What is this?

So I've been dreaming recently.

Not sure how to start this.. I'll just cut to the chase.

I keep nearly falling asleep, and when I'm in some sort of a half awake half dream state, I begin being more involved in the dream. By that I mean, when I trip in the dream (this happened about 8/10 times) my foot seems to almost twitch, as if I were tripping.

So what would this be called? Is it normal? Whats up with it?

Poodles twitch like that too when they snooze. In their brains they're sluggishly paddling against deadly currents at the rim of Niagara falls. Human cReatures do this too so I'd say it's nOrmal-ish.

This is called a myoclonic jerk. It happens most often when drifting off to sleep.

edit:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Myoclonus wiki

The most common time for people to encounter them is while falling asleep (hypnic jerk)

---

Sometimes before I make threads about things I Google them.

Actually I do it all the time because pointless questions with simple answers annoy people.

Good suggestion, but no need to be hostile. Sometimes questions are hard to articulate well enough or find the appropriate diction for to quickly or effectively get answers through google.

I believe its your brain replying to what it created its self, so when you trip your brain reacts and this shows your foot twitching... completely normal, happend to me.

Well, thank (most of) you. I think I know what it is now.

And the reason I created a thread about this instead of googling was because whenever I google something, it comes up with like 3 or 4 different answers and I can't tell which one is right. And if you'd rather google it than go ahead, google it. You don't have to read this.

Anyways, my one question is, why don't we do this in our sleep? If we're in a half-awake-half-dream sort of state, then why wouldn't we do it in our actual dreams.
I'm guessing the answer is that our muscles haven't started to rest in that half-sleep state, so in real sleep they're resting.

I think that's it, I'd just like a confirmation from y'all. :D

Sweet dreams.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by snoop

Good suggestion, but no need to be hostile. Sometimes questions are hard to articulate well enough or find the appropriate diction for to quickly or effectively get answers through google.

---

"jerking/twitching sleep"

https://www.google.com/search?q=jerk...hrome&ie=UTF-8

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GrannyPigms

Anyways, my one question is, why don't we do this in our sleep? If we're in a half-awake-half-dream sort of state, then why wouldn't we do it in our actual dreams.

---

Because unlike what learndreaming said, you're not responding to what you're imagining. If you actually went and read an article about hypnic jerks you would find that it's caused by your muscles all relaxing and your brain taking that sensation as falling. You imagine yourself tripping or whatever in your "dream" at that moment for the same reason you might hear your alarm clock in your dream right before it wakes you up.

Also, when you're just drifting off to sleep, sleep paralysis may not have taken effect yet or may not have taken effect completely. So even if it was a response to imagination instead of the other way around that would be the explanation for that.