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Sleep Paralysis: Awake But Still Asleep
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Biology 202
2000 First Web Report
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Sleep Paralysis: Awake But Still Asleep
Hiro Takahashi
A person may wake up and find himself unable to move or speak as if he is frozen. He also may hear footsteps, see a ghost-like creature, or feel someone sitting on his chest. Throughout the history, people considered this phenomenon as work done by evil spirits. However, the modern science can explain the terrifying event as a Sleep Paralysis.
A Sleep Paralysis is possibly a hereditary disorder in which one experiences very frightening seconds or minutes of total body paralysis with little respiration and eye movements (1). A victim in this state feels awake, but he cannot move or speak (2). In addition to the immobility, the common symptoms include feeling choked or suffocated, hearing strange noises like footsteps and voices, seeing beings or dark shadows, and feeling an existance of someone in the room (1). Although these symptoms often direct the victims to believe in ghosts, mistransmission of neural signals in the brain causes Sleep Paralysis. When a person sleeps, his brain sends signals to inhibit any muscle contraction (3). If he comes into consciousness before the brain sends signals to activate muscle contraction, he cannot move his body, and consequently, become "paralyzed"(2).
In order to understand how a body becomes paralyzed while the person is awake, it is necessary to understand sleep cycles. In a mammalian sleep, the brain activity undergoes two different states called non-REM (NREM) sleep and REM sleep, which differ very much from wakefulness (3). NREM and REM sleep alternate cyclically through the night; in human, about 80 minutes of NREM sleep starts a night of sleep, about 10 minutes of REM sleep follows, and this 90 minute cycle is repeated about 3 to 6 times during the night (3). During NREM sleep, a body produces few movement, but the body has capability of tossing about in bed and producing some other motor events, such as sleepwalking and sleeptalking (3). The cardiac-muscle contraction and breathing occur at a uniform rate, and the eyes move slowly (2). During REM sleep, on the other hand, heart rate, respiration rate, and blood pressure vary (3). The eyes move rapidly because most dreaming takes place in this period, and the sleeper probably "look" at the moving objects in a dream (2).
The brain's control over muscles during REM sleep points out that in this period, a body is normally in the state of total paralysis, called a "nonreciprocal flaccid paralysis" (3). Probably to prevent a person from "acting out" a dream, the brain sends signals to inhibit any muscle contractions (2). Although some peripheral muscles, such as the muscles of the fingers and face, still twitch, the large skeletal muscles become relaxed, or "paralyzed" as a result (3). Some evidence supports that the motor paralysis of REM sleep protect against the acting out of one's dreams. A patient who suffers from rare syndrome called REM Sleep Behavior Disorder lacks the normal nonreciprocal flaccid paralysis, and he acts out violent dreams during REM sleep, often with injurious consequences (4). For example, a 60-year-old surgeon dreamt that he was attacked "by criminals, terrorists, and monsters who always tried to kill [him]" and fighting against them in the nightmare, he was actually punching and kicking his wife who slept in the same bed (4).
A nonreciprocal flaccid paralysis during REM sleep is accomplished actively by postsynaptic inhibition of motorneurons (3). Although the exact process of motor inhibition is not clear, some neurotransmitters and hormones are known to generate the many components of REM sleep. Aministering physostigmine, an inhibitor of the catabolic enzyme, increases the concentration of acetylcholine within the neurons in the pons, making it possible to artificially generate and start REM sleep in the middle of NREM sleep (3). Carbachol, the cholinergic agonist, produces a period of REM sleep in cat when directly injected into the pontine tegmentum (3). The hormone melatonin, a "master hormone" (5) that mainly controls circadian rhythms, also seems to play an important role in enhancing the REM state; the level of melatonin secretion by the pineal gland reaches its lowest during REM sleep (5). Such neurotransmitters and hormones probably activate or inhibit the activity of second messengers, which then activate or inhibit the third messengers, and so on till the last messenger inhibit the synaptic transmission or cause hyperpolarization of the motorneurons. And if, for some reason, the nervous or endocrine system continues to release the neural inhibitors, a person may experience Sleep Paralysis as he enters awakefully into or awakens directly from REM period (2).
While the modern neuroscience can describe the state of Sleep Paralysis as some errors of the neural transmission in the brain during REM sleep, a person who has seen or heard ghost-like figures/voices may easily believe that eveil spirits fully controlled his entire body. However, the images or noises, which the victim believes that he has seen or heard, are most likely hallucinations; and hallucinations, too, can result from the brain activity. In the 1960's, the Canadian neurologist W. Penfield introduced that electrical stimulation of the temporal lobe can cause the auditory hallucinations in the wake state (5). The buzzing or ringing sounds in the ears and other auditory hallucinations are closely associated with the activity of the auditory cortex and involves the temporal lobe (5). During the early period of sleep paralysis, the activity of the temporal lobe increases significantly, sometimes inducing hallucinatory sense (5). Similarly, the visual cortex generates internal visual stimuli, causing the victim to "see" terrifying figures during the paralysis (5).
How an episode of Sleep Paralysis induces visual or auditory hallucinations is still not clear, but it seems to have a significant relationship with anxiety (5). For anxiety is a neurocognitive event closely related to both psychological and physical processes, the extreme anxiety or panic may cause the release of several different signal molecules that trigger all kinds of physical events (5). A person experiencing Sleep Paralysis feels mortal fear or extreme panic, and hence, the brain generates and releases internal visual or auditory stimuli, producing hallucinations.
Also, hallucinations during Sleep Paralysis may happen, for one keeps dreaming even after some parts of his brain wakes up directly from REM sleep. Since the nervous and endocrine systems continue to release the neural inhibitors which sustain the paralysis, it may be possible that those systems keep releasing the neural activators that stimulate dreaming. Thus, a person continues to "see" the images and "hear" the noises produced in the dream that he has just had in REM sleep from which he has awaken.
Understanding more neural concepts of Sleep Paralysis, some researchers now hypothesize that a very rare condition called Sudden Unexplained Nocturnal Death Syndrome (SUNDS) may closely relate to Sleep Paralysis (1). Upon the death, a SUNDS victim produces no body movement even though he experiences a myocardial infarction and strong breathing difficulties and should straggle in agony (5). The death may be caused by the extreme muscle atonia during Sleep Paralysis, which is so severe that even the cardiac muscles and the diaghragm paralyze (5).
Until I started researching on this subject, I have believed that the total paralysis of a body is due to an evil taking absolute control over the body. However, the interactions between neurons in the brain can explain this seemingly mysterious phenomenon in a scientific way. Although the explanation is not complete yet, for there are many unclear processes about Sleep Paralysis, the current hypothesis appears to reject the possibility of ghosts on this matter. Of course, it is impossible to completely disprove the existence of "spirits", "minds", or "God" affecting one's behavior. Nevertheless, like Sleep Paralysis and SUNDS, many or the mysterious conditions and behaviors which are only explained in supernatural terms probably result from brain.
WWW Sources
1)The Evil's of Sleep Paralysis
4)REM Sleep Behavior Disorder: A Neurologic Dissociative Sleep Disorder
5)Recurrent Isolated Sleep Paralysis
Comments made prior to 2007
I have been trying to figure out what was going on in my sleep untill i read this.Now i am happy to know what my body was expeiencing. It's quite scary your first couple experiences of sleep paralysis but now i'm gonna stay calm when it is happening to me and try to get my own understanding of the experience ... Jeremy, 21 March 2006
I have had sleep paralyisis at least once per month for the last 8 years. I am 29 as of this writing. I just had the experience about 1 hour ago and thus has caused me to do reasearch about it on the net. I noticed that many Dr.'s contribute this to anxiety, stress and other factors. My question is ... why is there always an evil presence in that concious yet body is still asleep phase? Today I heard a loud static sound, and opened my eyes to a spider crawling all over my arm. When I prayed to God, or said His name (Jehovah) the spider would start to disappear. I finally went thru my mental prayer when I awoke. This leads me to believe that it is more of a spiritual occurence, because I never have positive images while in this paralized state. I know there are many things in which our ancestors thought it was demonic rather than scientific, only to find there was a scientific explanation. However, I think this is different and cannot be simply written off as "scientific". There is not enough proof to show that it is scientific.
