Have you ever sleepwalked or even more impotantly dealt with a sleepwalker?

Question

Someone in my family is sleepwalking. They are adult.
While this has happened before on occasion it has happened twice this week.
I am a light sleeper but now I feel that I have to be ever so much more vigilant than before because of the potential danger.

Split level house causes some concern as there are two flights of stairs.
I cannot get over how lucid he sounds when I ask him what's going on. Last night he had me firmly believing that he was ok but then he started telling me that we were at a private airstrip so no one would know.

Answer 1

Both of my children are sleepwalkers. It occurs almost nightly. We have stairs and I was concerned about my daugter (who sleeps upstairs) falling down the stairs, but I have learned that even though she is sleepwalking, she can still do the things she would be able to do awake, so in 8 years, she has never fallen. I never know where the kids will be sleeping when I get up in the morning. Sometimes I confront them and ask them where they are going or what they are doing, sometimes they tell me things like they are looking for the bathroom or their sibling told them to come, it's quite funny, sometimes they can't speak at all, but I find if I repeat a command 3 or 4 times in a stern voice, they usually comply. For example, I will tell my daughter her room is up the stairs, and then tell her to go up the stairs. She might stare at me for a minute or look confused, then she goes up the stairs. As far as danger, the only problems I have are when my son mistakes the tub or the couch or a corner for the restroom! I do have a cousin that left his house repeatedly and even went to the neighbors once in his tighty whities and rang the doorbell and told them he was Superman! They installed automatic sprinklers and his adventures stopped. He's an architect now, lol. Don't worry so much about your sleepwalker, they are gonna be ok (and maybe you will end up with some great blackmail stories, jk).

Answer 2

Yes. My sisters both sleepwalk occasionally and its always hilarous telling them what they did while they were sleeping. Sometimes they dont' believe me. Just a question though, why do you feel a sleepwalking relative is a "potential danger". In all my experiences w/my sisters sleepwalking - there have been hundreds - they have never tried to harm anything. Or are you worried about them causing danger to themselves. My littlest was sleepwalking once and she had gone downstairs and was staring off into space and twisting the front door handle. Thank goodness it was dead-bolted because she was muttering about having to go to her friends house which was quite a bit away. I took her hand off the doorknob and lightly led her up the stairs. She never woke up until the next morning and even then didn't remember a thing. Funny thing, sleepwalking. Never done it myself. It can be kind of scary though. My other sister looks possessed when she's sleepwalking. Talk about scary!

Answer 3

I have seen houses that looked like Fort Knox because there was a sleepwalker. Gates on stairs locks on all the doors and fridges... bells in hallways, tempered glass for windows.. it was crazy. Sleepwalking is serious, and yes, people can get seriously hurt sleepwalking.. but as long as all they've been doing is gettindg a snack that they don't remember or going from room to room.. it isn't too much to worry about. There is only a small percentage of sleepwalkers that get seriously hurt.

http://www.sleepdisorderchannel.com/sleepwalking/index.shtml

Answer 4

I have sleepwalked. I went to my brother's room and said "Hi Nick!" and walked through out the house. He was very scared.

When you see the sleepwalker, go up to her or him and shake him or even hit him. Try that for a very long time. I'm saying that 'cause I'm bold.

Answer 5

Yes on both accounts. On my part, it was medication that made me do this and weird things that I never remembered. For my family member, it was lack of sleep (sleep apnea) and he would go out of the door in his sleep. I stopped those sleeping pills, and he got surgery for his problem. Ask the sleepwalker if they are taking pills. This could be the problem.

Answer 6

I knew a girl once that was a sleepwalker, and I know it scared me. She actually left the house once while sleepwalking. I know they say to let them be, and not to do anything, but it definitely is creepy.

Answer 7

My daughter walked in her sleep for a while after her father and I divorced. I feel it is conflict in the 'walker' that they are suppressing during waking time. Maybe they just want to 'leave' their problem behind, I don't know. When she began to deal with the issue she stopped walking in her sleep. I know what you mean about worrying that the 'walker' will hurt themselves and YOU can't get any sleep. Set up some kind of warning when the 'walker' leaves their bedroom, like one of those travel burglar alarms that go off when the door is opened. You set it and slip it under the crack in the closed door. It's loud and it'll wake YOU up and maybe the 'walker' too.

Answer 8

WOW How frightening something could have occurred...fortunate sufficient I definitely have by no ability sleep walked yet when I awaken the morning i think that i ought to as nicely be sleep strolling with the aid of fact i think nevertheless asleep or ineffective lol. Edit - I definitely have rolled away from mattress and woken up laying on the floor next to my mattress although lol

Answer 9

My roommate is a sleepwalker & I must say it freaks me out a little bit. That's why I sleep with my door shut & locked.

Answer 10

i use to sleep walk as a kid...around 7-10 years old...first time my mom didn't know, repeatly told me to get back to bed and i would keep walking...then i got beat waking up in the morning with bruises wondering where it came from...soon after she knew and had to watch me everytime i walked...i was told i did some crazy stuff...sleep walking can be dangerous...