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Sleep paralysis, lucid dreaming, and hypnopompic imagery

by Patrick
(Hephzibah, Ga., United States)

I am 34 years old, and I have been experiencing sleep paralysis / lucid dreaming / hypnopompic imagery episodes for over 20 years. Years ago I was diagnosed with a disorder involving repressed memories. Basically I have extremely violent and terrifying nightmares that are repressed violent childhood memories resurfacing.


What is more terrifying is the sleep paralysis episodes that will often occur along with these dreams. I wake from a nightmare to find myself unable to move. I can see and hear everything going on in my bedroom and my breathing seems very shallow or even strained, but I cannot move. I try to call for my wife or even reach out and touch her but I am unable to.

During these episodes I can “sense” and even sometimes see a “dark presence” in my bedroom. It is never a very clear image. Usually only a silhouette or shadow, but that makes it all the more terrifying.

When I finally come fully awake and I can finally move I usually will experience a mild to extreme panic attack, and an extreme sense of paranoia. I had an episode similar to this early this morning. The temperatures here have become very pleasant at night so I usually have my bedroom window open, and a fan running. Upon coming fully awake I was so terrified that someone was going to come in through the window that I closed it, and closed the curtains.

There have been other episodes where when I fully
awaken I have come up out of the bed screaming at the top of my lungs and swinging my fists for all I am worth to fight off a dreamed up attacker. This is also a terrifying experience for my wife. She has learned to recognize when I am having a nightmare, and she will get up out of the bed, move across the room, and call out gently to me to help me wake up.

I have studied and researched sleep paralysis and lucid dreaming on and off for many years, and I am well aware of what is causing these episodes. I am also well aware that they are more or less harmless. However, that does not make them any less terrifying. This is a serious long term problem for me that has resulted in what I would consider to be a serious case of long term unhealthy sleep hygiene. As I am sure anyone reading this is aware, sleep is when your body repairs itself, and because of a long term lack of healthy sleep I have developed several health problems including some mental health problems. Depression, anxiety, panic attacks, irritability, etc.

I have yet to find a viable solution to this problem. Reading about the association between sleep apnea and sleep paralysis has given me a direction to look to though. It is my intention in the near future to seek the assistance of a sleep disorder specialist. Hopefully I can find a solution through this avenue.

Comments for Sleep paralysis, lucid dreaming, and hypnopompic imagery

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Oct 31, 2010
 Correction
by: Patrick(Original poster)

I need to post a correction. I have been trying to train myself in lucid dreaming but I have yet to have what I would consider a successful lucid dreaming experience.
Jun 23, 2011
 scared myself
by: bill

Hi I read your story and it made a lot of since to what has been happening to me I keep waking up not able to move and I didn't know what it was I usually just am not able to move anymore but the first one I had I woke up not able to move and was tryin as hard as I could to I eventually looked at the ceiling in my struggle and saw ripples and sortly after a bald head and arms came out of it staying the same color as the wall which is white it choked me and screamed at my for a minute until I was able to move and it was gone I thought it was a ghost because I often heard footsteps and odd noises in my house and this was no help to my theory but ever since than I've never seen anything in it but still can't move
Aug 23, 2011
 meditation helps me :)
by: jonny

i've been having episodes like this since i was a kid, ranging from mildly irritating to full on terror. nearly bit my own tongue off once when i woke up in sleep paralysis on a bumpy bus with my tongue wedged between my teeth. i could feel all the pain but could do nothing to stop my teeth sawing away with every bump. over the years the only thing i've found that stops it from happening is regular exercise and meditation. qigong or yoga are great for preventing sleep paralysis. nevertheless if i dont do meditation for a month or so then get caught in a nasty episode i say a Buddhist prayer (in my head) 3 times and it snaps me out of it straight away. i used to use the old wiggle ur finger till the rest of ur body catches on trick but now this prayer works every time. if you want to try it it goes like this:

Namo Guan Shi Yin Boddisatva
Namo Guan Shi Yin Boddisatva
Namo Guan Shi Yin Boddisatva

all the best :)
Aug 23, 2011
 meditation helps me :)
by: Anonymous

i've been having episodes like this since i was a kid, ranging from mildly irritating to full on terror. nearly bit my own tongue off once when i woke up in sleep paralysis on a bumpy bus with my tongue wedged between my teeth. i could feel all the pain but could do nothing to stop my teeth sawing away with every bump. over the years the only thing i've found that stops it from happening is regular exercise and meditation. qigong or yoga are great for preventing sleep paralysis. nevertheless if i dont do meditation for a month or so then get caught in a nasty episode i say a Buddhist prayer (in my head) 3 times and it snaps me out of it straight away. i used to use the old wiggle ur finger till the rest of ur body catches on trick but now this prayer works every time. if you want to try it it goes like this:

