My Problems Go a Little Deeper than Your Basic Lack of Nighttime Paralysis
*May 14, 2007
My problems with sleepwalking began when I was a little girl. I used to get up and go into the kitchen to begin fixing my breakfast, and my mom would have to get up and tell me that, no, it's not 7 a.m.; it's 2 a.m. And no, you're not going to be late for school; at this rate you're going to be very, very early for school. I'd stop what I was doing, squint my eyes at the oven clock, see that she was telling me the truth, and then go back to bed.
Throughout college I told my roommates that I always needed to be on the bottom bunk because of my sleepwalking problem. Sarah and Katy, however, never believed me. While my sleepwalking was a regular occurrence in high school, it never once happened in college. I began to think that maybe I had outgrown it.
But, no. I haven't outgrown it. In the past month I've sleepwalked roughly five times, every time scaring the hell out of Chad. Add to that a couple of night terrors per week, in which I hallucinate in a semi-waking state and become convinced that there is something nearby that is about to hurt me: a spider in the bed, a heavy beam about to fall on me, a scary shadowy man standing next to the bed. I wake Chad up with my screaming, my jostling around, my jumping out of bed and throwing the covers off, my turning on the lights and scouring the bed for spiders. He sits up and tells me firmly that I am sleeping, so could I please get back into bed and turn off the light? Because the last time he checked, there weren't any poisonous spiders hanging out in our sheets, and he's pretty sure he wouldn't have been able to sleep so soundly if there were any. The only thing that is keeping him from sleeping soundly, in fact, IS A BATTY, PARANOID WIFE.
Last night I went to bed around 10:45 and spent a half hour reading (Middlesex, Eugenides, if you're wondering). Around 11:15 I got ready to turn out the light, but I saw that my bedside clock mysteriously read 12:15. I got up and walked into the second bedroom where Chad was on the computer to check the clock and make sure I hadn't just inexplicably lost an hour of my life.
After I saw that the clock indeed read 11:15, I turned to leave the room. That's when I heard Chad ask, "Are you sleepwalking?"
I looked him in the eyes and said, "No."
"Are you sure?"
"Yep, pretty sure."
"Really? What's six plus ten?"
"Um. Sixteen. Can my sleepwalking self not do math?"
"Plus three?"
"What? I don't know."
"Yeah, you're awake."
I laughted outloud. I remember all those sleepwalking episodes when you were younger. It was usually right before some big event in your life (tests, tryouts, etc.). I'm grateful Chad is taking care of you now. Love you! Mama
- Posted by Mama | May 14, 2007 2:49 PM
Haha. I had a friend in college who was a sleepwalker and would always walk out into the hallway, go down a flight and try to get into another dorm. This happened almost every week. Poor guy!
- Posted by molly | May 14, 2007 3:08 PM
Its been a long time since I stopped by your blog. Just checking in. Seems things are still going great! Awesome!
I saw ironically talking to a friend this weekend. He's leaving for Iraq this week so we're kind of dragging our feet on discussing it. He keeps blowing it off. His wife (my best friend) was telling me about his dreams this week and they have been trama filled. He gets up on the bed sometimes and pretends he's firing a gun. She laughed, but she said its scary when he does it. He said it has to do with his leaving this week and for us to stop making fun of his PTSD.
I walked in my sleep once in my life and this was in college. My friend and I had swapped roommates.. therefore rooms, and therefore beds. I got out of my bed and walked down to hall to her room and tried to get into her bed, but she was in it. (Good thing she was my friend.) My roommate realized I was gone and came looking for me. I then proceded to tell her (she says) that Serena wouldn't move over so I could get into bed. And that I demanded to know what a "leftover part of a speech" was. The next day I was to give a very lengthly speech in speech class and I think I was having major anxiety about it.
I hope your anxiety goes away or that you can find a way to bring it to the surface so you can face it and stop sleepwalking. I had a friend who used to walk out of the house when she would sleepwalk!
- Posted by Holly | May 14, 2007 3:56 PM
I meant "was" not "saw" in paragraph 2.
- Posted by Holly | May 14, 2007 3:58 PM
I remember once, at church camp, you sat up in bed and started talking to me, but you were alseep. Do you remember that? I'm not sure what you said, but I'm sure it was hilarious, as most things were at good old New Life Ranch. I miss those days! Kind of... on the other hand, they were filled with a lot of teenage angst, no?
- Posted by Deborah | May 14, 2007 4:08 PM
i just started re-reading middlesex myself. it's just. so. good.
- Posted by sarahthemartin | May 15, 2007 9:04 AM
Ha I can't do math asleep OR awake.
I didn't just sleepwalk when I was younger, I sleep made toast. Or at least I would try to. My father, who worked second shift at the time, would come home around 11 only to find attempting to "toast" an orange, a papertowl, one of my brother's action figures.
I'm lucky I never tried a knife or anything that could cause permanent damage. Though the teasing I receive to this day, one could argue, is damaging enough. :)
- Posted by Ashley | May 15, 2007 10:07 AM
Katie Christensen used to sleep-drink ranch dressing. Then she'd go in her mom's room, get in her face, and whisper, "Mmhhooomm." What a lovely aroma to wake up to in the middle of the night. Hilarious.
- Posted by Courtney | May 15, 2007 10:17 AM
That's fascinating. My stepson sleep walks on occasion and my daughter does but rarely. It's a scary thing if you aren't used to it. Never had a night terror, but they sound aweful.
My nightmares happen right after I fall asleep and take place in my bedroom. Nothing scarier in my opinion.
~Jef
- Posted by Edge | May 15, 2007 7:05 PM
This post is hilarious!
I've had night terros before, but I never knew what they were other than just nightmares that felt really real and were hard to wake up from. And once I did get out of them, I was usually crying. I hate those!
- Posted by my life is brilliant | May 16, 2007 11:46 PM
I've had "episodes" like that for years and never knew the name--night terrors! Now that I have a name for it do you think it will go away?
- Posted by Kristen W | May 18, 2007 4:57 PM