Test Your Knowledge

Most causes of sleepwalking among children are unknown. Children who sleepwalk may do it several times and then outgrow the behavior by adulthood. For some children, sleepwalking may be associated with fatigue, sleep loss, anxiety or changes in their environment at home or school.

Among adults, there are many potential causes of sleepwalking. They include:

• Heredity. Research suggests that sleepwalking tends to run in families.
  
  
• Environmental factors. Sleep deprivation, irregular sleep schedules and stress may all contribute to sleepwalking.
  
  
• Excessive alcohol use. Consuming too much alcohol may induce sleepwalking in some individuals.
  
  
• Medications. Numerous medications may disturb sleep cycles, including sedatives, antipsychotic medications, stimulants and antihistamines.
  
  
• Medical conditions/sleep disorders. Numerous conditions and disorders may also affect sleep cycles and contribute to sleepwalking, including:
  
  
• Nighttime seizures (convulsions). Sudden, involuntary movements of the muscles.
  
  
• Obstructive sleep apnea. A disorder in which a person’s breathing stops and starts many times during sleep.
  
  
• Night terrors. A sleep disorder in which patients abruptly awaken from deep sleep in a terrified state.
  
  
• Pregnancy and menstruation. Both have been linked to higher incidence of sleepwalking.
  
  
• Psychiatric conditions. Adults who sleepwalk may have another mental health condition. Some of those most commonly associated with sleepwalking include:
  
  
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Psychiatric illness that occurs after a traumatic event in which the threat of injury or death was present (e.g., combat, natural disaster).
  
  
• Panic disorder. Disorder marked by repeated, sudden attacks of intense fear that cause severe anxiety symptoms in the body.
  
  
• Dissociative disorders. Disorders characterized by the sudden, temporary separation of thoughts, emotions, sensations or memories from the rest of the identity or sense of self.

Children who sleepwalk do not typically have emotional problems.