Spiders, Snakes, Poisonous Gas...

While sleeping I get out of bed in panic usually trying to avoid a perceived danger. It's like having hallucinations while being half asleep. Usual subjects of my terrors include fleeing from intruders, trying to get out of the room which is filling up with poisonous gas, fleeing from serpents or insects in my bed or trying to protect myself from high voltage cables running along my wall. Other times I quietly get up with the impression that the threat has not located my presence yet and walk around the room, intensively feeling the walls and trying to find "the exit". These episodes end by me eventually waking up really upset usually by having bumped against a piece of furniture in the room. They usually happen when I am very tired or stressed and (after always looking at the clock when finally awake) most times within the first 1-1.5 hours of falling asleep.

Other times I sit up in my bed half awake and look at various LED lights in the room (e.g. TV or modem LEDs) and I can actually recognize patterns, shapes or even people in the blur of the light that I am looking at. Like a kaleidoscope but with defined objects. If it's people I see, I try to talk to them. Most of the time I am aware that it's just the LED light but I am still trying to figure out how the hell that's possible. I try to blink or rub my eyes but it doesn't go away. Extremely fascinated, I just go back to bed.

To battle this condition I have found taking valerian root extract pills before sleeping to be extremely helpful. I've never had a single night terror after taking two valerian pills. In the past I have also tried St. John's wort which was also effective.