REM Sleep Behavior Disorder Symptoms

In REM sleep behavior disorder the person displays abnormal behavior with rapid movement of the eyeballs while sleeping. It is also characterized as RBD, a sleep parasomnia. It is a stage where a person suffering from this disorder gets intense, vivid and has violent dreams. The person actually starts acting according to what he is dreaming. These actions can be of simple nature to complex movements. For example a person can either move his feet in sleep or even scream while dreaming. This is dangerous for the person who sleeps next to the sufferer because of the violent actions that are made by the sufferer while in a dream.

REM sleep behavior disorder is found in people between the age of 15 and above, but it is mainly a disease affecting aged people. This is mostly seen in people who belong to the age group of 60 years. The illness is more common in men than in women. According to a survey, one-tenth of the sufferers are female and the rest are male. Thus there are more frequent reports of men hurting their female partners while dreaming than women hurting their male partners.


Effects of the Disorder on a Person

The most common behaviors made by the person suffering from the REM sleep behavior disorder disease are:

* Sleep violation
* Sleep walking
* Talking
* Sitting
* Take hold of
* Screaming
* Kicking
* Punching
* Jumping from bed
* Waving arms

Thus you can understand the condition of the person sleeping next to the sufferer. This disease is harmful for both the person and his or her partner. During the REM sleep, a person’s breathing becomes irregular; they make rapid eye movements, experience high blood pressure and also there is loss of muscle atonia (paralysis). However, during the dreams, the brain is highly active and electrical activity of brain recorded by EEG is same as when recorded when the person is awake. About 20-25 percent of sleep time involves REM sleep behavior disorder.


Cause of this Disorder

The cause of this disorder in men according to the research is due to the supplementary deterioration of brainstem neurons present in their brains. This disorder develops along with degenerative neurological conditions such as Parkinson disease, multisystem atrophy, diffuse Lewy body dementia, and Shy-Drager syndrome. Another cause is related to alcohol withdrawal, tricyclic antidepressant or serotonin reuptake inhibitor use or other types of antidepressants.


Treatment of REM Disorder

Treatment of this disease is possible through medication and lifestyle changes. The regular medication is the anti-convulsant drug clonazepam. Though it is not clear that how it works to restore the muscle atonia, but there is a question whether it actually restores the atonia or suppresses muscle activity.

Regarding lifestyle changes, you can keep yourself at the safe side by placing mattresses on the floor or even a cushion around the bed. This will protect the patient and the person sleeping next to the patient from getting hurt if the patient jumps off the bed. Buy a bed with cushioned headboard and place it away from mirrors and windows. You can even consider a bed with protected bedrails and also remove any other dangerous objects inside the room. Avoiding alcohol and following a sleep routine also helps.

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