Sleep paralysis is the terrifying feeling of being held down after just waking up or going to sleep. You can’t move or scream, and sometimes this paralysis is accompanied with the certainty that someone –or something — is in the room.
Quite simply, sleep paralysis is one of the most horrifying experiences in life, because we feel awake but can’t believe what is happening to us.
The truth is, sleep paralysis is a biological event and there is nothing to be worried about. You’re not dying. It’s a hiccup in the brain’s chemical soup as we transition from sleep to wakefulness.
Recurrent sleep paralysis can often be prevented by attending to lifestyle choices, but making new habits can take time.
So how do you wake up from sleep paralysis tonight?
Here I compiled 9 ways to get out now.
Note: Because this is such a personal thing, some of these tactics will work for you, and others won’t. Choose the ones that make the most sense to you intuitively. Think of these strategies as tools in a toolbox to bring out when the conditions are right. Make a plan and resolve to remember it for the next time you wake up in sleep paralysis.
1. Don’t Fight
If you feel like you are being held down and you can’t move, do not fight back. This actually will intensify the experience. Not only is fighting back likely to increase the feelings of being held down (so much that it may seem like you are being crushed), but fighting back will also increase the fear, thus triggering the emotional centers of the brain and strengthening this lucid nightmare. Controlling fear is the most important skill during these moments.
2. Surrender and Go with the Flow
Instead, try to relax when you notice SP starting to happen. Prepare an affirmation like “This is SP and I am okay.” If you feel pressure on your chest, see if you can “go with” the pressure rather than against it. It’s like winning a fight by having no resistance. For example, for me, I often feel like I’m being pushed into the mattress when I have SP. I let myself go, and mentally “pull” in the direction I am being pushed. What happens is I then “pop” into a full-on dream, or I can wake up directly.
3. Wiggle your Toe
Another excellent tactic that works for many people is to try to move an extremity, such as a finger or a toe. Most of the feelings of paralysis are in the belly, chest, and throat. So focus all you attention on the toe and try to move it back and forth. In many cases, this will break the paralysis.
4. Clench your Fist
This is a variation of the toe wiggle method. Clench and unclench your fist.
5. Focus on your Breath
An easy way to stop these nightmares is to do some controlled breathing. Controlled breathing does several things at once. For starters, it lessens the feelings of chest pain that sometimes accompany SP. Breathing is autonomic like the heart’s beating or digestion, so it’s not paralyzed like the big muscles in our arms, chest and legs. But breath can be controlled with attention or be affected by severe fear, which may be why SP sufferers “forget” to breathe when under attack. If you can control your breath, you can control your fear. Simply draw your breath in at a normal rate, and exhale fully, using all of your lung capacity. Notice that you can breathe fully without obstruction. This technique will keep you calm as the SP runs its course and then you will wake up without any trouble. A few moments of focused breathing with a strong intention to wake up is effective.
6. Lean into Love to Find Courage
Now is also the time to lean into unconditional love. For many, the surest path is in religious or spiritual beliefs. Regardless, focus on a figure that you admire and love. Think of someone who calms you down—someone who you associate with peace, love and safety. This could be Jesus, the Dali Lama, or someone you know personally. In my first SP nightmare when I was fourteen years old, I thought about the love and respect I had for a girl in my class. Embarrassing but true! It worked: the feelings of oppression and evil dissipated immediately. In this case, true love really does conquer all.
7. Getting Help from your Sleep Partner
If someone shares your bed, you can tell them about your SP attacks and what to look for when you are having a nightmare. For example, my wife used to shake me awake whenever I began to breath heavily and irregularly in my sleep. As it turns out, she was waking me up each and every time from an intense SP nightmare. Now when this happens, I tell her not to wake me up, because I actually use SP to go into a lucid dream.