About a month ago I had another episode of sleep paralysis and I saw a small presence in the room with me. It was dark, and I could not see it's face (I am getting chills typing about it right now). My question is, why is there always an evil presence not only associated with my episodes, but so many others I have read about? ... Abel, 24 August 2006
i was thinking it is evil who do that during night but now i find out why. I am suffering from sleep paralyze possibly every nigh spicily when i have dinar ... Salah Nasser, 28 January 2007
I used to have this sleeping disorder when I was a child. It has come back once or twice with adulthood, but otherwise, it is in the past. I used to, with great effort, move my hand to my face and pull an eye open, which would wake me up, but sometimes the struggle was too much and I would go on into a deeper sleep.
Since the brain can do this to me, can it also cause me to get migraines just as I am about to wake up?
It seems, as I have discovered, if I get less than 4 hours sleep a night, I do not get migraines. If I get 6 hours or more, it's about a 90% chance I will wake with a migraine. Later in the day, I get an hour or two nap and that is the routine as it works. Doctors just sort of treat the migraine and don't get into the sleep thing I have. I take MaxAult for the migraines when they do get me.
I woke one time, and just as I woke, I felt this white-hot needle going into my head... bingo. A migraine in 5 seconds. That is how they can occur. I wake with them otherwise. I figure it my brain doing things it shouldn't. I have a clean bill of health otherwise.
Thanks for your time. Have a good day ... Jay, 11 February 2007
I have a question, and hope someone out there has an answer, it has been months and I have thus far failed to find one. Has there ever been a record of anyone receiving the effects of sleep paralysis without having been asleep? The reason I ask this, is a while ago, having not slept in a few hours, I was sitting at my computer, and it seemed to have happened to me. Within seconds I was too tired to hold up my own head, and my breathing got very difficult. Then I began to feel a sort of dizziness as my limbs lost feeling, and dropped to my side. after this, the dizziness turned to near blindness. I could see, but nothing would focus, and everything I tried to look at seemed to dart around like a mosquito. By this time I had no feeling in my entire body, could move nothing without quite a bit of concentration, and I could barely breath. My mother heard me try and make out some kind of cry for help, and found me there spilled into my computer chair. She rolled me to my bed, and poured me into it. Within about 10-15 minutes I had regained everything I once had, but my sea legs did not ware off for another ten or so minutes. I went to the emergency soon after. I had an E.K.G. and a C.A.T. scan, with no results, and I piss less in a week then the amount of blood they took that night. After basically telling me I was lying, the doctor told me that my symptoms did not fit anything at all. What I do know, is I have been researching the issue ever since, and can only base my problem on Sleep Paralysis. All the symptoms match. And again, my question....Has there ever been a record of someone under the effects of sleep paralysis without ever having gone to sleep? I hope you can shed some sort of light on this subject, as it,...well, it freaked me the hell out, and no one has been able to answer me! Thank you for your time ... Mitchel Henderson, 7 December 2007
I used get this "evil paralysed me" feeling when i was paralysed and usually saw a ghost. i tried to shout or move but no sound escaped my mouth and couldn't move at all. it happened again yesterday and was almost convinced that ghosts/evil spirits were getting the better of me. But, me being a practical and logical guy, erjected this theory and started researching on this phenomenon. I came across this research paper on Sleep Paralysis. This greatly helped me in alleviating my fears. And next time i "see" a ghost during sleep paralyses, ill just laugh at it ;-) Thanks for the research ... Siddarth, 10 December 2007
Comments
i call him pale joe
I have only had one experience, but I thought it was pretty scary. I am 15 years old and when this occurred I was maybe 10. Although, the time of five years never helped fade away my fear. I woke up around 6:30 hearing my mom and older brother in the kitchen, so I figured it was time to get up and go to school. However, I couldn't move except shift my eyes around the room. Then, my eyes clashed with a male lying in the same position as I (on back). Must've been minutes, because I got the overview that he was Caucasian and wearing black, scuffed up converses, blue jeans (not too sure about the shade of the color, it was still dark) and a blue sweatshirt. I couldn't scream or move. Then he looked at me and made the gesture to calm down or be quiet by putting his pointer finger to his mouth, then he faded away. My diagnosis of this is that I was in irregular sleeping position for me, I usually sleep on my stomach or side, but in this predicament I was on my back.
p.s. i have named this character 'pale joe'. jus to make a joke out of it.
Sleep paralysis
I'm a 25 year old male. Born in india, brought up in germany and am now living in Canada. i experienced my first SP when i moved to Canada. This was about 8 years ago. It's been quite regular ever since. At first i was convinced that it has to do with black magic or spirits. Recently i was speaking with one of my friends about my SP problems and he told me that it happens to him too. he also told me that its a quite common problem and that it's nothing but our brain trying being stuck between the "asleep and awake" state. I'm sure that all of you guys know what the scientific reason is for us not being able to move during this phase. I am now somewhat convinced that it is a nothing but sleep paralysis (non spiritual). But then again, when i think about it....why did the chocking / suffocation get stronger every time i tried to pray or tried talking to "it" or try telling it to "EFF OFF". And if it is an evil spirt...why doesnt it attack us when we are wide awake? or if it is trying to harm us or enter our body...why not just do it while we are in a deep sleep and completely harmless and unable to do anything? why does it only attack us when we are either about to fall asleep or just about to wake up?
nice to know that i'm not alone. Thanx everyone.
sleep
I wrote a short story about my experiences. someone alerted me to what I might have been experiencing. I'm glad I read about this. I don't sleep on my back EVER because of this. I went a few years with out having an episode but had one recently.
absolutely horrible experience and I'm glad I'm not alone.
http://www.delawareliberal.net/2008/12/29/caught-in-the-middle/
Demonic Presence
Last night @ around 3 AM i became paralized, unable to move or speak or anything involving muscle movement. At first i thought i had a stroke or something so i decided to scream. After screaming for what felt a long time. I could see someone from the corner of my eye. Initially i thought this was a demon of some sort. However he was only there and watching me. I started panicking and didnt know what to do. I could not see this "person" or demonic presence but i was able to see his eyes. After a few minutes had gone by, i screamed loud enough for my brother to come from the next room and wake me up, he grabbed my hand and i felt my hand move and that was the end of that. This morning as i wake up i thought i had a bad dream, this has happened to me before and i was never able to explain it. Shortly after my brother woke up and told me that i was screaming like a crazy person last night. The first thing that came to my mind was, wtf that really happened??? I thought i was dreaming. I asked him if he came to my room and grabbed my hand he said that he never did that.
After fully analyzing this experience i came to a few conclusions. I specificly recall sleeping on my back, which from reading some peoples post seems to be the major cause of the problem. I do not ever recall having these dreams when i sleep on my stomach. As i mentioned above, i had dreamed that my brother came and grabbed my hand, I have come to realise that i may of moved my hand on my own and from doing research on sleep paralysis i have learned that moving a body part usualy puts an end to this. Now that i have red some of these posts i am better prepared for this. Next time this happens i will pray/relax/try to move a body part and e.t.c. I believe this may be hereditary, this morning i spoke to my mother about this and it turns out she has them too and her mother had these dreams aswell. My mother told me her experiences were quite different, she described it as a demonic figure sitting on top of her chest and suffocating her.
The first thing i did when i got on the computer today was to search information regarding these "crazy dreams" and the first thing i see on wikipedia is a painting of a demon sitting on someones chest.
I do believe there is a scientific explanation to this however i think there may be a bit more spiritual things involved. I hear some people get cuts from this and other unexplanable things.
Anyways thats my experience, glad to see im not the only one experiencing this.
p.s sorry for any gramar mistakes i wrote this in a hurry.
