Sleep is a funny thing. Some sleep too much, and some sleep too little. Some are light sleepers, and some can sleep through havoc. But no one hates to sleep. Sleep refreshes you, and eases you out from any kind of worry and tension. Sleep relaxes you. Sleep sounds like home, like it is the most comfortable thing there is to do. Sleep is something everyone looks forward to at the end of a hard day.

But while some can sleep soundly, some face strange conditions that are not easy to talk about. Some are common, but some will baffle you. Here are ten bizarre sleep disorders that you might or might not have heard of.

1. Sleep Bruxism Or Teeth Grinding:

While sleeping, if someone clenches or grinds their teeth together, it is called sleep bruxism or more commonly, teeth grinding. Its causes are usually stress, anger (if suppressed), anxiety, or just an alignment issue with the teeth. A little therapy or using a mouth-guard are two simple ways to cure this disorder. Though it sounds fairly harmless, if this disorder is prolonged, it could lead to damaged teeth, jaw problems, or even severe headaches.

2. Sleep Apnea:

This one is a more serious issue. It entails a sudden starting or abrupt stopping of breathing while you sleep. A more serious condition of sleep apnea could lead to a stroke. Indications of this disease include loud snoring, and waking up feeling exhausted even after a long night’s sleep.

Sleep apnea is usually caused because of obesity, an increase in blood pressure, smoking, or due to heredity. There are two kinds of sleep apnea – one that is obstructive when the throat muscles relax and narrow the airways, and one that is central that occurs when the brain stops sending messages to the muscles that are responsible for breathing.

3. Somnambulism:

All those movies that show people walking in their sleep – well, they are not lying. This one’s pretty harmless as such, but only gets dangerous when the walker sits in a car and begins to drive. And no, I am not kidding!

About 15% of the kids aged between 8 to 12 experience this disorder. The sleepwalker usually doesn’t remember having walked, but wakes up with a slurry speech or glassy eyes. Sleep walking most of the times is a symptom of a more complicated problem like seizures, sleep apnea, PTSD or arrhythmias.

4. Narcolepsy:

You are tired during the day, agreed; but if you are so tired that you have these sleep spells, than I must let you know that you suffer from narcolepsy. This disorder could get extremely serious, but there is no real cure. Even though there are a number of treatments available, nothing can get rid of this disease completely. It is believed that a brain chemical called hypocretin is responsible for this one. Hypocretin is known to regulate the REM cycle in our sleep. About 1 in 2,000 people suffer from this disease.

5. Restless Leg Syndrome:

Restless Legs Syndrome, called RLS, is marked by a strong urge to move your legs when you sleep. It is an urge that is hard to resist, and is accompanied by a tingling, tickly sensation. Some times these sensations could be quite painful too. In such cases, it becomes hard to sit or lie down. The reason this is classified as a sleep disorder is that RLS is at its peak at night, and therefore causes sleep disruptions.

6. Hypersomnia:

This one’s extremely rare and only 200 people in the whole world suffer from it. Hypersomnia entails long periods of sleeplessness, which could stretch from 18 hours to weeks. Though a hypersomniac faces only about ten attacks per year, it is usually preceded by a long headache and flu-like symptoms. The attack causes the person to gain weight rapidly and sweat profusely. There are two kinds of hypersomnia: a) The Kleine-Levin syndrome is accompanied by odd behavior (binge eating, confusion, aggression, hyper sexuality and hallucinations). b) The Menstrual related syndrome that is caused by hormonal imbalance.

7. Sleep Paralysis:

When you absolutely cannot move when you are falling asleep or when you are waking up, your body experiences Atonia. Your brain tells your body to relax and stay still. This one’s not really a sleep disorder, but happens just before or just after you sleep. In most cases, while you are fully aware of what is happening around you, your body refuses to move or to speak. But this lasts for a few minutes, and then the paralyzing effect subsides. Apparently, 40% of the population suffers from sleep paralysis, but it isn’t harmful, so you have nothing to worry about.

8. Exploding Head Syndrome:

Even though not many have been diagnosed with this disorder, patients as young as 10 suffer from it. It is a condition where you hear a loud noise just before you fall asleep. Even though it sounds like something out of a movie, it seems very real. This loud noise is like a big bang or an explosion, and usually happens in the middle of the night. The problem with this is that it disrupts your sleep, and is quite disturbing and stressful.

9. Non 24-Hour Sleep-Wake Syndrome:

This one is the rarest of sleep disorders. Human beings have a circadian rhythm, which usually lasts for about 24 to 25 hours, correlating to the hours of the day. But for some people this rhythm is delayed. To make you understand, let us say that your circadian rhythm lasts for about 26 hours, then you will be awake for about 16 hours, and if in severe cases it lasts for about 72 hours, then you will be awake for about 48 hours. It is said that people suffering from this disease sleep for about two hours longer than usual. As for the usual patients, it is the blind that suffer from this Non-24-Hour-Sleep-Wake Syndrome.

10. REM- Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD):

When you go through an extremely violent and vivid dream that leads you to scream, swear, shout, kick and/or fall, it means you suffer from RBD. Though it seems simple and kind of funny, this syndrome needs to be treated, or it might get extremely violent. It is usually the men who suffer from this disease – especially men who suffer from Parkinson’s or multiple system atrophy.

If you suffer from any of these, don’t be afraid to come out in the open and talk about it and seek help. But if you don’t, always remember that early to bed and early to rise, makes a person healthy, wealthy and wise.

The post Sleep Horrors: Top 10 Sleep Syndromes No One Wants To Talk About appeared first on STYLECRAZE.

by Shirin Mehdi via STYLECRAZE