Twitching While Sleeping

[Wornout]

I was just wondering for all of you sufferers or even supporters; when your loved ones with PTSD sleep do they often twitch a lot? I remember when mine would sleep he would twitch constantly. Sometimes so much he would wake himself up. Is that part of it?

 

[Abstract]

Hi I don't know but I do twitch a lot.

 

[Delta62]

I twitch in my sleep a lot also.

 

[Deleted member 1860]

I don't know if its twitching but I know I do move a lot! My blankets are all light down. Anything heavier and I wake up exhausted as they prevent me from moving. I sleep alone so I don't know what the movements look like. Sometimes I wake up with weird bruises.

 

[Kas_Can_Fly]

I don't know about twitching, but I've woken myself up twisted in the duvet, that all the sheets are off the bed, by sitting bolt upright, by screaming, by jerking and hitting my head from jerking on a wall. I also sleep alone, so I don't really know if there is anything else I do, but all of those have woken me up.

 

[SweetPeaandSunBird]

My boyfriend has noticed this in me when I sleep. In fact, he says that if he brushes up or touches an innocuous part of my body -- my shoulder, for example -- the twitching will be localized to just that spot.

I've always assumed it was part of PTSD, but I've not read anything about it.

 

[amethist]

My husband can have nights where he twitches constantly. Usually after a stressful day.

 

[Wornout]

I never thought much of it until all of this started to happen and I was looking back and so much stuff makes sense now. And I was thinking about the twitching thing and I was just wondering if anybody else had that problem. Obviously they do. He doesn't really move around that much but defiantly twitches like no other. I remember one time it was so bad that he was laying on me and I was texting and he was twitching so badly I could barely text.

 

[Venusian]

When I was married my husband said that I would hit him while I was sleeping. It was before I could remember what happened to me. Now I am divorced and sleep alone and I do sometimes wake myself up from a sound sleep, when I can sleep.

It is worse when my PTSD symptoms are bad. It may be part of the hypevigilence, always being on guard and never being able to rest. I am curious because no one has ever explained it to me, I have just assumed that is what it was.

 

[Artfulone]

I used to twitch regularly when going to bed. This was far more common when my blood sugar levels were low, I found that for me it was often a sign to eat something before trying to sleep. I get it a lot less often now but still have it occasionally. I have found mindfulness meditation to be great for this as it assists me in getting back into and in touch with my physical body, in addition to integrating more effectively the functions of and between my different bodies i.e. physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and what I like to call the body of my internal family system (dissociated parts). Daytime twitching is also reduced but is still occurring, but this occurs most often as we confront issues in therapy. Both myself and my therapist take tend to take this as a symptom that this is showing that we are in the right place and bringing up some of the stuff that is likely going to make more difference when processed.

Ironically a few years ago myself and my therapist would be more likely to be observant for signs of dissociation when this twitching happened, as at that point I was far more likely to dissociate uncomfortable material. I still dissociate and still twitch but this is a lot less now as I tend to be triggered less often and to lesser degrees.

 

[PeekieBlue]

My ex experienced bad PTSD dreams and would twitch a lot.

 

[Abstract]

I don't want to steer the thread off course so Wornout let me know if you would like me to edit this post. Thanks.

I am starting to be more self aware and noticed I almost always am drenched in sweat and heart thumping and sometimes internal shaking as well as toss and turn whole night apparently. I wonder if others do that too and if maybe the twitching is part of it somehow.