Namo Guan Shi Yin Boddisatva
Namo Guan Shi Yin Boddisatva
Namo Guan Shi Yin Boddisatva

all the best :)
Sep 26, 2011
 i FIND IT COMES IN A SUCCSECION OF..
by: KELI

had one the other night,mine are about ghost's! If I have one it feels like what I have heard of as the symptoms of a seizure,an electracle feeling through out ur body and u cant move.I often wake up hazy from these episodes.I heard a mans voice behind me say " you took advantage of me" then I was In my dream again when the buzzing in my brain and body stopped. My grandma had a sleep apnea thing..maybe I inheireted it from her...
Oct 25, 2011
 Relax.. You only fear the things you can't understand
by: Dznutz

You can snap out of sleep paralysis by changing your breathing. Breathe slower or faster & it will send a signal to your brain that you are not sleeping therefore your mind will act on this signal and you will awake. What you are seeing isn't real, you have to remember that. You aren't seeing your room exactly but what your mind remembers your room to look like. Lucid dreaming is purely a gift for enjoyment. You can do things and analyze concepts that aren't possibly in your waking state because of the restrictions of physics. Example: gravity, time & space that are governed by physics don't apply when you're sleeping & if you can learn to become lucid not only can you have the most fun in your life but you can fix these issues your having about your childhood for good. I haven't had a nightmare or trouble falling asleep for years now, ever since I learned what is going on as your trying to fall asleep. Basically your mind & body are a team that work so seamless with each other that you don't notice everything they do. That's why you can't hear your hair growing or feel cells replicating but you know it's happening. It's the same when falling asleep your body is shut down through sleep paralysis so you don't act out your dreams and hurt yourself but if your mind is still awake as its happening it's can be scary bc your not aware of entering the dream. If you notice you can't speak or move AND you panic then you cause that state of fear and dark image you see bc your transitioning into the dream state with those emotions. Sleep paralysis happens naturally so by changing your breathing your brain realizes your not asleep & it stops the process and reverses the hold it has on your body not being able to move. You send the signal that interferes with that same seamless team work mentioned earlier. Once you've learned how to swim you can never be afraid of drowning.
Dec 13, 2011
 ... NEW
by: tim

i have the same issue. but my episodes are never nightmares. i use to get scared when i wake up and i cant move but i guess i just got use to it. i usually have lucid dreams and wake up to them being paralyzed and there always usually within the first hour and a half of me sleeping. i think my problem is worsening im now starting have episodes 5-6 times with in that hour and a half.
Dec 26, 2011
 ... NEW
by: Anonymous

I'm having a similar problem, i have had night terrors for years but recently they are taking another really frightening form where I am actually beating my husband in my sleep, or sleep walking but even more recently my dreams have started to unlock dormant memories. I'm in therapy at the moment, and awaiting a referral for psychotherapy. I just pray for someone to help me have a normal sleep where I don't feel exhausted for it.
Mar 28, 2012
 Stopping sleep paralysis NEW
by: Anonymous

Many people will mock this solution because they don't believe but calling on the name of Jesus stops these attacks and "entities". I've seen many videos on youtube, read many different accounts from various people. Even my brother in law suffered from this, and it wasn't until he became a christian did this stop all together. This does work, there really is power in the name of Jesus. Some people call out to God in their head, some people have prayed, some have sung hymns. It's spiritual warfare. Most of these attacks are brought on through occultic practices. People dabbling in witchcraft, UFO / alien phenomenon, ouija boards, new age teachings, astrology, yoga, etc. These are spiritual gateways that open you up to attack. "UFO abductions" sound frighteningly similar to sleep paralysis experiences. So it's not surprising to find out that these "UFOs" don't like the name of Jesus, and flee at the mention of his name. Therefore UFOs = Demons. Do the research. So next time you have this kind of attack, call upon the authority and the name of Jesus. God Bless.
Apr 08, 2012
 I Cant even imagine NEW
by: Malcolm Blanke

This story sounds very scary, every night i can only hope i wont have an episode, im only 13 and am not really stressed about anything (other than sleep paralysis) so it probably wont happen, but who knows. I Hope you dont have any more episodes because they sound incredibly scary, at least if i have an episode i can post it to let others know what its like...
Apr 17, 2012
 Researching into these subjects NEW
by: Anonymous

I am 13 years old and I have been researching into sleep paralysis and lucid dreaming and I have been training myself to lucid dream and then I do more research into it and I think I have found out that lucid dreaming can lead to sleep paralysis but now I'm aware of the consequences I know how I could handle it so I'm trying these experiences because they have been intriguing me. And it seems people say that reading out prayers calling for God etc helps, and what I think on that is well I don't really believe in God but having something to believe in anything believing that someone is going to help you, from what I have gathered (these are all my guesses) can kind of trick and convince your own mind, your brain to scare of these minions you are telling your brain look these are the demons and minions of the devil if I can convince them that God is with me, here to fight by my side they will be scared of just what I think. If you have anything to message me inbox me on facebook. http://www.facebook.com/bossmanghandi
Jun 18, 2012
 I'm 23 NEW
by: Anonymous

