Sexsomnia - what is it?

Have you heard of it? People having sex while there´re sleeping? Specially those with sleepingproblems.

• A study was made at a Sleep Center in Texas on 832 persons.
• 8% (32pers) had sex while beeing asleep.
• It was 3 times more common for men than for women
• All the people participating in the study were treated at the clinic for sleeping problems

Sexsomnia is a form of non-rapid eye movement (NREM) parasomnia (similar to sleepwalking) that causes people to engage in sexual acts such as masturbation, fondling, sexual intercourse and sexual assault or rape while they are asleep. The proposed medical diagnosis is NREM Arousal Parasomnia - Sexual Behaviour in Sleep, and is considered to be a distinct variant of sleepwalking. There are often unpleasant consequences associated with sexsomnia and it has been used as a criminal defense in rape cases. Other negative effects include feelings of shame and embarrassment and also can cause relationship issue and stress.

Those who suffer from sexsomnia have confusional arousals and rarely remember the event. People who have a history of doing other sleep activities such as sleepwalking or sleep talking are more likely to exhibit sexsomnia episodes. Factors that may increase episodes of sleep sex are alcohol, sleep deprivation or even sleep apnea and other sleep disruptions. Sexsomnia episodes could be triggered by the contact with bed partner. In some cases sexualised movements during sleep could be caused by sleep related epilepsy which results in sexual arousal, thrusting and orgasms. Simple sexualised movements could be also associated with REM sleep disorders.

If rape has been committed, it can be psychologically and physically devastating to the individual. Some individuals have even claimed sleep sex as a defense during rape trials. Other consequences of sleep sex include feelings of depression, embarrassment and shame after the event.

Sexsomnia is not always harmless. There have been reports of men injuring themselves during sadistic masturbation acts or humping metal or brick walls. Sexsomnia is a disorder that affects males and females. Isolated reports exist about women who have had sex with strangers during the sleep period. The only way this entity was discovered was the detection of used condoms and semen stains on the bed the morning after the sexual incident.

Read all on Wikipedia here

xoxo,
Vicky