Few of us are conscious of what we do with our hands while we sleep. Take note if you frequently wake up with clenched fists, especially if this also leads to discomfort, swelling, and numbness in the fingers.
Clenched fists are a typical response to stress or anxiety, so the body may react if you get into bed with a mind racing with negative thoughts. Stress can also lead to disturbed dreams, and your fists may clench based on images played out in the subconscious mind.
Pain will also cause the fists to clench, so assess how you feel upon waking. If you feel sore or stiff or have discomfort in the back, shoulders, neck, or joints, you may not be sleeping in the right position.
Some meds, including muscle relaxants and antidepressants, list muscular contractions among their side effects. If you’ve started waking up with clenched fists, it may be due to a new prescription.
Unfortunately, a neurological issue may require medical attention if you can’t find an explanation.
Why Do I Clench My Fists at Night?
Clenching fists while sleeping is a habit many people associate with infants. When a baby balls its tiny hands into fists, it instinctively replicates the position it assumed while gestating in the womb.
A newborn baby clenches its fists, which is called a palmar grasp reflex. The child will instinctively grab anything placed into the palm of their hand, including a caregiver’s finger, and form a first to maintain grip.
These reasons rarely apply to healthy adults, so if you frequently wake up with your hands curled, you may understandably ask, “Why do I subconsciously clench my fist?” Here’s why:
Stress And Anxiety
If you get into bed with your head filled with worry, you may wake up with your fists firmly clenched. This is a common reaction to emotional duress, even subconsciously.
Runaway feelings of anxiety can leave the brain feeling helpless, which may provoke a fight-or-flight response. If your subconscious opts to stand its ground, clenching fists gives the brain a physical activity to focus upon, regaining some control.
If you’re clenching your fists in your sleep, anxiety may also be provoking disturbing, anxious dreams. Stress has long been linked to nightmares, and the body frequently reacts to events in our dreams.
Frontiers in Neurology suggests you may be processing repressed or forgotten childhood or developmental memories if you experience nightmares without a clear explanation. This could also explain a tendency to clench your fists and assert emotional control.
If you’re conscious about feeling stressed when the night falls and bedtime approaches, attempt to process these emotions. Bring journaling into your sleep hygiene routine, writing down everything bothering you and creating a proposed action plan.
Light physical activity can also reduce stress at night, relax your muscles, and aid sleep. Perform basic yoga or pilates stretches before bed, and note how your body reacts when you wake in the morning.
Physical Pain
If you experience pain in the night – discomfort that’s not so severe it will rouse you from sleep but significant enough for the body to react – you’ll instinctively clench your fists.
If you retire to bed after taking painkillers, the impact may wear off overnight. If you have no prior reasons to be concerned about pain, your sleeping position is likely to blame.
Consider if you’re experiencing soreness anywhere else, notably the lower back, shoulders, neck, or joints. Such complaints could point to a suboptimal sleep posture or an outdated mattress.
Lying on your left-hand side, with your head and neck elevated and hands-free rather than tucked under pillows, is considered the optimum sleeping position by many.
If you feel more comfortable on your back or stomach, consider if this posture is related to a subconscious desire to clench your fists, especially if you also wake up feeling stiff and sore.
Side Effects of Medication
While some medications, notably benzodiazepines prescribed as sleep aids, are intended to relax the muscles, they can cause contractions. This may result in subconsciously clenching the fists while sleeping.
Antidepressants are responsible for clenched fists overnight. In around 10% of cases, these meds list myoclonus – involuntary twitching and movement of the head, legs, or arms and hands – as a side effect.
If you’ve recently begun a course of new medication, note how it impacts your sleep and how you feel upon waking. If your fists are regularly clenching, consider requesting an adjusted prescription or dosage.
Neurological Issues
A tendency to clench the fists while you sleep may point to a neurological problem.
If you have any reason to believe that your physical or mental health is causing you to clench your fists while you sleep, report to a medical doctor for tests.