You could also have your partner respond to a verbal request. This only works some of the time, because some people cannot speak in paralysis. But some can. Choose a short word that is easy to say. “Help” is a good choice. When you’re in paralysis, focus your attention on your throat and say “Help.” Don’t try to say it as loud as you can; what may happen is that your imagination will take over and you will only say the word in your dream. Instead, say it forcefully but without screaming.
8. Coughing for Help
A variation of using your voice is to try to cough into wakefulness. Like breathing, coughing can be autonomic or consciously regulated. By coughing on purpose, you can jar yourself awake.
9. Write out the Plan
The suggestions above all have helped hundreds of people get out of SP and get some sleep. Not every tactic will work with you. But having too many tactics in your mind can actually be counterproductive. So it is important to make a plan, almost like the fire escape plan you may have for evacuating your family home in case of emergency. Write it out; this will cement the plan in your mind and make it easier to remember when the paralysis comes on strong.
10. The Ultimate Method I know — I said 9 ways, but this is the single best way to wake up from sleep paralysis and it’s really in a class of it’s own. When you realize you are in SP, scrunch up your face. In other words, make a face like you just smelled something bad. Snarl and squint. Do this two or three times in a row and the paralysis will break IMMEDIATELY. I’m not sure why it is so effective, but unlike the pinky wiggle, this method is foolproof.
After you wake up, get out of bed immediately and turn on a light. Wash your face with cold water. If you just stay in bed, the chance of sliding right back into sleep paralysis is pretty high.
Want to break the spell of sleep paralysis? Download my free Sleep Paralysis Report below!
I only remember this hapening to me to different places, I have told a few people and they thought I was making it up or just dreaming. : ( I was asleep and the phone was ringing and I went to answwer it and couldn’t move or say anything all I could feel is tears running down my face and try to scream for my mom!!! When I was younger I used to fear loseing my mother when we slept. she has send give her Her
I saw this thing that showed how to go into SP. I for one have never experienced it and was thinking about trying it. Mabey for those of you that do have it you could try the opposite of these techniques to keep from going into SP.
Give her,her inhaler. i don’t know why i always was so scared of her dying. but this was one of the most horrifying experiences ever!!! And it happened to me again and it felt like there was a man standing over top of me and I was awake and could not move. that was the second time in two different houses….. thank you for this info I thought I was crazy but now I know
Good morning everyone,
Honestly i am same i scared to sleep everytime attack me.the SP im tired i want sleep as a normal I’m tired to fight this problem, when i feel sleep 5 minutes i can’t even move my whole body and no voice come out of my mouth takes 20 minutes to fight this SP.every night before i go bed i pray but still oh god im tired of this sometimes i wanna give up really tired of this anybody can help.me this problem also i am.from.south korea need help from you all …help me please now i am 35 years old i been suffering this SP 25 YEARS FROM NOW PLEASE HELP ME….GOD BLESS YOU ALL AMEN
Just sleep on your side, never get sleep paralysis on side, i am guaranteed to get it on my back
Last night I fell asleep on my side and I did experience SP but I do normally experience if I fall asleep on my back
This was my first time getting SP and I was on my side…
I just want to say that is not true. I was on my side sleeping last night and had SP. Though was not long that time before I could wake up.
Hi Carrie, thanks for the comment. SP can happen while sleeping on your side — but it is much more common for many people when they sleep on their backs. There is a lot of individual variation.
I get SP really bad it’s a terrible experience, I usually think about all the possible bad things that could happen because i only ever have a dream i was least expecting hope it get’s better it could be an anxiety disorder?.
