Suddenly woke up when falling asleep

I believe many people have had this experience: when they just fell asleep, they suddenly felt that their feet were stepping on empty air, they shook a little, and then they were awakened. Many people don’t know what causes this phenomenon, and there are many opinions about this phenomenon on the Internet. The most accepted theory is that the shaking is caused by calcium deficiency and the body's growth. So what is the truth? Let’s uncover the reasons why your body suddenly shakes and wakes you up when you’re sleeping.

1. Regarding this body secret, some experts believe that it is the so-called hypnic myokymia, which is a sudden shake of the body when just falling asleep, and is usually accompanied by a feeling of falling or stepping on air.

2. This physiological involuntary movement occurs when the brain mistakenly thinks that the message of falling asleep is actually about to fall. The brain's response is to tense the muscles to regain balance, which will cause the body to shake suddenly and violently, or even wake up. This usually happens when you are tired or under great mental stress.

3. In addition, when you want to sleep, a lot of serotonin will be secreted in the brain. This neurotransmitter is closely related to sleep and memory. Some people often dream of missing a step when walking up the stairs. This dream usually occurs when they just fall asleep. In fact, this is because the muscles suddenly relax.

4. Another theory is that when entering a sleep state, the cerebral cortex will inhibit the activity of the muscles of the limbs, but at this time the muscle nerves will have some spontaneous movements. In addition, when in a sleep state, the blood circulation in the human body is slower, and the small muscle nerve movements will be more obvious. Experts say that it is normal if it happens occasionally and you shouldn't worry too much about it, but if it happens too frequently you should see a doctor.

5. Human sleep goes from light to deep. During sleep, all muscles in the body will relax completely. Because the cerebral cortex is inhibited, various body functions are in an unstable state. As one falls asleep, the heartbeat slows down, the body temperature drops, and the breathing slows down. At this time, the feet twitch and cause stepping on air. This is a self-adjustment of the nervous system and is normal behavior.