. These substances are responsible for the general regulation of the body. Due to the excessive release of hormones into the bloodstream, symptoms such as irritability, insomnia, aggressiveness, decreased concentration and increased physical activity occur.

Epilepsy

A neurological disease in which convulsive attacks occur periodically. This is a chronic pathology that cannot be completely eliminated. As the disease progresses, a variety of mental and neurological complications develop. Talking while sleeping can be a manifestation of nocturnal epilepsy.

At the same time, talking while asleep is often an isolated symptom. If nothing else bothers the patient, no special diagnosis is required.

Somniloquy in adults

In adults, speech activity during sleep is rare - only 5%. Interestingly, representatives of the stronger sex are more often susceptible to somniloquy.

The described sleep disorder can manifest itself in different ways:

• In the form of a monologue, when a person simply talks about something.
• Like a dialogue during which the sleeper addresses someone from his dream.
• Unintelligible muttering or moaning.
• Loud scream.

Sounds to sleeping people can be made either sporadically, lasting about half a minute, or repeatedly throughout the night. The timbre of a person’s voice may differ significantly from what he has during periods of wakefulness. Sometimes a sleeper can wake up from the sound of his own voice, and in rare cases, people in a dream are even able to speak a different language.

Most people, when they wake up, do not remember anything about what they talked about at night. Some simply cannot believe their tendency to talk in their sleep, sincerely believing that their loved ones are playing a prank on them.

Women talk in their sleep less often than men

The nature and intonation of conversation in a dream are determined by the sleep phase in which the sleeping person is:

• During the deep phase of sleep, mostly moans are produced or inarticulate nonsense is uttered.
• In the rapid phase of sleep, during which the brain centers are activated and a person contemplates vivid dreams, speech activity is the most intelligible and coherent.
• In an episode of sleep paralysis, the words from the dream are spoken out loud quite clearly.
• In the stage of falling asleep, a person, as a rule, mumbles, since the pronounced sounds are a kind of compensatory reaction that makes transitions between different phases of sleep easier.

It must be said that this division is conditional. As a rule, based on the nature of the sounds pronounced, it is difficult to determine with accuracy which phase of sleep the talker is in.

Survey

First, you need to contact a psychotherapist who will conduct tests to identify signs of anxiety, decreased mood and hyperactivity. Particular attention is paid to the child’s relationships with parents and peers. Key risk factors are identified. If necessary, the patient is referred to another specialist. Consultation with a neurologist, child psychiatrist, endocrinologist, epileptologist and therapist may be required.

Special examinations:

1. Long-term psychological observation. Regular consultations help to identify the prerequisites for the occurrence of sleep talking.
2. Study of the functioning of the brain during wakefulness and sleep: electroencephalography, somnography. If necessary, visual examinations are performed to exclude organic brain damage.
3. Examination of internal organs, including the study of hormonal levels.

It is important to inform the specialist about the medications you are taking, diagnosed diseases and other symptoms.

In what cases should you visit a doctor?

In addition to frequent talking in your sleep and gesturing with your hands, reasons for visiting a doctor are:

• Situations when the sleeper speaks and constantly tosses and turns in bed, as if he is having a nightmare.
• Loud screams in a dream.
• Regular awakenings in the middle of the night in a cold sweat.

Any of these situations disrupt sleep and have a negative impact on quality of life. Therefore, to avoid deterioration in health, consult a doctor.

At the first appointment, the doctor will ask about the symptoms of somniloquy and refer you for polysomnography - a sleep study in a special laboratory. Also, the doctor may recommend keeping a diary in which you should record attacks of somniloquy.

Household members will help you record your sleep. If you live alone, record your sleep on a voice recorder , which is found in almost every mobile phone. Later, these notes should be shown to the doctor to make a correct diagnosis.

Entries in the diary should include information about the time of falling asleep and waking up, the names of medications taken, as well as food and drinks consumed before bedtime. In addition, record all negative events that happened the day before.

The diary is kept for at least 2 weeks. The sleep information collected during this time is sufficient for a specialist to make a diagnosis.

What to do

Psychological assistance is the main aspect of treatment if the child does not have pathologies of the brain and internal organs. It is necessary to eliminate all possible factors for the development of chronic stress.

Methods for improving psychological well-being include restoring calm family relationships, reducing academic workload, and eliminating conflict situations in relationships with peers. Family and individual counseling may be required. If pathologies of the central nervous system and internal organs are detected, doctors provide treatment.