Science of Sleepwalking

Dangerous behaviour

Rumour has it that it is dangerous to wake a sleepwalking person since this could cause a seizure or brain damage. But is this the case? Stephen Juan, an anthropologist at the University of Sydney disagrees. He claims that the real reason you should not wake up a sleepwalker is because they could harm you or themselves.

From a sleepwalker's point of view, perhaps the most frightening aspect of sleepwalking is the fact that they can't remember what they do, or even that they have been sleepwalking at all.

The brain is apparently able to mislay all kinds of odd and highly dangerous behaviour. Talking to the BBC, former chef Rab Wood described cooking spaghetti bolognaise and fish and chips during his sleep. "My biggest fear is burning the house down obviously. Having the chip pan on when you're sleeping is not a good idea."

Rapes and even murders have been committed during sleepwalking episodes. One woman reported repeatedly having sex with strangers in her sleep, while a man who committed three rapes was recently cleared of all charges on account of sleepwalking behaviour. But it is difficult to deduce whether or not actions carried out during sleep bear any relation to conscious thoughts, especially when other factors such as drugs and alcohol come into play. Following a study of drug related sleep crime, sleep expert Mark Pressman urged forensics to make careful considerations before rushing to conclusions. He claims that doctors prescribe millions of hypnotic medicines every year, which simply doesn't tally up with the relatively few diagnosed cases of drug induced sleepwalking.

Of course, not all sleepwalkers are prone to such terrifying acts. For many it's just a normal, fairly harmless occurrence. "It's part of who I am," says Melinda Carr, who also blames her nocturnal wanderings on lack of sleep due to an irregular work schedule.