Hi Doctors, My husband has been having hypnic jerks and can't sleep at a stretch. On party nights if he drinks alcohol then he has no trouble sleeping. But all other days he faces this problem. This has been the problem for past 3 years. He has a sedentary lifestyle. No exercise no walks. Home food no junk. He is 31 years old. Is there a cure for this problem. What can we do?
Ask Free Question
He immediately needs to consult a psychiatrist, as what you term can be sign of severe alcohol withdrawal. Do not delay and take him at the earliest.
Ask Free Question
Dear lybrate user....Hypnic jerks or hypnogogic jerks that occur during the lighter phase of our sleep cycle are usually benign and are presumed to be the ancestral adjustment reflex so as to avoid fall. But stress, anxiety and insufficient sleep can provoke it further and in turn it can lead to more stress, more anxiety and more sleep disruption. This is like a vicious cycle of events."If you lose sleep because you constantly jerk awake, you will become fatigued and may develop anxiety or worry about falling asleep. The more worried and tired you are, the more likely you are to jerk awake. The more you jerk awake, the more sleep you lose." My suggestion would be to have good Stress Management Techniques in life. He should have at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise a day, healthy food at regular times during the day, regular sleep wake schedule with the time of sleep not after 11 in night, and yes to do relaxation exercise everyday. Alcohol is not a good solution for his problem and in fact this may aggravate it later. So I would suggest him to leave any form of addiction if he is having. I hope you must have got a fair idea about what to do and what not for the problem you stated. May your day be great.
Take help from the best doctors
Ask a free question
Get FREE multiple opinions from Doctors