Abstract
The cases of 15 men admitted to the neuropsychiatric service of a Navy hospital for somnambulism indicate that sleepwalking is an aggressive or sexual motor activity seemingly aimed primarily at a fear-inspiring father. Although the patients varied in age from 18 to 36 years and in rank from seaman to chief petty officer, eight being married and seven single, all were from small-town or rural homes in the low economic class. Their training was religious and strict. They professed great respect for their fathers, to the extent that they could not criticize them or acknowledge hostility toward them. Their relations with their mothers were in general not satisfactory.
Apparently fear of the father and the inability to express resentment or aggression was applied to all situations so that the suppressed feelings could be released only in sleepwalking, nightmares and fantasies. These abnormalities, by making the patients conspicuous, increased their terror and anxiety.
It is emphasized that sleepwalking activities, far from being harmless, may endanger the patient or those about him.
Long-term psychotherapy is necessary for the disorders manifested by somnambulism.
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