Worth A Try
I have too have experienced the chilling hallucinatory sleep paralysis (HSP)for close to 40 years now and have tried everything except prescription drugs. But it was only recently that I read an article by Hiro Tahahashi entitled -Another Explanation for Hallucination during Sleep Paralysis: Mismatch between Brain’s Expectation and Sensory Input.
Basically this wonderful and insightful man's study found that the only similarity that he could compare SP with was that of Motion Sickness. The article went on the explain how the two (SP & Motion Sickness) relate with regard to signals to the brain and why a dark or evil presence appears thereby resulting in fear and terror to the sleeper. So I thought - what if I were to take motion sickenss-type over the counter tablets or something from a health store for motion sickness to see if that would help, and for the first time in all these years, I have not recently had the episodes.
Therefore, I knew I had to post a message here in case this would help just ONE MORE person in any way. At least read the article. I appreciate everyone else's advice too, for as we all know, any tool in the arsenal to get rid of these terrifying nightmares is worthwhile. I pray that this helps someone out there.
I've experienced sleep
I've experienced sleep paralysis for about fifteen years. Luckily my mother and older sister regularly have this happen to them also so I have someone to talk to about this. Sleep paralysis is impossible to explain to someone who has never experienced it. It's impossible to put into words the sheer terror that you feel during an episode. Today during an afternoon nap I felt like I had spent hours simply trying to wake myself up. I could see my bedroom, could see the covers on my body and could even picture my hands trying to rise up. All I could do was simply pray that I would wake up. For a few moments I honestly thought I was going to die.
This is the first time that I have had a terrifying episode in months. I experience sleep paralysis two to three times a week, but I've read some great tips for controlling sleep paralysis such as: keep regular sleeping schedules, do not lie flat on your back, and keep the temperature cool while you are sleeping. These all do work wonders. I've even learned to control myself a little bit during the SP episodes that I have. I am now -usually- able to realize what is happening and manuever the hallucinations a bit to where it is like I am having an out of body experience. When I gain sight of my body I will either coax myself back to sleep or will myself to wake up. I know it sounds crazy, but it absolutely works. Controlling the hallucinations help to take the psychological fear out of the situation. I encourage everyone to try this!
sleep paralysis
I'm 19, and I think I started having these sleep paralysis occurrences a year ago. Usually, when they start happening, I'd feel like I'd already woken up, but then I realize only my eyes start moving and I can't move the rest of my body. I can hear everything going around me, usually people's voices, the sound of tv. I can only use my eyes, but the usual problem would be something covering part of my eyes, like a blanket, and it usually would what would make me panic since I wouldn't be able to see anything. I'd also feel short of breath. When I did research on it and found it was sleep paralysis and I had another episode, I told myself to just calm down because it would be over soon. I told myself to breathe in and out until it was over. It was really very annoying at first since I had to wait for it to end, but usually it would. I don't recognize any pattern for my occurrences, stress or no stress, whatever sleeping position I am in, they do seem to happen. I don't see any weird creatures or anything, but it's just really annoying having to wait for my brain to recognize that I'm awake already. Thanks everybody for sharing your experiences coz I got to compare mine. :)
:)
Sleep Paraylsis.
Ok Ok, There is more then likely no spiritual behavior happening during Sleep Paraylsis. Like all things in our world there is always a scientific explanation. Those who pray or give themself confidence to end it. That is just you controlling your brain and telling yourself to wake up. REM ( rapid eye movement) It is what causes us to dream. If the dream continues but the brain awakens your going to see weird things. The first thing someone thinks is oh god a monster or an evil spirit so thats what you think thats what you get. Try thinking its no big deal and i'll be out of this soon. Not to mention the best way to prevent hallucinations is to just keep your eyes closed during this duration and think positive, and of course you will wake. When i have the episodes i have, sometimes 3-9 times a night usually in a row. Sometimes i will waken myself only to fall back asleep into it again or i'll have a series of them where i think i am awake and i am not. But i usually start with the sound of someone screaming if i put my fear into it enough and think what if it screams my name? I can hear it screaming my name. It is our brains that controls it. You should know that in our dreams we are the creators and masters of our dream state. Most people do not realize this and fear them. When you experience this imagine a shining knight popping in to vanquish the evil being you fear so much and it will happen if you can focus your thoughts on it enough. We can do anything we want in our dreams. REM is no different. So do not be afraid. It is a blessing in some cases. Yes sleeping on your stomach lessens the occurences but it does not elimnate them. You are not alone and i gurantee you there is not this many people out there having evil spiritws visiting them. It is all in our heads and a scientific explanation clearly explains this phenmenon. If you want any information i have gathered being a Sleep Paralysis survivor one might say for 15 years now. It is freightning but you are in more control of what you fear then you give yourself credit for.
R.D Pearson.
Sleep Paralysis
If I didn’t find this website I think I might have had to talk to a psychologist. For the longest time I thought aliens were doing tests on me while I slept. I had the first one of these paralyzing experiences without aliens yesterday which lead me to believe this was just a sleeping disorder. Some of my alien dreams included jet engine noise so loud that it sounded like it was outside my window and I felt myself being lifted slowly. Others I actually saw small alien like figures in my room staring at me. Other dreams I have heard drills and feeling pressure on my back while sleeping on my side. In all of these dreams I have fought so hard that if I wasn’t paralyzed I could probably bench a 300 pound man off of me and scream so loud my neighbors could hear me. I have noticed referring back to what Charlie said in the last post that I agree that this only happens when on your back and on your side I haven’t had it happen while on my face. So I’m guessing it might have to do with blood flow in the brain. Now my question is could this have developed because I had very bad sleep walking episodes, where when I was young my parents would have to block off the stairs so I didn’t fall down. Is this paralysis like a safety device that protects me from sleepwalking because I noticed these paralysis experiences after I stopped sleepwalking when I was young?
Sleep Paralysis
Hi, Im 14, I also have sleep paralysis, i actually literaly just woke up from it, ive had it about 4 times before now, it occurs once every few months, the one i just woke up from was the scariest, ive been mega stressed recently over everything and i think its all caught up on me, this dream was realistic and it was all about what im going through now, there was this old man, cooking, when i was going to wake up, i started thinking about him, i thought about he was going to die, my mind was shouting louder and louder, saying stuff like hes gonna die and scared and different random words, shouting in my head, getting louder and louder, i could feel my face scrunching up, i then tried to relax, i thought of a better subject, i felt my face un-scrunch, i tried to get up, then realizing i cant move, i tried to move my legs but i couldent, i tried moving my arms and i couldent, i was so scared, i then thought about my mum and i heard her walking across the landing with my dog, i tried calling for her, all i heard was me whispering, i tried but all that came out was my breath, i then thought stuff it and i screamed at the top of my voice, finally something worked, as soon as i could talk i called my mum, she came in my room, she told me all she had heared was a squeak, then i called her.. i screamed my head off and i came out like a squeak, im so glad that woke me up, i set my alarm for 6, but i am not going back to bed now, i got up 10 past 5, no matter how early, im not doing that again.. ive just been reading about sleep paralysis, when people say they see demons and things, i think its their sub contioud finding a reason to why this is happening, all i can say, is if you are experiencing this, try to calm down, think of someone that will make you smile, like a loved one or something you really like, ive read that it helps to sleep on your side or front, but i have been, that last 4 cases ive had, i was lying on my back, but earlier ,i was lying on my side, couldent move or talk, it was so scary, i know its going to happen again, hopefully ive learned enough to help myself next time.
Bye..
