Is this a night terror?
Hi all,
35M, non-smoker, non-drinker, gym 3x/week,
For 3-4 years I've been experiencing occasional 4-8 per month episodes where 1-3 hours after falling asleep I wake up shaking with teeth chattering. Lasts 30 seconds - a minute before I can calm down and go to sleep again.
During this episodes I have an intense feeling of fear/terror/shock - it's hard for me to put it into words especially that English is not my first language. I think the most accurate comparison would be like when you jump into ice cold water.
I don't have anxiety or other mental health problems during the day, so I don't think this could be a panic attack.
It's been really impacting my sleep negatively. I always feel terrible the day after it happens. Also, rarely, when it happens a couple of nights in a row, it can make me a bit "scared" of going to sleep.
Is this what people call night terrors? Is the answer to it trying to get better sleep hygiene, like better schedules/less screen time, etc?