Exploding head syndrome could affect 1 in 5 young people

Exploding head syndrome might not be a condition that people are familiar with, but according to new research published in the Journal of Sleep Research, a surprisingly high percentage of young people could experience the psychological phenomenon.

The syndrome is seen as an the perception of abrupt exposure to noise when getting out of bed or sleeping. Although typically painless, these noises might cause fear and distress to your person experiencing them, who could possibly be unable to rationalize what has caused their symptoms.

Little is understood about exploding head syndrome though many experts already have suggested how the rare condition primarily affects older adults.

"I didn't believe the clinical lore it would only happen in people into their 50s," says study author Brian Sharpless, PhD, of Washington State University. "That didn't generate a lot of biological sense if you ask me."


After conducting a article on the scientific literature on exploding head syndrome from the journal Sleep Medicine Reviews, Dr. Sharpless decided more research was instructed to fully understand the rare condition.

Experts think that exploding head syndrome occurs due for the brain having issues when closing to hit the sack. Usually, when we go to sleep, some other part of the brain - motor, auditory and visuals neurons - switch off in different stages.

Dr. Sharpless demonstrates that in exploding head syndrome, the auditory neurons may activate simultaneously instead of closing properly. "That's the reasons you get these crazy-noises that you can't explain, and they are generally not actual noises as part of your environment," according to him.

This phenomenon occurs within the brainstem's reticular formation, the identical part of mental performance that is included in isolated sleep paralysis - an ailment in which individuals are not able to move or speak upon awakening.
Experiencing the problem was frequently connected with fear

In the research - the most significant of its kind - 211 undergraduate students were assessed for both exploding head syndrome and isolated sleep paralysis through interviews conducted by psychologists or former pupils.

Nearly one in 5 (18%) on the participants reported experiencing exploding head syndrome at least one time. More than a third (37%) of the participants also reported experiencing isolated sleep paralysis.

Participants which have experienced exploding head syndrome frequently reported clinically significant degrees of fear, that has a small minority (3%) reporting clinically significant distress and impairment in association with these episodes.

Dr. Sharpless states that exploding head syndrome might lead individuals interpret their experiences searching for severe medical problems, for instance seizures or bleeding inside brain, or perhaps attribute these phones unnatural events.

"Some everyone has worked these scary experiences into conspiracy theories and mistakenly believe the episodes come from some sort of directed-energy weapon," he admits that. "For this scary noise you hear through the night when you'll find nothing going on inside your environment, well, it could be the government messing along with you."

Dr. Sharpless also reports that few clinicians or researchers assess for that little-understood condition. Unfortunately, you can find currently no well-articulated or empirically supported control of exploding head syndrome, although a few drugs are showing promise noisy . testing.

"One from the drugs they gave for exploding head syndrome actually didn't have the noises disappear completely," Dr. Sharpless explains. "It just turned the degree down."

Despite a reduction in treatment options for the trouble, increasing awareness can perform to improve people's lives. Dr. Sharpless says which simply being able to recognize exploding head syndrome could reduce fear and produce patients using this condition feel good in themselves.

Although the analysis involved a comparatively small number of participants, nonetheless suggests how the condition could possibly be more prevalent than first thought.

"Contrary into a earlier theorizing, exploding head syndrome was discovered to be a somewhat common example of younger individuals," this author concludes. "Given the possibility clinical impacts, it is recommended which it be assessed more reguarily in research and clinical settings."