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As a therapist to people with chronic illness and chronic pain, I hear a lot of questions about sleep. While I hope to write more about sleep in future posts, I’ve answered one of these questions here today. And if you’re looking for a therapist for support with your medical conditions, sleep problems, or both, click here to get started working with me.
Question: Sometimes when I’m in bed, I see shadows out of the corner of my eye. Sometimes I see other weird stuff too, like sea creatures or giant spiders on the ceiling above my bed. While this is happening, sometimes I hear weird stuff too, like humming and buzzing. And a couple of times, it's felt like an earthquake or tornado hit while I was lying in bed, but then there was nothing about it on the news afterward. Do I have schizophrenia?
Answer: That sounds really intense, and you were probably pretty scared when it happened. I'm glad you're asking about it! And chances are good that you don't have schizophrenia. It does sound like you may be having sleep hallucinations (referred to as either hypnagogic or hypnopompic, depending on whether you're going to sleep or waking up), which are common and not necessarily problematic, even though they can be very alarming at the time. (You can learn more about them here.) Even though they aren’t dangerous, they’re usually not a lot of fun. One thing that usually helps is to make sure you’re only going to bed when you’re really, truly sleepy (meaning that you can’t keep your eyes open and you’re having trouble staying awake). If you feel fatigued (slowed down, heavy, and perhaps sore or achy), it’s often better to rest in a chair or on the couch until you feel better rather than going to bed to try to sleep. Sometimes eating or drinking can help to reduce fatigue too (although this is not true for everyone), but food and drink usually won’t energize you if you are actually sleepy.
Christy Reichert, MSW, LICSW/LCSW, is a feminist, disability-justice oriented therapist specializing in helping professional women who live with chronic illness and/or chronic pain in Oregon and Washington state. Learn how to become a client by clicking here.