Why do my boyfriend and I both twitch upon falling asleep?

Question

He notices it when I fall asleep first, and I notice it when he falls asleep first. Right when either of us drifts off, our arms, legs, and other various body parts twitch a bit, nothing too obnoxious or bothersome. Is it due to some kind of chemical imbalance? or something we might ritually do every night before bed?

Answer 1

Don't worry, that's all apart of the first stage of sleep (drowsiness). They are called "hypnotic jerks". This is just quick muscle contractions that happen when you start to fall asleep. I noticed the same thing happening to me and I thought there might be something wrong with me too, but it's totally normal.  

Answer 2

completely normal. The brain takes a little bit to completly shut down, its the same reason some people get that 'falling sensation' when they first nod off. The back of the brain hasn't entirely shut down yet, and that's the part that controls body motion.

For people who sleep walk or thrash about, the back part doesn't really shut down at all, so they act out their dreams and such.

Answer 3

Most people do twitch a bit right before they are actually asleep.