# how is it possible to sleep with your eyes open **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 15, 2011, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754 "2011-10-15T19:59:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![addelyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@addelyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/addelyn)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2011, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/1 "2011-10-15T19:59:46Z")
I had a friends who’s aunt would sleep with her eyes open and I would go over to my friends house when I was little and it would freak me out what is with that ?? ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2011, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/2 "2011-10-15T20:01:09Z")
Do you sleep with your ears and nose open? What’s with that?\ ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2011, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/3 "2011-10-15T20:48:40Z")
That your eyes are open doesn’t mean your brain has to pay attention. And that your eyes are closed doesn’t mean you have no visual perception. ---
**Author:** ![addelyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@addelyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/addelyn)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/4 "2011-10-22T06:13:50Z")
Thank-You for the comments even the sarcastic one … was thinking that maybe I need to specify I get that its not as weird as I put it the first time I just personally don’t get it. I just want to know how your brain can shut off when your eyes are still focusing on something. The only way I know to unfocus my eyes is to close them hense the reason you fall asleep, and I also get that daydreaming kind of works the same or another way to put it zoning out. But how long do you really zone out for like a minute or two but visuals are still present I can see what’s around me ,so how can they manage to do it all night without snapping out of it . Do they blink or do they have dry eye problems and also what prevents them from eventually just closing their eyes??.. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/5 "2011-10-22T13:02:17Z")
The point (which was made by people in the other thread) is that what matters in going to sleep, is not the shutting off of sensory input, but ceasing to pay attention to sensory input. Sleep is, in large part, the turning off of attention to the world around us. Your other senses, most notably hearing, do not have a shutoff mechanism equivalent to the eyelids, but most people have no problem with going to sleep with their ears open. They simply stop paying attention to most ambient sounds (although, of course, a loud and unexpected sound will grab someone’s attention even while they are asleep, and wake them up). The same considerations apply to sight. If you cease to pay attention to the visual world around you, you can go to sleep, even with your eyes open. Closing your eyes, by sharply reducing level of the visual stimulus, makes this turning off of attention easier to do, which is why most people, most of the time, close their eyes when going to sleep (and, also, why it easier to sleep when it is dark), but this is not absolutely necessary for someone to cease to pay a visual attention, and it is the ceasing of attention, not the eye closing or even the reduction of stimulus levels as such, that is crucial to sleep. As with hearing, a sudden, strong and unexpected visual stimulus can still grab your attention and wake you up, and having eyes closed guards against this happening to a considerable extent. Your point about dry eye is well taken. I do not know of any research on this, but I should think that people who fall asleep with their eyes open almost certainly do blink (as, of course, do people who are awake and actively using their eyes). Very likely, they also commonly do close their eyes eventually, even though they may have originally fallen asleep with eyes open. ---
**Author:** ![addelyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@addelyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/addelyn)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/6 "2011-10-23T00:07:08Z")
Now that’s an answer I was looking for thank- you njtt… ---
**Author:** ![conurepete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e57/32.png) [@conurepete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/conurepete)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/7 "2011-10-23T00:22:26Z")
When I sleep with my eyes open, I do blink. I also raise and lower my lids slowly, and roll my eyes back in my head for that sexy “white eyed zombie” look. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/8 "2011-10-23T12:08:02Z")
I’ve merged the two separate threads started by **addelyn**. Hope it makes sense. **samclem** , Moderator ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/9 "2011-10-23T12:21:44Z")
> [@addelyn](#): > > I had a friends who’s aunt would sleep with her eyes open and I would go over to my friends house when I was little and it would freak me out what is with that ?? I had a friend whose aunt would sleep with her eyes open, and I would go over to my friend’s house when I was little and it would freak me out. What is with that? ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/10 "2011-10-23T12:52:01Z")
> [@conurepete](#): > > When I sleep with my eyes open, I do blink. I also raise and lower my lids slowly, and roll my eyes back in my head for that sexy “white eyed zombie” look. 😕 How would you know this? Have you got people to watch your eyes while you sleep, or videoed yourself as if you were in an early Andy Warhol movie? ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/11 "2011-10-23T16:41:35Z")
I have fallen asleep while walking, so anything’s possible. ---
**Author:** ![Snnipe\_70E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@Snnipe\_70E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snnipe_70E)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/12 "2011-10-23T16:46:06Z")
When I was going to the Maritime Academy I had a classmate wake me up and ask if I was ok. When I asked him why he woke me his answer was that I was sleeping with my eyes rolled back and open and he wanted to be sure I was OK. Other people will tell us how we sleep. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/13 "2011-10-24T06:00:32Z")
I had a roommate in college who would fall asleep with his eyes open. I had more than one lengthy conversation with him before it occurred to me that he really wasn’t doing much to keep up his end of it and … D’OH! Creeped me right out. I think the first time I woke him up yelling at him (and seeing someone wake up with their eyes already open is almost as weird as seeing them sleeping that way!) but after that I realized what was going on. Once I noticed, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/14 "2011-10-24T08:17:16Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > I have fallen asleep while walking, so anything’s possible. And I occasionally walk while sleeping. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/15 "2011-10-24T08:45:27Z")
When my son was a baby he would go to sleep with his eyes open. He doesn’t seem to do it now, though as he has his own room these days my opportunities for observation are more limited. The way that would work was that his eyelids would _almost_ but not quite shut, and he’d be looking out of a little slit under his eyelids. He was definitely asleep, but inconveniently easy to wake up in this state. I’ve heard that this is moderately common in infants ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/16 "2011-10-24T11:34:13Z")
The German fighter pilot [Johannes Steinhoff](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes_Steinhoff), has his eyelids burned off in an horrific crash. It was 20 years later before a plastic surgeon reconstructed them. ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/17 "2011-10-24T14:45:46Z")
i used to do it frequently during junior high geometry class. based on what i remember, it’s more like making a conscious effort to block out external stimuli - such as my endlessly-droning chinese instructor. a very nice man who tried hard, but i could only make out about every third word he said and math subjects never ended well for me. i remember losing blocks of time of about 20 minutes or so every time i did it. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/18 "2011-10-24T14:47:59Z")
I used to fall asleep with my eyes partially open. Freaked my SO out, that’s for sure. It hasn’t happened in years, and years. Funny thing is, I had this recurring dream that would end up with my facing a wall of ice, and I would open my eyes - to be looking at the white wall of my bedroom. I always wondered if I ‘saw’ the wall somehow. ---
**Author:** ![Romeo\_and\_Whatsherface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@Romeo\_and\_Whatsherface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Romeo_and_Whatsherface)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/19 "2011-10-24T16:57:43Z")
> [@Cicero](#): > > The German fighter pilot [Johannes Steinhoff](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes_Steinhoff), has his eyelids burned off in an horrific crash. It was 20 years later before a plastic surgeon reconstructed them. Interesting. I checked out the link. Without eyelids, he must have had trouble keeping his eyes clear and evenly hydrated. I wonder how he managed this, especially–to tie this back to the OP–while sleeping. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754/20 "2011-10-24T22:03:19Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > I used to fall asleep with my eyes partially open. Freaked my SO out, that’s for sure. It hasn’t happened in years, and years. > > Funny thing is, I had this recurring dream that would end up with my facing a wall of ice, and I would open my eyes - to be looking at the white wall of my bedroom. I always wondered if I ‘saw’ the wall somehow. I remember opening my eyes while I was still dreaming, and wondering what those 3 white balls were that I was seeing. When I actually did wake up I realized that they were my ceiling lamp. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-it-possible-to-sleep-with-your-eyes-open/599754.md?page=2)