Sleep paralysis or something else?

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I think I might just have experienced sleep paralysis (or some other weird thing) for the second time in my life.

It's 2.30am when I write this and I recently woke up (for the 3rd time this night). Just before waking up I dreamt I was on a bus. The bus driver was talking to a friend of his about some book. I sat in my seat and I was annoyed with a noise I was hearing. It was some sort of whistling/windy/high-pitched noise (it's difficult to explain). Then, as I listened to the noise, it got louder and louder and louder. The noise changed from that high-pitched noise to another noise that's difficult to describe. It was some kind of rushing/crashing/buzzing sound and as I heard it the bus "disappeared" and I was half awake or fully awake (I don't know) in my room. I felt this really intense fear and I felt like I wanted to wake up (and I really tried to wake up) even though I was already half awake. But I couldn't do anything. It was still noisy in my head and I was scared. Felt like my ears were hurting/exploding because of it. I really don't know if that sound was real or if I was still dreaming. It's really difficult to explain all of this. But does that sound like sleep paralysis to you?

I've had sleep paralysis once before but that was different. That time I dreamt someone wanted to kill me and when I "woke up" I couldn't move and I felt the same intense fear as I felt a few minutes ago.

I'm a bit scared of going back to sleep now. Also, sorry if this doesn't belong here.

Eek that sounds terrifying, Im sorry I dont know if it was or not, but it sounds like the examples I've heard...

I think that type of thing has happened to me before. I woke up one night to an annoying tv show playing loudly on my tv (fell asleep with it on), and I reached for my tv changer, and I looked over and saw I wasnt moving, then I started freaking out and trying to move anything I could, and finally I was able to move again, but it was so scary! I couldnt sleep either after that.

If it makes you feel any better, sleep paralysis happens mostly when sleeping on your back, so just sleep on your side. Maybe that will help.

Sounds like it could be. I'm no expert, but I have had one episode of sleep paralysis, and your experience sounds similar to mine.

Here's what happened to me: even though this happened over a year ago, I remember it very clearly. I even remember the dream that I woke up from clearly. Very unusual for me! I dreamed that I was at work, and I fell on the floor and couldn't get up. In the dream, I was trying to scream for help from my coworkers, but I couldn't move or do anything. I felt like I couldn't breathe, and I thought I was going to die.

Then, I woke up. And I couldn't move. I was so scared. I tried open my mouth to call for help, but I couldn't even do that. No sound would come out. It passed pretty quickly, only a few minutes, but it felt like hours. When I could move again, I felt weak, shaky, and scared. I remember thinking about getting up, but even sitting up and putting my feet on the floor was a tremendous effort. I was worried that if I got up, my legs wouldn't support me and I'd fall on the floor.

So I decided to lay there and just try to calm down. I fell back to sleep and woke up later without incident. I later asked my dad if he heard anything, since he was home that day, but he said that he didn't.

It's very scary and I can understand why you'd be scared to go back to sleep. It is a pretty rare thing, so hopefully you won't have another episode any time soon, if ever, again. I never have.

So I've heard but both of the times I've experienced sleep paralysis I've slept on my side.



That sounds quite similar to what happened to me the first time. Like I said, I dreamt someone wanted to kill me so when I woke up and couldn't move I panicked because hey someone was going to kill me! I tried to call for help as well but that obviously didn't work. I felt as though the person who was going to kill me was in the room and I couldn't get away. Very scary.

Seriously, last night was the worst night in a long time. I'm used to waking up between 1 and 3 times every night (insomnia) but last night I woke up 6 times and one of those times I experienced sleep paralysis (or whatever it was). Pretty tired now.

I get sleep paralysis pretty often and I always sleep on my side, so that doesn't necessarily mean anything. It does sound like you experienced it. You say you were in your room, in your bed, but still dreaming. When you woke up for real, were you in the same place, in the same position? If yes, then I'd say it was definitely sleep paralysis.

