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Sleep Paralysis?

Discussion in 'Physical & Sexual Health' started by midwestgirl89, May 21, 2012.

  1. midwestgirl89

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    I am wondering if anyone else experiences this and/or what to do when this happens. It usually happens when I take a nap during the day or if I am very tired.

    I fall asleep but (soon after) semi-wake up. When I semi-wake up, I can't move my body at all. I can't open my eyes or speak. I try to scream for my mom so she can wake me up but I can't even whisper. I try over and over to make some kind of noise but it doesn't work. I try to move my hands but they're numb. I always get scared because I can't move if I need to get away from danger.

    This morning it happened 4 or 5 times. I wasn't fully awake however. In the dream, I saw my mom and tried to yell to her but I couldn't. It took a while but eventually, I woke up. Then I immediately fell back to sleep because my body was too tired and numb to move more than a couple inches. It happened 4 or 5 times in succession. Each time I woke up I would have a hard time catching my breath.

    Does anyone else experience this? Is this a symptom of a migraine or is it a normal sleep process?
     
  2. That happens to me from time to time. Just like you described. Don't worry, it's perfectly normal.
     
  3. Gerry

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    As far as I know this is normal. It happens to me as well when I'll take a nap during the day. It usually doesn't happen to me when I go to bed at night. I hate that feeling though and always freak out but can't do anything about it. I'm pretty sure it's something normal.
     
  4. GlindaRose

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    Oh yeah. Trust me I know all about it. It happens to me a lot - sometimes several mornings in a row I'll wake up sleep paralysed. These days I just tend to lie there when it happens and wait to wake up. It's more boring than scary now. It's like, 'This is dull...can I wake up now so I can get out of bed?' And sometimes I'll be able to physically feel myself needing the loo and I'll be like, 'Can I wake up now please so I can go to the toilet?' lol.

    Don't worry, you're completely normal. Apparently it's something to do with being semi-into a particular stage of the sleep cycle, like, if it gets interrupted or something. I can't remember off the top of my head.
     
  5. Lewis

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    Happens to me ALL the time! I also have illuminations with it, it's like the things I'm dreaming about are there in my room. But back to the sleep paralysis, it feels just like somebody is on top of me, holding me down and it really does scare me. I also try scream and shout and nothing but pitiful groans come out. It's absolutely horrible and when it first happened to me, I thought it was a demon or some shit.
     
  6. InkStain

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    I have this happen to me all the time. I have weird sleep problems, thus is the life of an insomniac. ^^ I had it happen just last night. Scary as hell, lol. It's perfectly normal though. When your body goes into REM or a dream state of sleep, your brain releases chemicals so you won't act out your dreams. Sometimes your body will be trying to wake up, and doesn't fully pull out of that paralyzed state.
     
  7. Michaelisopen

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    Sleep paralysis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    Here is an article from Wikipedia, so it MUST be trustworthy! I am pretty sure, due to REM sleep, the body releases some chemical which causes "paralysis," so when your dreaming, which is usually done in REM sleep, you don't act out your dream on other people. So when you wake up, you are still coming out of the REM sleep, or there are still remnants of the chemical in your body.
     
  8. Lewis

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    *hallucinations, on my phone and iPhone's notorious auto-correct decided to put something completely different from what I wished it to say :|
     
  9. thylvin

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    This is absolutely normal, but it's your subconscious mind trying to communicate with you. There might be some kind of underlining issues you are not dealing with properly. I had them as well, but as I started to figure out what my problems was which i was not really dealing with or dealing in the right way, i went on to work on it. Eventually it got less and less, to now where i hardly experience it at all.
     
  10. Zontar

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    Sleep paralysis is a completely normal byproduct of hypnagogia.

    If you know how to control yourself during an episode, it can be one of the most interesting experiences of your life. Imagine a completely drug-free trip where you hallucinate and everything.

    If you're a lucid dreamer, you'd kill for an easy method to induce the phenomenon, because it makes lucid dreaming induction a snap when it happens.
     
  11. Zaio

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    I've only had it about 5 times in my life but I remember every single one of them, as they are so vivid.

