November 22, 2024

Parasomnia: What happens inside a sleepwalker’s brain?

To comprehend what accounts for these differences in experience, Siclari and her team examined the experiences and brain activity patterns of clients with parasomnia in non-REM sleep.Measuring someones brain activity during a parasomnia episode is no mean task. Credit: Netherlands Institute for NeuroscienceThe Brain During a Parasomnia EpisodeIn 56% of episodes, clients reported that they had actually been dreaming during the episode. “Compared to patients who did not experience anything, clients who dreamt during the episode revealed activations that were similar to brain activations formerly found for dreaming, both immediately before the episode, and likewise throughout the episode.Siclari: “What identifies whether the client will be totally unconscious or will rather dream appears to depend on the state the patient is in at that moment.

A brand-new research study reveals that patients might dream or act automatically during episodes, with specific brain activation patterns correlating to these states. To comprehend what accounts for these differences in experience, Siclari and her team examined the experiences and brain activity patterns of patients with parasomnia in non-REM sleep.Measuring someones brain activity during a parasomnia episode is no mean task. The client needs to fall asleep, experience an episode, and have their brain activity taped while moving around. Credit: Netherlands Institute for NeuroscienceThe Brain During a Parasomnia EpisodeIn 56% of episodes, clients reported that they had been dreaming throughout the episode. “Compared to clients who did not experience anything, patients who dreamt during the episode revealed activations that were comparable to brain activations formerly found for dreaming, both instantly before the episode, and also throughout the episode.Siclari: “What identifies whether the patient will be totally unconscious or will instead dream seems to depend on the state the client is in at that minute.