Just as you begin to drift into sleep, a sudden jolt shakes your entire body, yanking you back into wakefulness. This startling sensation, known as a hypnic jerk, is a common experience that affects up to 70% of people. Though harmless, it often feels abrupt and unsettling,
leaving you momentarily confused. Hypnic jerks typically occur during the transition from wakefulness to sleep, as the body begins to relax. While the exact cause remains uncertain, researchers suggest that the brain may misinterpret this relaxation as a sign of falling, triggering a sudden burst of neural activity to “catch” the body, resulting in an involuntary twitch.