Why does a person talk out loud in his sleep

We often wonder why a person talks in his sleep. In medicine, this condition is called somniloquy. More often, this phenomenon occurs in children during adolescence. Because at this time the child’s nervous system is very tense. As for adults, the phenomenon in question manifests itself less frequently in them.

Talking in dreams causes a lot of trouble. After all, a person suffering from this defect is not able to control himself and can upset his loved ones. Therefore, the emerging problem needs to be dealt with.

Why do we talk in our sleep

Why does a person speak in a dream? Unfortunately, even today the reasons for the appearance of this phenomenon have not been established. A number of ongoing studies have not yielded results.

Because the opinions of scientists differ radically. Some argue that a sleeping person simply repeats the words and sentences spoken to him before going to bed. But others insist that talking in a dream is the imagination of the subconscious. Well, the third group of scientists assures that a sleeping adult is simply commenting on a dream.

But there is a group of researchers whose insight into this phenomenon is radically different from all previous ones. In their opinion, the causes of sleep-speaking may be physiological in nature and depend on lifestyle.

Causes of somniclovia

If relatives tell a person that they observe that he is talkative while resting, the question naturally arises: “Why do I talk in my sleep?” Somnologists are inclined to believe that the main reason for this phenomenon lies in the malfunction of parts of the brain during the dreaming process. The main thing in this case is to establish in which phase of sleep the symptoms appear. All human states during the night are divided into four groups:

Falling asleep;
Medium deep sleep;
Delta sleep, when there are no dreams;
Complete blackout.

Most often, somniclovia makes itself felt as a disorder of the rapid phase of sleep in the first and second cases. Occasionally speaking in a dream is observed during the long-wave phase, but in this case an incomplete monologue and indistinct muttering are heard, since all muscles, including the jaw and facial muscles, are as relaxed as possible.

Reasons for talking in sleep in children

For the first time, sleep-speaking is a consequence of intensive speech development in a child. During the resting process, the child re-experiences all the emotional experiences of the past day and expresses his opinion on this matter. In this case, impressions can be both negative and positive.

The second reason for speaking in children is the formation of the nervous system. It is known that until the central nervous system stabilizes its functioning, the child may suffer from sleepwalking, accompanied by somniclovia. Most often this is a temporary phenomenon that goes away as you grow older.

Reasons for talking in sleep in adults

It also happens that a person has never spoken in his sleep in his life, and the symptom first appeared after puberty. The reason for this lies in the disruption of sleep phases under the influence of various negative factors:

Prolonged depression

The body tries to get out of a state of strong emotional experience by analyzing the current situation. The subconscious continues to work during sleep, causing vivid images, which are often accompanied by speaking. This same condition is responsible for screaming in sleep.

Neuroses

As a result of stress or severe nervous shock, they can cause somnology. Usually the symptom goes away on its own during therapy for an unstable emotional state.

Soreness

Often talking in a dream appears when the temperature rises to a critical level. In these cases they say that the person is delusional. Sometimes relatives notice that the patient is trying to give instructions on some unfinished business.

Impressionability

Vivid emotions and impressions evoke speaking not only in children, but also in adults, although much less frequently. Some particularly impressionable people, under intense psychological or physical stress, even talk every night.

Brain injuries and central nervous system diseases

It is currently unknown how exactly brain and spinal cord injuries affect sleep speaking. However, dependence can be seen in many patients.

Bad habits

Smoking at night, drinking alcohol or drugs, eating a very hearty dinner - all this puts a person’s nervous system into a state of heightened excitement and does not allow them to relax. As a result, the body continues to work even if consciousness falls asleep. Somniclovia in such a situation is a natural phenomenon, which is completely determined by the activity of various body systems.

Medications

Improper use of medications that affect the function of the central nervous system may be accompanied by a hallucinatory state. Strictly speaking, at this moment the patient is not sleeping, but is in a state where consciousness “turns off” due to overload, but other functions continue to work as before.

Heredity

Statistics show that if a child’s parents talk in their sleep, then there is a high probability that the child himself, after going through puberty, will conduct night conversations. Interestingly, most often such heredity can be traced through the male line.

In the vast majority of cases, nighttime conversations in adults are associated with nervous tension or mental disorder. Specific treatment under the supervision of a physician helps restore normal activity of the central nervous system and get rid of excessive talkativeness.

Physiological factors

People can talk in their sleep if the following factors exist:

it is believed that sleep talking, as well as sleepwalking, is transmitted along the hereditary line;
during sleep, brain cells rest, however, in some cases, brain receptors continue to work during night rest, as a result of which restless sleep and pronunciation of words are observed;
During the period of speech development, the child can pronounce words in his sleep. This phenomenon is considered normal and should not cause concern to parents. As a rule, children pronounce words heard during the day;
When negativity accumulates inside oneself, a man or woman often begins to scream. Thus, it turns out that the aggression accumulated during the day. In this case, swear words are spoken out loud, and sometimes hand waving is added to them;
Persons suffering from epilepsy may also scream, cry or simply talk in their sleep. Moreover, if such a person is awakened, there is a possibility of an unnecessarily negative reaction;
Emotional people are more likely to talk in their sleep. The reason for this is a vivid event, imprinted on a subconscious level;
People suffering from mental disorders often talk in their sleep. In addition, such a phenomenon is accompanied by delirium, grinding of teeth and twitching.

Important: If your relatives have a similar problem, you should visit a doctor. In some cases, sleep talk signals the development of a dangerous pathology.

A teenager, as well as a child, often talks in their sleep after receiving bright positive emotions. And adults can raise their voice if in the evening there was a very unpleasant conversation or a quarrel with a loved one.

Main reasons

Heredity is of great importance. If parents are sleep talkers, their children are likely to inherit the trait. It is noted that males are more susceptible to this. Parasomnias in the form of somnambulism, apnea, nightmares with fears, and confusion of awakening cannot be discounted. The following factors are also highlighted:

sleep deprivation;
background somatic and mental illnesses, which is typical after the age of 25;
excessive impressionability, emotional character;
alcohol and drug abuse;
regular intake of heavy meals;
feverish state, constant ailments, high body temperature;
long-term use of medications;
brain pathologies;
head trauma;
constant depression and stress, debilitating anxiety;
malfunction of the nervous system;
physical and psycho-emotional stress.

Habits

Often conversations in a dream are provoked by our lifestyle. In other words, scientists say that sleep-speaking is the result of our bad habits:

the reason for talking during a night's rest may lie in an uncomfortable bed, watching horror films or harsh sounds;
excessive physical or mental stress leads to the appearance of night talking;
lack of sleep also provokes a similar phenomenon;
A person can become delirious in a dream due to constant stress;
eating fatty and heavy foods before bedtime;
consumption of energy drinks and drinks containing caffeine;
colds or pathologies accompanied by high fever. In this condition, delirium is often observed;
taking a number of medications designed to eliminate problems with the heart muscle, difficulty breathing and to reduce blood pressure;
drug use. Any opiates have a stimulating effect on the nervous system.

And lastly, as mentioned above, alcohol also provokes talking in your sleep. A drunk person is most often susceptible to this condition. At the same time, once you sober up, night talking completely disappears.

Prevention of disturbances in the sleep-wake rhythm

The development of parasomnia can be stopped by eliminating exposure to irritating factors. The patient must establish a sleep-wake schedule, create a suitable environment for relaxation in the bedroom and follow the recommendations of doctors. It’s easier to focus on the general list of tips:

To refuse from bad habits. Alcohol-containing drinks, drugs and cigarettes have a detrimental effect on the body. If you cannot stop yourself, you should contact specialized institutions.
Creating comfortable conditions for relaxation. A person should feel relaxed in the bedroom. It is necessary to try to create a quiet and darkened environment with an air temperature of 18 to 22° and a humidity of up to 50-60%.
Try not to excite the nervous system in the evening. A few hours before rest, it is recommended to stop working at the computer and watching TV. Only moderate physical and intellectual activity is allowed. Instead of coffee and energy drinks, it is better to drink tea or a herbal decoction with a sedative effect. Shortly before bed, you can walk down the street, listen to relaxing music, read a book or take a bath.
Follow the schedule. You need to go to bed and wake up at the same time. Failure to comply with the rule will lead to disruption of daily biorhythms and lack of sleep.
Don't overeat before bed. It is advisable to take the last meal 2-3 hours before rest, otherwise digestive problems will arise.

Screams in sleep are considered a common manifestation of excessive stimulation of the nervous system. In the absence of other irritants, it is enough to follow the advice of specialists to normalize the psycho-emotional state. If the problem is the development of pathologies or addiction to harmful substances, you should definitely consult a doctor.

Why do children talk in their sleep?

Babies talk in their sleep quite often. However, this condition is not considered a deviation. According to scientists, sleep speaking helps little people through the process of adaptation to the outside world.

Important: If a child screams or cries in a dream, it means that he was stressed during the day or is having a nightmare. In this case, he should be woken up to stop the dreaming and calm him down.

