What is night terror disease? [1]

A healthy sleep consists of two different periods as REM sleep and non-REM sleep. REM stands for Rapid Eye Movement. As the name implies, the pupil moves very quickly in REM sleep and the dreams that are seen in this period are mostly remembered. In REM sleep, the body of the individual is immobile and the breathing and heartbeat are very fast. During a sleep, REM occurs 4-6 times and the duration and frequency increases towards the end of sleep. Non-REM sleep is divided into deep non-REM sleep and superficial non-REM sleep. Sleep outside of deep REM is the deepest phase of sleep. At this stage, breathing and heartbeat are slow and regular, eye movement is almost absent. It is very difficult to wake up from sleep at this stage. It is easy to wake up from superficial REM sleep, at the beginning of sleep, after this period, deep sleep goes into sleep. Night terror disease occurs in the period of deep non-REM sleep. Unlike dreams, night terror occurs with sudden fear or awakening from sleep in transitions from one period to another. So what is night terror disease?

What is night terror disease?
Although sleep disorders fall into many subcategories, night terror disease is one of them. Night terror disease, also called parasomnia, which disrupts the sleep pattern of the individual; it includes abnormal movements, behaviors, perceptions, emotions and dreams that can occur while falling asleep, during sleep, during sleep stages and during awakening. Many people face night terror at some stage in their lives. Researches by experts found that 88% of children between the ages of five months and six years old had parasomnia disease at least once. Night terror disease tends to decrease after puberty. It was determined that this disease was observed in many of the individuals who developed parasomnia during and after adolescence. Night terror can be observed in several different ways. Parasomnia, which is observed outside of REM sleep, occurs with walking (sleepwalking), while in REM sleep, it manifests as nightmares and sleep paralysis.
What are the symptoms of night terror disease?
Symptoms of night terrorism disease are characteristic and each attack occurs similarly. The person who is asleep suddenly wakes from his sleep during the night terror attack and can scream by sitting on the bed in a frightened state. As a continuation of this, the shouting leaves the groan, breathing becomes more frequent due to fear and sweating can be seen. Due to fear, the individual may want to take off their clothes and tend to leave the environment. It is possible to see involuntary muscle movements because the patient's consciousness is not fully opened. Attacks caused by the disease appear in the first 2 or 4 hours of sleep. The symptoms, which can take a very short time depending on the severity of the attack, may also last for minutes if the patient cannot get out of the attack. Often the individual re-sleeps and falls asleep, unaware of what he has done. Often the patient is not fully awake during these symptoms. When sleep is complete, the individual is unaware of the attack he has had in his sleep. Different, and milder, speech, deep sighing and groaning can also be seen during sleep.
What are the causes of night terror disease?
One of the most important reasons underlying night terror disease is psychological problems. In fact, very few other causes cause parasomnia disease. The haste of modern life, the less time people can spend on it, the lack of unbalanced nutrition and socialization cause many psychological and physiological diseases as well as sleep diseases. Events that will not be enjoyed by the individual during the day are subconsciously. These events may be unrest at work, any problems in public transport, and family problems. Subliminal events often occur during sleep. In addition, the noise of cities, too much light and irregular sleep are the most important factors in the emergence of parasomnia. Personality disorders, relationship problems, stress, some medications, fever, insomnia, antidepressant drugs can also cause parasomnia. Although very few patients are encountered, there may be a genetic tendency. The history of the patient is very important in terms of determining whether the disease occurs due to genetic reasons. If parents have had sleep problems at some point in their life, it may be that they are genetically transferred.
How is night terror disease diagnosed?
For the diagnosis of night terror disease, it is necessary to make a definite distinction from epilepsy. In order to make this distinction, a polysomnography called sleep test, that is called PSG, is performed. The patient is tested in a clinical and hygienic environment at the time determined by the doctor. During the test, EEG for brain waves detection, EOG for eye movement detection, EMG for muscle activities are used. In addition, the patient's respiratory pattern, the amount of oxygen in the blood and heart functions are measured. The test is carried out in the time period to be determined according to the expert's recommendation. Stimulants such as coffee, alcohol, cigarettes should not be used throughout the day in order to obtain more reliable results from the test. It is also important not to use any medication due to its side effects. During the entire sleep, the patient's sleep is examined with certain slices. This is because sleep has many phases. Any abnormality that will occur is determinant in diagnosis in relation to which part of sleep occurs. If epilepsy attacks do not occur in the patient whose sleep pattern is examined, night terror disease can be diagnosed.
What are the methods of treating night terror disease?
Night terror disease often disappears by itself after adolescence. Attacks are also extremely rare during periods of illness. If this situation repeats every day or every few days, it is necessary to consult the psychiatrist or neurologist. Although daytime sleep is not recommended in order to make night sleep more efficient, younger patients may be recommended daytime sleep. Regardless of the patient's age, care should be taken to ensure that the air of the sleeping environment is clean and the sleeping bed is hygienic. In individuals where night terror disease is observed day by day, if the seizure occurs at similar times, it is useful to wake the individual before the seizure. However, it is not recommended to wake the patient during an attack. Apart from all these, the underlying cause of the disease should be eliminated. A problem experienced by a school-age patient at school with friends or teachers can lead to the emergence of night terror disease. If the problems of the child are detected and eliminated, it will be seen that the attacks end with decreasing. Adult individuals may also have problems in business, social or family life. In these cases, it will be useful to get support from the psychological counselor. Ensuring regularity of sleep times in individuals of all ages helps to reduce attacks.
If you or those around you experience sleep problems mentioned above and suspect night terror disease, it is useful to consult a neurology or psychiatrist. Although night terror disease does not cause permanent or serious problems, it should be remembered that it may arise from the stress or psychological problems brought by daily life. The underlying cause of the disease should be diagnosed and treated without causing any other serious illnesses. It is important to remember how important a healthy sleep is and to see a specialist in any sleep problem for a more peaceful life. We wish you healthy days.

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