Somniphobia is an extreme fear of sleep that people often experience due to trauma. In this phobia, people anticipate some negative things happening after falling asleep. Thus, due to this feeling, they become afraid of sleeping.
Somniphobia is a specific phobia that can develop due to the sight of a horrific animal, situation or place. However, this phobia is also curable with proper treatment and home remedies. Keep reading to know about it all!
People with Somniphobia can face the following fears and conditions:
The immediate symptoms of Somniphobia are extreme exhaustion throughout the day due to lack of sleep. However, apart from such physical symptoms, there are psychological symptoms as well. The physical symptoms are:
Apart from these, the psychological symptoms that one might have are:
One of the most compelling reasons to develop such a phobia, people with a history of specific phobia in their bloodline are likely to develop Somniphobia. If you have a parent or a sibling having this phobia, you are likely to develop symptoms of the same.
This is another significant reason behind growing this phobia. Environmental factors such as abusing or seeing any other person with a phobia can also trigger Somniphobia.
Sleep apnea is a physical condition in which a person cannot breathe during sleep. It generally happens more with obese people as the relaxed soft tissues in their throat block the airways during sleep. So, they feel someone is choking them and thus try to avoid sleep any further.
It is one of the most common psychological problems that hinder regular sleep. Due to lifestyle disorders or past traumatic experiences, one may get anxiety issues. Hence due to this, they feel restless and fear to sleep.
People with post-traumatic disorder may face fearful nightmares during sleeping. Hence, these nightmares increase their anxiety level and generally, people tend to avoid sleep to avoid these nightmares.
During sleep, RISP occurs when people cannot move their bodies, especially their arms and legs. Thus, they get the feeling of being stuck, which also grows an irresistible fear in their minds. So, they develop a fear of sleeping over time.
Fear of dying is also a reason for this phobia, as it restricts people from falling asleep. Again, this is because they think that they may die or something negative can happen while sleeping. So naturally, they try to stay awake as long as they can.
The potential risk factors of Somniphobia are as follows:
Somniphobia is associated with other sleeping disorders, such as narcolepsy. Besides hypnophobia, sleep anxiety, clinophobia etc., are some conditions similar to Somniphobia.
The different complications associated with Somniphobia are as follows:
Per the guidelines of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th Edition, your physician will ask you some questions and check your physical damage to diagnose the severity of Somniphobia.
Apart from these, the physician will also run a thorough checkup. It will analyse your mental health to find the actual reason for this fear.
Like any other phobia, Somniphobia has two treatment types: medicinal and behavioural therapies. Most of the time, Somniphobia occurs due to a traumatic experience, which is why therapies are the best option to treat this disorder. The treatment methods are in detail below:
Medicines are available to calm the anxious sensation and other physical symptoms of restlessness. These medicines are:
Beta Blockers: Physicians may prescribe beta-blockers such as Propranolol as these are effective in calming rapid heart rate and other symptoms of physical anxiety.
Benzodiazepines: Your doctors may also prescribe sedatives such as Alprazolam for short-term usage to reduce the symptoms of restlessness.
Oxytocin and Cortisol: These two types of oral medicines are also effective in managing any type of anxiousness due to fear of specific objects.
D-cycloserine: These medicines are agonists, which can activate receptors and help reduce the fear response. These medicines are more effective with exposure therapy.
Different therapies are available to treat Somniphobia to its root. These are as follows:
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Cognitive behaviour therapy is an effective treatment that approaches to help patients manage their cognitive functions. It allows people to control their anxious thoughts, emotion and behaviour.
In addition, it is proven that CBT can also help to reduce fear and panic. Thus, it will help patients change their attitude towards sleep and start reasoning regarding their fear of sleep.
Exposure Therapy
Exposure therapy is another helpful approach to the treatment of Somniphobia. Here the therapist exposes the patients gradually to their fears. Exposure therapy for this phobia will make one comfortable sleeping by using relaxation techniques and gently exposing them to the fear.
It is one of the most effective therapies for specific phobias and helps people learn how to manage the adverse anxious situation during fear.
Imagery Rehearsal Therapy (IRT)
Imagery rehearsal therapy is for those who experience Somniphobia due to extremely fearful nightmares. In this technique, therapists are likely to tell people the reason behind the nightmares and find ways to explain and rehearse them.
So here is how you become familiar with the effects of nightmares and learn techniques to respond to them.
Apart from these mentioned above, yoga and meditation is highly beneficial for this type of phobia as it can reduce inner anxiety and instigate peace of mind. Additionally, try to regularly practise mindfulness, and calming rituals before bedtime to reduce anxious thoughts.
If untreated, this phobia can last from 6 months and more. In addition, such specific phobias can appear lifelong if people do not take proper therapies to reduce their inner fear and anxiety.
In the initial stage, you can manage their tendencies to avoid sleep. However, if you notice that the fear of sleep is getting worse daily and you spend a substantial amount of time avoiding sleep, you should visit a doctor. Further, if you notice that your daily work is hindered, you should also opt for professional medical treatment.
The fear of sleep is easily manageable if one identifies it in the initial stage. In the cases of children, caregivers can help them by comforting and cuddling during sleep. Moreover, here, a night lamp can also be helpful. However, for adults, caregivers can help them by reducing the cause of anxiety, past trauma and other mental disorders.
This is all the information you wanted about Somniphobia, the fear of sleep. Go through the treatment options, symptoms and causes to find the reason for your anxiety and how to treat it. It is a unique fear that can disrupt your work life, relationships and other aspects. So, seek medical attention within time.
Here are a few tips you can follow for coping with Somniphobia:
Please try one more time!
Disclaimer #1: *Customer can choose options at the time of availing insurance. Premium amount may vary accordingly. Insured is required to disclose any pre-existing condition or on going treatment before policy issuance in the proposal form.
Disclaimer #2: This information is added only for informative purposes and collected from different sources across the Internet. Digit Insurance is not promoting or recommending anything here. Please verify the information before making any decisions.
Continue with {{twoWheelerCtrl.lastVisitedData.lastVisitedUrl.indexOf('DigitPaymentGateway/payments')
!== -1 ? 'payment
completion': 'previous
choice'}}
{{healthCtrl.lastVisitedData.dropOffPolicyHolderData ? 'Complete your purchase': healthCtrl.lastVisitedData.lastVisitedUrl.indexOf('plans-page')
!== -1 ? 'Continue Browsing' : 'Continue with your previous choice'}}
