How To Stop Sleep Talking: Causes & Symptoms

Have you ever woken up to find your sleep partner, friend, or family member telling you that you had an entire conversation with yourself while you slept? If so, you may be suffering from a parasomnia disorder known as sleep talking or somniloquy. While this won’t affect you as much as other abnormal behaviors during sleep, it can disturb people around you.

But can you fix something you aren't voluntarily doing? Luckily, the answer is yes. Keep reading to find out more about sleep talking and how to manage it.

How to Stop Sleep Talking

Sleep talking can occur during REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, NREM (non-rapid eye movement) sleep, or even while experiencing sleep paralysis. While sleep talking is a relatively rare condition, it can affect both adults and children. While this usually isn't too big of an issue in terms of sleep quality, chronic sleep talking could signify a more serious health condition.

A person's sleep cycle is supposed to be a source of relaxation after a long day. However, some people still wake up with daytime sleepiness and tiredness even after a few hours of sleep. While there are many potential reasons behind this, sleep talking is one of the lesser-acknowledged medical issues that need to be addressed as it comes.

Here are a few ways to manage symptoms of sleep talking:

• Minimize stress
• Follow a regular sleep schedule
• Limit caffeine and alcohol intake
• Exercise regularly
• Visit your doctor to check for underlying conditions

What Causes Sleep Talking?

There's still a bit of mystery surrounding the causes of sleep talking. While it is commonly believed to be caused by vivid dreams, scientists have been unable to link the two. However, they have discovered several factors that may make the disorder more likely to occur.

Night Terrors And Medical Conditions

Sleep terrors and nightmares may lead to sleep talking in children and adults.

While having a bad dream, you may yell, kick, or scream. You may also experience sleep talking if you have REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD). Recurring dreams about falling, for example, may result in leg spasms that wake you up. That said, another medical condition may also be triggering your sleep talking. Obstructive sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome are both prime suspects because they tend to interrupt standard sleep patterns.

But how are these conditions linked with sleep talking? The answer is pretty straightforward: these issues result in a lack of sleep, one of the key causal factors behind somniloquy.

Medications

Some medications can cause short-term sleep talking as a side effect. If your somniloquy is a recent development, you may want to look at your prescription. Other stimulants like caffeine may also contribute to sleep talking, as they directly impact your circadian rhythm.

Is It Possible to Stop Sleep Talking?

While there is no specific treatment for sleep talking, the disorder is often short-lived. But if you'd like to address the issue head-on, you have a few options. Specifically, you'll need to pay close attention to the factors that increase the likelihood of somniloquy.

If you work towards reducing the chances of talking in your sleep, but the issue continues, talk to your healthcare provider about other possible options.

How to Stop Sleep Talking

While treatment options for sleep talking are pretty scarce, there are many things you can do to improve your sleep health at home. Here are a few management strategies to help with insufficient sleep and somniloquy.

Follow A Regular Sleep Schedule

Getting a good night's sleep is a vital piece of the puzzle. If you fail to get enough sleep, you risk sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation can weaken your immune system and make you susceptible to stress and conditions such as sleep talking.

One of the keys to getting restful sleep is a regular bedtime routine. This includes waking up and going to bed at the same time each day. Maintaining a healthy sleep schedule can help your body maintain a healthy circadian rhythm, helping you fall into a deep sleep.

Prepare Your Sleep Environment

Quality sleep requires a proper environment. This includes a dark room, a comfortable bed, and a slightly cooler temperature. These things can improve your sleep hygiene, so you feel refreshed in the morning.

If you have trouble falling asleep because of stress or anxieties, you may want to consider using a weighted blanket. Weighted blankets provide a snug feeling that may help combat stress and improve your overall quality of sleep. Additionally, having a white noise machine may quell late-night thoughts and worries.

Limit Caffeine and Alcohol Intake

While stimulants like coffee and energy drinks have become a daily ritual, drinking too much caffeine can negatively impact your sleep habits. This can contribute to sleep deprivation which, in turn, causes stress and increases your chances of talking in your sleep. By limiting your intake of stimulants, you reduce the likelihood of somniloquy.

Exercise On A Regular Basis

Regular exercise is essential for many different aspects of your health, including sleep. When you go hard at the gym, you come home physically spent and primed for rest. However, exercising too close to bedtime has its share of issues. A high-intensity workout session before bed can boost your energy and make it difficult to fall asleep.

This risk can be minimized by simply exercising in the morning. If you feel the need to exercise before bed, restrict it to calm workouts like stretching or yoga to relax your body.

Check for Underlying Conditions

If you make these lifestyle changes and are still concerned about talking during sleep, talk to your physician or enlist the help of sleep specialists. A sleep expert will examine you for underlying conditions that may be contributing to the somniloquy. For example, you may be asked to participate in sleep studies or provide sleep recordings. This way, your doctor can identify issues causing your sleep talking, such as sleep apnea.

What to Do When Your Partner Is Sleep Talking

Being kept awake at night by a partner or roommate that sleep talks can be highly frustrating. That said, one of the best things you can do for your partner is to be understanding. After all, somniloquy is a sleep disorder that they have no control over. Sleep talkers have no idea they are doing it, and they also have no idea what they are saying, which could be embarrassing for them.

There's no need to wake up a sleep talker. Doing so may make it difficult to fall back asleep, which contributes to sleep deprivation and can worsen sleep talking. The best thing you can do is discuss the issue with your partner once they're awake.

Talking In Your Sleep - Final Thoughts

Sleep talking is a harmless condition, though it can be an annoying experience for others. The best way to stop sleep talking is to make lifestyle changes that reduce stress and help you sleep better. However, developing proper sleep habits takes time.

For faster results, check out our selection of comfortable mattresses specifically designed with sleep quality in mind. After all, better sleep means less sleep talking.