I'm a college student and my sleep paralysis happend 2 mos ago during finals.... And it has been happening every night since. I don't know what to do anymore. I't even happens at daytime when I try to take a nap.
Jan 15, 2013
 Finally I've discovered I'm not alone! NEW
by: Misty Fraley (mistylaw@hotmail.com)

After having suffered from this horrifying phenomenon, that I discovered only today is called sleep paralysis and lucid dreaming, I finally know that I am not alone and it is SUCH a relief! After falling asleep on the couch this afternoon and having a terrifying encounter did I make the decision to research my episode and learned that many others experience the same terror. In my sleep paralysis, I was sleeping sitting up on the couch and I could hear the television and knew my daughter was near me watching the television--I KNEW I WAS DREAMING! I was screaming at her to wake me up and in my dreams, I could open my eyes (at least I think I could) and I was screaming for someone to wake me up but nobody could hear me! I saw everything going on around me but had the distinct inability to do a single thing to stop it but wait it out. It's always such a huge relief to finally wake up and end the panic in your unconscious state. I am so thankful to have come across this site and realize, finally, that I'm not alone in this!
Jan 15, 2013
 Finally I've discovered I'm not alone! NEW
by: Misty Fraley (mistylaw@hotmail.com)

After having suffered from this horrifying phenomenon, that I discovered only today is called sleep paralysis and lucid dreaming, I finally know that I am not alone and it is SUCH a relief! After falling asleep on the couch this afternoon and having a terrifying encounter did I make the decision to research my episode and learned that many others experience the same terror. In my sleep paralysis, I was sleeping sitting up on the couch and I could hear the television and knew my daughter was near me watching the television--I KNEW I WAS DREAMING! I was screaming at her to wake me up and in my dreams, I could open my eyes (at least I think I could) and I was screaming for someone to wake me up but nobody could hear me! I saw everything going on around me but had the distinct inability to do a single thing to stop it but wait it out. It's always such a huge relief to finally wake up and end the panic in your unconscious state. I am so thankful to have come across this site and realize, finally, that I'm not alone in this!
Jan 27, 2013
 Not Alone NEW
by: Melinda

It's good to know there is a scientific explanation for what's been happening to me. It doesn't make it any less scary when it happens, but it does help with the paranoia that comes afterwards. A friend actually brought this up in conversation a few days ago, and I hadn't had it happen for a long time. I always imagined it was some kind of demon trying to get to me because I am a Christian, but it was never clearly defined. I do believe there is evil in this world and I believe they exist, but to think it was so active terrified me. Someone commented here that Sleep Paralysis was the result of the occult--not true. It's a medical thing that happens--I go to church, pray often, and daily get into God's word. I have NO connection with occult practices and it happens to me once every few months--less really. It's not often. I actually was sick last night, too, so I think it was a result of sleep deprivation. One thing is true--calling out to God or singing a hymn or quoting scripture really helps me through it. I know God is in control, and reminding myself of that amidst the terror calms me down and helps me out of it sooner and reduces the paranoia afterwards. Hope this helps somebody.
Feb 14, 2013
 No hallucinations NEW
by: Anonymous

I have sleep paralysis but no hallucinations.
Feb 18, 2013
 sleep paralysis NEW
by: Anonymous

Hi everyone, there might be a scientific explanation but it lacks clarity. I am 34 now and I've had these experiences since I was 13 or 14. I know for a fact that its evil spirits/ghosts which trouble us. I've had them squeezing my ribs, waists, crushing pain on my teeth, strangling me, molesting me. my brothers have experienced this also and some of them still do up till now, although I am the first one to experience it and have experienced it the most. like I said earlier I know its evil spirits, because the nights I used to experience this, my neighbours dog used to bark at night at around midnight to 1 am usually about an hour b4 I slept. its no coincidence. Also when I used to get attacked, if I can call it that as it was extremely painfull, my brothers would experience it on the same night as well or maybe 1 or 2 nights later or earlier. then after several nights of attacks there may be no nights of terror for anyone for a couple of weeks. is this also a coincidence. let me tell u a short story, About 40 odd years ago when my mum was young she used to always be around one of her aunts. This aunt was haunted my evil spirits and eventually they pushed and drowned her in the pond. the village where my Mums aunt lived is haunted. people who sleep in one of the housed have complained of getting pushed down from the bed, being poked at and other weird stuff. I'm telling u this because my mother fainted once after seeing the trees shake violently in a normal hot calm day. after my mothers aunts death they have been troubling my mother during her sleep. it all started from my mum, but now my mum experiences this rarely. what I am trying to say is, Why do my brothers and me experience this at same nights. isn't that strange. actually I'm trying to be hundred percent certain of what is the cause. Im certain of the reasons for my experiences but I need to know more about yours. Do you hear unusual sounds in your house? are u scared of ghosts or did u listen to a lot of ghost stories when u were young? I m sure most of u guys experience this a few nights in a row sometimes, during this time can u smell a sulphur like smell. it smells like rotten egg. it would normally come and go. this smell is not normally always smellable. I hope that is a word lol. did u have a violent ?I hope u can answer my questions to make it more clearer, because science doesn't always give an answer for everything. It tries to, there is a big difference.
Feb 12, 2014
 old hag syndrome.....the night "mare" NEW
by: oldhag

