Do you know why a person jerks when falling asleep?

With the phenomenon of sudden jerking in a dream, most people are familiar. Many of us were wondering why a man twitches when he falls asleep.

In ancient times, people used the analogy betweenthe process of falling asleep and the onset of death. Our distant ancestors believed that the soul of the asleep person is sent to the world of the dead. Involuntary spasm during sleep was considered a reaction to the touch of the devil.

But what does modern medicine say about this? In science, there were many theories explaining this phenomenon. There was an opinion that twitching of limbs in a dream indicates a beginning epilepsy. The essence of another hypothesis was reduced to violations of the hypothalamus - the higher autonomic center of the brain. But attempts to find an answer to the question of why a person jerks when falling asleep, with the help of these theories failed.

The most convincing declined clarificationsscientists who investigated the nature of such a physiological state as a dream. Some of them came to the conclusion that people shudder at the transition from one phase of sleep to another. Other experts claim that the human body responds to a slowing of breathing and a decrease in the amplitude of the heartbeats. Reflex muscle contraction is a test of vitality, as the state of sleep is mistakenly perceived by the hypothalamus as close to coma.

Scientists also found out that there is a relationshipnight convulsions with physical exertion and emotional feelings during the day. That is, the answer to the question of why a person jerks when falling asleep is covered in his condition just before bedtime. Therefore, the transition from wakefulness to night rest should be smooth. It is better to leave unresolved problems for the morning.

But not just adults start in a dream. Sometimes a young mother notices that a newborn is twitching in a dream. But, as doctors say, this is not a reason to sound an alarm. The fact is that for babies up to a year such a physiological reaction during sleep is perfectly normal. The brake mechanism of the child's nervous system at this age is imperfect. This is especially true for premature babies, so they shudder more often.

It should be noted that the children have a dream, sleep phases and their duration differ from what happens in this respect with adults.

Since it is in this state in newbornsGrowth hormone is produced, small children spend most of the day in a dream. This is necessary for the normal development of the child. When the baby sleeps, his nervous system and brain actively develop. Children up to a year wake up from the slightest rustle, this is due to the fact that the phase of superficial sleep is longer than deep. Such a program is inherent in us by nature. Infants are most vulnerable, so children, feeling threat to their safety (noise, bright light, sudden movement) immediately wake up and scream.

So, the answer to the question of why a personjerks when falling asleep, has already been found. In this physiological reaction, there is nothing terrible, and by itself involuntary twitching in a dream does not cause problems in a healthy person.

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