Sexonia is also known as sexual sleepwalking or sexual dreaming and is a sleep disorder that involves unconsciously engaging in sexual behaviors while we sleep.
Is sexny a sleep disorder-parasomnia? And it is related to NREM sleep (first half of the sleep period). In fact, people with this disorder don’t usually remember anything the next day. disorder, data indicate that men are the most affected.
- It is an unusual and unknown disorder.
- Many affected people do not consult a doctor or psychologist for fear of being judged or simply out of embarrassment.
Research concludes that 10% of adults with parasomnia have this atypical sexual behavior during sleep, in fact, there is not much literature on the subject, and the first research on this topic was conducted in 1996, even though the first cases described date back to 2000, and the term itself began to be used in 2003.
Episodes of Sexon occur mainly in the NREM sleep phase, as does sleepwalking, so sex is also known as sexual sleepwalking, in addition, during the NREM phase, the person has no dreams.
Another curious fact is that sexnia can occur at the same time as other parasomnias, such as sleepwalking mentioned above or even restless legs syndrome, the latter is a neurological disorder characterized by unpleasant sensations in the legs and an uncontrollable impulse to move and walk when the person is resting.
The person who suffers from sex unconsciously behaves sexually while sleeping, these behaviors include caressing, rubbing, moaning, masturbating or having full sex, etc. , in addition, the person, when waking up, often does not remember having practiced these sexual behaviors.
Cases of sex in which the person had sex with strangers in his or her sleep have been documented, other cases even report sexual abuse or rape during sleep.
As we will see later, the consequences of sexnia can be quite unpleasant, not only for those with this behavior, but also for people who sleep next to them.
There are several factors that can cause this disorder. The main causes of sexnia include:
Sexnia usually has a trigger, something that causes the person to wake up while sleeping and engage in sexual behaviors, this trigger can be noise, friction with the person they sleep with, sleep apnea or even sleep-related epilepsy.
The consequences of this disorder occur to the person who suffers from this behavior, to those who share a bed with them, and to those who are the subject of their sexual behavior. In addition to marital and personal problems, there may also be legal repercussions.
The legal implications occur, in particular, in cases where those involved are minors and, in others, in cases where penetration has been consumed, the latter are often mistakenly considered as rape.
Some cases of sexual abuse were found in favor of perpetrators, who even claimed to have sex; others, however, were judged differently. There is still a legal vacuum in this regard.
The person with this disorder may experience confusion, denial, guilt and shame, among other emotions, may also experience anger, fear and frustration, controlling this situation in stable couples is often difficult and, in some cases, an additional reason to end. the relationship.
The long-term consequences are not yet clear, as this disorder does not usually appear for as long as other parasomnias. However, this is a very recent field of study and there are still no answers to many of these questions today.
There is no specific treatment for sexnia, in the pharmacological field some drugs have been tested, such as sedatives and antidepressants, but none have had really effective results.
The chosen treatment should take into account risk factors, in this sense alcohol and drugs should be avoided, a sleep-friendly environment should be created and sleep apnea, if any, as well as stressors should be avoided.
As can be seen, sexonia is a serious disorder that can have legal repercussions, the consequences for the couple can be very complex, even reaching the end of the relationship, we still do not know much about this disorder, so we must continue to investigate on going.