In the Victorian era, as interest in the mind and consciousness grew, criminal cases involving supposed sleepwalkers were treated with new ideas about culpability. In 1876, a woman experiencing a delusional, sleepwalking state, believed her baby’s hand to be a loaf of bread and cut it off. The baby didn’t survive. During the trial, however, the jury were so convinced that the woman was not in control of herself that a radical verdict was used for the first time: not guilty on grounds of unconsciousness. Boxing's A Team! Ed Sheeran arrives ringside ahead of Katie Taylor's rematch with Chantelle Cameron in Dublin and poses with fans Parasomnias have also been the subject of extensive scientific investigations with many medical theories and treatments recommended over the centuries. I'm A Celebrity SPOILER: Tony Bellew gags while downing murky brown drink during gruesome challenge Alice Vernon has been plagued by "parasomnias" ever since she was a child. These can vary from nightmares, sleepwalking, hallucinations, sleep paralysis and even lucid dreaming - just to name a few. They're more common than you think and will affect around 70% of us at some point during our lives.

Ever since she was a child, her nights have been haunted by nightmares of a figure from her adolescence, sinister hallucinations and episodes of sleepwalking. These are known as ‘parasomnias’– and they’re surprisingly common. Patsy Kensit 'rekindles romance with property tycoon fiancé' Patric Cassidy four months after splitting Jodie Foster, 61, and her son Kit, 22, enjoy RARE outing together as they bundle up in chic winter fashions for chilly Big Apple stroll Jennifer Lawrence exudes wintertime chic in beige scarf and leather gloves as she enjoys NYC stroll with son Cy, one, after Thanksgiving I think reading about them will certainly help. Before I started to conduct research for the book, I had so many misconceptions of my own—I had no idea that when I saw spiders all over my bed, for example, it was something called a hypnopompic hallucination. The more we learn about and understand what is really happening when we experience these strange sleep states, the less weird or embarrassed we’ll feel for having them in the first place. You explain that some parasomnias (such as sleepwalking and lucid dreaming) are romanticized, while others (hallucinations, sleep paralysis, night terrors) are more stigmatized. Could you elaborate on this? What do you think fuels this difference?Christina Aguilera sparks a fan frenzy as she arrives at her Melbourne afterparty following rained-out performance at Always Live festival James Martin makes a public appearance at BBC Good Food Show weeks after announcing career break amid cancer battle Now a lecturer in Creative Writing, Vernon set out to understand the history, science and culture of these strange and haunting experiences. Night Terrors, her startling and vivid debut, examines the history of our relationship with bad dreams: how we've tried to make sense of and treat them, from some decidedly odd 'cures' like magical 'mare-stones', to research on how video games might help people rewrite their dreams. Along the way she explores the Salem Witch Trials and sleep paralysis, Victorian ghost stories, and soldiers' experiences of PTSD. By directly confronting her own strange and frightening nights for the first time, Vernon encourages us to think about the way troubled sleep has impacted our imaginations.

Reviewer Carolina Ciucci Interviews Alice Vernon, Author of Night Terrors: Troubled Sleep and the Stories We Tell about ItAbout What Happened on Floor 34?: Her dream job just became her worst nightmare… My name is Rose, and I work for one of the country's biggest newspapers. I was the Day Editor. Will Frost was the Night Editor. When I got to the office, Will had already left. When I left, Will arrived. We were two sides of the same coin. Last week, Will disappeared from floor 34 without a trace. Now I am the Night Editor. And I have a feeling I'm next. Ashley Benson bundles up her baby bump in cozy sweats as she steps out with her dog on a coffee run... after tying the knot with Brandon Davis Aaron Hall comes under scrutiny for lyrics in his song Don't Be Afraid after he and Diddy were sued for rape Lewis Hamilton showcases his quirky sense of style yet again in orange and brown tie-dye all-in-one ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix