Why do night terrors seem so real

Usually this transition is a smooth one. But sometimes, a child becomes upset and frightened — and that fear reaction is a night terror. Night terrors usually happen in kids between 4 and 12 years old, but have been reported in babies as young as 18 months. They seem to be a little more common among boys.

A child might have a single night terror or several before they stop. Most of the time, night terrors simply disappear on their own as the nervous system matures. Night terrors can be very upsetting for parents, who might feel helpless when they can't comfort their child.

The best way to handle a night terror is to wait it out patiently and make sure your child doesn't get hurt if thrashing around.

If your night terrors tend to happen around the same time, try waking yourself up about 15 minutes before they would typically happen. Stay awake for several minutes before going back to sleep. In some cases, night terrors could be a sign of stress, trauma, anxiety, depression, or other mental health concerns. If nothing seems to be working, consider seeking support from a therapist.

You can book an appointment with a mental health professional in your area using our Healthline FindCare tool. A therapist can help you identify any underlying issues and help you develop new coping tools. Biofeedback , hypnosis , and cognitive behavioral therapy can all help. If you live with or share a bed with a partner who has night terrors, there are a few things you can do to offer comfort and keep them safe. Avoid trying to wake them up during an episode.

You may not be able to wake them, but even if you can, they may become confused or upset. This could cause them to act out physically, potentially injuring both of you. What you can do is be there to offer comfort without getting physically involved.

Talk to them in a calm, quiet voice. But back off as soon as you sense any hesitation or aggression. If your partner feels embarrassed the next day when they hear about their behavior, try to offer reassurance and understanding. Consider showing support by helping them keep track of episodes in a sleep diary or going with them to a therapist appointment. Night terrors are short, frightening episodes might cause you to cry out or get up in your sleep. If you experience night terrors often or find them difficult to cope with, start by making an appointment with your doctor.

They can help you narrow down a potential cause or help you find a sleep specialist or therapist. In , a study of almost 7, children aged 8 to 10 years, with a follow-up around age 13, showed that those who were bullied were more than twice as likely to experience night terrors. In addition, night terrors are often associated with other underlying conditions, such as breathing problems while sleeping, for example, sleep apnea , migraine , head injuries, restless leg syndrome and certain medications.

In addition, Night terrors and sleepwalking appear to be linked. They both occur during slow-wave sleep, the deepest sleep stages, that happen in the early part of the night. Some researchers believe that people who experience sleepwalking or night terrors may have difficulty in maintaining slow-wave sleep.

This makes them susceptible to quick arousals, and it increases the chance of parasomnias. Brain lesions are an unlikely cause of night terrors. In some cases, however, damage to or dysfunction of the thalamus has been linked to this phenomenon.

She underwent observation in a sleep laboratory to investigate the cause. The tests showed an increased signal coming from the thalamus. This appeared to cause the micro-arousals suggestive of night terrors.

The thalamus is thought to play a key role in maintaining sleep-wake cycles. It also acts to dampen of the signals that normally arrive from the senses, including those of hearing, while we sleep. Most of the information our brain receives from the outside world passes through the thalamus before it is sent out to the parts of the brain that enable us to see or hear, for example. As a result, when we sleep, we are less aware of tactile stimuli and the sounds around us.

The researchers found that a person is significantly more likely to experience night terrors if their identical twin does. In non-identical twins, the chance of this happening is lower. A long-term study of 1, children, published in , found that those whose parents had walked in their sleep were more likely to have night terrors and that these night terrors were more likely to persist for longer. The peak age for night terrors in childhood was found to be 18 months.

Night terrors, also known as sleep terrors and pavor nocturnes, tend to last between one and six minutes and are most common in children. Although distressing to those who witness them, the attacks are mostly harmless and most children grow out of them. Each sleep cycle lasts 90— minutes, so most people pass through five or so cycles every night. Most night terrors occur during the first sleep cycle. It is rare to have two or more attacks in a single night. The dreams experienced by people having a night terror are terrifying — falling off cliffs, being violently assaulted, being deserted and vulnerable, for instance.

The person experiencing an attack usually cannot be comforted or reassured, which is particularly hard for parents whose child is prone to night terrors. Overall, about one-third of people experience an isolated night terror during their lifetime. Incidence generally declines with age and few teenagers experience regular night terrors.

Only in rare cases do people develop night terrors late in life. It is thought that having night terrors might be a normal part of growing up, in that the brains of children are immature and need time to develop normal sleep patterns. Genetics may also be a factor, in that incidence seems to run in families. Beyond this, sleep deprivation or erratic sleeping habits seem to make night terrors more likely.

In some people, emotional disturbance triggers a night terror. Adults with post-traumatic stress disorder, for example, can be affected. Other factors associated with attacks include symptoms associated with depression, low self-esteem, anxiety, difficulty in expressing aggression and phobias.