Symptoms and treatment options for Sleep Talking - Somniloquy

Posted by Lewis Carroll on March 6th, 2018

A large number of people have the habit of whispering, mumbling and shouting in their slumber. Somniloquy or sleep talking is a parasomnia in which a person experiences abnormal and unusual behavior during slumber. Individuals talk loudly at regular intervals in their rest, even uttering profanities at times. The interesting part is that when people get up in the morning, they don't remember anything what they have uttered during their slumber.

The problem of sleep talking is a symptom of several other sleep disorders for ex sleep talking and night terrors. It has been observed that a person affected with this disorder talks several times during different stages of their slumber cycle. Loud noise and continuous whispering during rest period doesn't allow the people in the house to sleep.

Important Causes of Somniloquy

Sleep disorder is a hereditary problem and is mostly found in children whose parents were affected with parasomnia . Studies have shown that sleep talking is more common among children as compared to adults. A large number of factors are responsible for this disorder for ex depression, anxiety, stress and mental disorder. This problem can also be stimulated by alcoholism, substance abuse or through the use of certain medications.

Major symptoms of Sleep talking

During light sleep, the speech is clearer whereas when the person is in deep slumber, it is difficult to determine what is spoken. Some of the Important symptoms of Sleep talking ( Somniloquy) include:

• Any form of talking when the person is asleep.
• Stress , anxiety and depression.
• Medical disorders such as fever and weakness.
• Sleep disorders such as somnambulism, sleep apnea and night terrors.
• Abrupt awakenings with confusion.

Episodes of this disorder occur once a week in mild somniloquy, twice a week in moderate somniloqoy and almost every night in severe somniloquy. The symptoms of different forms of somniloquy also varies in the form of acute, sub -acute and chronic. It occurs less than a month in acute, more than a month in sub-acute and happens for more than a year or for a prolonged period in chronic somniloquy.

Treatment Options for Somniloquy ( Sleep Talking)

Normally, no treatment is required if the person is suffering from mild sleep talking. But it is important to get in touch with a physician if you suffer from severe or chronic sleep taking disorder (somniloquy). There may be a possibility that your sleep talking could be the result of psychiatric or other disorders.The advice of a doctor is vital if there is violence or fear involved in the speech, or if your sleep disorder is impacting the peace and slumber of your housemates. The doctor can ask you to go through a polysomnogram to find out the root cause of your Somniloquy.

You can also improve symptoms of somniloquy through lifestyle changes and home remedies. Further, in order to reduce instances of this disorder, you must avoid the use of alcohol and heavy meals before bedtime. A strict sleep-wake schedule would be of great help in restoring your circadian rhythm. And lastly, you can reduce the problem of somniloquy with the correct use of prescription sleep medicines.