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Panic
If someone is having a night terror they will panic by thrashing around violently and appear to protect themselves from an invisible threat or worry about an unseen phenomenon. -
Slow Wave Sleep
Sleep terrors start when you enter the slow wave sleep (stage 3 and 4 of sleeping). In slow wave sleep, brain and muscle activity decrease significantly. This is where your body gets rest while going into a deep sleep. -
Sudden Arousal
A sudden arousal forms from the slow wave sleep stage. -
Sits Up and Screams
During a bout of night terror, a person will suddenly sit up and scream. They may shout out a threat like, "They're going to get me." -
Tremendous Autonomic Discharges
While a person is having a night terror their hearts will pound rapidly, they break out into a sweat, hyperventilate, and exhibit dilated pupils. -
Confusion/Disorientation
Sleep terrors are not dangerous and many times the victim will go through feelings of disorientation and embarrassment more than anything else. -
No Response to Parents
It can be a scary and traumatic experience for parents or loved ones to see their children or partners in such distress, as the look of fear and terror is often easily visible on the person’s face. -
Mumbled Screams
If a person is having a night terror, they may mumble out a threat like, "They're going to get me." -
Attempts to Wake Increase Confusion
It is important not to try and wake the victim from their state, but to remain by them until it passes. This gives them comfort when they snap out of it, and assures you that they are not getting up and moving about while still in the state, potentially harming themselves or others in the process. -
Amnesia For the Event
Most people are unable to explain what happened the next day, and they have often have no memory of the event when they wake up the next morning. Or they may have vague, dreamlike images of it.