I also experience that I can physically feel my waking body, but can't communicate with it. The first few times I was afraid I was in a coma. I can feel it lying there but it doesn't answer when I tell it to move (because I'm still paralyzed because my brain thinks I'm still asleep). Then hallucinations start as I drift back into dreaming. I also often get false awakenings so it happens over and over and over again, hence the fear of coma.

You might want to see a sleep specialist, if it's possible. There's not much advice we can give you here but if they can diagnose exactly what's causing the problem, they might be able to help. You might even have narcolepsy, if you're waking up so often. Do you dream all night, starting immediately and lasting until you wake? Do you dream even if you only fall asleep for a few seconds or minutes? Are you tired most of the time, and do you sometimes feel in the middle of the day that you really want to lie down and fall asleep, and it's really hard to concentrate until you're able to take a nap? If any of these things are true, you should definitely see a sleep specialist as soon as you can.

Yes, when I woke up I was in the same place and in the same position. So I guess it was sleep paralysis then. But what about that noise I heard? The first time I had sleep paralysis I didn't hear anything. I just felt as if the person who was going to kill me was in the room and I panicked because I couldn't scream or get away etc. What was the noise I heard last night? Some sort of auditory hallucination? I remember just after waking up "for real" when that had happened I felt scared that maybe I was going crazy. Hearing things that aren't there. Do you know what I mean?



Narcolepsy? Haven't even thought about that. I think it's unlikely though since I started to experience these sleeping problems about 8 months ago as my depression got worse. I've always thought of it as some sort of insomnia caused by the depression.

I don't think I dream all night. I'm not sure though. Sometimes I dream when falling asleep for a few seconds or minutes (doesn't happen often though). I'm tired a lot but I guess that's because I'm not sleeping well. But I'm not so tired I feel like I need to take any naps. I don't think I'm sleepy, I'm more physically tired because of lack of sleep and depression/anxiety etc.

I've had sleep paralysis a lot, although I don't get it at all these days. Quite often, my episodes of not being able to move or speak has been accompanied by a very loud noise in my ear. So, your experience could be related to sleep paralysis, although not having the actual paralysis, I'm not sure what it could be.

One time, it felt like someone was screaming directly into my ear, as I was being pulled trought my mattress. This was the night before a very important exam and, although I had known my stuff, my entire memory of the subject seemed to vanish overnight and I failed the exam.

Anyway, I also wanted to add that I found the culprit and haven't had an episode in many years. It disappeared as soon as I left my parents's home and got married. The difference was that my parents' regularly made cheese on toast, at about 9.30-10pm. When I moved out, we never had this, so I felt this was possibly the reason and didn't want to test it out, because some of my episodes had been terrifying. The only time I've had sleep paralysis since I moved out was my first night on holiday in Austria. We had arrived too late for dinner and the kitchen staff had left a platter of bread and cheese in our room. I ate it and woke in the middle of the night with the same thing I'd experienced throughout my childhood and teenage years. So, I was able to deduce from this that cheese in the late evening is definitely to blame, in my case.

Probably not narcolepsy then. Sleep paralysis is only one symptom, but it can be caused by many other things, especially stress.

From your description I'd say it was definitely sleep paralysis. And yes, what you heard was most likely an auditory hallucination. The thing about sleep paralysis is that your brain is confused about whether you are awake or not. It keeps you paralyzed and hallucinating like when you dream, but you are conscious, so the hallucinations seem real. Then you are likely to slip back into full sleep where the hallucinations turn into a normal dream and really crazy things can happen. It's very unpleasant and often frightening. I've had monsters crawling across my bed to eat me and even had my former flatmate come into the room, deliver really important information, then accuse me of not listening because I didn't move and leave the room as I desperately tried to ask him to help me. When I woke up I realized he hadn't even been home for a couple of days and no matter how real it felt, it had to have been a hallucination or dream. Also, most reported alien abductions are thought to have actually been sleep paralysis episodes. Fortunately, as unpleasant as it is, it at least doesn't do any physical harm - just isn't fun.