Take care everyone..
half-asleep
i, too, experienced sleep paralysis more than once. but one of my most unforgettable experiences of this was way back when i was 16. i arrived early in school but since my classes would start a bit later, i slept first in our dormitory (many people say it's haunted and i must say it's probably true) just inside the campus. in my dream, as i remember, i was also lying on my bed (double-deck, top one of the bed), same place, same bed, same scene before i fell asleep. it's like i'm aware of what i'd been dreaming. and then i noticed something's trying to crawl to the top, towards my bed.. i can see it is a doll, looking really scary. and so, i felt really scared that i desperately wanted to move my body and shout.. but to my surprise, there's no voice coming out of my mouth, my hair appeared to be growing longer, i can't stand/move my whole body, but it was only my arms that i could move. however, my arms were moving in the opposite direction, and i can't even raise it. i was so scared of even seeing the doll getting nearer and nearer.. it felt so terrible that i can't do anything about it.. then, later on, i realized i was awake already. no doll, i can move, i can speak then.. but i can really hear my heartbeat, as it beats so fast. that was a really bad dream i had there.. or was it really a dream? sometimes, i honestly get confused of my dream and the reality..
i remember my sister once told me, according to her friends who they claim they have a 3rd eye: when your dream occurs on the same place where you are sleeping, and that you feel as if you're aware of what's happening, they say that there's a spirit intervention.. something like there's an spiritual being who wants to scare/frighten you.. although, i don't really know if it's true..
i just really want to share this experience..
sleep paralysis
i am 41 years old, i have been suffering from sleep paralysis,,, all my life,, i wake and cannot move,, i cannot breathe,,,, i cannot scream, my eyes are open,,, as iam getting older,,, i stay calm now,, and i give my brain the command Breathe, Breathe,, and i seem to come good,,
However over the years i have seen myself out of my body,, and lots of spirits in the room , with wind, and sometimes sounds, and smells,,,
This may be an halluciation, but at the time it is very real,,,
My sisters suffer from it too
and so does my daughter,,, is this a family inheritence thing?
What can we do to stop it?
Can some one please help
Im a chronic victim of sp too
I had it since I was in my teens. Maybe experienced it thousand times but I'm still frightened every time I have it. Now I'm 54 and I'm still alive. Thanks God. And as I've said I experienced it a thousand times but around two years now that I seem to discover ways to prevent it and even know when I am vulnerable to the attack. Before I go to sleep I will check if the back of my neck feels heavy (tired due to too much tv watching, or reading book, or when I lack sleep)or there seems to be throbbing, then it is a sign that I would surely have sleep paralysis if I'll go to sleep without easing it first. I do the following things before going to sleep:
1. Drink at least a glass of water
2. Do a gentle neck exercise, like gently moving the neck sideways, rotating it few times, and up and down.
3. Tilting head up and breath exhale and inhale slowly, as if putting oxygen to the brain.
4. Check again. If the heaviness in the nape is gone or the throbbing gone, I can now then go to sleep. But still I don't forget to pray to God for a calm and sound sleep.
The article in this site is a great help.
The things we see while we are in the state of sleep paralysis are just hallucinations, that I am sure. Of course I still get nightmares and see "evil" things but it doesn't bother me when I get out of it. No astral travels.. just mere hallucinations.. all of it.
I get severe attacks too that I get panicky but I don't forget to ask God's help.
Now I believe that sleep paralysis is filial. We're 8 in the family, four of us experience it many times, and still another two nieces also experience it several times. They're only in their twenties.
Just follow what I have written. It could be a great help to you. When I was in my teens I used to read my book to sleep.. and with tired eyes and brain, sleep paralysis is sometimes severe that I feel my brain is being crushed.
I was also an incurable insomiac that is why I experienced sp regularly.
God bless.
God bless.
Please pray for me too.
Please pray for me too.
Ghost-like Image
My experience may be slightly different from everyone's primarily because 95% of the time, it is self-induced. I have been having this sleep paralysis phenomenon since I was a child, but now I see a ghost-like image almost always. The ghost-like images started becoming part of my experience about 10yrs ago.
Couple of unique things with my experience; First, the ghost-like started appearing right next to me standing on my left side (I am left-handed) of the bed. About 18months ago, I noticed that it no longer appears close to me. Rather, it stands at the door to my bedroom (about 8ft away) consistently.
The second unique thing is that I can almost self induce it by dropping the temperature in the room, and letting one or both of my legs stick out of the blanky (change in body temp). This will almost always give me the paralysis effect but not necessarily the ghost-like image.
Also I noticed that in the short period that it takes for me to regain full control of my body and senses (usually 5 secs), the ghost-like image swirls in a fast cyclical motion before it disappears (somewhat foggy/cloudy-like manner). I am hoping that one day there is a full explanation of this phenomenon. For now, the saga continues :).
Regards and thanks for sharing your experiences as well.
Essa
not loving this!!!
dude i also experienced this kind of stuff!! and it scared the hell outta me!! Thank God im not seeing anything or hearing any weird sounds, but it still scares me!! and you know what, my parents think i'm crazy!!! yeah that aint right. i'm not loving this 'sleeping paralysis' thingy. It gives me the creeps! Anyways, whenever this happens to me, i feel weird. I can't move, but when try to move, i felt as if i got out of my bed! but i wasnt! i could feel my feet touch the floor but my body's still in bed! you get me? i mean i feel that i already woke up, but the fact is im still in that state of 'sleeping paralysis'! uh maaan. i'm really not loving this. How can i stop this????
There are some "remedies" to
There are some "remedies" to stop it, but it's not guaranteed.
Try sleeping in a different position (side stomach, back etc.)
Try a regular sleeping schedule (don't stay up really late then go to bed really early is you can help it)
Don't think about it before you go to bed, it may increase your chance of having another episode
Try to relieve your stress as it can often cause it by itself
If necessary, try inclining the half of your bed where your head rests as people have shown improvements with this
Try showing your family some websites or science behind it, it should convince them you're not at all crazy.
It's common to feel like you're getting out of bed or something similar to this. In this state, people actually can astral project (leave their body, go places, etc.) so if you actually think you're getting out of bed, it's nothing to worry about. Just try to ease yourself out of the paralyzed state and change position and go back to bed.
sleep paralysis
I used to experience this possibly eight or ten times a year, and I eventually discovered that I could bring it on by sleeping in a room that was more than about 80 degress F in temperature. I would seem to be awake but totally unable to move, and the only way I could get out of it was to make a supreme effort to move an arm or a leg. It seemed that I had a choice of either waking up, or if I was not able to awaken myself with this effort, I would die--so it became an unbelievably frightening contest between my will to awaken or death. I haven't had a single episode of this for at least two years, and sometimes I even accidentally leave the thermostat up too high without bringing on another attack--all of which makes me believe that I have been cured of these awful attacks.
It is very comforting to attribute these attacks to natural, brain-oriented causes, but I too, have experienced the presence of supernatural beings, including one event in which I awoke with about twenty very fine and bleeding cuts in the centre of my lower back. I showed these to two friends who were as shocked as I was. One of them believed that I had been attacked by some devilish being; the other figured there must be some natural explanation. I regret that I didn't show these cuts to a doctor, but I was too concerened that my doctor would question my sanity or think I was trying to do a hoax of some kind.
I have this as well. Ever
I have this as well. Ever since I started taking synthroid...Could it be related?
A scary episode of this 'sleep paralysis'
My dad tells me all of his episodes and proof that it actually happens. One night (about 7 years ago) I was watching a movie in the livingroom and my dad was sleeping on the couch.......
BACKGROUND:
My dad was getting what he called "Pinned down" which is this sleep paralysis thing. He would awake to find himself stiff, can't move, can't talk, nothing. He learned to make grunting sounds with his nose in order for people to hear him to wake him up because sometimes it is hard for him to get out of this pin down.
It first happened back in the 70's in Minnesota. He was a child and he awoke to a presence that he could follow with his eyes. The presence pulled down his blankets and came straight down to his face, my dad could feel the hot air from his breath. Sometimes he talked sometimes he didn't. Once he said in a deep voice "You believe in me."
When this ghost walked around it sounded like horse hooves. My dad concluded that it was half man half something else... He put it together one night when the lights went out and he ran into him. He said he ran into his six pack and it felt and I quote "Scaley. Like a fish, but also like skin, hairy, but muscle" He looked up to see glowing eyes looking down on him with that same hot breath...This was when he was fully awake....