Somebody can help me….please anyone knows how to fight this SP really im 35 years old now still suffering this SP over 25 years old I’m tired of this please help me guys
Angel,
I have SP every once in a while as well and I am 27 years old. I use to get scared by it, but lately, i have been reading the bible (the gospels of Jesus) and this makes my fear go away when I wake up. I would suggest reading Mark and use the time when you wake up unable to move to pray. It is now actually one of the most peaceful times for me. Hope this helps.
go to the doctor! they can help since there are effective treatements
and im so sorry it must be terrible! just remember nothing happening is real
I would like to begin by sharing my own story with you it is published on From the Shadows and its title is Giggles of the Ghostly Baby it explains my own experience’s on this article starting when I was 16 years old http://from-the-shadows.blogspot.com/2010/01/giggles-of-ghostly-baby.html
I am the person in this article. I personally feel like its something more then SP I am 30 years old now and these episodes continue to this day and are very random it could be weeks to months in between episodes but they happen and lately have been getting stronger then usual. They are beginning to take a toll on my well being and are starting to wear me down I feel like giving up on fighting these episodes I feel helpless against these unwelcome terrors. I have been dealing with this issue for 14 years and over the years I have found certain ways to combat this like for instance sleeping on my stomach helps plus if you can this might seem a little weird but tuck you arms in under you by hugging a pillow this can make it extremely hard for you to slip into the SP another weapon is to pray before you sleep for protection and when you wake up also if you snap out of SP immediately pray for protection and comfort do not immediately fall back to sleep or you will most likely slip very quickly back into SP give you body a chance to recover because SP for me is very hard on my body and mind I feel completely emotionally drained so #1 rule stay awake for at least 10 to 15 min recover and go back to sleep. If you want to know more I can give you further advice but the truth is I am being wore down in mind and body it has taken its toll on me in many ways and on all levels of my life. I do apologize about my grammar I was typing a bit fast here.
This paralysis happens to me from time to time, for example, I just experienced it today. It was an afternoon nap and as I woke up, my body was still sleeping. I even opened my eyes and saw a mix of reality and dream, I could not move. I even had to consciously breathe, it looked like I can even stop breathing if I wont do this.
However after thirty seconds or so, I gained control and was able to wake up fully. As I was researching this topic, it looks like the brain is still sending signals to the body as in the REM stage, when it should really be out. Quite a difficult experience sometimes. Bw, nice article 😉
Why do you guys make such a big deal out of it… honestly i have had this for many years. when i was smaller i thought it was a ghost coming from my bedroom mirrors.. the easiest thing to do is just go back to sleep… just let it all go, stop resisting and try to sleep it off..
Some people make a big deal out of it because what is happening to them is A big enough deal to look it up and is awful for them. Their experiences, mine and others are obviously not the exact same thing as you have experienced with sp and each of us coming from a different life experience, health, fears and religions influencing how these variations of sp play out. Mine are long, evil, and terrifying sometimes and others they last only a moment.
Hi the way u explained it I did to immidiately after experiencing this i looked it up in google and saw a few articles about REM and other stuff i think i have This problem for 5 years my First experience Was like freaking out i was Afraid of sleeping again my mom tolf me it Was “la muerte” / “the dead” Trying To take over me but i Really didnt Think so. Today i really heard voices like Someone is in the Room next To my bed and i Had difficulty breathing heavy brearhing scary in my mind i was moving and try to stand up my head but paralysed ughh i hate it but im Not afraid of it i wake up after 30 Seconds or So
Glad to know what it was. It feels like your in a coma. You know you are dreaming but can’t get up.
Thank u so much, for years I experienced similar and different degrees of this. I never knew what it was or what to term it- and thus I never spoke of it. My ‘way out’ is actually struggling though because when I let myself go with the flow it intensifies to the point where I feel crushed. Thank u I been looking for this.
this happen to me last night. i wasnt afraid. i was like fuck the devil and went back to sleep
Yaaaaa bull… Dobt be mr tough guy, i bet u were scared… That being said, i had it a few weeks ago, woke up and saw someone crawling beside me I i couldn’t move, i finally popped out and jumped out of my bed, scaring my gf lol
In my case when im at SP state . I force my toungue to open my teeth . And it works everytime
This started happening to me. It feels like something is laying on the corner of my bed where I can feel the bed go down then it feels like something or someone is holding me down so hard like if its crushing me. I can open my eyes but I can’t move or talk. I get so scared and try to scream but I can’t . My mom said its a spirit but I was never the person to believe in that. She said to light a candle and when it happens again to say the our father prayer till I can move. She also said not to be scared that they chose me for a reason… I’m not sure what to believe anymore just that I’m terrified about falling asleep. Someone help!