During the day, the child receives a lot of new information, which the brain processes during the night's rest. And given that the child’s psyche has not yet strengthened, every day he lives can be compared to stress. As a result, conversations may arise at night.

Description and mechanism of development of conversations in a dream

Talking while sleeping (somniloquy) is not that uncommon. Many children aged 3 to 10 years babble at night. Quite often, such scribbling occurs several times a week. In adolescents, nocturnal speech activity is observed during puberty, then subsides. However, for some it persists throughout their lives. It is believed that up to 5% of adults, and the majority are men, are susceptible to sleep talk.

Everyone, I think, is familiar with such a feature of some of their loved ones and acquaintances as talking in a dream. Anyone who served in the army should know this well. When soldiers sleep, one of them is sure to talk: one whispers something, another mutters, a third grunts, and some simply smack their lips.

A specific case from army life. The soldier slept very soundly and talked in his sleep. During his two years of military service, quite piquant stories happened to him on this basis more than once. One winter, while guarding warehouses, he leaned against a pine tree and fell asleep with a machine gun in his hand. And he stood there, whispering something, until they replaced him. Another time he jumped up sleepily and, still talking in his sleep, fell between the bed and the nightstand, severely cutting his face.

There is an opinion that when a person talks in a dream and is asked a question about the topic of conversation, he will respond. The soldier's colleagues decided to test this theory in practice. When he began to mumble sleepily, they began to communicate with him. At first he answered, and then suddenly sent everyone to “three cheerful letters.” In the morning he was asked about the night's incident. The soldier just shrugged his shoulders in bewilderment. Apart from sleep-talking, no other strange things were noticed about him. He performed his service regularly.

Talking during sleep is a type of parasomnia, a behavioral reaction of the body during the period of falling asleep or deep sleep. However, doctors do not consider this situation a fatal deviation in the functioning of the central nervous system. Therefore, such “conversational” practice is not considered a serious illness.

Although in this case there may be a disorder in the functioning of the speech center, located in the left temporal lobe of the brain, and the hypothalamus, which is responsible for normal sleep.

It is not known for certain why people in a sleepy state conduct “confidential” conversations. And how frank they are is also unclear. There is an opinion that the “talkative one in the night” can reveal certain secrets, but not everyone agrees with this.

Usually the night conversation is short, a few minutes at most, but can be repeated several times during the night. Such people are not aggressive and do not pose a danger to those nearby, although their muttering disturbs sleep.

Psychologists believe that a person only talks about what he experienced during the day. If the experience is very strong, let’s say the situation was stressful, at night it can jump out at the “tip of the tongue.” Another approach is that talking in a dream provokes hereditary diseases. Sometimes such a talker is a sleepwalker; he gets out of bed, moves his arms and legs, and tries to walk.

It is important to know! If a person talks in a dream, this does not mean that he is seriously ill. He could have had a difficult day at work, after which he has trouble sleeping.

Is there any cause for concern?

As a rule, nighttime conversations only cause inconvenience to people close to the nighttime talker. Otherwise, this condition does not affect the human condition.

However, there are a number of cases when it is worth taking a closer look at someone talking in a dream, namely:

the talker shouts words and behaves restlessly in bed;
the man begins to scream shrilly and closes his legs;
the sleeping person is covered in cold sweat.

With such signs, the person should be woken up. Please note that this must be done gently so as not to frighten the sleeping person.

Important: Nightmares that provoke screams and squeals have a negative impact on a person’s general condition. Therefore, it is necessary to consult a doctor for treatment.

Aggressive behavior during sleep leads to disruption of the REM sleep cycle. This, in turn, negatively affects a person’s overall well-being. Therefore, you need to get rid of this condition as quickly as possible. And remember, a qualified doctor must restore the cyclical nature of night rest. Self-medication in this situation will not give a positive result.

Approaching illness and misfortune

In such dreams, night scenes the dreamer, as a rule, remembers what happens to him.
Often the same place is injured. The dream book writes that the sudden appearance of such pictures predicts the approach of an illness or some kind of danger. Usually dreams of this kind either come true literally or turn into illness in reality.

The dream book writes that such a dream ceases to occur as soon as the illness passes or there is no more misfortune in your life. Bad things have either already happened or have passed you by.

Well, the dream book does not interpret dreams when a child or even an adult, having watched enough scary programs or horror films, begins to scream and cry in his sleep.

Usually scenes from the film are repeated in reality. The dream book does not interpret them, as this is evidence of a violation of mental balance and experiences. In reality, these pictures mean nothing at all.