Youtube... the entity channel 4 documentery. Amazing spot on about sleep paralysis
Mar 05, 2014
 Nightmare with agony NEW
by: Bella

Today I've experienced a horrendous nightmare where I feel everything like i was conscious about what was happening saw me pick up my mobile to call a friend to help me .. and suddenly I wake up with a chest pain my body very cold my hands dormants .. in seconds I only could think without moving trying to control my body especially my hands to rubb my chest :( took me some minutes to stopping be paralysed .. very tired couldn't open my eyes slept again and another episode :( always related with my breathe ... now I'm afraid to sleep !! I know if I tell this to my GP he will don't care and friends will laugh .. it's so serious for me :(
Live alone without family .. I believe I can die it takes more minutes ..
Aug 12, 2014
 Rem sleep NEW
by: Ldyrose

I had the same thing happen over and over. For years I thought is was a spirit something always had a hold of me. Then took a psychology class and professor explained that in rem sleep we are paralyzed. This is when we dream. We go in and out of rem sleep all night. We at times wake up before completely out of that cycle...leaving us awake and paralyzed until we pull out of it. Made sense and now less scared.
Aug 12, 2014
 Rem sleep NEW
by: Ldyrose

I had the same thing happen over and over. For years I thought is was a spirit something always had a hold of me. Then took a psychology class and professor explained that in rem sleep we are paralyzed. This is when we dream. We go in and out of rem sleep all night. We at times wake up before completely out of that cycle...leaving us awake and paralyzed until we pull out of it. Made sense and now less scared.
Aug 21, 2014
 It Came Baaaack! NEW
by: Anonymous

This happened to me again last night. This happens to me often. I hadn't done my qigong practice for over a day and had a feeling this would happen to me. Went to sleep at 3 am and suddenly a male figure jumped on top of me. I told myself, oh no, it's happening again. I did all I could to pull him off me. I tried calling out "Jesus" and that wasn't helping anymore when it usually did. My blankets were then being pulled by this "thing" so that I could roll off my bed (while I was catatonic and paralyzed) and break my neck. It kept annoyingly pulling and pulling. Sometimes it tries to pull my blankets over my head to suffocate me. My body double did what it could to stop it, but it felt like my hands were running through the murkiest, densest blackness. I had to let it pass. But it was annoying me. This was the longest "attack" I've had - and I've had plenty. My spiritual walk in life has been in a new powerful level. The higher I go, the stronger these attacks.
Oct 11, 2014
 .... NEW
by: Anonymous

I don't usually experience sleep paralysis on a regular basis but when it does occur, it's always the same thing. A shadowy figure looming over me revving a chainsaw. It's extremely scary because every time it happens it fells like I'm outside even though I can see the door in my room every time I blink. I share a room with my older sister but it has never happened when she is here.
Oct 21, 2014
 Sleep paralysis NEW
by: Maya

After many years I have learnt to control it. Problem is, now that I can do that, the paralysis is becoming less and less. However, I used to fight it, but it is impossible. Go through the gate.
Oct 21, 2014
 texas chainsaw NEW
by: Anonymous

Chainsaw man doont suppose you saw a chainsaw horror as a child?? This seemingly irrelevant point to most may actually be very good evidence for waking terrified then our brains fill in the blanks or tries to make a guess due to past experiences.. Dont suppose your late twenties??
Nov 03, 2014
 How I stopped sleep paralyses NEW
by: Anonymous

I suffered this condition of sleep paralyses for many years , the thing that stopped it all was jesus came in and heal me from this fear.. Jesus was bigger than my sleep disorder and when it would happen I used t call his name and it would be gone as quick as it came .. It worked for anyway :)
Nov 25, 2014
 ✨dreams✨ NEW
by: @xsnopuffx

Yes, I'm a 24 year old woman. Since I was a child I've had very vivid dreams. Some that became true, some that I believe are to become. I've lucid dreamed more as a younger child, I could realize I was in a dream, and wake myself up.. I would have nightmares where I would wake up in sweat so evey night I would tell myself you're going to be dreaming soon, it it gets bad wake up.. Soon I caughy hold & did just that.. But I begot bad sleeping habits.. I foretold my brothers birth.. After years of my parents trying to conceive & couldn't.. I've had dreams where I've hovered above a scene & saw past lovers cheating.. Turned out true.. In one instance. I have even had a dream of my father dying, the closest person to me and I woke up in tears already.. As I have gotten older I lost control.. I took to smoking Marijuana because it helps me sleep.. If I do dream they're managable dreams.. My dreams had gotten so violent & world ending I cannot sleep unless I smoke. I sleep wonderfully now. I think the last dream that did it was me lying in bed asleep, I began to dream & I was hovering above myself watching myself sleep, as I returned to my body fast like I could feel someone holding my arms down & I'll never forget the laugh I heard, the most evil laugh.. It felt like it took all of me to wake up.. When I finally did I heard that laugh in my head for days.. So basically if everything is not working try weed.
Feb 08, 2015
 hypnopompic dreams NEW
by: Anonymous

