I guess you can have sex and sleep at the same time

I have recently seen a few articles online dealing with people performing actions in their sleep. However, these aren’t normal walking around and getting a snack in ones sleep. These cases deal with people performing sexual acts while still in a state of complete sleep. I was particularly interested in a video I found on cnn.com. In the video, CNN correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta examined a condition called ‘sexsomnia’ which is a disorder causing people to initiate and perform sexual activities while still asleep.

The video follows a young couple known as Dave and Julie (not their real names) as they deal with this disorder. They are a normal everyday people with a young daughter and a nice home. However, Dave has sexsomnia, which causes him to initiate sex while in bed with Julie. As romantic as that sounds, it is a serious disorder that has been paired closely with parasomnia and sleepwalking. The disorder has been getting more attention over the last several years. Individuals who use drugs and alcohol frequently as well as live under a great deal of stress and fatigue have a greater chance of having sexsomnia. There are even drugs been created to help the problem specifically the drug Klonopin. While the appeal, innocence and comedic appeal of such a disorder are tremendous, it was interesting to see other examples tied to the topic of sexsomnia. (CNN.com/2005/us)

In May of 2005 a man in Lowell Massachusetts named Richard Anderson was given three years probation for sexually molesting two young girls, even though he suffers from sexsomnia and did not remember ever committing the acts. In November of 2005, Jan Luedecke was acquitted of sexual assault charges. Luedecke started having sex with a girl at a party in Toronto while both were still asleep. The woman woke up and found him having sex with him and immediately ran out. Luedecke later woke up in a bathroom with a condom on and admitted to committing the acts. Interesting it took to the point of actual sex before she realized that Jan was being a little too friendly. Luedecke previously had sex with four different girlfriends while asleep and has been diagnosed with sexsomnia. As a result, he was acquitted of rape charges. (CBC News, November 2005).

In another case of crazy behavior while asleep, a couple in West Bengal India found out the harsh reality of divorce. Aftab Ansari divorced his wife Sohela while the couple was asleep. Aftab uttered the word "talaq," or divorce, three times in his sleep, and as a result the couple has been forced to stay divorced for 100 days due to Islamic law. Also, Sohela would also have to spend a night with another man and be divorced by him in turn. The couple has refused to obey the order and the case is being brought up in a family counseling center, though no decision has been reached yet. (CNN.com/2006/world).

 It is interesting to see the culture differences governing people with the disorders behavior. In America one can molest or sexually assault another while asleep and unaware and they are ok. However, in India a man simply spoke in his sleep and as a result, he is forced to divorce his wife. Also, because of Islamic law, his wife in turn will have to spend a night with another man and be divorced by him in order to remarry. The culture and the ways we look at sex and behavior are so contrasting from that in India. It is astounding to see that those three words are legally binding grounds for immediate divorce while confessions and physical evidence of rape and molestation are looked upon as crazy and odd human errors. While in their defense there is nothing that can be done about it, it is sort of crazy to see how another culture looks at sleepwalking and these types of behaviors. Who knows, the sexsomnia defense might actually become as popular as pleading insanity.

 

1. Sexsomnia. 2006 video based on an incident from Mat of 2005. Video feed from cnn.com/us. Dr. Sanjay Gupta reporting.

2. www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/11/30/Sexsomnia_051130.html. ‘Man Acquitted in sex assault because he was asleep’. November 2005.

3.   http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/03/27/india.religion.reut/index.html. ‘Sleep Divorce Counts.’ March 2006.