    What sleep paralysis is, is when you go into, or come out of REM sleep too fast, before your body has actually come out of it, this causes the paralysis effect. You can also hallucinate which due to your consciousness can cause it to be extremely terrifying, so much so that people can have panic attacks, but your body does this to produce adrenaline in order to wake you up, usually if you hallucinate it is not due to coming out of REM sleep, but rather your breathing being constricted/restrained, your body attempts to scare you out of your sleep because it needs you to start breathing properly.

    Getting proper sleep and sleeping on your side with your hands not across your chest will usually result in no sleep paralysis, however there is a condition that is more prone to it, however I forgot the name of said condition.

    As said above, you can make them wonderful experiences. If you do it just before you go into it, imagine your soul is coming out of your body, like you are physically leaving your body, sometimes this works so you can noclip everywhere, being able to go wherever you want, and do whatever you want. If you hallucinate try as hard as you can to move a finger/toe and the rest of your body will wake up.

    If you need more information on the subject feel free to message me on my wall :slight_smile:

    All the best.
     
  12. DryOasis

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    It used to happen to me a lot. Especially when I was really exhausted before sleeping. What scared me was that my heartbeat got quicker and my breathing deeper but there was nothing I could do about it. Thats why I don't cover my head at all while sleeping, or else I suddenly feel very claustrophobic.
     
  13. Young Anonymous

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    Same, has happened to me a few times.

    *nightmares and sleep paralysis do NOT mix...
     
  14. Jordash

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    Oh my God! I had this happen to me once, during a nightmare! It was super scary cause I was just like laying there and there was this faded little scary red devil sitting next to me screaming in my face. I tried to scream, and call for help, but I couldnt move. It was terrible! :tears: I'm still scared to think about it too much.

    Its actually kinda funny now that I really think about it. :slight_smile:
     
  15. midwestgirl89

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    Thanks for everyone's replies! I had no idea it was so common. My mom said it was abnormal so I was worried. Now, I'm not so worried. It's really strange and I have heard it has to do with the REM sleep stage like others have said. I think if I get on a normal sleep schedule it might happen less often.
     
  16. Chimera

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    Agreed! Also known to be the perfect platform for "out of body experiences" or just plain hallucinatory fun. SP is very normal, but if you are overly sleepy during the day it could be a sign that somethings up. I used to get sleep paralysis several times a day until I went on narcolepsy medication to control it. Some natural ways to avoid SP include avoiding sleeping on your back, maintaining a regular sleep schedule, and getting out of bed the moment you wake up. If you find yourself stuck, try taking really deep breathes. We breathe shallow while sleeping, so attempting to suck in extra air helps the body realize that you are awake. If all else fails, just fall back to sleep and try try again :slight_smile:
     
  17. n8i2c7k

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    Haha I get this every so often.

    As long as you don't wake up to an actual dude sitting on top of your chest who then vanishes just before you pass out. In Hawaii that's called a pressing ghost. Nasty stuff...not to freak you out or anything :icon_bigg
     
  18. Just Passing

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    I haven't had this for a good long time thankfully, but several months ago I used to get this feeling of semi-consciousness where I knew I felt uncomfortable and wanted to move, but couldn't. It really is an awful feeling, but I used to find that if you can calm yourself down and think with your subconscious and concentrate on something else that's positive, you can break free from Sleep Paralysis and move again.

    Nothing abnormal about it. :slight_smile:
     
  19. MikesHeath

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    I thought i am the only one with whom this type of things happen. Glad to find you.
    And i have consulted a doctor who says it is perfectly normal. You are just tired at that time.
     
  20. UnAmourFatal

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    I have sleep paralysis almost every time I fall asleep on my back. I have to be pretty tired for that though, I really only can only sleep on my left side.
    After a while I got used to them, I'm not scared anymore, and can actually wake myself with small twists of my limbs or little cries, if I put enough effort into them.
    The thing which bothers me is that I'd want to enter the state of lucid dreaming, and it just never happens. I lay there, trying to either imagine things, calm my breathing, etc, and instead of drifting off into a lucid dream, I just wake up..