He has also learned that when you are 'pinned down' and cannot move. You can look around and it may appear you are awake, but cannot move.... He has learned that YOUR EYES ARE CLOSED. Which he concluded your soul comes out just about an inch out of your body which causes you to freeze and fight it so your soul rejoins your body....
NOW BACK TO THE STORY OF THIS CERTAIN EPISODE:
I was fully awake watching tv when what my dad explained as... he woke up, got up and went into the kitchen to get a glass of milk. He must have been real quite because I did not hear anything. When he walked back into the livingroom he seen himself sleeping on the couch. His first thought was that he was dead. But this was not the case. He layed back down and went back into his body to find himself stuck in a 'pin down' after he got out of it he told me about it and I told him he was full of it! But he showed proof. The glass of milk was sitting on the table. I know for a fact there is more than just a science being this. It is a gift. One whom can control it may leave there body and see and communicate with the dead. This sounds strange, but it is the only explanation. I was awake and he DID NOT GET UP.
CONCLUSION:
He has learned how to move his arm out of his body and sometimes come out of it. But that part is very hard he says. He always gets the 'Pin downs' with what he calls the soul snatchers.. The ghosts he sees are either black hooded figures or a devel like thing with hooves as feet and hot breath.
In his thirties he took a picture of my sister, there were mirrors in the background. There is a ghost in the mirror. It looks very scary I blown it up in school and I concluded it is real. I will post this on myspace, and if you ever want to contact me to talk about what I know contact me at www.myspace.com/andies9488
Thanks for the time.
I know how it feels...do they have more info about it?
I know how this feels...my first expierance was extremely frightening. My eyes were still closed and I was in that state between asleep and awake. I felt hands pressing down on my chest and my bed starting to shake. I heard an evil, hissy laugh...and I couldn't move. All I could do was lay there and pray until it stopped. I thought I was being attacked by a demon or something.
It's happened a few more times since then, but no bed shaking or demon laughing. Just...trouble breathing and unable to move. I've had to concentrate all of my brain power just to move my finger, but once I get the finger to move I'm able to become unparalized.
I didn't know what it was until recently, when I was talking to someone who knows she has it. I looked it up and evidently it occurs more often when you sleep on your back than any other sleeping position. It also said that it occurs the most in African/African-American males... which is no excuse for me, since I'm not male and not of African descent.
I wonder if they have medication or atleast more reaserch about this?
Did I have a sleep paralysis episode?
This very strange thing happen to me earlier this morning, at around 4 am. I had just woken up at 3:30, and managed to fall back asleep within the next 5 minutes. I remember dreaming, very vividly, sleeping in a position on my stomach, in my room, except there was a Native American in the room talking with me (though I could not see them as they were standing behind where I was laying, I heard them with a distinct accent) about a dream catcher that was hanging over my desk. I don't have one of those, nor do I know any Native Americans, so that was obviously a dream.
Now, this is where the confusion comes in. I woke up, and I know I woke up. The setting changed from my room in the daytime (the dream), to my room in the pitch black dark except for the light from my clock, but I was in the same position I was sleeping in, on my stomach. I lifted my body up on my arms, looked at the time, 3:58, then put my head back down. As soon as I did, I felt some weight push down on my bed next to me. I was alone in my room, none of my animals were in the room, and suddenly, while my eyes were open, I felt like two hands were pushing down hard on my lower back. It was very distinctly two hands. I couldn't move the rest of my body, except for my fingers, and my feet. I was able to look around though, but couldn't form words. I also heard a scraping noise on the pillow that my head was next to, but it wasn't in view. After about 20 seconds, I managed to push myself up from my forearms, and quickly sit up and spin around to see nothing there.
I'm all for debunking things, but I am hesitant to believe that this was sleep paralysis because 1) I woke up, moved around, and then layed back down, and I'm not sure if being able to move and then not able to move would constitute sleep paralysis. 2) I felt the pressure on the bed and my back the moment I layed down. I wouldn't have been able to fall asleep that quickly, especially since I have a problem falling asleep as it is. 3) While sleep paralyis is said to make people feel and hear things, I'm not sure (it could be, I just don't know) it explains the feeling of the weight push down on my bed next to me. It wasn't the feeling of a presence, that was seperate, this was like something was stepping on the bed next to me. At that moment, I thought it was one of my cats jumping on the bed then on my back, but the fact that I felt 2 hands over 4 paws and the weight was far too heavy to be one of my cats made me realize it wasn't them.
So, that's what happen. I remember it very clearly, and have nothing to lie about. Don't really know what to think. I didn't have any marks on my back, but even when I got up, the feeling was there. Not for nothing, but there have been deaths that took place in the rooms adjacent to mine in the house, of other family members, and other animals as well. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
try sleeping a different way
i am only 14 but i have had this happing to me about a year and now usally only happens once in a long while. Last time this occurd was about a month ago....i have noticed it only happens to me when i lay on my back so now i usally try to sleep on my stomic or sides. i know its not much but it might help.....the only other thing you can do is juss try to relax theres no changing it so you mine as well go with it also try not to eat right be for you sleep im not sure if this will work but its worth a try i know that when you eat your body uses somewhere around 30 % of it oxygen thats why when you eat alot you usally get tierd so maybe the body doesnt have enough oxygen traveling to the brain...thats all i can really say to try and help....good luck and dont worry :)
really sleepy but half asleep
Sometimes I am half asleep but awake and I see things that look so real am I crazy? It maybe happens once a month
me too
My name is Ryne Teston. I am 20. I too have just woken up from this ridiculous disorder, and decided finally to research what I have always called "Spirit Nights". Seeing that nobody seems to be mentioning too many cures, I guess I'll chime in on what crazy lunatic stuff I have been experiencing in my few years with this problem.
Last week, I believed there was a small evil thing in my room as well (somebody else mentioned this one too). Its surprising how similar these accounts are. I could not only HEAR it, FEEL it biting me, and see movements around my room, the worst part is, during the episodes, I am clearly thinking "OK I am having a spirit night, calm down, its not real". I stay terrified though. I wake up, am exhausted, need sleep, tell myself calm the hell down its not real. 2 minutes later it happens again. It usually tends to be one partiuclar entity and "setting" of the dream, per night. And it only happens about 5 times a year.
THe other thing I noticed is that people tend to think there are things hurting or messing with their arms. This week I "awoke" to find a whole, adult cat CLINGING to my arm. Again, I felt it not just saw it, digging into me. Even after full conciousness I still felt like my arm was cut. What a way to sleep.
SP
Hi i am steven i am 23, of good health do plenty of running sports etc. About an hour ago i had a sleep paralysis type of thing, hence why i found this page.
I was kind of awake but not awake, i could see but it was i had small flashes of darkness for a second while i was looking around.
I had awoken to a very faint whiring (fan noise or like small engine noise) i looked round my room and felt really calm, closed my eyes and then what seems a few seconds later i heard the whiring noise so i went to lift my head up to investiagte but could not move.
I tried again to lift my head the whiring would get louder, so i tried my best to force myself up and at his stage to see what was whiring and the whiring got really loud to the point i thought something had started to drill into the back of my head near the left part of my neck, i stopped struggling and thought that it was strange.
I looked down and tried to move my hands towards that part of my neck/head area where the whiring/drilling thing was but my left hand could not move i tried moving my right hand and couldn't so i kept trying and managed to lift my right hand off my chest like half an inch or so but i could not get it to move anywhere or anymore like towrds my head, at this point i thought what the fuck is going on i have to try and lift my head up again and as i did this the whiring started getting louder again the more i struggled and i struggled like crazy and it felt like i managed to move my head up very slightly like half an inch but the whiring became so strong and my head felt like someone was drilling into it i decided to not fight it anymore.