I hope it ain’t a spirit this happens to me all the time
i am 40. When i was 20+ sp made me lost my jobs, i heard my alarm clock ring but cannot move for HOURS!
When i was a child i could always wake up (from normal dreams)by just open my eyes! i wish i can still do it.
It just happen to me and all u got to do is pray ask God to wake u up and he will it wrks all the time
Last night, something roused me but I could not wake, the dogs were barking all night off and on, also waking my husband, I felt someone or somethings were there, I was completely unable to see anything except maybe a squint of my husband. Even my eyelids felt paralyzed. My whole body could not move but was in a relaxed state of sleep. I felt like someone was paralyzing me in some strange way of body control. I was so calmly sedated while in the supposed sleep paralysis but was freaking out in my brain and no where else. I did not feel held down but more like sedated all over to the point where I could not come out of it. I tried like hell to snap out of the feeling, working against it and I think at one point i might have grabbed something from the night stand and threw it across the room to try to wake my husband up to help me. I tried to wake my husband but could not. He had been awaken several times as well and finally went down and slept on the couch from a certain point because he was suspicious of the dogs barking off and on and being concerned someone was trying to break in. I fell back asleep at somepoint after giving up. Again I found my husband in bed around 4 am after I saw my son walking or sleep walking to my room to climb into bed with us (9 yrs old) and he awoke me several times due to his playing or thrashing in my bed (I remember seeing his legs and arms thrashing or playing maybe so I thought), I went to the bathroom, went potty and came back and he was sleeping calmly and was not awake as I had thought. I also had the feeling of time going very slow all night and of waking up several other times for no reason.
Is it sleep paralysis or something else? My husband says he can’t explain what the heck was going on at our house last night but he thought it could be an intruder.
my mum keeps having these attacks and tonight she has has 2 where i have heard her moaning and shouting my name and i have rushed into her bedroom and shook her awake, shes usually hot and sweaty. So i will make her a cup of tea and get her her book or get in bed with her, but on this night my close friend who knows me and my mum very well was staying and we have been up all night and sometimes doing shifts where one will sleep and the other will watch television or something,so we can keep an eye on her, thankyou for these tips, we will tell her, she struggles a lot and tries to shout and bang on walls and stuff, thank you. I am only 12
If somone could email me some more help i would greatly appreciate it.. i jave had these dreams b 4 in the past but for the last month it has been an everyday thing i dred going to sleep an in my dreams its like i can rationalize everything i have even screamed for help.. i dont know what to do anymore an every time it happens it feels like . somthing is doing it to me or in the room.should i see a dr or a preist
Hi, I’ve been getting sleep paralysis for almost 4 years now and every time I get it it gets worse. There was one where I was pregnant with my now 2 year old daughter, where I felt I was laying on my belly and could not move because there was a man sitting on me 🙁 I couldn’t talk and it was hard for me to breathe. I was scared for my baby but then I started to wiggle my toes and snapped out of it.
ive been getting this for a long time but today i slept in the afternoon and this sleep paralysis happened to me more that 7 times i freaked myself out and i would shake its weird and it scares me to death!
I was having SP for more than 25 years. When I was younger it happened almost every night which make me scared to sleep, it usually only happened when I static at bed. But when I was older I already get used to it, so everytime when I suddenly awake and can’t move, I will continue to sleep and relax as if nothing is happen. It works everytime! My SP was getting more serious when I get older, sometimes feels like somebody beat my chest. And the worse was I feel like I already wake up and doing all sort of house work and talking with people but feel my body and head very heavy, I know something was very wrong and I was struggling to wake up. Sometimes when I wake up I found out that my pillow was blocking my airways. It is very dangerous and I could kill myself. And this new experience make me scared to sleep again.
