A couple of students have informed me of their physical ailments of late and both of them told me they had torticollis. They both stated their malady with high confidence because they had looked it up. I had never heard this word, so I looked it up and it indeed is a word in English. It's much more commonly known as stiff neck or wryneck (which I've never heard either.) Anyway, I like this word because it sounds so much more pity inducing, which is most likely why you'd be complaining about your ailment. A stiff neck just sounds like you slept wrong. But torticolli, ouch. I thought about how I didn't really understand the notion of a stiff neck, sure I've hurt my neck and it's been sore afterwards, but I don't have a physical experience definition that I can pin onto the phrase. Except that's not entirely true, because the day before yesterday, I woke up with one. A stiff neck. And a big knotted muscle on one side. And it's funny, I think it's just that I slept wrong, but it's the worst slept wrong I've ever done. It's only just getting back to a pain free state.
It makes me wonder if I was sleepwalking again. I read this article recently about sleep walking that stated that sleepwalkers are not really asleep, they are half asleep and half awake. I don't know about that, because for me, the conscious mind is in the half sleeping part. Maybe they meant that the body was awake. Yesterday I was in the car and the disc jockeys were carrying on as they do during rush hour trying to be amusing for all the folks stuck in traffic. Then they had an interesting fact to share. The question, "Do blind people "see" in their dreams." It was clarified that the blind person was blind since birth. And the answer was no, they don't see in their dreams, they perceive the world both in conscious life and dream life the same. And this does not include sight. Then they said that dreams are generated from the conscious memories we carry with us. That sounded awful black and white to me. I bet there's more to it than that. I was just going to say that all animals sleep, but apparently the bullfrog doesn't. I just went and checked. They do rest in a sleep-like state though without the need for food and very little oxygen. For months at a time. I don't know but I'd say it counts as sleep.
Where was I? Torticolli, sleepwalking, blind people and bullfrogs. I guess I don't really have a point. Just a glimpse of my scattered brain. Ciao.
13 comments:
I am so exhausted today as I had a major work stress dream before I woke up. I wish I was a bullfrog.
I seem to have a stiff neck more and more as I get older. Torticolli sounds serious, I think I'll get that next time.
They used to think that Sharks didn't sleep and had to keep moving to breath until they were able to go deeper into the Ocean and found them sleeping. Ed
What kind of frog was Kermit? Because he definitely was a dreamer (remember the "Rainbow Connection").
Torticolli definitely sounds more serious...I'll keep that in mind.
Torticolli, hhhmmm, going to use that next time I need a sick day from school. It sounds bad like e colli. I had a friend who's husband walked in his sleep. One day she noticed an awful smell in the kitchen. She looked high and low for the offending odor. Being rather short like I am, she can't see what's on top of the refrigerator but eventually got a chair and looked up there. Turns out her husband had slept walked, gone into the kitchen taken chicken out of the freezer and set it on top of the frig where it had thawed and went bad.
Torticolli. Sounds more like a pasta dish to me.
Again with the frogs. There'll be one more reference to round the number out to three.
I used to sleepwalk as a kid. The last time I remember, I woke up dusting the entertainment center in the living room. How boring. Sleepwalk cleaning.
Yes, Patricia-- I enjoyed a lovely plate of torticolli covered with marinara sauce last night, as a matter of fact.
I don't sleepwalk, I sleeptalk. Shocker, yes?
Why does it sould black and white to you? Most folk I know have them some crazy dreams; our conscious memories are faulty. Maybe some of us just have creative memories.
You were probably having psychic empathy pains.
I like your scattered brain.
If you're still having a residual problem with it, try stretching your neck toward the opposite side of the side affected. (e.g. left-sided torticollis, stretch with the left hand on left side of head and push slowly to the right. When you reach the point where you think your neck can not go any further due to the spasmed muscles on the left, then resist lightly pushing with your head against your hand isometrically. That will help loosen the muscles that are spasming on the left.) Sorry if this sounds confusing, I have a way of making something simple, difficult, but hopefully, it made some sense. Good luck. I had it once as a young boy.
I have only sleepwalked a few times in my life. One time, though, it did involve falling down a flight of stairs.
My dog was wagging his tail in his sleep yesterday. This doesn't relate to anything in your post but I thought I would share it. :)
-Rox
I think Rox's comment heard it said that does relate because I've heard it said that animals don't dream, but dogs obviously do.
I think the blind thing is more because it is pretty hard to imagine something like seeing without having done it.
Torticollis sounds more like an STD. I think I'd stick to telling my teacher I have a stiff neck. Maybe they got it by taking part in STA's (sexually-transmitted activities)?
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