So i decided just put my head down and try to call out 'help' and ask my sister or my mom what the hell is going on if they came in my room, but i coulden't make a noise i felt my lips move slightly but no sound, so i decided to relax chill out for a second. I did this and closed my eyes and decided when my eyes would close i would try and move my toes and feet, at first i could not do this but after a minute i sudennly got the feeling and could move my arms and touched my head and neck and nothing was wrong.
I may add that this time this happed during a nap at about 3:30pm my blinds were closed but the light still came in and my computer monitor was on. As i got up i was ok but the right side of my head or jaw felt funny? (maybe i had been grinding my teeth without realising?) Also to note the last two nights before i did not get to sleep until past 3 in the morning celebrating a friends birthday with heavy drink, hence me needing a nap during the day this time.
I have had this type of thing happen before but not the whiring engine noise, i have maybe had this happen 2 or 3 times in the past 5-6 years the other times it was at night and i kind of open my eyes and see in the darkness something ever slighly darker on the ceiling kind of floating but in such a way you cant really make it out i attempt to get up and to my amazement i can't and i feel myself become really heavy(but not heavy as if it hurts), so i remain relaxed and when i close my eyes instead of being really heavy i feel really light like im floating to the extent where i really enjoy the feeling so just let the feeling pass thinking its just some kind of wierd dream (this has happened twice maybe three times).
Other notable things to happen while i have been asleep or just waking up is when in my dream i am running or something and suddenly i wake up and its as if i have just jumped flat on my back onto the bed, the bed actually moved as if its just took the impact of my falling like a sudden jolt, after that i get up and im ok (this has happed maybe 6-8 times)
I have never spoke to anyone about this because i know there would think im wierd.... oh also i have realised i am always sleeping flat on my back when this happens.
oh and another thing....
if your muscles cant move then how the hell did i feel something pushing my head down to the side and start breathing on me?????????
i didn't even know...
i'm 17 years old and i just found this out.... things like this have been happening to me since i was about 12 or 13 and when it would happen i use to be so scared...(it's still scary sometimes) my family said it was only a dream... but i knew it wasn't... i'm just glad that now i can have a name for it and show them that i'm not crazy...
Sleep Paralysis
I'm 34 and I've been experiencing sleep paralysis since the age of 13. It is a terrifying event. I distinctly remember one of the occurrences while I was pregnant. I could feel and hear the buzzing flowing from my head and moving down towards my swollen belly. Before it reached the baby however, I recall feeling this rightous anger take over. I opened my eyes and floating in the doorway was a woman and her expression showed jealousy. In my mind, I told her I would not allow her to steal my energy no longer and to leave. Within that instant, it stopped. The sleep paralysis did not happen as often after that specific incident. What I have realized though, is as long as I have a cat, it never happens. Curious, I wondered to myself maybe it would work if I had a dog and not a cat. The sleep paralysis still occurred while having a dog sleep in the same room. So I did a little research. A cat's purr has healing powers! To those that really want the sleep paralysis to stop once and for all, get a cat! Sorry to those that are allergic =/ But I hope this helps. It has worked wonders for me. I've had a cat for the past two and a half years now and not one single episode of sleep paralysis at all! The vibration of a cat's purr actually help lower stress and anxiety.
I have a cat and she usually
I have a cat and she usually sleeps right next to my head on another pillow, purring, and I STILL get the episodes, even when she is right there. I thought having her near me would calm me down as well, but it hasn't seemed to work for me.
I have had these as well and they are beyond frightening
When I turned 12, my grandmother died and left us an eerie house out in East Texas. That is when I first experienced my Sleep Paralysis. I was actually sleeping in a large red recliner chair, (that I think was my grandma's) when it happened. All of a sudden, I felt the chair start rocking without my doing so, and I started to hear my little sister who was asleep in the next chair over start laughing although I could clearly see she was asleep. I couldn't move, make a sound, or anything. I could move my eyes, but that was about it. As soon as I cam to, I ran to the back room where my brother was, and I was just in tears. He didn't believe me at first b/c of how insane it sounded, and thought I was just trying to scare him. But after he saw how legit I was about it, he thought I may of just had a nightmare. After we laughed about it a bit, I decided that I would return to the chair to sleep and to keep an eye on my younger sister.
It wasn't over. After I slept for a little bit, I woke up again, but this time I thought I heard someone trying to break in through the back door. My sister started laughing again although she was still asleep. The noises got louder and louder and I started to really freak out b/c I couldn't move and the chair felt like it was rocking again. All of a sudden, my sister's laughter got deep and scary as if it were Satan himself. The noises kept coming from the back room, and out of nowhere, I lost my vision, and everything turned to this orange and red lava like substance that started to turn black and white. I thought I had died and was going to hell. . . . I really thought I died. . .
When I woke up, I was crying so bad, my brother ran and got my mom to come to the bathroom to sooth me. She thought that there was a presence in the house since my grandma died in it. Later on, I found out that she died in the very chair I was sitting in, and that really scared me. That house was very scary and seemed so out of the norm.
I was reading in this thread that it could be hereditary, and my father told me that when he was a little boy, he woke up to see the devil sitting at the edge of his bed, and that he can remember it to this day, the face, and everything. He said it was the most terrifying experience he had ever gone through. HIs mother, (my other grandmother) who believed in a lot of old mexican witch craft, believed he had truly seen the devil. My father had also had an experience at my grandmother's house that scared me into believing that what was happening was paranormal. He said he had waken to see a white mist like presence outside of the window walking towards our van. He said at first he didn't believe it was real when as she passed through the van, the alarm went off and she disappeared. That was what was so scary about it. He has also told me that he dreamed one time that he wasn't going to wake up from it, and he woke up finding himself screaming and standing up as if he were still in the dream. I think there is a possibility that I inherited these "sleep paralysis" genes from my father.
We eventually sold the house to move to Houston so that my father could try to prosper his business there since East Texas was so dry money wise. That was the next time I experienced this sleep paralysis. We were staying in a motel at the time. Since the room was so tiny, I decided to get a comforter, some sheets, and a pillow and make the tub into a bed. After I slept I woke up in the sleep paralysis and was terrified that it was happening again. This time, there was nothing too terrifying about it other than not being able to move. I woke up and tried to fall asleep again, and would go through it again. Finally after being to scared to sleep alone, I decided to move out with my family in the room. When I told my mom, she thought that maybe it was b/c the bathroom got too hot. But it happened again, and this time I decided to keep it to myself b/c I could see the stress I was causing my mother. The next day, I asked my sister to watch me sleep b/c I had stayed up all night and was exhausted, and when she watched me that day, nothing happened. No sleep paralysis. It was upsetting, but I decided to just start keeping it to myself.
Since then it took six years before I experienced this problem again. I am now 20 years old, have two daughters and I am married. I just recently experiencing sleep paralysis again, and actually experienced it not but an hour ago. As I lay next to my husband, taking a nap, I told myself in the paralysis that I would finally research this issue. That's when I came to this page.
Some things I've noticed as this has happened to me:
1.) Something very serious was happening that caused a lot of stress.
2.) I was asleep on my back
3.) I was sleep deprived
4.) I was experiencing a lot of anxiety due to the stress.
Each time it happens, I am very stressed out, and I have just learned to deal with it. I have never experienced one as scary as the one when I was 12 and in my grandmother's house, but every now and then, I get them where I can hear voices. The most recent ones I've experienced today, I took a nap while I was waiting for my parents to drop off my daughter Audrey. I would wake in the sleep paralysis and hear my dad at the door, and all I could think was, I'm not going to be able to open the door. I can't move. And when I would wake up, no one was there. The first one happened while I was on my back. I quickly turned when I realized this, and still got two more of them.
I will be seeing a doctor soon for this, and I hope my experiences posted here will let others no that they are not alone in this issue. I truly believe that stress has a huge influence in my occurrences.
