Yes. SleepSafe detects night terrors on Apple Watch using heart rate, motion, and on-device audio recognition. Because night terrors run on a clock, it can also use scheduled wake-ups to prevent them before they arrive.
Detecting a night terror
Night terrors produce a dramatic physiological spike: heart rate, acceleration and rotation jump together, often while the person never fully wakes. SleepSafe watches for that combined signature on the Apple Watch and logs the event, so you get an accurate picture of what actually happened overnight.
Night terrors run on a clock
Unlike nightmares, night terrors rise out of the deepest stage of sleep in the first third of the night, and they are strikingly regular, tending to happen at roughly the same time after falling asleep (American Academy of Sleep Medicine). SleepSafe uses that regularity: it can gently rouse the sleeper shortly before their usual time, an established technique called anticipatory awakening.
Backed by the research
A 2023 systematic review found scheduled awakening to be one of the most consistently effective behavioral treatments for these night-time arousals. SleepSafe automates it on the wrist, so nobody has to sit up setting a 1 a.m. alarm.
SleepSafe is a complementary tool, not a replacement for professional medical treatment. If nightmares or night terrors affect your health or daily life, speak with a healthcare provider.
Try SleepSafe
Free on the App Store. Detects nightmares and night terrors on your Apple Watch and gently intervenes, entirely on-device.
