Sleeping with your eyes open - is that even possible?

Sleeping with eyes open: a contradiction?

As humans, we associate good sleep with complete relaxation. Our body muscles relax and our eyelids close completely. Sleeping with your eyes open therefore seems impossible at first. We all know from our own experience that our eyelids become heavier and heavier when we are overcome by tiredness. At the end of the first sleep phase, our eyes then remain completely closed – and we begin to dream. Staying open overnight is anatomically not intended for our eyes. Even during the day, we blink several times a minute, and our eyes never stay open for a long time at a stretch. This is the only way that sufficient tear fluid can be distributed on our cornea and normal blinking is made possible. Blinking is also important for another reason: it protects the eye from foreign bodies and unpleasant air drafts. At night, however, our brain needs complete darkness, and our eyes should therefore remain completely closed. While daylight makes us awake, it is a hindrance at night because it causes our body to not release enough of the sleep hormone melatonin. In exceptional cases, however, it still happens that the eyes do not close completely during sleep - and thus the quality of sleep suffers.

When do people sleep with their eyes open?

Have you ever watched a baby doze off without closing its eyes? It is indeed possible for people to sleep with their eyes open. However, there is a crucial difference: while this behavior is harmless in infancy, it signals a serious problem in adults. If you don't sleep with your eyes closed as an adult, there can be several reasons behind it. The most common are:

• Not enough deep sleep
  The real reason why babies sometimes dream with their eyes open, as mentioned above, is that their sleep sometimes remains shallow. When they don't reach the deep sleep stage, their eyes stay open. Although it must look strange to you, there is no need to worry about it.
• Stress
  Stress is one of the biggest antagonists to healthy sleep, as it is often accompanied by problems of falling asleep and subsequently staying asleep. The reason for this is that you can't fully relax even when you're asleep if you are stressed. A bunch of returning negative thoughts keep you awake. As a result, during the REM phase, your eyes may not stay completely closed. 

• Sleep paralysis
  As we sleep, our muscles are normally loose and relaxed. This is not the case for people affected by sleep paralysis. That passive state can persist for them even after awakening. Then, for example, the eyes may be open while the affected person sees himself lying in bed, unable to lift a finger. Rather frightening!
• Lagophthalmos
  Lagophtalmus describes people who have damage to the 7th cranial nerve and, as a result, do not have full control of their facial muscles. For example, affected individuals cannot completely close one or even both eyelids. Commonly, the disease is also called hare's eye, which goes back to the old misconception that hares would never close their eyes even when sleeping. Today, of course, we know that this is not the case, but the name has persisted.
• Vegetative state
  Unfortunately, those who are in a vegetative state have often suffered severe neurological damage. The damage also affects the control of the eye muscles and patients are then no longer able to perform eye movements. This also includes the voluntary closing of the eyelids, leaving the eyes open.

What signs indicate that I sleep with my eyes open at night?

How can you know if you open your eyes at night? People who share their bed with a loved one are sure to notice sooner or later if they sleep with their eyes open at night. But single sleepers usually don't monitor themselves during the night's rest, so it's hard for them to know if they're affected by this sleep problem. However, some signs may indicate that you're not closing your eyelids all the way at night:

• You suffer from increased lacrimation (teary eyes)
• Your eyes are constantly dry or irritated
• Your eyes itch and burn
• Your eyes are often red
• The eyeballs feel strangely cold or warm

Have you noticed one or more of these symptoms in yourself? There is no need to panic. The best thing to do is to make an appointment with your ophthalmologist to have your eyes examined. If the doctor finds abrasions on your cornea during his examination, this could indicate insufficient eyelid closure during the night.

What to do if the eyelids do not sufficiently close during the night?

We can reassure you: In a large number of cases, stress and tension are responsible for people sleeping with their eyes open at night. These causes are temporary and there are a few tools that will improve the quality of your sleep and make it more comfortable:

• Heat pads
  Heat pads for the eyes? Even though most people associate heat treatments with other parts of the body, the eye is ultimately a muscle. And a heat mask can relax your eye muscles before bedtime, so you'll have less trouble closing your lids all the way afterwards.
• Relaxation techniques
  If you sleep with your eyes open due to stress, relaxation techniques such as yoga or meditation before bedtime can provide better quality sleep by helping you calm down and eliminate tension.

• Sleep mask
  A sleep mask provides complete darkness and protects your eyes from foreign objects. Thereby, the popular sleep accessory helps you to have a more comfortable sleeping experience. Since it exerts a slight pressure on your eyes, it also helps you keep your eyelids closed.
• Medical intervention
  For stubborn cases, a treatment with Botox or an upper eyelid treatment like eyelid loading can help you close your eyes again.