As I got older, I became very fascinated in the studies of anatomy and physiology and took a couple of courses in high school. When I learned how complex the brain truly was
Sleep Paralysis- first experience- 16 yrs. old
I had my first experience (and only one thus far)November 5th, 2008
I woke up to a loud buzzing noise. I couldn't open my eyes, but I knew I was awake. I couldn't breathe either but it felt like I had a lot of air in my lungs. 5 seconds later I opened my eyes, couldn't see anything because it was dark, and I couldn't move any part of my body. I couldn't even move my mouth or try to make a noise. 30 seconds later I was able to move my arm and turned the light on on my clock and it was 1:35(am)...
I had no clue what was going on. I'm really thankful I didn't hear anything worse than a loud buzzing noise (like laughing, walking, anything that would make me think someone was in my room) or see a figure. I can't imagine what I would've done...
Since this, I've never been so interested in something. I used to be extremely into baseball... I would research it, talk about it, think about it, and imagine my future in it daily (I was pretty crazy about it haha). Now it's the same thing with the with sleep paralysis, the brain, REM, neurology, etc.
Sleep Paralysis A Way Of Life - Control It!
I have been having sleep paralysis since I was about 11 and now am 23. Hasn't stopped since but has a pattern to it like when I overwork myself or I am alone at home things that trigger stress or slight fear. Sleeping on your back or stomach doesnt really help either. It is also triggered by different sleep patterns e.g. If i usually sleep between 00.00 - 08.00 and I wake up later than 08.00 or sleep earlier than 00.00 then im pretty much screweds. You can really control it... I swear I used to be so scared when I had sleep paralysis but now I understand what is happening and think to myself no one can harm me... my options are to go within my brain think very hard and wake up or take the other way out which is chill and enjoy the ride and you will fall back into sleep. The only thing that bothers me when I get sleep paralysis is frustration of not being able to move kind of like clastrophobia.
Black Angels??!
My strangest one has disturbed me (more now reading about the death syndrome), i 'awoke' in the other dimension to find myself on the wall of my bedroom in broad daylight. I was being 'carried' and flown around from wall to wall by something i coulnt see but there was another - it had wings like angels and it came up to the one carrying me and asked 'is this the one?' It had a long black face as if made of charcoal and a very small mouth, i could draw a very detailed picture now still it was so detailed and vivid. Strangely i wasnt as scared as usual and pulled myself out of it easily.
I have only had them when suffering a 'comedown' from overindulgence of drugs like ecstasy usualy about 4 days later when feeling drained and slightly depressed. Stopped now though through these experiences - i dont class them as dreams - i am very awake!!. Is anyone else experiencing them because of drugs? It must be common as, well, doing 'e' certainly is.
I believe we are experiencing the other dimension - a freaky fucking place by all accounts!
Drug Induced?
Yes, I also expereince these episodes 3 0 4 days after a drug induced weekend, I have always thought this was a connection
For years I have been trying
For years I have been trying to figure out what this was. It started happenining to me when I was in my early teens. At first I would hear dishes being put away and I thought that I was just hearing what was happening in the house but when I woke up and looked at the clock I realized that my parents had been gone out of the house way before this happened. I am 44 now and it still happens , but it went from hearing dishes being put away to evil voices whispering a strange lanuage into my ear. I have felt someone sit on the bed and I have felt somone sitting on top of me. It is a terrifying experience. I find what triggers it is when I wake up then try and fall back to sleep. I find if I wake up and go right back to sleep I'm fine, but if I wake up and I'm up for 5 to 10 min then go back to sleep the epsoides start and contintues until I get out of bed. Occasionally they just start in the middle of the night, but it's usually rare. I don't know what it is, but I do know that it scares me. I can never see anything only blackness. I always thought it would be better if I could just see, but after reading these comments that would freak me out seeing stuff.Whenever somoeone says to me that when they die they want to go in their sleep I always tell them I don't want to because I think it's one of these epsoides that might kill me.
i am 13 yrs old, this hapend
i am 13 yrs old, this hapend to me when i was twelve, it was the day before thanksgiving, my mom, dad, and older sister were out shopping because its the morning where everything is on sale. i woke up from my room because i felt wierd staying alone with just my 8 yr old little sister. i went to sleep on her bed, when all of a sudden, i woke up. i couldnt move of talk to try to wake up my little sister so she could call my parents. i could barly breath and move my eyes only seeing shadows walk around and here them walking and wispering, i felt as if i was tied up and some one was right in front of me. as soon as i was able to wake up and call my mom, she didnt belive me
Yes, me too
I'm 30 and have suffered the occasional attack since I was a teen. I have had the same experiences told by many on the web. Since researching SP and hearing that I'm not the only one going through this, I'm much more relaxed. Now when I feel an attack coming on, I laughed because I know what to do and I understand what is happening. I pray to God for help and then just wiggle my toes and wallah it's over! I don't go to church because the number of man made religions around the world is overwhelming and confusing, but I have always believed that God exists because I have always felt his love and protection. For many years, I convinced myself that they were just vivid nightmares (even though during the day as well) but now I feel privileged to be shown that there really is a war going on between Good and Evil. Dont be afraid because evil feeds on fear. Satan tries to scare Gods children but he is no match once you call our Father for help.
Sleep Paralysis , Grinding Teeth, & Evil Presence
Prior to writing this message i had an experience of what they labeled as sleep paralysis between the hours of 4am - 5am today. Thanks to this site i now have a label for what has been happening to me. However my girlfriend has told me about the grinding teeth she saw me doing in my sleep as well as hearing me mumbling words she couldn't understand. Scary when she first told me but today has been my second experience, or attack. I must admit it wasn't as bad as the first where i felt as if someone was pushing me down on the bed while i was trying to get up, i couldn't move, my eyes opened and i'm also trying to scream for help but it was like no one could hear me, and i'm looking at my bedroom door and wondering what to do next. In my next experience i.e. 'today' my girlfriend was standing around getting dressed for bed but there was also this faint figure above her to her right, which i thought was some angel or demon. After the paralysis ended i realize (1) she was still right next to me in the bed and (2) a towel was hanging over the door, but i am not fully convinced about the towel just yet :). At the moment i'm thinking objects in the room may change shape when having this sleep paralysis due to the brain, its neurons, interpretation, perception etc for those who know the jargon ;). Or, that evil or angel presence some of us felt. Im opened minded.
But as for the grinding teeth and mumbling, that occurs more often that the sleep paralysis.
My question has anyone ever seen significant others, family or people they know in their sleep paralyze state? "Because that was the first time for me."
no dark spirits here
I am 28 and have episodes more and more serious. It used to be different. Assuming it might be the same thing, I used to just feel really sluggish while dreaming and then I would wake up and feel fine(besides the annoyance of waking up in the middle of the night).
In more recent years, I have actually woken up, or seemingly woken up, and felt paralyzed kinda like something was pushing me against a wall. When I try to say something I either can't voice or it is like a whisper despite how hard I try. I got a bit worried after it happened 2 nights in a row while under stress. I was definitely awake and felt pinned. I could see my room clearly just as I always do with the light from nearby buildings coming in from the windows. I was worried and tried to voice "help" 'cause for some reason I thought my brother or parents would come to help me.. though I live alone nowadays.
Thing is, how my SP differs from others is that I have never seen dark figures or spirits or any voices. All I remember is silence besides the voice in my head. I find that I can "shake it off" by force of will. I concentrate on moving and yelling out. I think I do say something but no one has ever told me that I talk or even murmur in my sleep.