Sleep speaking or somniloquy is a rather curious and at the same time inexplicable phenomenon. Not one of the “night talkers” admits in reality that he talks in his sleep.

“Am I screaming in my sleep?!” Come on!”

“Am I screaming in my sleep?” - he will ask with a dumbfounded look and will be completely right, since he will never remember this.

Somniloquy occurs in both children and adults. True, in an adult it is less pronounced, but it still happens. According to statistics, about 6% of the world's inhabitants talk and scream in their sleep. These are usually emotional people. Sometimes it can be funny to listen to such people in a dream, but if this is repeated over and over again, then first it can begin to irritate the person sleeping next to you, and then disturb his own sleep. Sometimes these conversations, moans or screams can be unexpected for your bedmate and seriously frighten him.

Little night talkers

If your baby screams in his sleep, don't be scared or upset. A child’s psyche is much weaker than that of an adult, so they are more often exposed to stressful situations, vivid impressions, and new emotions, which forces them to talk and sometimes scream in their sleep. Scientists assure that sleep speaking helps the little prankster adapt to society. Night mumbling is a kind of side effect of the abundant amount of information entering the child’s brain during the day. But if screams in a dream are accompanied by nightmares, as, for example, in the famous film about the maniac Freddy Krueger, then the child must be shown to a doctor.

Somniloquy through the eyes of scientists

Science has long been studying human dreams, but the phenomenon of talking and screaming in a dream has not yet been fully elucidated. For many specialists who study this problem, screaming in a dream is a completely understandable and harmless process. They believe that these are the projected thoughts of a person who has previously experienced a fairly powerful emotional shock. Scientists say that it is mainly men who engage in dream-speaking. In addition, it is known that this feature is inherited and can be directly related to the phenomenon of somnambulism (sleepwalking). It is also known that the night conversation usually lasts for 30 seconds with possible repetitions.

What is on the sober mind is on the tongue of the sleeping one!

The main reasons for unconscious night talking, screaming or moaning are disturbances in sleep phases mixed with night terrors.

In a dream, a person can be either eloquent or rather vulgar and even vulgar, and sometimes his conversations are simply unintelligible. Some whisper, others scream loudly, others, scary to say, talk to themselves or moan, whine, howl. What a horror! Sometimes you won’t be able to wake up such a person right away: he will toss and turn, twitch and kick. Psychologists say that the emotional coloring of a person’s conversations and screams in a dream is a reflection of his character in real life. For example, if a sleeping person swears in a dream, it means that in life he is quite cruel: during the daytime this person restrains aggression, and at night he relaxes and splashes out everything in his conversations.

If I scream in my sleep, what can I do to calm down?

In general, this is a harmless process, but if you scream in your sleep, move vigorously, sweat, sleepwalk, or have difficulty waking up regularly, you should see a doctor to prevent any possible mental illness. Of course, you won’t be able to observe the above symptoms on your own, so contact your family with the question: “Have you heard, but I sometimes scream in my sleep?”

Contents of the article

Often quite adequate and healthy people begin to talk, moan and even scream in their sleep.

Which doctor should I contact?

How to wean a person from late-night conversations? First of all, today there are no specific therapeutic measures. Therefore, if there is a problem, it is recommended to consult a therapist, who will prescribe a series of studies to exclude the development of other pathologies.

Then, a visit to a somnologist is indicated, who will suggest a polysomnography to identify other possible parasomnias.

In addition, the doctor will recommend keeping a diary and recording the frequency and duration of this condition. However, it is worth emphasizing here that it will not be possible to record this data without a loved one. In addition, you will need to talk with your parents to find out whether a similar phenomenon manifested itself in childhood.

Important: If you live alone, purchase a sound recording device and turn it on at night. With the help of portable equipment, you will be able to determine whether you suffer from a similar disorder.

Writing down data in a diary will reveal why you talk in your sleep. As for recording data, the following points are recorded in the notebook:

what time do you go to bed, the time you wake up and the duration of your night's rest;
if you take medications, indicate the time when you take them;
Write down all the drinks you drink. Pay special attention to those that contain caffeine and alcohol;
describe all the disturbing events that happened to you.

These data are recorded for two weeks. After which the diary should be shown to the attending physician, who, after analyzing the records, will be able to select the appropriate therapy.

In general, drug treatment is prescribed in rare cases. As a rule, by changing habits, a person stops talking in his sleep.

Psychologist's advice

If a person screams in a dream, this may be a sign of a subconscious desire to express his emotions in reality to some person. Showing negative feelings is rarely welcomed in society. A person, for various reasons (upbringing, fear of punishment, secondary benefit) tries to hide his true emotions from others, and often he successfully hides them from himself. It could be fear, rage, resentment, irritation. In this case, only by realizing and openly expressing your feelings can you get rid of sleep problems.

