Why Do I Get A Falling Sensation When Going To Sleep, And Why Does My Body Sometimes Jerk Violently Just Then?
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asked 3 years ago
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The body jerks because it feels like you're falling, and your brain sends out a reflex twitch signal to try to pull you back form the brink. The technical name for this is hypnic jerk, or hypnagogic myoclonic twitch.
You feel the falling sensation because your brain literally disengages from the body while you're asleep. This prevents you from moving around too much in your sleep, especially if you have very vivid dreams. Of course we can still move in our sleep, but it takes a lot of stimulus (and usually coming close to being awake again) to overcome the barriers to most muscle movement put in the way by the brain.
Some people don't get a "falling" sensation. It's more like floating for them. In which case, their brains sometimes act to pull them back down to earth. Either way, the lack of contact with the body and where the body is in space is very disorienting for the brain.
Hypnic jerks aren't harmful, although they may wake you up again.
You feel the falling sensation because your brain literally disengages from the body while you're asleep. This prevents you from moving around too much in your sleep, especially if you have very vivid dreams. Of course we can still move in our sleep, but it takes a lot of stimulus (and usually coming close to being awake again) to overcome the barriers to most muscle movement put in the way by the brain.
Some people don't get a "falling" sensation. It's more like floating for them. In which case, their brains sometimes act to pull them back down to earth. Either way, the lack of contact with the body and where the body is in space is very disorienting for the brain.
Hypnic jerks aren't harmful, although they may wake you up again.
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