Sleepwalking: Symptoms, Causes, and Treatments

Sleepwalking is a sleep disorder that causes people to walk or perform other complex behaviors while they are asleep. It’s a relatively common disorder, affecting about 1 in 20 people. What is sleepwalking? Sleepwalking is a type of parasomnia, which is a sleep disorder that involves abnormal behavior during sleep. Other parasomnias include night terrors, sleep talking, and sleep apnea. Sleepwalking typically occurs during the first few hours of sleep, when people are in a deep sleep stage called slow-wave sleep. During this stage, the brain is largely shut down, but the body is still somewhat active. This allows people to walk or perform other complex behaviors without being fully aware of what they’re doing. Symptoms of sleepwalking The most common symptom of sleepwalking is walking. However, sleepwalkers can also perform other complex behaviors, such as eating, talking, getting dressed, or even driving. In some cases, sleepwalkers may become aggressive or violent.