Doctor Amir Khan is known for sharing all sorts of health advice, and his latest piece of knowledge is super interesting. Apparently, there’s a reason you can feel like you’re falling when you go to sleep
Doctor Amir Khan is known for sharing all sorts of health advice, and he recently turned his attention to helping people sleep better. However, if you’re someone who often suddenly jolts awake at night, or feel like you’re falling when you start to nod off, it turns out things usually trigger this.
The GP, who’s known for sharing health tips on ITV‘s Lorraine, issued the expert advice on Instagram this week where he shared a video explaining what people need to know. Quite often, many of us jolt awake as we start to fall asleep, and it can sometimes cause a little panic.
However, it turns out there are reasons why this happens. It’s not the only piece of sleep wisdom he’s shared recently either, as he also explained why many can wake up at 3am.
Demonstrating what happens, Doctor Amir said: “Have you ever felt you’re falling just as you nod off? That sudden jolt awake is actually called a hypnic jerk and, as you drift into sleep, your muscles relax, and sometimes your brain interprets that as falling.
“It’s a misinterpretation, so it sends a quick signal to your body to catch you, and that’s why you twitch awake. Now, some scientists think it’s an ancient survival reflex, back to when we slept in trees.
“A sudden twitch might have stopped us from actually falling. It’s totally harmless. More common when you’re stressed, have caffeine late or you’re just super tired.
“So, next time it happens, don’t panic. it’s just your brain being quirky. Totally normal. Totally harmless.”
Doctor Amir admitted it’s something that happens to him “all the time”, and it’s nothing to worry about. In the comments, many others said they’ve experienced it too.
What you need to know
If you’ve never experienced them before, hypnic jerks are common, involuntary muscle spasms, also known as “sleep starts”. They take place during the transition from wakefulness to light sleep, and often lead to a sensation of falling or a sudden jolt.
Little you may know, they are actually experienced by over 80% of people and they are generally harmless. They’re actually caused by nerves misfiring as muscles relax, or by fatigue, stress or caffeine.
In other words, if you drink coffee late, are super tired or stressed, your body may be trying to tell you something, as you could need to make some lifestyle changes. Even being in an uncomfortable sleeping position can cause them.
If you want to try and stop them, you can start by reducing stimulants (caffeine), maintaining a consistent sleep schedule and practicing relaxation techniques. Doing these things may help to decrease frequency.
Even though they are usually nothing to worry about, persistent or painful episodes should be discussed with a doctor. This is important to rule out any other potential sleep disorders.
If you struggle with sleep at all in general, and it’s getting you down, also speak to your GP. They will be able to suggest methods to help aid the problem.