Pathological and Experimental States Related to Somniloquy
Arthur M. Arkin
Psychology Press eBooks October 24, 2018 DOI: 10.4324/9781315802992-19 (opens in new tab)
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AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that spontaneous vocalizations in night terrors, hypersomnia, sleep deprivation, and narcolepsy-cataplexy reflect internal experience and are often forgotten, and relates these phenomena to ordinary somniloquy. Cites Broughton's characterization of Stage 4 night terrors, enuresis, and somnambulism as “disorders of arousal,” and Fisher et al.'s tentative conclusion that diazepam reduced night terrors by decreasing Stage 4 sleep. |
Abstract
A typical feature of night terror and daytime hypersomnia episodes, sequellae of experimental sleep deprivation, and frequently of REM narcolepsy-cataplexy events is the occurrence of spontaneous vocalization with and without speech, which appears to reflect internal experience rather than external stimuli, and for which there are strong amnestic tendencies. It is therefore of interest to relate such phenomena to the typical somniloquy of more or less normal people under normal circumstances. Altered states of consciousness of a spontaneous pathological nature have been exemplified in Stage 3–4 night-terrors, narcolepsy, cataplexy, nonspecific hypersomnia, and sleep-apnea attacks. R. Broughton noted that similarly impaired cognition may occur with nonsleep-disorder subjects under conditions of precipitate intense stress, which generates sudden huge increments of arousal. Broughton has characterized Stage 4 night-terrors, along with enuresis and somnambulism, as “disorders of arousal”. Dr. Charles Fisher et al. tentatively concluded that diazepam ameliorated night-terror syndromes by reducing Stage 4 sleep—the “somatic matrix” of the night-terror.