Adult sleepwalking, 5

The reported largest prospective cohort study on adult sleepwalkers seen in a clinic, the results of which appeared in the journal SLEEP, involved a case-control study of 100 adult patients in whom primary sleepwalking was diagnosed from June 2007 to January 2011. 

Exclusion criteria included a positive clinical history of REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD), a similar parasomnia that involves violent dream-related behaviors emerging during REM sleep. 

The age of the sleepwalkers ranged from 18 to 58 years with a median age of 30. Results were compared with 100 healthy control subjects without any history of sleepwalking. More tomorrow.

Adult Sleepwalking, 4

A variety of undesirable symptoms can accompany sleepwalking. When compared with a control group of non-sleepwalkers, symptoms for sleepwalkers may include:

     A higher frequency of daytime sleepiness

     Generalized fatigue,

     Insomnia,

     Symptoms of anxiety and depression

     Lowered quality of life.

     Placing themselves in harm’s way

     Acting out dangerous behaviors

Dr. Dauvilliers has pointed out that “Adult sleepwalking is a potentially serious condition and the consequences of sleepwalking episodes should not be ignored.”

Brain & Adult Sleepwalking, 3

Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine explored the theory that genetics plays a role in the sleep disorder of “sleepwalking.” To do this, they went on a genome-wide search and studied the DNA of a large family of sleepwalkers. Interestingly, they discovered that there was a DNA difference between sleepwalkers and non-sleepwalkers. They discovered that all of the sleepwalkers in the family studied had a specific genetic code that the non-sleepwalkers did not possess. Those individuals with the specific genetic code had a 50% chance of passing it on to the next generation. The mutated gene appears to be located in chromosome 20. Now the task will be to identify the exact location of the mutated gene.

Brain & Adult Sleepwalking, 2

Some apparently have thought it to be a type of wild goose chase if not overkill to attempt to locate the underpinnings or contributors of sleepwalking, especially since for most children who exhibit this behavior, they tend to outgrow it by puberty. . However, others say that sleepwalking is not a “benign behavior” for everyone. In the Washington University School of Medicine, researchers studied the behavior of a 12-yar-old girl who sleepwalks. They found that she leaves the house and wanders around the neighborhood, all the while being  completely unaware of what she is doing. Furthermore, she has absolutely no memory of having done so when she wakes up. For some individuals, such parasomnia behaviors dramatically interfere with their lives and can even be life threatening. However, if a specific gene(s) can be identified, then researchers believe that treatment that focuses on the cause rather than just the symptoms be able to be developed.

Brain & Adult Sleepwalking

I have a grandchild who walks in her sleep, wand I appreciated your comments about that. However, I also have an adult niece who sleepwalks. What about sleepwalking in adults? Has that been studied?

Among other researchers, Dr. Dauvilliers, professor of physiology and neurology and director of the sleep lab at Gui-de-Chauliac Hospital in Montpellier, France, was principal investigator and author of a study on adult sleepwalking. In a nutshell, conclusions were that adult sleepwalking is a potentially serious condition that may induce violent behaviors and affect health-related quality of life. According to A. Kales in the British Journal of Psychology, sleepwalking and night terrors share a common genetic predisposition. Sleepwalking appears to be a more prevalent and less severe manifestation of night terrors. Inherited factors appear to predispose a person to develop sleepwalking or night terrors. However, how these traits are expressed may be influenced by factors in the person’s environment.

The Brain and SAD, 2

Where to look for light boxes used in light-box therapy? Have your asked your physician to point you in a helpful direction? Personally, I neither evaluate nor recommend specific products or treatments. However, I do know that Amazon.com carries a whole range of light therapy boxes. And studies have shown light therapy to be helpful in SAD as well as for bipolar depression and depressions that have been very treatment resistance. Nothing works for every brain because every brain on the planet is different. But the answer is always “no” unless you have tried something for your brain.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4998929/

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder/in-depth/seasonal-affective-disorder-treatment/art-20048298

https://www.verywellmind.com/light-therapy-for-bipolar-disorder-380665

The Brain and SAD

Do people with SAD really benefit by light-box therapy? It seems ridiculous to me but I am also exhausted from being depressed! I wouldn’t know where to start looking!

When sunlight enters the eye, it triggers the Circadian rhythm clock, that not only wakes up the brain but tends to result in a pleasant mood.  Studies have shown that some brains are very susceptible to the lack of sufficient sunlight, due to living in the arctic circle or in other parts of the globe where the days are very short. This can result in the development of SAD, or seasonal affective disorder, which tends to result in depression during very short days in the winter months and tends to lighten up as the days become longer and more sunlight is available. Light therapy has been used for decades to treat this type of light-deprivation depression.