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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.
The word hypnagogia is sometimes used in a restricted sense to refer to the onset of sleep, and contrasted with hypnopompia, Frederic Myers's term for waking up. [2] However, hypnagogia is also regularly employed in a more general sense that covers both falling asleep and waking up.
Hypnic jerk, also called hypnagogic jerk, is a normal reaction that can be caused by anxiety, caffeine, a dream, or discomfort of sleeping. 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]
The word myoclonus uses combining forms of myo-and clonus, indicating muscle contraction dysfunction. It is pronounced / ˌ m aɪ ˈ ɒ k l ə n ə s / [13] or / ˌ m aɪ ə ˈ k l oʊ n ə s, ˌ m aɪ oʊ-/ [14]. The prevalence of the variants shows division between American English and British English.
An early reference to counting sheep as a means of attaining sleep can be found in Illustrations of Political Economy by Harriet Martineau, from 1832: "It was a sight of monotony to behold one sheep after another follow the adventurous one, each in turn placing its fore-feet on the breach in the fence, bringing up its hind legs after it, looking around for an instant from the summit, and then ...
But this study focused on excessive sleepiness, like falling asleep during meals or social activities. This could also cause a “marked lack of enthusiasm for daily tasks,” Porter says, adding ...
Sleep paralysis is a state, during waking up or falling asleep, in which a person is conscious but in a complete state of full-body paralysis. [1] [2] During an episode, the person may hallucinate (hear, feel, or see things that are not there), which often results in fear.
Periodic limb movement disorder is characterized by recurrent episodes of frequent limb movements while sleeping. It mostly happens in the lower parts of the body like the toes, ankles, knees and hips. It can also, in some cases, appear in the upper extremities of the body.