To begin with, you can use “safe” methods, for example, opening up to a friend or writing a letter to a person, expressing everything in it, and then burning it. If necessary, the process can be repeated until the parasomnia symptoms disappear.

To avoid screaming in fear at night, try to figure out its causes during the day.

For those people who do not fully understand why they scream in their sleep, what emotions they suppress, psychologists recommend doing the following exercise.

Take a comfortable, relaxed position, close your eyes, and even out your breathing. Find one of the most pleasant and joyful memories in your memory and enjoy it.
Then you should remember your feelings after waking up. What is it – fear, anxiety, malice, anger? Where are these feelings located in the body? How can they be described by visualization? Color, size, smell, weight?
If these emotions could talk, what would they say?

As a rule, at this stage it becomes clear what a person is afraid of or what makes him angry.

What to do when screaming in your sleep, when psychotherapy does not help and the attacks are severe:

drug treatment is recommended (taking sleeping pills and sedatives, nootropics under the supervision of a doctor);
physiotherapy (massage, mud therapy, relaxing baths, electrosleep);
vitamin therapy (taking B vitamins, magnesium, fatty acids, tryptophan).

Relatives of someone screaming in their sleep should remember that it is impossible to wake them up abruptly during an attack. Due to a sudden awakening in the REM phase of sleep, a person ultimately does not get enough sleep. This may lead to worsening of the disorder in the future. It is better to speak soothing words, stroke the person’s hand, quietly call him by name until he gradually wakes up or falls asleep peacefully further.

Medical therapy

The drug method of eliminating this condition is resorted to in rare cases. As a rule, the reason for prescribing drugs is the development of a serious pathology. Moreover, therapy in this case is aimed at ridding the person of the underlying illness. And as soon as the provocateur is defeated, the talker will begin to sleep normally.

And lastly, if the doctor cannot identify the cause of night conversations, they resort to polysomnography. Such a study allows us to identify the cause of disturbances in night rest.

How to fight and get rid of it: treatment and self-medication

You can, of course, make a bandage as tight as in the photo so that the person does not talk while sleeping. This is of course very effective. But, if you take a more serious approach to this issue, read on.

Sleep specialists are also hard to find during the day, so you are left with a therapist who, in the absence of more serious illnesses, will refer you to a neurologist.

In this case, no additional studies will be carried out: the doctor, focusing only on the information provided by the patient, will be able to prescribe you the only possible test for identifying sleep disorders - polysomnography. Then, perhaps, you will be prescribed traditional metabolic drugs, some nootropic drugs and sent on your way.

But here it’s hardly worth being offended by anyone: the disease has not been studied - there is no treatment. Nevertheless, sleepwalkers still have the opportunity to help themselves.

Here's what the experts advise

normalize your daily routine - work by the hour, rest more, be sure to relax after a working day, sleep enough at night;
avoid psycho-emotional overload, do not allow depression, nervous breakdowns, or stressful conditions;
refrain from alcoholic and caffeinated drinks starting in the afternoon;
Avoid heavy meals before bed, replacing them with light snacks with plenty of fiber;
do not watch action films, thrillers, horror films before going to bed, it is better to read a good novel or listen to classical music;
Pay more attention to the comfort of your sleep - walk in the evenings, ventilate the bedroom, sleep on orthopedic pillows.

Continuation . . .

How to sleep correctly? — Proper sleep

Are you afraid of spilling your secrets in your sleep? - How to stay awake all night?

What to do? - If you want to sleep during the day...

Some tips

How to wean yourself off late-night conversations? First of all, so that such a phenomenon does not bother you or your loved ones, you can adhere to the simplest rules of prevention, namely:

if the work day turns out to be difficult, and so that it does not negatively affect your night's rest, take a warm bath and drink chamomile tea before bed;
Don't overeat at night. Otherwise, you are guaranteed nightmares. If you feel hungry, drink a glass of kefir or prepare yourself a light salad;
Watching the news or horror movies at night means making your sleep restless. It’s better to read a book or listen to light music;
start getting ready for bed at least an hour in advance, relax and think about good things, this will help you fall asleep faster and see only pleasant dreams.

And lastly, the number of people talking in their sleep is constantly growing. This is due to the frantic pace of modern life, which puts stress on each of us. How to resist him?

Just learn to relax and when you come home, leave the troubles of the professional sphere at the door. In this case, good sleep is guaranteed.

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.