Since I was very young, I have regularly walked and talked during sleep. I first became aware of this when I was about six or seven years old when I would wake up in the morning on the living room couch and would have no idea how I got there. It happened again and again until it finally occurred to me that I must be a sleepwalker.

As I got older, my sleepwalking got more complex. Of course, I had to rely on second-hand accounts to know what had happened, since I couldn't even remember the event the following morning. When I was about twelve, my mom told me how she saw me crouching down behind my bed. When she asked me what I was doing, I told her that I was playing hide-and-seek with my sister. My sister was asleep in her bed, but in my commingled wakeful-dream state, she was right around the corner searching for me.

I have had conversations with other sleepers, tried to storm out of my house in a rage, sung songs fluently in foreign languages that I did not speak (on at least two documented occasions), attempted to hide behind a framed painting hanging on the wall, organized about fifty pens and pencils in a neat arrangement on the floor, danced around the room and many other things, all in my sleep.

When I sleepwalk, most observers don't even realize that I am asleep at first. My eyes are open, my body is coordinated, my speech is clear. However, my perception of reality is usually very skewed. I have always described it as "acting out my dreams," but it may be that that is not an accurate account. The objects in my room turn into different things. For instance I will often become partially aware of my sleepwalking and discover that what I thought was a person, was really a shadow and what I thought was a strange person in my bed, was actually my wife.

As I've gotten older, my sleepwalking has become less frequent, but also more intense. However, I've also "learned" to take note of it and have even been able to arouse myself on a couple of occasions to where I realize that I am sleepwalking and I will return to my bed. But, through all of this, I've never viewed sleepwalking as a bad thing. I've accepted it as part of me, of what I am. I think it is useful to analyze it and to try and understand it better, but to call it a "disorder" is going too far.

Here's a fairly long article on the subject that I friend sent to me today [New York Times].

The article touches on a lot of points and I found myself saying "that's me" on more than one occasion. Overall, I don't have any complaints with the article, but what I do have serious disagreements with is the treatment of sleepwalking as a "disorder." Why does everything that doesn't fit neatly into a prescribed notion of normality automatically become a disorder. I think the sciences of psychology/psychiatry would gain a lot by simply recognizing that phenomena of the human brain exist, possibly then classifying them, but without adding editorial judgment upon these phenomena.

We, as a race, know so little about what it takes to construct a functioning organism, much less an organism that is aware of itself. We are grossly ignorant of the importance of these psychological conditions during our waking life. How many intellects and artists are being suffocated by over diagnosis and over prescription to "treat" the horrendous condition of Attention Deficit Disorder? Maybe this so called disorder conceals benefits that we have yet to recognize.

What unknown side effects would result if I started "treating" my sleepwalking "disorder"? Maybe my intellect would be affected. Maybe my creativity would be impaired. The point is, we don't have the slightest clue. So, I would not dream (pun not intended) of letting a psychiatrist adulter my mind with drugs. Drugs should only be a last resort for people who have a condition that is so severe that it endangers them or those around them.

Whenever I start hearing about reductionistic approaches to the human mind I am left amazed that scientists still believe that the mind will be understood with such simplistic models. "Exceptions prove the rule", but in the case of the mind, "exceptions are the rule." 2:56:59 PM      

I have been on the fence for a while over Xbox vs. PS2. The decision was finally made for me when I received an Xbox for my birthday. Microsoft's quarterly SEC filings certainly haven't made me feel better about the system's prospects with the company reporting quarterly losses that doubled that of last year [Slashdot]. Combine that with their report that they may have to lower the price of Windows and you have to ask yourself where they're going to get the money to keep the Xbox propped up. On the other hand, you can never underestimate Microsoft; you never know what they are going to pull out of their hat. I just hope I get some good playing time out of it before all of the games disappear. 9:44:55 AM      

Microsoft has managed to get a stay on the order to ship Sun's Java with their Windows OS <frown> and they have informed investors that they may have to lower the price of Windows due to competition from the open-source community <grin> [ArsTechnica]. 9:29:44 AM