Night Terrors

If you’re experiencing night terrors, you might not remember them at all in the morning. That’s why it’s often a loved one who helps us understand your sleep patterns, so we can make a fast and accurate night terrors diagnosis. Night terrors affect everyone differently, but if your child, partner, or another family member is showing any of the common signs, let us know. These include:

• You struggle to wake or calm your loved one while they are experiencing a night terror.
• Your loved one doesn’t remember his or her night terror or a difficult night’s sleep.
• Your loved one experiences periods of intense fright while asleep, for as long as 30 minutes at a time.
• Your loved one screams, yells, or writhes around in bed while sleeping.
• Your loved one Sleepwalks or wets the bed.

In some cases, we may recommend an overnight sleep study (polysomnogram) in one of our comfortable sleep centers to help us make a night terrors diagnosis. This is usually only needed if you or your loved one’s night terrors are very frequent or if there’s a possibility that another sleep disorder could be causing them, like Sleep Apnea or night tremors.

You deserve to be comfortable at night and to wake up feeling revitalized. Experiencing any kind of sleep disorder (parasomnia) can make that difficult, and night terrors can leave the whole family feeling worried and tired. At AdventHealth, we're here to ease your mind and help you get the sleep you need.

Our sleep-care specialists can recommend simple lifestyle changes that often ease night terrors on their own, like sticking to a consistent sleep schedule and keeping the bedroom quiet, dark, and cool while you sleep.

Medication is sometimes used as a treatment for night terrors, especially if they make it difficult for a child to concentrate in school or if they follow you into adulthood. This could include sedatives like clonazepam or certain antidepressants, which can help ease you into a deep, comfortable sleep. Our sleep disorder experts will discuss all your options with you and help you find the rest and relaxation that opens the door to a healthy body, mind, and spirit.