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A hypnic jerk, hypnagogic jerk, sleep start, sleep twitch, myoclonic jerk, or night start is a brief and sudden involuntary contraction of the muscles of the body which occurs when a person is beginning to fall asleep, often causing the person to jump and awaken suddenly for a moment.
These myoclonic twitches, jerks, or seizures are usually caused by sudden muscle contractions (positive myoclonus) or brief lapses of contraction (negative myoclonus). The most common circumstance under which they occur is while falling asleep (hypnic jerk). Myoclonic jerks occur in healthy people and are experienced occasionally by everyone.
While the dominance of the behaviorist paradigm led to a decline in research, especially in the English speaking world, the later twentieth century has seen a revival, with investigations of hypnagogia and related altered states of consciousness playing an important role in the emerging multidisciplinary study of consciousness.
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A hypnic jerk is the feeling triggered by a sudden muscle twitch, causing the feeling of falling while sleeping or dreaming. Hypnic jerks typically occur moments before the first stage of sleep. [2] About 70% of people have experienced hypnic jerk. [3] Hypnic jerks are most common in children, when dreams are considered the most simple. [4]
Experiencing a hypnic jerk prior to falling asleep may have been selected so that the individual would be able to readjust their sleeping position in the tree with a branch-grabbing response to avoid falling, [4] much as orangutans grasp upper branches of trees while sleeping.
While Elhelou says it can be “challenging” to manage sundowning, she recommends creating a calm environment and routine as best you can. “Start by maintaining a consistent daily routine to ...
body rocking, where the whole body is moved while on the hands and knees. head banging, where the head is forcibly moved in a back and forth direction. head rolling, where the head is moved laterally while in a supine position. Other less common muscle movements include: body rolling, where the whole body is moved laterally while in a supine ...