This jus happened to me also and i was asleep on my back as well i could feel myself sliding off the bed and then sliding sideways off the bed, and i could see it but i was asleep. I could also hear my kids playing in the other room i tried screamin at them but i couldnt talk…it was way to wierd
Last night I had experienced something that wasn’t normal. I fell alseep & all of a sudden I felt a whole lot of pressure on my body . It felt as if someone was holding me down. I couldn’t move, but my eyes were open. I couldn’t turn my head, I couldn’t yell. My cat was next to me & iheard her hissing. Then iheard a voice right by my ear & it said “your not going to be able to get up” and a grunting sound. Then it laughed but it sounded so evil. I tried my hardest to get up & icould hear my self mumbling. Then isaid f**k you it sounded clear & it let me go. My heart was pounding my body felt drained. I’ve never experinced anything like this before it wasnt usual.
I get this quite frequently as well as night terrors I know some people sleep walk but nope not me I was cursed with sleep paralysis and night terrors to figure in fact I just woke up from sleep paralysis so frightening I swear I felt like someone was in my room and I couldn’t wake up so terrifying like he was humming to me or something but it can’t be real. The terrifying part is you feel like someone is trying to harm you. Be brave, stay positive. Talk with honest people that no about this not sceptic a that will blow it off as a joke. It’s real and it’s not fun at all I would know.
Hi all,
I will try quenching my face, but the thing is I can’t move an ounce, let alone speak a little word. I cannot breathe and this just freaks a lot!!! till am able to wake up.
I just took a nap early this afternoon and could not get up. Before I fell asleep I could feel a presence in my apartment. I opened my eyes and saw my dad standing there looking at me. I wanted to go hug and talk to my dad but couldn’t. I lost my dad in Dec from suicide and nobody knows why he did it. I feel like something was there and my dad was helping it to leave cause about 20 seconds later I woke up. Im still scared to go to bed tonight.
I get sleep paralysis a lot, and when it happens, have always gone with the idea of breathing deeply and trying to move a finger or toe, (a bit like Kill Bill – “Wiggle your big toe!”). My biggest tip which I read on an article once is never, NEVER, literally, NEVERRR, sleep flat on your back. Always try to sleep on your front or with your face pointing towards the floor as much as possibly – I can’t remember the scientific reason but generally when I wake up with sleep paralysis I am led on my back. FACEPLANT THE PILLOW – that’s my technique.
I am glad to know that I am not the only one.:-)
I’ve just had the worst experience ever, not sure if I was awake or asleep but felt like I was awake, I couldn’t move, or talk or breathe….what the hell!! I don’t want yo go sleep 🙁
hi just want to say i have been having sp for years the only thing thay snaps me out of it is if someone enters the room i am awake and fully aware of my suroundings and can hear where my kids are and i do have a small voice i yell help with all my force i can be heard and my kids know to come i need help problem my kids are now on their own im home alone im terrified to sleep in my case if i am over tired i get them alot so i must try to sleep and not get sleep deprived or im in trouble very scarry i also have many outof body exp these are very intresting also sometimes scarry so i avoid them by waking up and changing my mind like go watch some tv or have a smoke and then go back to sleep it works most of the time
I started experiencing SP when I was in my High School Days and until now not only once in a week but there are times that I have SP every time I sleep. I was awake but I can’t move my body.Sometimes I’m trying to open my eyes forcefully and I know that I’m not dreaming, and that I saw my surroundings the same as before i could fell into sleep.Even though sometimes or once in a while I dream of freaky stuff and can’t breath properly before I SP but I’m more having SP without having dreams or struggling with my breathing I’m just waking up suddenly and realized that I’m already having SP…please is there any way that I could rid of this…thank you!
