If we talk about sleep myoclonus it may sound like Chinese, but if we tell you that it is that unpleasant sensation of falling into the void when you sleep , it already sounds more familiar to you, right?
Sleep myoclonus, also called hypnic jerk, myoclonic spasm or nocturnal myoclonus are sudden and involuntary movements that are accompanied by a sensation of falling into the void or stumbling, when in fact we are lying down. This sensation is not a dream reality since we are not yet in the REM phase, where they occur. Myoclonus occurs in a part of sleep called hypnagogia, a state between wakefulness and sleep that occurs at the beginning of rest, when we are falling asleep.
The word “myoclonus” comes from the Greek words “my” and “klon” and by definition is an involuntary contraction of muscle fibers. As it is considered a benign and non-dangerous sleep disorder, there are few studies on it. The most convincing explanation is this: when we close our eyes to fall asleep, our body begins a cycle of relaxation in which we stop paying attention to environmental stimuli. During this process, the so-called reticular activation system (responsible for regulating the waking state) and the preoptic ventrolateral nucleus (responsible for controlling drowsiness) “compete” for control of the motor system, a competition that the latter gradually gains and these spasms are considered “the last attempt at control by the reticular activation system”. And although it is natural, there are factors such as caffeine, anxiety, accumulated fatigue and stress that contribute to the appearance of these myoclonus.
It is usually a benign disorder that affects 70% of the population , but if it recurs frequently and together with unpleasant sensations in the extremities, you should go to the doctor to make sure that everything is going well.
And you, do you suffer from nocturnal myoclonus?