Clenched Fist Syndrome (CFS)
According to BMC Psychiatry, CFS is more of a psychological concern than a neurological disorder.
Somebody with CFS will clench one or both fists following a triggering incident – no matter how minor. While everybody clenches their fists occasionally, those with CFS rarely uncurl their fingers.
This can become a compulsion akin to OCD or a self-soothing act that brings comfort through familiarity. Constant fist clenching can lead to swelling, pain, and stiffness in the fingers.
CFS is a psychiatric consideration. Cognitive behavior therapy and hypnosis tackle this conscious or subconscious desire to clench the fists.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS)
CTS arises when pressure is placed on the median nerve (carpal tunnel,) which runs from the palm to the forearm.
When this nerve is squeezed or swollen, the fingers grow numb and may instinctively clench into a fist.
Pregnancy is frequently linked to CTS, especially in the third trimester.
BJOG estimates that 31–62% of pregnant women experience CTS, compared to just 4% of the general population, while Advanced Biomedical Research claims that around 50% of cases will involve both hands.
While any pregnant woman can develop CTS toward the end of her gestation (and some won’t experience it at all), some factors make it considerably likelier:
- A high BMI before pregnancy.
- Diagnoses of hypertension or diabetes increase fluid retention.
- Sugar consumption, especially before bed, can cause inflammation.
Equally, somebody who has fallen pregnant multiple times is likelier to develop CTS, even if that has never been an issue when carrying a baby.
Multiple births can lead to increased relaxin, a hormone in the ovaries.
Relaxin softens the pelvic muscles and widens the cervix, making birthing easier, but it can cause inflammation in the carpal tunnel. This pressures the median nerve, resulting in clenched fists.
Parkinson’s Disease
At the more worrying end of the spectrum, we have Parkinson’s disease, a progressive neurological disorder in which the body experiences uncontrollable tics, spasms, and cramps. Clenching the fists can be an early sign of Parkinson’s, especially overnight.
Dementia
Clenching the fists, whether awake or asleep, is common in dementia patients. This is a form of palmar grasp reflex akin to that seen in infants. Damage to the brain involves returning to instinctive behaviors.
The same applies to patients who have experienced a stroke or brain hemorrhage.
Clenching the fists may be an act of the subconscious, but it could also be a reaction of frustration or a desire to communicate.
Illness or injury to the brain often leaves people unable to articulate thoughts during periods of lucidity. Clenching the fists is a motor-reactive form of interaction.
Is it Dangerous to Clench Fists While Asleep?
Clenching your fists while you sleep can be dangerous, especially if you share a bed.
If you’re prone to tossing, turning, or flailing limbs while you sleep, the likelihood of accidentally striking a sleeping partner is comparatively high.
Sleeping with clenched fists also takes a toll on your physical well-being.
You’ll likely wake up with soreness in the hands and stiffness in the fingers, reducing your flexibility. Your hands may also be numb and useless for a few minutes after waking.
How Do I Stop Clenching My Fists While Sleeping?
While you won’t have direct control over your movements while you sleep, including any tendency to clench your fists, you can take steps to minimize the likelihood of this habit:
- Adjust your sleeping position, noting how you feel in the morning. Place pillows or cushions under core pressure points on the body if necessary. You have found an ideal posture if you’re neither clenching your fists nor experiencing pain in the morning.
- Relax before bed. This could involve using calming essential oils, drinking herbal tea, practicing stretches or breathing exercises, or writing a journal.
- Wear a resting hand split that immobilizes your fingers overnight and holds them straight, assuming you feel comfortable. Splints can be purchased online or from most major pharmacies.
In extreme cases where subconsciously clenching the fists is causing health concerns, prescription medication may be offered to relax the muscles. As discussed, this may still trigger contractions.
Clenching your fists while you sleep is a tough habit to break, mainly because you won’t realize you’re doing it, but learning how to keep your hands relaxed at night will be beneficial.
