Caution: This Sleeper Walks

I am a sleep walker and talker. Since I am presently living alone (please don’t come and rob me) I don’t know if I do it much anymore, but growing up in my parents house, it was a regular occurrence.

I have been known to get out of bed, find my parents, and have complete conversations with them. I have also woken up in various places around the house that I was dreaming about. Once, I dreamt that I was playing the violin in my closet and I woke up in the closet. Another time, after a fun night out with friends, I dreamt that I was waiting to be picked up by some friends and I woke up sitting on the living room sofa. Anyone who has ever slept with or near me has said I talk and talk and talk a lot of the night, hmmm what a surprise, right?

The most famous sleep walking story in my family took place when I was maybe about 10 years old. Most of the story is from second hand sources, as I was sleeping during most of it, except the end when I was woken suddenly, which I remember.

One evening, it was a school night, I went to bed at my bed time. Later, as was the norm, my mom went to bed before my dad, as always he stayed up later to watch television downstairs. Clearly, I had something very important to tell my mom so I got out of bed, walked into her bedroom, and tapped her on the shoulder to wake her up, all the while asleep. My mom is a wonderful person, but she is a big scaredy-cat. (Now this is the part I remember.) My mom sat up in bed and screamed bloody-frickin murder, which woke me up and made me cry. Thinking we were being attacked, my screaming mom scared my dad, who ran up the stairs in a panic, only to find his wife and daughter both sitting on his bed crying and hugging.

Nowadays, I still sleepwalk once in awhile, but the times I’ve been aware of, I woke up in the middle of the dream, just as I was getting out of bed. But I still do talk in my sleep, a lot. I always worry about that a little bit, hoping I don’t say something that I shouldn’t. So far though, I haven’t…at least I don’t think I have.

Do you walk or talk in your sleep?