I have dreams that happen when I sense a presence and then I'm paralyzed and the presence holds me then it injects something into my back which hurts badly. Sometimes I try to fight but can do nothing. I started smoking hemp a few weeks ago and have not had any of these terrible events.
Feb 10, 2015
 chicken and egg NEW
by: hillsnake73@gmail.com

Im afraid ABOVE POSTER you did not " sense a presence and then became paralysed"

You were paralysed, which caused your brain to look for the most logical answer. Therefore you dont usually paralyse yourself hence somebody must have done this evil, whar does your brain know that could be evil. ? Bunnies? wDark presences?

i believe in a theory which some argue.

We dream 2 types-

1. Wish dreams. EX. Money, sex , love.

2. Danger dreams. EX. Being lost, being chased.

The 2nd dream is a way of conditioning our brains for automaric "FIGHT OR FLIGHT" response.
Imagine how terrifying having dream number 2 except there is no fight or flight options!
Can you imagine the conflict and confusion your brain now gies through.

Psuedo psy.
You had back pain because something as silly as laying on a lighter you dropped becomes injections.

Feb 10, 2015
 chicken and egg NEW
by: hillsnake73@gmail.com

Im afraid ABOVE POSTER you did not " sense a presence and then became paralysed"

You were paralysed, which caused your brain to look for the most logical answer. Therefore you dont usually paralyse yourself hence somebody must have done this evil, whar does your brain know that could be evil. ? Bunnies? wDark presences?

i believe in a theory which some argue.

We dream 2 types-

1. Wish dreams. EX. Money, sex , love.

2. Danger dreams. EX. Being lost, being chased.

The 2nd dream is a way of conditioning our brains for automaric "FIGHT OR FLIGHT" response.
Imagine how terrifying having dream number 2 except there is no fight or flight options!
Can you imagine the conflict and confusion your brain now gies through.

Psuedo psy.
You had back pain because something as silly as laying on a lighter you dropped becomes injections.

Mar 14, 2015
 hovering spirit NEW
by: mike

As I sleep I find myself dreaming but im not fully asleep, I have strange dreams of paranoia and often feel my spirit hovering over myself looking down at my resting body. I feel more terrified because my resting body can also see a dark spirit hovering over itself. Like my mind is in two places looking at itself. As I sleep I go into different dreams feeling as if people are watching me. At the time I know my body is asleep but my brain is awake.
Apr 23, 2015
 Same Here NEW
by: SH

I have the same experience. I sometimes have lucid dreaming, but it doesn't affect me much. What affects me is sleep paralysis because not only am I not able to move my body, but I also hallucinate. I would see someone standing next to me with a knife or a monster or ghost about to kill me. I sometimes would try to call for help or move my body, trying to run away, but it doesn't do anything. Sometimes I would think a paranormal activity is controlling me which get me more frightened.

Sleep paralysis can cause by lack of sleep. I have recently started sleeping more and it helped. It has been 2 months since I last experienced sleep paralysis. When I was lacking sleep, I would get it constantly once a week, a month, or daily (1-2 times a night).

How you sleep also affects whether you get sleep paralysis or not as well.
Apr 26, 2015
 Something similar NEW
by: Anonymous

I have had something like this happen to me, Once in the middle of a dream I saw this dark figure approaching me, it was right then i became lucid and as i realized i was dreaming it rushed up to me and i felt this stabbing pain in my ribs and i was unable to breath as soon as i tried to take a gasp of breath i woke up on my bed lying on my back and was in sleep paralysis, it seemed tho whatever i encountered in my dream had followed me somehow and i felt hands around my throat, I have had many sp experience and done a lot of lucid dreaming so i thought to myself just remain calm this entity doenst have power over you, and as i was thinking this in my heard i heard a f****** snarl right in my left ear and felt my throat released and i woke up from the paralysis. It was very crazy and i have had several other experiences similar to this.
Jul 08, 2015
 The same NEW
by: Anonymous

When I was younger I woke up from night mares a couple of times and shouted for help soon realizing that I wasn't making any noise. I never thought to ask why this was but last year I had fallen asleep in my lounge, I felt this vibration going through me I didn't know why and I eventually I came to the conclusion I was having a fit. My dad was sitting across from me so I called bfor help but nothing came out of my mouth, I tried to wave at him to get his attention but I couldn't move after about 40seconds I snapped out of it. Neither my dad or I could figure out what it was so I googled it realizing it was sleep paralysis. I have recently waning to learn how to lucid dream but didn't know if it was safe if I have had sleep paralysis before...
Oct 20, 2015
 My poor 15 yr old NEW
by: Anonymous

