“Is there a way to control sleepwalking?”
My daughter is 12 years old and I've noticed that she's been sleepwalking, which is something that she has never done before. I only know the basics about it, like not waking them up and so on. But, is there a way to control it?
3 Answers
yup.
Although sleep walking is commonly seen in this age group with a prevalence of 17%, sleep deprivation and situational stress are most common factors, but several medical conditions and genetic factors can predispose sleep walking. Make sure to have good sleep hygiene with regular bedtime and wake time to have a total sleep time of 9 hrs each night. Consult a sleep physician for further evaluation.
Sleepwalking is best thought of as a defective awakening. It may or may not be normal in a 12-year-old. I would see a board-certified specialist in sleep medicine who is comfortable treating children. It's actually okay to awaken sleepwalking people, but they may become momentarily quite agitated or confused when they fully awaken in an odd and unexpected environment. Bedrooms should be free of obvious injury dangers such as trip hazards as walking around in the dark may lead to accidents even when wide-awake. Generally, sleepwalking people have about the same injury risk as awake people stumbling around in the dark, and a standard nightlight would also be appropriate.