Hey, we’re experiencing exactly the same thing. It happens almost every morning.. can’t wake myself.. i feel that something’s preventing me to get up. i shout for help wishing that someone would hear me and help me wake up but it seems that nobody hears me… it’s so freaky….just this morning i woke up from SP with a terrible headache and backpain.. need advice on how to get rid of this! 🙁
Hi everyone..I had my first ever, SP last night. I feel asleep reclined on my back and I have done so before, BUT this time, I heard someone trying to break in my front door and It woke me up..Only to experience that I couldn’t move! The only thing I could do is open my eyes. No matter how hard I tried to turn my heard to look at the door, I couldn’t..I could see my legs, but could not feel them..I was paralyzed from head to toe. I tried to call out to my husband, but couldn’t speak… One of the scariest moments of my life..It felt like it took hours, but I think it was only a few minutes…either way, I pray it doesn’t happen again…and prayers for those it does happen to..I know its not dangerous, but it will scare the heck out of you 🙁
I just woke from sp I notice it happens more when im at a crossroad in my life. I believe its evil and I use my mind to rebuke the nightmares God has never failed me.
Guys, this has been happening a lot to me. Usually I repeat “**** off!” in my head to keep my self from getting to scared or freaking out but the other night There was a loud siren type of noise in my ears and a loud intimidating voice that kept shouting, screaming so loud I was surprised no one could hear it at the moment; the voice kept repeating “THERE’S SOMEBODY IN THE HOUSE! GO!” and it felt chaotic. I don’t remember quite clearly but the voice in my head pointed out something by my bed, it appeared to be a head watching me, it even got closer it seemed. At this point I was freaking out, I wanted to yell, I wanted to cry out. Now I’ve been searching multiple personality disorder in case this event was linked to it. I really can’t sleep anymore.
Hello, I am 18 and i have just woken up out of SP and am on here as i needed to find out what was happening to me. This is the 2nd time i’ve had it and it was much worse this time. I could see myself in bed (mostly my arm by my face) and i remember trying to lift it with all my might. I felt crushed as if i was sinking into my bed (but unlike most of you i could breathe). I felt an entity going into me which instantly paralysed me but also was crushing me, i was screaming my twin sisters name but nothing was coming out, all of a sudden and small black shadow in the form of a bird came flying straight into my chest from the window and i was fighting to get it off me. I actually held my breath while in SP to try and suffocate myself in the hope that the ”entity” would leave my body before i died and i could quickly wake up before it took hold of me again. This is the most scariest feeling/experience i have ever had, i tried to tell my mum but she’s keeps saying it was just a dream; i even read parts of this website out to her and she just told me to go back to sleep and stop being so silly. Honestly, i scared to go back to sleep because i feel i will never wake up again. The hallucinations e.g. seeing something next to me, hasn’t been that bad but after reading other experience i feel think this is only going to get worse as i get older. Also my imagination gets wild with fear! I can watch horror films as i will have nightmares for weeks after…im becoming scared of my own shadow. Will/did this get this get worse for anyone?
OMG i had this since two years ago i can cry sometimes from the amount it happens… i fall asleep again and again and it happens i wish there can be a DRUG to TAKE THESE AWAY someone help me!!! HAppens to be I usualy get these when I go to sleep to rest in the afternoon…. (Saturdays)
Anyone else?? inventors please invent!! I feel like i hear everyone but then i wake up and i see i really wasnt its NUTTO
Just started getting sp the other night and thought it was a 1 off thing,but I got it again last night and I’m scared to go to sleep now incase i have it again,reading how some people have had it for years I feel sorry for them because it is really terrifying it just feels like someone or something is holding you down and no matter how much I try to speak or move I can’t do nothing then I’m up half the night freaked out !!!
This happens to me quite frequently. I feel like I’m bout to die. Sort of like I’m possessed. Or crazy. I try to yell for help and can’t. It started shortly after a fight that got physical with my boyfriend a couple years ago.
