Many people talk or mumble during sleep without realising what they are saying. Sometimes, the words may sound like complete sentences, while in other cases, they may be difficult for others nearby to understand.
Medically known as somniloquy, sleep talking is a type of parasomnia, a group of sleep-related conditions that can include talking, walking or making unusual movements while asleep.
During the night, the brain passes through different stages of sleep, including deep sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Brain activity changes throughout these stages, and some people may talk during any of them. However, words spoken during sleep do not necessarily reflect a person’s actual thoughts or indicate that they are dreaming about a particular subject.
Experts suggest that sleep talking may run in families. It can also be associated with stress, traumatic experiences and mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression. However, the causes vary from person to person, and occasional sleep talking is not necessarily a sign of a serious health problem.
In some cases, words spoken during sleep may appear to relate to a person’s daily activities or thoughts. People may also suddenly say something while transitioning from sleep to wakefulness. However, such incidents do not necessarily mean that they have found an answer to a personal problem or are revealing their actual thoughts.
Although occasional sleep talking is generally not a cause for concern, medical advice may be appropriate if it happens frequently, disrupts sleep, involves intense screaming or unusual movements, or is accompanied by excessive daytime sleepiness.
Understanding the possible causes can help people recognise when sleep talking is simply a common sleep behaviour and when it may require further medical attention.
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