What are Night Terrors?

Ever wondered what are Night Terrors?

Night Terrors (Pavor nocturnes, sleep terror disorder) refer to abrupt awakening from sleep with behaviour consistent with terror. Typically, Night Terrors occur between 15 minutes – 1 hour of the sufferer going to sleep. They are more prevalent in children between 3 and 5 years-of-age, however adults are also known to suffer from night terrors.

Symptoms of Night Terrors

Some of the known symptoms of Night Terrors are:

• Sudden awakening from sleep
• The dreamer may still be asleep, but their eyes are open
• Persistent terror or fear that occurs at night
• Screaming, sweating, confusion and rapid heart rate
• Sufferers see spiders, snakes, animals or people in the room
• Are unable to wake up fully awake
• Duration: 5 - 20 minutes
• Difficult to comfort
• No memory of the event the next day

Causes of Night Terrors

Some of the known causes of Night Terrors are:

• Stress or anxiety
• Hereditary
• High fever

Night Terror from Hell

Related Pages

* Dream Disorders Overview

* Rapid Eye Movement Behaviour Disorder

* Interesting Dream Facts

(From What are Night Terrors back to Dream Interpretation Dictionary Home Page)

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