Insomnia and sleep apnea are the most common sleep disorders than most sleep disorder clinics chevy chase encounter. However, there are some weird and strange sleep disorders too, which we are covering here. Let’s start!

Sleep Paralysis

This is something that may haunt a person very badly when a person is unaware and unable to relate his/her condition to any proper medical problem. It is because when people get sleep paralysis, they are physically sleeping but their mind is awakened making them unable to move their bodies while they can open their eyes and see their useless body. Panicking in such condition makes it even more complicated to deal with it as this condition lasts from a few seconds to two or three minutes.

Treatment: Make a proper sleep schedule which can control the occurrence of sleep paralysis along with practicing exercises regularly and avoid sleeping on your back.

Sleepwalking

It is may be common like sleep apnea, but it is very scary for an affected person and also the people around him/her as the sleepwalking person may cause harm to the surroundings without even knowing it. In this condition, a slept person is physically living a life which is going on in their dreams by actually performing all acts. This is specifically very dangerous if a person is involved in any violent act in dreams. So in order to stay safe, safety precautions at home and inside bedroom of a patient is very important which include locks on bedroom door and main house door, gates on stairways and so on.

Treatment: Medical evaluation and counseling is important while medication can also be used in severe cases.

Klein Levin Syndrome (KLS)

It is a very rare and strange disorder when a person sleeps for around 23 hours each day for straight two to three weeks. This disorder is very common among young males aged around 15 years and may continue to have such condition for approximately 8 years while it may be found among women as well for a long period of time. During these episodes of sleep, it is almost next to impossible to wake them up while you may regret so badly if you try to wake them up forcefully. It is because if they are awakened forcefully, they tend to behave abnormally as they may be suffering from hallucinations, facing compulsive behavior, feels puzzled every time, behave like babies and may have high degree of sex drive as well. These episodes may repeat after every few months.

Treatment: Medication like mood stabilizer Lithium is usually prescribed for this disorder.

Night Terrors

This disorder is just like nightmares but to a next level where you suddenly wake up with a jerk and sweating all over your body along with screaming or running to escape while you are still almost asleep. This may go on for a few seconds until you finally get up from sleep completely and realize that it was just a dream. It is very common among children of young age while some elders are also reported to have this kind of disorder.

Treatment: avoid stressful activities and alter sleeping patterns.

Narcolepsy

It is a condition when you have multiple episodes to fall asleep anytime and anywhere throughout the day. It is very dangerous if you are doing something very sensitive like driving a car, hammering a wall or performing a surgery in operation theater. There are numerous such events when such sleeping episodes might be too dangerous.

Treatment: The person has to practice behavioral therapy while medication may also help to control this disorder.

Fatal Familial Insomnia (FFI)

This is considered as the scariest and strangest sleep disorder when a person faces difficulty falling asleep one night while this difficulty steadily increases every night. This lasts for a few months when a person is unable to fall asleep any longer. This lack of ability to sleep anymore develops abnormal functions of the autonomic nervous system in human body resulting in uncontrollable blood pressure, unstable body temperature and heat rate. As a human body becomes unable to control these conditions, it ultimately results in the death of a person within a span of 18 months to 3 years maximum.

Treatment: Research is being carried out in sleep centers silver spring but currently it is considered untreatable.