For most people this situation is pretty rare, but if it starts happening to you regularly, see a doctor and figure out a way to help, for your own psychological health. Treating that depression (as I've mentioned to you in another thread ) is a good first step.

Good luck!

I think maybe both of my episodes of sleep paralysis might have been caused by stress/anxiety/depression. The first time I had it I was very frustrated/annoyed/angry/stressed as well.

I don't think I've ever had a real auditory hallucination until last night. Scary s**t. Really freaked me out. Have you had it?

And yes, I'll start treating the depression. I've finally been to the psychologist. She told me I'm depressed and that I also meet the criteria for Social Anxiety Disorder and Generalised Anxiety Disorder. Haven't got the diagnoses yet (waiting to see a doctor about it). So yeah, things are "in motion" which is good. Hopefully that will solve the sleeping problems.

By the way, you said I should see a doctor if I get episodes of sleep paralysis regularly. Could you please define "regularly"? I've had two episodes within a 1,5-2 year period. I'm guessing that's not that much?

Nah, that's not regularly. Regularly would be something like more than a few times per year. In my case it's about once per month on average. I'm sure you'll be fine. Glad you are working things out. : )

Once every month? Wow. How long have you had it?

It started in university, about 6 years ago. Frequency varies with my stress levels but even when I'm totally happy and relaxed I can still get it. My other sleep issues started about ten years before that. I have recently gotten an "informal" diagnosis of narcolepsy based on my descriptions of my experiences, but I haven't been able to scrape the money together yet for a "formal" diagnosis, which requires a (non-insurance-covered) stay in a sleep lab.

Do any of you guys experience (Body Vibrations?)

It’s something I would experience through-out my childhood. I would be sat in my bed when all of a sudden it felt like the room was vibrating, it started when I was four. After a while I realized it wasn’t the room that was vibrating, it was me.

This continued through-out my life until one day at the ripe old age of 25 I decided to just relax and go with it, then I ended up having an Out of Body Experience. Shortly after this I started experiencing Sleep Paralysis. Once again I relaxed, totally unafraid, then ended up having more Out of Body experiences.

Of course the experts have an explanation. The brain has created a safety mechanism that protects us when we reach the dream state of mind (Or nightmare.) Sleep paralysis happens so we don’t wake up in shock and harm ourselves.

You can always rely on the experts to have an answer, even if it is the wrong one.

If sleep paralysis occurs during our sleep, a safety mechanism devised by our brain to protect us when we have a nasty dream, then why would I experience it as soon as my head hits the pillow? I’ve not even tried to get to sleep yet. Why would my brain protect me from something that’s not being created yet (Dream or Nightmare?)

I know it might sound strange, if you ever experience sleep paralysis again, try not to be scared, relax then see what happens, it won’t harm you.

Okay well, I hope it all works out for you! By the way, have you got any advice on what to do when experiencing sleep paralysis? Now when I get it I just get through it while panicking. Then, when it's over, I get all "paranoid" thinking someone might come into my room or that I'll have more auditory hallucinations and I get very scared of going back to sleep. How do you deal with it?

EDIT: I'm actually a bit scared of going to bed tonight as well.

No, I've never experienced anything like body vibrations. Sounds scary though.

I read a lot about spirituality and mysticism.

And when i was a stay at home mom i experienced 2-3 sleep paralysis attacks

A entity walked across the room and was near my neck mumbling things
i was dead scared and started researching what actually happened with me

i found this article and solution
http://www.spiritualresearchfoundation. ... -paralysis

The next two times i got a attack i just kept chanting Gods name and then no entity came around
after that i got a job and then never experienced sleep paralysis

but it was pretty scary experience.
i know of people who have died suddenly without any health issues they died in their sleep