My son has been suffering from night terrors starting at age 3, starting with "a man in the corner." From then on we always noticed him sleepwalking but we noticed that whenever he got a virus or had a fever, that his dreams would getr worse and night terrors would take over. He is now 15 and is still suffering. Last night it was the feeling that he was laying so still and everything around him was rushing at a very fast pace. He has had some of the same imagery pop up since he was little..that man, with a sharp pointy nose..and other "feelings," of dread and the feeling he is about to have something heavy thrown at him! As a parent , it scares me., especially since his birth father has now been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia:( I have to think positive and I now believe he may have a sleeping disorder that is causing this ongoing issue. It is very scary to him as well. Has anyone suffered from this type of stuff since childhood? Maybe narcolepsy or something else underlying?
Dec 14, 2015
 To the above poster... NEW
by: Anonymous

I want to respond to the woman who posted above me. When I was younger (4-9ish) I would walk and talk in my sleep all the time. I would have full conversations with family members but have no memory of it in the morning. During this time, and probably until I was about 16 or so, I would also periodically get the "rushing at fast pace" feeling when lying on my back in bed. Sometimes It happened for no reason, other times I could intentionally trigger it. It felt like I was on a rollercoaster, or like I was lying still while the world around me was being Fast-Forwarded. Around age ten, I started having sleep paralysis accompanied by hallucinations of "a man in the corner". I could never see him, but I knew he was there watching me. It was always such a terrifying experience. Eventually, the man in the corner stepped out. If you want to see what my "man in the corner" looks like, search "Lost Highway Robert Blake" on Google Image search. For many years I had sleep paralysis and every time it was with that man standing in my bedroom staring right at me. These were not nightmares. I could not rationally think "You are having a bad dream. Wake up now." Each and every time I had it, it felt completely real. I was diagnosed with narcolepsy, though I never had any spontaneous sleeping episodes, just the sleep paralysis, but it happened often enough that I would be "asleep" for 8 hours and wake up completely exhausted because of how many times in the night I would be having paralysis.

Now, for good news. There is no reason to think your son has anything other than a bad case of a VERY COMMON sleep disorder, and there are things he can do to help relieve the symptoms. I will just go over the things that helped me personally: 1. sometimes I would sleep with a pet, because I almost never got SP when my dog or cat were in the room with me. 2. Do not fall asleep on your back.

The thing that helped me the most is going to make me sound like a nut, but I will suggest it anyway. When I told my mom about my SP, specifically about the "man in the corner" she was not worried at all. She said it was genetic, that she had it and my grandfather had it as well. To make it stop they always said "I plead the blood of Jesus Christ" in their head, over and over. My grandfather was a Pentecostal minister and he believed SP was the work of demons trying to possess him, but that these demons could not stand to hear the name of Jesus. As a young teenager I was willing to try anything, and so I tried pleading the blood of Jesus, and it worked every time. It is important to know that I never believed I was actually calling on Jesus, or that SP was anything but a sleep disorder, but for some reason calling on Jesus always helped. I am now 26, a graduate student at university. I do not identify as a Christian, and never have. I am agnostic. Yet whenever I get SP (I still do maybe 4 or 5 times a year), I can bring an immediate end to it by thinking "I plead the blood of Jesus Christ." The reason I am on this site is because I am currently writing a paper for a class in Religion and Psychology about my own experience, particularly about examining why prayer helps to end SP when rational thoughts (like "You are dreaming. Wake up.") cannot. It is interesting, because some people say prayer has a placebo effect, but if that were true, why doesn't thinking "this is just a dream" have the same effect? Anyway, if you run out of things to try and haven't tried praying because most people who suggest it sound crazy, I would give it a shot. Good luck!
Dec 31, 2015
 CAN'T MOVE! NEW
by: Kaitlin mcdermott

Hi I am Kaitlin mcdermott I'm 14 today I experienced a sleep paralysis.it was very scary I couldn't move at all I couldn't talk at all I was thinking to myself what am I going to do? I finally moved I was so freaked out I told my mom a couple of hours later. And she said "the same thing happened to me when I was your age it lasted 30 min." When she told me I was even more freaked out.
Jan 25, 2016
 . NEW
by: Anonymous

I've been having these 'nightmares' for months and now having woken up from a really nasty one decided to look it up and am relieved there seems to be an explanation/condition and I'm not the only one as was beginning to feel like I was loosing my mind especially trying to explain them to others.
Jan 27, 2016
 Lucid Dreaming & Sleep Paralysis NEW
by: Dina

I have always been one of the 'lucky' ones to have lucid dreams.Always and it has never failed me. But the downfall is that I have always suffered from sleep paralysis.

Sleep Paralysis occurs when I have a night terror or when I wake up into sleep paralysis causing me to go into the state of fear. As so what has happened tonight.

I dreamt of a man trying to murder me, I believe I have this dream a lot because of when I was at a younger age and escaped the grasp of a man trying to reach me -running for my life in reality and my dreams is not fun. Especially when you feel like the world is crushing on your chest.

I cant breathe at all -as if suffocating.I feel like I'm drowning (which I know exactly what it feels like) and in a futile attempt to breathe in oxygen , I gulp down gallons of water.

In the process of that- my body seems to fall numb to my conscious mind. (A defiant pest I'd like to call it.)

