5 year old waking up from sleep with bizarre behaviour

[Tiredmom101]

My 5 year old has recently started waking up from a sleep with quite terrifying behaviour.

So far this has happened around 5 or 6 times over the past 2 months. It has always happened after he has fallen asleep and been asleep for a couple of hours.

He wakes crying as if he's having a bad dream then eventually seems awake (eyes are opened, talks, cries and gets up and communicates, I have also asked how many fingers I'm holding up and he can tell me so I don't think he's dreaming when this happens).

Tonight this happened again, it's really scary and it breaks my heart that I cannot seem to console, help or bring him out of it. He woke up crying in his sleep and I tried to settle him but he got up from bed and started speaking while crying, he was telling me to "slow down" even though I wasn't moving, then begged me to go with him to sit on the floor at the foot of my bed. While we were there a yellow piece of paper from a drawing he done was there and he said "please just believe me you need to eat this" so I went along with what he asked because he was terrified and I pretended to bite the paper and he began laughing but in a terrifying way then soon began saying "sit down sit down" he then had us on the floor and putting our faces to the ground saying "please don't die" "please god please". While this is happening I'm telling him everything is ok and he is safe and asked if I could switch the light on and he grabs my arm to tell me "no no don't switch the light on" he then asks me to get my mum (his grandmother) here right now and to "trust me I just need to do this" so I asked him if I could phone her which we did and she drove to our house. While he was on the phone to her he began to come out of this. These episodes last up to 20 max but feel like a lifetime because he is so focused on the feeling being real. While this is happening he's in a state of panic and he grabs his chest and he can barely breath for how scared he is. The last time it happened he was begging me for a doctor.

I have been to the GP twice about this and he doesn't seem to think it's anything but a dream? There have been times he was screaming at the tv when he's woken up and shouting for me to "switch it off" (there was nothing scary ok the screen. He's also expressed in other episodes everything being "too loud and too fast". The GP has referred him for an ADHD assessment but I am really just looking to see if anyone else has ever encountered anything like this?

By day he's a happy very energetic boy, caring, loving, silly and fun. He doesn't have overnights anywhere other than with my own mother and father but hasn't since these episodes because I dont want him feeling stressed even more so if they aren't sure how to deal with it. My mum has been present for one of the episodes and she is as equally baffled and terrified as I am.

Does anyone have any experience of this or have heard of this before?

(He doesn't have a temperature when this happens and the doctor has tested his urine twice which has been clear)

Night terrors are a thing, and I agree, very upsetting. It sounds liked a bit later than mine had them (mine more like 4yo) but probably within range.... they stop of themselves in a year or two

That sounds like a night terror. I used to get them as a kid. They were worse when I was sick. I haven't had them since I was 18, but do still sometimes have weird conversations with DH while I'm asleep.

It’s night terrors 2 of my children have had / had it.
usually between 10-11 pm.

I am used to it so don’t find it any way upsetting. The child doesn’t remember a thing in the morning.
what I do is i take them to the toilet and once they have been take them back to bed. Seems to calm them down quite quickly.
if that has not worked then I stay completely calm and just keep child safe until it is over. I’ve had some times they are walking around pointing at things crying and making no sense but it always comes to and end and then straight back to sleep.
in my opinion it seems linked to needing the toilet but that might not be everyone’s experience. However the only child I have who didn’t have night terrors used to wet the bed at the same sort of time instead.

Random question but are any of these children taking Montelukast? It can cause night terrors / issues with sleep…(among other things)

Agree with PPs night terrors, my little brother used to have them and eventually grew out of it but they are so upsetting to witness, he used to writhe around the living room screaming, no one could go near him else he would back away terrified like he wasn’t seeing us but a monster, then he would suddenly be fine have a snack/drink n go back to bed like nothing happened xx

Thank you so much for all the responses, I honestly feel a million times better knowing others have experienced it. Honestly I just assumed night terrors were bad dreams previously I didn't realise it was like this. This feels like hallucinations but it seems like that might be apart of night terrors. @Avie29 it is exactly like your saying.

Hi i have a 5 year old and he does the same... It's so scary and frustrating... It's so worrying like something is wrong... Is there something that could help or how can we find something that could preven it...