I wonder if I don't see dark spirits because I don't believe in spirits and I don't believe in a god. My only fear is that I can't move. If I did see a dark figure, I'm not sure what I would think. When I was a kid I used to have nightmares, but eventually I convinced myself they weren't real and they seemed to have gone away.
sleep paralysis
i have suffered from this a few times mostly when i was at uni. i noticed it usually happens when i stay in bed late, in particular when ive already been awake and start to drift off again. i can feel it starting and can sometimes beat it by either sitting bolt upright or by shouting! if i dont beat it i can slowly feel that im losing the ability to move. sometimes i can get out of it by trying to shout and it begins to pass. it usually lasts approx 30 secs but i have had episodes lasting around 5 minutes. something very strange has happened at least twice where everything goes silent and i can feel there is someone in the room and i can sense that they are moving around me. i dont know why but i know that it is an oldish woman. she moves towards me and sits on top of me pressing on my chest so i cant breathe and she starts laughing. i can avoid it getting this far in most cases by waking myself up before it comes but i know that if i leave it she will come and press my chest! she eventually leaves but laughs on the way out of the room. i cant really explain how i know but its as if she is warning me about something not trying to hurt me. the first time the woman came it really freaked me out and i told a few people about it and most people just say its a dream but i know im actually awake! i never have trouble sleeping no mental issues and i dont believe in ghosts or anything but there is something very strange about this that makes me think twice! im glad to know that im not the only person who has suffering from this. i have noticed that it usually happens when i wake up thirsty and only when im laid on my back.
sleep paralysis
i have suffered from this for the past few years now, i had no idea what it was at first and thought i was the only person that had it, until i began research today, it never crossed my mind to type it on on the net! I dont think that it has anything to do with evil spirits! i have hallucinations were i can see the room and see someone or thing in the corner of my eye either stood still or see them for a split second,it's as though someone is playing hide and seek, i try to scream and shout n fight my way out of the hallucination i'm in, but i can't, eventually i am too exhausted and my mind is mentally exhausted, it's as though i have to go back to sleep to get out of this state, if that makes any sense!i have found now that if i go too sleep on my back, this sleep paralsis takes place were as if i go to sleep facing the wall lying on my front, i don't suffer from this, saying that i do move around n the night so i suppose the attacks can occur anytime! i have never been so scared, somebody told me it was to do with stress! i was just wondering is this the furthest this sleep paralysis can go, or can it become more serious? if so is their anything that can be done about it?
sp
ah so this is what it is..i'v had one at least a night ago. i forget what was actually hapeening but someone in my dream told me (okay i know this is silly) to say "willy wally" and 'it will go away' so i was about to but then i woke up and this is when that sleep paralysis started..i saw this clown on my dresser and it said willy wally very quiet then started saying it louder and louder. then finally i woke up and looked hard at the dresser to only see my radio sitting on top with a few books piled over it. before when these things happened i couldn't move but i could control my breathing..its weird cause evertime it happens..when itry to say something or scream nothing comes out so i breath hard till i wake up. this happens maybe once or twice a month..and its very frightning to me but i find it not that frightning if i look at something blank..like my pillow..something that doesn't have alot of shapes in it then i won't 'see' some sort of creature or anything in my room.
sp
I beleive it is evil spirits.. I had an attack that lasted about 3 minutes and i could not move my body or eyes i was pinned down.
I was sleeping during the day on the lounge near the back sliding door and then i was attacked and pinned down which sounded like loud evil screeching noises about 50 of them trying to jump inside me and attack. I tryed to get out of it but could not.. Then i call out for god and they left and went zooming out the back door, Then i awoke. I also had a friend stay over and she said a simalar thing happened to her up stairs.. It might sound weird but why is it you mention god and it all stops straight away?? Has anyone had that experience..
Utterly petrifying
It's really great to know that people are experiencing this too, well it's not, because it's an absolutely terrifying ordeal, but you know what I mean. I go through stages of having S.P, I will have it maybe 4 nights in a row and then maybe not again for months and months. To be totally honest it absolutely petrifies me, I wake, or so I think, only to hear loud rushing noises in my ears and the feeling that someone or something is trying to strangle me, I still have not yet managed to open my eyes whilst it is happening, what I would see if I open them.. only the gods will know. It gets so bad that I dont even want to sleep in my bed at night. Im 23 years old and this condition doesnt get any least terrifying.
Sleep Parayisis I don't think I like it
I'm 16 and I've had sleep problems since I was a kid, but i never really thought about it till i started having SP more frequent.
Well when I was like 6, I woke up and could,'t move. It was frightening because it never happened before, but i didn't think much of it. The next time it happened was this summer. Well my buddy was telling me how his brother has SP (I didn't know about it at the time), but when he described it I remembered as a kid when I had it. The weird thing is that night it happened (not happening since I was 6). I woke up not able to move lying face up. I could see my whole room besides my closet to me left. Just like most people my breathing was off. I didn't see or hear anything but i felt an evil presence by my closet. When I awoke i ran out of the room, but didn't really tell people.
After this experience it kept happening like 2 times a week, but weirder stuff would happen. Honestly I wasn't afraid because i was interested in communicating with spirits and paranormal stuff. I didn't fear death because I knew that I would go to a better place. That is until I kept having more episodes:
One of my most scary ones was when i was sleeping facing away form my closet when I awoke and couldn't move. I felt something in the room. Then all of a sudden something put wait on my back as if someone was leaning over my body. Then I heard whispering in my ear. I thought it was my dad, but i realized it wasn't. I was trying to make out what it was saying. The only thing I understood was " Why did you got to bed at 2, 3 o'clock is the devils hour". I prayed to God and it stopped. More occurrences with this demon have occurred, I've seen it in other situations and I'm sick of it. It's messing whit my sleep like it did this morning.
I try to ignore it like this morning, and go back to sleep when it's over but it just happens repeatedly and it's just draining. I needed to sleep but it won't let me. If you got any advise let me know Thanks.
Pce
sleep awaking
its quiet scarey, but i do have an experience last night in which someone was lying beside me, couldn't speak only thing i could think of is jesus help me then i wake up, but still could feel the presents in the room, so i started to ask what do you want and who are you. i have quiet a few times. and also i experiences my spirit leaving my body. some help me please to understand what is happening to me?
what if when we are sleeping
what if when we are sleeping we are awake and when we are awake we are really sleeping. What if none of this is real. I know it sounds very strange but it is a question i often wonder. The reason i wonder is because when we do sleep it is like we have a whole other life somewhere. Some dreams feel so real.My biggest question is how can u dream about people you dont know. How is it these people find their way into your life?
it happened again
this time it had to be the craziest, im currently a service member stationed out in germany and these weird experiences during my sleep just started happening ever since i got here i cant blame it on anxiety or stress no way can science cover this bullshit. as i was in bed a couple of hours ago i awoke to feeling someone holding me down and i knew right away it was going to happen again i started to pray whispering but as soon as i started to repeat my mouth shut. then an image of my mom appeared saying it was all ok but i knew it was "him" trying to shake it off didnt work till i continued in my mind with the prayer. my friend also experienced this who is a nonbeliever and felt a similar being pushing down on his face and feeling the bed actually go down. i cant sleep but im glad im not alone... thanks everyone....
Awake while dreaming
Last night wasnt' the first time this has happend but it is the first time it was so vivid. I'll make this as short as possible. I'm 41 and perfectly healthy. Last night while watching TV I'm guessing I fell asleep, but I was'nt really, if that makes since. I had a dream I was being watched by something and I could hear them cummunicating to each other, "not a known language", it's like they were studying me. I completely remember the entire dream and remember I could still see the TV and what was happening. I was totally paralyzed the whole time. I remember calling out to my son, (BECAUSE I WAS FREAKIN SCARED), but nothing came out, it felt like it did, but no one heard anything. Then I remember throwing a pillow over my head because thats where they were, I could'nt see them but I could hear them. I could feel the tension in my arm and how incredibly hard it was to throw it. My left eye was closed and my right eye was open. I remember in my dream when they left, what I was watching on TV was going off and when I woke up I could move and I stood up. I also noticed the credits rolling on the TV. There was no gap in time from when I was asleep to when I when I woke up. I guess to sum it all up I remember what I dreamed at the same time was totally aware of everything being awake. I know sounds crazy but it affected me to the point to where I've been on the net trying to figure out what happend and how it could. I think its called (NONRECIPROCAL FLACCID PARALYSIS). Anyway thanks for reading. If you want, e-mail me with a comment, I try to answer back.