Ever been Frozen in your bed? (Sleep Paralysis)

[Craig-O-Mac]

I just finished reading a thread in The Cage regarding sleep and it led me to post about this.

I actually experience a sleep disorder known as Sleep Paralysis Disorder on occasion. It's where my mind is is awake before my body. I am acutely aware of my surroundings yet am powerless to move my limbs,fingers etc. It can even be difficult to breathe. It sometimes feels like the sensation (or lack thereof) can last minutes and can be quite frightening. I'm not quite sure if vision is full, partial or imagined. Ditto for sound. Sometimes I can feel it just before it is about to come on.

I've looked this up online a few times and have found a few bits on it, good old Wikipedia! It is also related to lucid dreaming whereby one is aware they are dreaming and can sometimes even 'control' their dreams, for want of a better word. Inception shit indeed.

Does anyone else suffer from/ experience anything like this?

 

[Cena's Little Helper]

Yes, it occasionally happens to me. I fucking hate it. Thank fuck I can actually go back to bed within a matter of minutes.

 

[Mighty NorCal]

No, I generally sleep with blankets, warm PJs, or another person

 

[Dr. Stinger A. Zoidberg]

It happens to me on occasion as well, I feel like I'm going to die because it gets hard to breathe.

I end up using all the power I can muster up to move a limb. Once that happens, I'm able to snap out of it.

FUNNY STORY: I once accidentally hit my wife in the face when I moved my arm trying to snap out of it.

 

[shattered dreams]

Happens to me on occasion although I do not think I have ever had the breathing issue. Over time I have become more adept at "fighting" my way out of it quickly when it occurs.

 

[Loveless]

Nope, closest experience I have to something like that was waking up in hospital after surgery and not being able to move below my neck. Apparently they'd use some kind of muscle paralysis on me and it hadn't worn off before I woke up. That was fucking terrifying.

 

[amazing_blue]

OMG...I have had this my entire life and always wondered what it was. Thank you for pointing this out to me.

 

[justinsayne]

Nope, but apparently I used to have seizures in my sleep

 

[Hyorinmaru]

I have something like that happen every once in a while

 

[Fizzy]

I wake up often during the night for a few seconds and don't know what's going on then fall right back asleep, but never experienced that. I do talk in my sleep though.

 

[Craig-O-Mac]

So some of the guys on here have experienced this. I used to feel crazy explaining it to people. I've done some research on it online. Basically, when you go to sleep, your brain engages a state of physical paralysis to stop you 'acting out' your dreams eg punching, kicking or running as one may in a dream. This disorder happens because the mind 'wakes up' slightly before the body.

Here's a link containing people describing their stories. See if there's anything you can relate to.

http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/1740

Oh and of course, the ever reliable Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis

 

[Mr. Artistic guy]

Yeah I've had it. Nasty feeling it is. Usually happens whilst I'm on my way to waking up, always feels worse when I'm lying face down into my pillow when it happens but it doesn't take that long to break free from it.