通常,旁人很难叫醒睡眠机能紊乱患者,因为他们正处于深度睡眠状态.除了常见的"梦游"外,他们也可能突然从床上坐起,在房内打转,离开住所,甚至开车出行.
"I dealt with a patient recently who was going on a cruise but was a sleepwalker," Dr Maree Barnes, Sleep Physician and President of the Australasian Sleep Association told news.com.au.
玛丽·巴恩斯博士是一名睡眠治疗师,也是澳洲睡眠协会会长.她告诉澳大利亚新闻在线："我最近接收了一个梦游病人,那人在梦游时乘船出行."
"So I gave him sedatives so he was very sound asleep while on the ship.
"于是我给他开了镇定剂,好让他在船上睡得安稳些."
"Some other patients are compulsive eaters, sleep walkers and talkers, or even people who get behind the wheel of a car while asleep.
"我也有过不少其他病人,有的会在睡眠时进食,有的会梦游,有的会发梦呓,还有人甚至边睡觉边开车."
"Basically these are people who have deep rooted psychological issues that are being played out during the night. It's a matter of keeping people safe until the behaviour ceases to occur, and usually it always is dealt with through psychology and time."
其实这些人都患有根深蒂固的心理疾病, 各种症状会在睡梦中表现出来. 治疗的首要准则是确保他们的安全, 直至症状消失. 通常来说, 这需要通过心理诱导,更需要耐心.
Sleep Health Foundation of Australia suggests that around three children in 100 sleepwalk often, and approximately five in 100 children sleepwalk sometimes.
澳大利亚睡眠健康协会称,约3%的儿童经常梦游,约5%的儿童偶尔梦游.
In adults, this figure is lower, with only four in every 1000 people still sleepwalking. Statistics indicate that if you sleepwalk or talk as a child, you're less than a quarter likely to do that as an adult.
成人梦游的比率要低得多.只有4‰的成人深受梦游之苦.同时,数据显示,哪怕一个人在儿童时期梦游或发梦呓,此概率在成年后会骤降七成多.
"Most people will grow out of it," Dr Barnes said.
"这些症状一般在成年后都会消失."巴恩斯博士说.