It is a terrible experience that feels as if you've been in that state for years. As well as the outcome.

I receive little to no sleep, I wake up in a furry of paranoia, and I also trust not many people from fear. I already have depression,anxiety,ocd& Insomnia and thats only mental illness. (You could say if - I say the whole list,I'm a little bit of a defect to the world as we know it.)

Although lucid dreaming is great - spontaneously an amazing experience , the price of sleep paralysis is not worth it. Trust me, I've had this all my life. Its not pretty.

-Dina (nickname) Flowers/ 15 years of age/F
Mar 06, 2016
 i dont know what to do? NEW
by: george

I been haven't been sleeping well for the last few nights..i feel like someone is holding me tight..then the squeezing gets tighter and tighter..intill i cant take it anymore..i say in my head.."Jesus help me" and the squeezing stops. again it happen last night. my girlfriend says im tripping..but im not..i need help from someone who understands me.
Mar 28, 2016
 Was this a ghost NEW
by: Anonymous

I had a dream last night i was running up a dark narrow alli and I kept getting pulled back no matter how hard it tried to get away something kept pulling me back by my right arm is felt so cold it felt like I it got colder and colder I felt very scared I never had this happened to me before am 42 man and I've just moved in to a new house 3 week's ago this all happened 2 in the morning I got up freezing I hat to blast the heating and extra quilt what is going on day I said a few prays and it all stopped
Mar 31, 2016
 Loose Control & Immotile NEW
by: Anonymous

I often have this problem when I have a nap during my bus travel, sometime after I sleep I come to a point where I realize that my neck muscles aches but I can move an inch to adjust my position, my mind tells it but my body does not respond to it totally out of control. I tend to put a lot of pressure to move my hand,neck & head but nothing happen.The jerk from the bus puts me even more into an immotile state. I also have a feeling to tell the next person to help me wake up but it never worked. Sometime after that my senses realize that the destination is approaching and I finally manage to get up. Last night I had a situation where I had a feeling as if someone is pressing me hard and pulling my hands and legs I see my legs lifted up my hands stretched,I can see my dark room myslef etc. But when I suddenly wake up I see that nothing happened in reality was it a dream? never.... The fact is that my blanket dint move a bit it stayed in the same place of body where I had put before going to sleep...
May 07, 2016
 Its real NEW
by: Man28

I myself believe it is spirits. I usually wake up,or atleasy think i do,completely patalyzed. As i llay motionless, I usually see something come down the stairs or walk across the hallway into my room.A its walki.g it makes the same sounds that my floor makes when I walk on it. My fiance lays right next to me, andI can c jer there. This is what makes me truly believe I am in fact awake and stuck.The thing usually comes to my side of tje bed and stands for seconds and taunts me.I begin to panick and it will grab my arms or poke me. The weird part is I can make an unintelligible noise and only my right arm can move ever so slightly so that my fiance wakes up. She knows to wake me up when this happens. It just happened so I woke up and came to this website 5 in the morning. i never want to live alo.e. I do not know what I would do without her. She always wakes me up.I sleep basically body to body with her all the time now. One question tho. I noticed it only happens when I lay on my back,is this true for anyone else?
Sep 28, 2016
 For those who experience both sleep paralysis and lucid dreaming... NEW
by: Sarah

I am 28 years old and I have been experiencing both of these things since I was a young teenager. lucid dreaming is a wonderful experience for me but sleep paralysis has constantly plagued and terrorized me, but 2 weeks ago something new and exciting happened. I woke up paralyzed like I have so many times before, panicking, thinking I was suffocating, and like so many times before I tried to move my arm.My arm wouldn't move but at the same time I realized it was moving. It was such a weird feeling because I couldn't move any part of my body but finally realized I could move out of my body.I got up out of myself and realized I had escaped pure Terror and could now enjoy my favorite kind of lucid dreaming,so I flew out of the house without looking back at myself. This was the first time I realized sleep paralysis could be turned into lucid dreaming...I couldn't believe I hadn't realized it before. I knew the paralytic chemical that makes us not act out our dreams was slow to wear off for me. What I didn't realize was that while my body was in this unmoving state, my DREAM body was in the perfect state to get moving.
Nov 18, 2016
 Don't be scare NEW
by: Ghost fighter

Do not be scare do not be scare do notttt!!
I see that fucker all the time and I kind a love it white hair old men mabey women can't tell stay always in air I sofer because I'm part of it but never scare I be up for it all the time I fight he does so many things to me but I know I have some balls which are biger as he think sound Creazy but is not is fun !! Before yes I was scare and start thinking why I don't fight him and I did start fighting him or her with no problem hahaha trust me I need him now can't sleep with out it is really fun to me
Dec 12, 2016
 hi NEW
by: Anonymous

