Can We Talk About Exploding Head Syndrome?

Bodies are weird. It’s just a fact, and as we experience new things and age and grow, they get even weirder. Like, my feet went up an entire size during pregnancy and never went back down. That’s weird, right? And sometimes I can feel a tingle just run up my leg, like some emotion that’s supposed to be up in headquarters got lost and went for a little marathon, and I just have to act like that’s normal.

And then there’s “exploding head syndrome.”

If you read that and immediately thought, “Omg I think I have that,” then you probably do. While it has an extremely uncomfortable name, “exploding head syndrome” is literally what it sounds like. The Cleveland Clinic describes “exploding head syndrome” as a sleep disorder that makes you hear “explosions, or other sudden, loud sounds in your sleep.” While this can be scary and startling, it doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with you, and there’s nothing inherently harmful about exploding head syndrome.

But man, it really can be freaky.

From panicking that it’s the sound of my baby falling out of her crib to worrying that I’m hearing someone banging on the front door trying to get into my house, exploding head syndrome is a really bizarre thing to experience. Science doesn’t really have an explanation for this sleep phenomenon, but the Cleveland Clinic does list a few possible reasons why you might experience exploding head syndrome:

• damage or issues in your inner ear
• part of an aura that accompanies migraine headaches
• a side effect from suddenly stopping SSRIs or other medications used to treat depression and/or anxiety
• a tiny, quick seizure in your brain’s temporal lobe
• your brain “mistakenly” woke you up before you were ready
• your brain experiences a sudden, unexpected electrical activity in the part of your brain that processes and creates your senses

Those last two make so much sense to me — and also explain why I feel like my own experience with “exploding head syndrome” has gotten worse since having children. I feel like I’m never fully asleep, always ready to jump up to whatever my kids need as I sleep, and I also feel like my poor brain is forever trying to process sounds and feelings — you know, to protect my kids — that a sudden, unexpected electric shock in my brain sounds like the most normal thing in the world.

Again, there’s not a whole lot of science about why this happens, and it definitely happened to me before I had kids. But when I think of the typical “sounds” you hear with exploding head syndrome, it really does sound like something specifically created to drive parents batty. From sounds like thunder and explosions to gun shots, slamming doors, loud bangs, and even shattering glass, exploding head syndrome sounds like it’s just a big F you to parents.

Oh, you thought you could catch a few more ZZZs after hitting snooze? BANG.

Oh, you thought you could just put the toddler back to bed and go on with your dreams? GLASS SHATTER.

Oh, you hear your kids downstairs watching TV at 6 in the morning and think you can doze a little longer? EXPLOSION GUN SHOT BOOM BOOM BOOM.

Also, a study found that women are more likely to report exploding head syndrome than men. I mean, come on.

Again, there’s nothing really harmful about exploding head syndrome, but if you are experiencing other symptoms or just want to get yourself checked out, you should obviously bring it up with your doctor.

But for those who are just confused as to why your brain suddenly decides to sound like a battlefield at 4 in the morning when you’re just trying to sleep until your alarm goes off, solidarity. It’s probably not your kids falling out of bed or throwing themselves down the stairs or someone trying to steal your Keurig off of your kitchen counter — but I understand the need to go check anyway.