Can you sleep with your eyes open? Though it is possible to sleep with eyes open, it is not advisable. Sleeping with their eyes open can lead to several problems, including an increased risk of infection and damage to the cornea.
Contents
Why Do We Sleep With Our Eyes Closed?
Our eyelids are crucial for having a good night’s sleep. The eyelids serve as a protective barrier, keeping particles out of the eyes. They also lubricate the eyes and keep them from drying out.
Closing our eyelids also limits light, which is necessary for calibrating the body’s inherent 24-hour clock. The retina’s specific cells2 analyze light and transmit data to the hypothalamus, signaling that it’s time to wake up. Melatonin is created when we are exposed to darkness, signaling to our bodies that it is time to sleep.
What Causes You to Sleep With Your Eyes Open?
Many factors can contribute to nocturnal lagophthalmos, including poor eyelid mechanics, facial nerve diseases, and physical abnormalities in the face. Several factors potentially predispose people to these problems:
- Proptosis (Bulging Eyeball): The eyelids must cover a larger surface area when the eyeball protrudes. Thyroid problems such as Graves disease, congenital conditions altering the structure of the face, infection, or a tumor are all possible causes of proptosis.
- Short or Weak Eyelids: A variety of sleep disorders can cause the eyelids to shorten or lose muscle tone, preventing them from entirely shutting. Eyelid height and tone can be compromised by medical associations such as eyelid tightening surgery, cosmetic surgery Botox injections, and fat reduction around the eyes.
- Scarring: Physical trauma, chemical burns, and diseases like ocular pemphigoid and Stevens-Johnson syndrome can scar eyelid components and restrict function.
- Nerve Issues: A variety of issues involving the facial nerves can cause the eyelids to malfunction. Bell’s palsy, Lyme illness, and injuries are among these issues.
- Sedatives: Drinking too much alcohol or taking too many sedatives, such as sleeping pills, might lead to nocturnal lagophthalmos.
- Idiopathic: when there is no recognized etiology for nocturnal lagophthalmos.
Even if a person’s eyes are open when sleeping, it does not necessarily mean they have nocturnal lagophthalmos. People who sleepwalk, for example, usually keep their eyes open during their sleepwalking episodes. On the other hand, sleepwalking is treated as a different issue from nocturnal lagophthalmos.
Sleeping With Your Eyes Open Symptoms
You will not be able to deep sleep due to this problem alone. However, nocturnal lagophthalmos’ adverse effects, such as eye discomfort and dryness, may make you more restless when sleeping.
Ask a family member, friend, or partner to check them as you sleep if you suspect you could be sleeping with them open. Be on the lookout for nocturnal lagophthalmos symptoms, including blurred vision, dry eyes, and bright light sensitivity. You may also have red eyes or the sensation of something being stuck in your eye.
Consult your eye doctor if you have any of these symptoms. During an eye exam, they’ll be able to identify if your eyes are entirely closed.
Sleeping With Your Eyes Open Treatment
The treatment for nocturnal lagophthalmos depends on the origin and severity of the symptoms. It’s critical to address any underlying condition contributing to the problem if at all possible. A person with nerve damage, for example, may see a neurologist, whereas someone with a thyroid condition might need endocrine therapy.
The initial goal of nocturnal lagophthalmos treatment is to alleviate dryness and prevent keratitis. Eye drops for waking hours and an ointment for bedtime may be prescribed for people with symptoms. Doctors may recommend using special tape to keep the eyelids shut at night or a moisture goggles device while sleeping in more severe cases.
If you’ve been diagnosed with nocturnal lagophthalmos, you may need to change your sleeping environment to alleviate the symptoms.
Ensure that the room is maintained dark to prevent light from entering and contributing to awakenings. Dry-eye symptoms can also be helped by using a humidifier or shifting your bed away from dry airflow.
Limiting alcohol or sedatives before bedtime is recommended for people with nocturnal lagophthalmos. Inadequate lubrication raises the danger of infection. Thus it’s also crucial to keep the eyes clean and debris-free. Blinking more frequently and thoroughly during waking hours may be beneficial for people with nocturnal lagophthalmos to ensure their eyes have sufficient moisture.
Surgical surgery may be required in some cases to treat nocturnal lagophthalmos. Skin grafting, stitching the eyelids closer together, and implanting microscopic gold weights in the eyelids are all options. Even though these methods may appear severe, they are often well-tolerated and successful.
When To Talk To Your Doctor?
It’s challenging to identify nocturnal lagophthalmos on your own. Even if someone else is watching you while you sleep, even small eyelid holes may be hidden by eyelashes and go unnoticed.
If you’re experiencing persistent eye issues, especially dry eye disease, that gets worse in the morning, it’s good to see a doctor for testing. If left untreated, nocturnal lagophthalmos can harm your eye health and sleep. Getting a good diagnosis and treatment plan will assist you in getting the rest you require.
FAQs
What are the advantages and disadvantages of sleeping with eyes open?
We don’t encourage sleeping with your eyes completely open because it isn’t normal. It might cause dryness in the eyes, which can impair sleep. If you can’t close it during sleep for some reason and it’s affecting your sleep quality, we recommend consulting a doctor.
People sleep with partially open eyelids without noticing it because it does not interfere with their sleep. That’s perfectly natural and doesn’t necessitate medical attention.
Is lagophthalmos a life-threatening condition?
Although lagophthalmos isn’t a severe condition, seeing a doctor can help you determine what’s causing it and prevent future harm. If the problem is caused by dryness in the eyes, doctors may prescribe drops to lubricate the eyes, stimulating tear production and removing the dryness.
An external eyelid weight, placed on your upper eyelids at night, or surgical tape may be recommended by your doctor to help keep it closed. On the other hand, surgical intervention may be required in some cases.
The implantation of a gold weight implant in the drooping upper eyelid is the most common surgical treatment for lagophthalmos. It aids in the closure of the eyelids and protects the cornea without impairing eyesight.
Is it genetic to sleep with eyes open?
Sleeping with open eyes is an inherited trait, but most children outgrow it. Mild cases of nocturnal lagophthalmos with no apparent explanation may be hereditary. Five out of 102 cases had a genetic history of nocturnal lagophthalmos due to the small sample size.
What are the causes of Bell’s Palsy?
The actual etiology of Bell’s Palsy has yet to be discovered. It could result from a viral infection that causes inflammation of the facial nerves, which govern facial muscles and eyelid movement. Bell’s palsy, commonly known as facial palsy, is a condition that can afflict persons of any age.
Can you sleep soundly while keeping your eyes open?
No. Sleeping with eyes open makes it harder to get a good night’s sleep. It may get dry, disrupting your sleep. Distractions in your field of vision prohibit you from getting a good night’s sleep.
Maybe you need:
- Is It Better To Sleep Naked?
- Why Do My Hands Go Numb When I Sleep?
- Do You Burn Calories When You Sleep?
- Is Sleep Apnea Genetic?
Conclusion
There is enough evidence that sleeping with the eyes open can lead to several health problems, including an increased risk of infection and damage to the cornea. Repopny recommends that people sleep with their eyes closed to avoid these risks. Do you know more information about this topic?