Sleepwalking

Sleepwalking

If wakewalkers are people who wander around lethargically during the day with a glazed look in their eyes, what do you call people who do it at night? While they're asleep?

Of course, the term wakewalking hasn't been widely accepted yet. But sleepwalking has, perhaps because as much as 15 percent of the population--as many as 30 million Americans--are sleepwalkers. This most-joked-about medical condition is most prevalant between ages 6 and 12 and usually ends by age 14. (If sleepwalking continues beyond age 18, doctors advise seeking counseling at a sleep disorders center.)

So what if you wake up one night to find a member of your household sleepwalking around? Here are some doctor-recommended tips on how to deal with sleepwalkers.

Don't wake them suddenly. There's no truth to the rumor that waking up a sleepwalker is dangerous to the walker. But if you do, stand clear. "If you wake a sleepwalker abruptly, you can startle him and may wind up with a black eye," says Gary Zammit, Ph.D., director of the Sleep Disorders Institute at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City. "The best thing to do with a sleepwalker in your house is to gently guide him back to bed and encourage him to lie on his back. You can talk to him, but it should be in a soothing and gentle manner."

When to See the Doctor

In adults, sleepwalking is associated with excessive stress, so dealing with the stress in your life is a good way to control or eliminate sleepwalking," says Peter Hauri, Ph.D., co-director of the Mayo Clinic Sleep Disorders Center in Rochester, Minnesota. (And don't use alcohol and other sedatives as stress relievers, because they interfere with sleep quality.) Dr. Hauri and other doctors recommend treatment at a sleep disorders center if you are over the age of 18 and have a problem with sleepwalking.

Protect them. "While you shouldn't intervene with a sleepwalker, you should take measures to protect him from injury," adds Marc Weissbluth, M.D., director of the Childrens Memorial Hospital Sleep Disorders Center in Chicago and author of Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. "That means locks on doors, gates on stairs, bolting down windows and removing sharp-edged toys. As long as they're protected from injury, they'll be fine. Either they will go back to bed by themselves or they'll sleep somewhere else."

Make sure they get enough sleep. Being overtired or not getting enough sleep--the culprit behind sleep terrors and bed-wetting--can also cause sleepwalking in some children, says Dr. Weissbluth. "Often the answer is simply to make sure the children get more sleep."

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