Answer:

Experiencing jerks or sensations of falling just as you begin to fall asleep is a common phenomenon, known as hypnic jerks. Individuals often feel as if they are falling, missing a step, losing balance, or experiencing a mild electric shock, causing their body to jerk violently and wake them up.

In most cases, this is a benign physiological event, not dangerous, and can occur in healthy individuals. This condition often arises during periods of fatigue, prolonged stress, lack of sleep, excessive consumption of coffee, strong tea, or energy drinks, and overwork.

However, if these jerks occur frequently, persist, or affect sleep quality, you should not be complacent. Certain sleep disorders, neurological conditions, or abnormalities in brain activity can cause this situation.

If frequent jerks are accompanied by prolonged insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness, loud snoring, sleep apnea, sleep talking, or sleepwalking, these may indicate sleep disorders that require thorough evaluation. A typical example is sleep apnea, which causes airway obstruction. In such cases, the brain activates a brief arousal mechanism to restore breathing, causing the individual to suddenly wake up or jerk multiple times during the night without realizing the cause.

To accurately identify the cause, doctors may prescribe polysomnography. This method is considered the "gold standard" in evaluating sleep disorders. During the procedure, equipment simultaneously records brain waves, heart rate, breathing, blood oxygen saturation, eye movements, and muscle activity while the individual sleeps.

A doctor attaches electrodes for a patient's polysomnography. Photo: Tam Anh General Hospital

Through this data, doctors can detect sleep apnea, sleep-related movement disorders, sleep epilepsy, or many other abnormalities that individuals may not recognize.

Occasional sensations of falling that appear only when you begin to sleep and do not affect your daily activities, such as yours, are generally not concerning. However, if the condition occurs frequently, persists, or is accompanied by symptoms like snoring, sleep apnea, insomnia, convulsions, or prolonged fatigue, you should visit a medical facility for examination and necessary tests.

Doctor Nguyen Huu Khanh

Department of Neurology

Neuroscience Center

Tam Anh General Hospital Ho Chi Minh City