Is there a cure for sleeptalking?

August 12, 2017 7:20 AM

Is there a cure for sleeptalking?
posted by pompomtom to Health & Fitness (5 answers total)

Well, if you were wearing something like a sleep apnea CPAP mask, I suppose bedfellows might not be able to hear you.
posted by XMLicious at 7:25 AM on August 12, 2017

My husband's sleep talking (along with his snoring, teeth grinding and night terrors) all disappeared when he started using a CPAP machine. If you can, do a sleep study and see if it would help you to use such a device.
posted by macadamiaranch at 4:59 PM on August 12, 2017 [1 favorite]

Mine seems to get worse when I'm more stressed out. I've noticed it gets better when I get more sleep, get regular physical exercise, eat better, hydrate, destress more, and sometimes when I wear an anti-teeth grinding guard.
posted by Geameade at 5:06 PM on August 12, 2017 [1 favorite]

Hubs sleeptalks less if he meditates for five minutes before bed; sleeptalks way more if he plays video games, or reads. (Video games by far the worst culprit in terms of excessive sleeptalk, but books do do it too.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 7:04 PM on August 12, 2017 [1 favorite]

The above commenters have it right, IME - stress and sleep apnea are the two big contributors to more-than-occasional sleep talking.

If you have other symptoms of sleep apnea, to wit: unrefreshing sleep, snoring, thrashing around, waking up gasping for air, waking up bathed in sweat even in a cool room, dry mouth and/or headache upon waking up in the morning - get a sleep test.

If you don't have any sleep apnea symptoms but you are going through a period of stress - meditating or doing light yoga before bed, listening to a soothing podcast, soaking in an epsom salts bath with a drop or two of lavender oil, have all been known to help.
posted by Rosie M. Banks at 12:05 PM on August 13, 2017