I've had sleep paralysis since i was 6/7 years old and im 27 now there are times when i thought i was going to die and just being montonless and still for hours as my chest is being flatted by the shawdowy deamon I can luicid dream when it comes on I experanice it before I go asleep and I had one experience where after I woke up I had weakness/hypersentiv down my left side when I was 24. Normally I'd try to remember I'm dreaming/hauillnating but before it starts I feel like I'm falling thought the ground or floating away from the ground if its scary I'm sucked in to the ground now if I can calm myself down and not get too scared I can tell myself I'm dreaming and hauillnating I can take control of my emotions instead of been scaried I start to mock/insult/ the shadow deamon while makes me laugh then I'd feel like a euphoria that's builds and builds then it gos beyond endurance then I can float and fly away and dream of what I want, when i ignored it I would be still just looking at a shawdow and the dream wouldn't chance because my emotion didn't change if that's makes sense. The point is I know it can be hard but if you feel happy instead of panicing that you can't breath or that its going to attack you just try to remember its a dream. I still have times when I forgot and I'm terrified but I don't get scared about going sleep anymore as I know it can't kill me hope it helped a bit.
Dec 12, 2016
 add on NEW
by: adam1989

I also found if I tried to wake up I would think I was awake and I'd go to my brother or sister and start talking realise it was the shadow deamon and I'd be in a series of false awaking evey time I got scared again so I started to say oh your not my brother or sister then I could luicid dream again its not totally control untill you make yourself aware that your dreaming and its not real I find it important to try to feel happy care free that's why I tend to mock insult it there are tines when ive told it do stuff like clean up or wear a stupid out fit, there is that dark sister presence when its there but that's why I try to make fun of it because I think when fear kicks in it projects your feeling so if you feel fear/sad/lost or happy/loved it'll reflect it if that makes sense
Aug 16, 2017
 Haunted since childhood NEW
by: Anonymous

I have always had nightmares involving an unseen force that literally drags me from bed and thought the house and slams me against the ceiling. I try and wake Up, tears in reality roll down my eyes, and i try to scream for help, but nothing. We have always had sine paranormal activity in every home ive lived in, so of course I thought i was being attacked in my dreams. I'm 43 and just started sleeping with the lights off after reading about sleep paralysis. It happens all the time, I usually don't feel scared anymore...i just slow my breathing and think "it's just a dream" and all the activity stops and i wake up. This morning though, I hit the snooze button and in the matter of four minutes, I saw myself get up for work... but as I tried to open the door it was held shut and then I felt as if i were drunk and just fell to the floor,and I couldn't get up. I felt so dizzy and managed to get up and the door appeared as if faces were trying to come through the door, but i still tried to open the door because I felt I would be free once I opened the door. I opened the door and i could hear water boiling, so i walked to the kitchen as if my feet were cemented and i felt so drugged. I see the water boiling on the counter, no heat source and I yell for the entity i feel to get out of my house...i keep screaming those words and then say " I believe in God" repeatedly, as I say it, I feel squeezed tighter and tighter and my voice turns into a demonic voice that begins to laugh as i say I believe in God. I managed to grab the pot of boiling water and flung it at nothing and i woke up before the 5 minute snooze went off...my heart was racing and my head hurt so much. I hate that i experience them so Much. My husband complains I wake him up too much with the sounds of me screaming as if my mouth were duct taped. I may have to start sleeping in another room. This is the first time it happened daylight...usually happens at 2-3 in the morning.
Aug 16, 2017
 No Strategy To Control This Works Anymore NEW
by: Anonymous

I've been having this happening more regularly lately. I get my bedsheets pulled. And I struggle to hold onto them. I identify with previous post where sometimes I feel demonic. But in cases where I do all I can to control this, they aren't working anymore. Relaxation. Awareness it's not real. Not even using the name of Jesus works. I would then fight it back by blasting it with Light. Over and over again. It only tries to get stronger on me. I then grab it and it's actually a viscous, stretchy thing. Because once I grab it, it wrestles me. On top of me, pulling my arms down. I wrestle it back and blast it with Light and when I grab it, I try to break it to pieces, but it only stretches itself as I try to pull it apart. When I let go, it grabs my bedsheets and pulls them off or upwards. Then I feel myself growling.
After a long time of this blatant annoyance, I finally am able to come out of this catanoia and what comes to mind is the description of Jacob, wrestling all night with an angel. Last time this happened to me was last week. I was about to move my body while getting into deep sleep, when a second before I did that familiar thing started to pull my sheet up gently. But then I moved and it stopped. All of my hairs stood up, because I woke up right before this violator started molesting me again.
Nov 28, 2017
 Sleep paralysis NEW
by: Madison

I had one just this morning. I woke up and my sister came in my room and told me about this pink bunny that tried to take her away into her closet. Then the same thing started happening to me and I layed back down in my bed. After a while I stood up and I couldn’t see anything but something was pulling hard on my bedding and I was pulling too. I let go to try and get to it but I couldn’t go any farther i was just stuck in one spot and I was seeing double. I was yelling for help as I struggled to make it to my closst. Suddenly I sat up quickly in my bed, eyes wide open. I immediately got up and out of my room. I have had a few dreams like this where I can move but I’m not in control of how I move or my actions. I would just like to know if anyone else is experiencing what I amd and or could help me. Thanks:)

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