I too have been experiencing these episodes off and on for yrs now. Beyond terrifying ! This is my first time reading about it. I thought it was only me, and didnt want to mention it to anyone. Last nite i took a med. size couch pillow and layed on my side holding it. I slept fine. It was the nite before that i had the attacks. I am so tired, and afraid to go to bed. But it seems laying on your side,and the pillow with me helped ? Not sure as i could have one tonite,and the thought is so scary!
Thanks for the tips! I will have to try these next time they happen.
I frequently get sleep paralysis and what I have found has worked for me is just shaking my head back and forth. But it takes a lot of effort and I am very tired once I do wake up.
Ugh – I wish there was a one time fix for it. Every time I have SP it terrifies me because I really do feel like I’m suffocating even though I know what’s really happening.
Grateful for the tips though! Have a great day.
PRAY IS THE ANSWER TO THIS so pray after sleeping if SP happen to you try to relax and try no.6
Just take a piece of white (A4 size) paper and write a statement like “I will get up at 6 AM” in bold letters. Place the paper under the pillow also same has to be your last thought in your mind before you fall asleep.
I used to have these all the time, i know they are not just dreams. The reason i know is because i no longer have them, i beat them. Whenever this would happen to me i would have a feeling just before hand and say to myself; oh shit, its about to happen. Sure enough it would happen, no matter what i wouldn’t be able to move and would know something was in the room and all of the other horrible stuff everyone else has said so far on this site. By the way, don’t sleep face down in the pillow because i almost died for real when i couldnt move and only sucked the pillow into my mouth. Ok the only sure fire way to beat these demons is to stay as calm as possible and just exhale with everything you have, then take in the deepest breath ever and you will wake up everytime. they know what scares you the most and will try absolutely everything to scare the bejesus out of you, but stay strong. I have even had a cold, huge pair of hands around my neck strangling the life out of me for minutes, and with each little inhale the hands would get tighter and tighter. that is how i found out to just breath deep. they always leave you when you breathe deep. they know they cant scare you enough if your breathing deeply. dont just push out and in calmly cuz they know your still scared. remember exhale forcefully, let that be your way of saying i am so tired of this and no demon or ghost or alien is taking my life.
this happened to me in summer of 2012. i was asleep on my stomach and my hands right under my pillow. then i remember waking up, able to move my eyes & toes i started crying and i held my breath trying to force myself to get up (which was probably dumb.) but now i know to stop, and relax when it happens. i remember trying to scream but it was like i couldn’t then it felt like tingles in my back everywhere. it was horrifying and i never want to expirence it again.
For all those you have constant problems with Sp, I’ve herd it could be involved with high stress( so you can do something like drinking warm water or milk before bed or doing yoga), blood pressure problems, or especially common in people with some sort of THYROID problems. So its good to check out with your Doctor for another solution.
For all those you have constant problems with Sp, I’ve herd it could be involved with high stress( so you can do something like drinking warm water or milk before bed or doing yoga), blood pressure problems, or especially common in people with some sort of THYROID problems. So its good to check out with your Doctor for another solution.
Hope this helps !
I get sleep paralysis on average about once a month and I have ever since I was 18ish. I’m 29 now. My mother gets it too so I’m guessing it could be hereditary, because I’ve told my friends about it and not one of them has even heard of it. What’s even more odd is the fact that my doctor didn’t even know what it was. That was just this year. About 5-7 years ago my mother had the same thing happen to her and her doctor actually told her that she was crazy! She had it before that but she had an “out of body experience” where she was sleeping on the couch downstairs and knew exactly what me and my brother we’re doing upstairs. It boggles my mind how little doctors know about sleep paralysis. I didn’t realize what it was till I was 20ish, but I don’t get it enough that it’s affected my life. But when I get it now, it seems to be scarier than I remember. It can be scary as hell to be honest! this morning I could have sworn I was talking to my mother, but she says she never talks to me this morning. But the worst part was the fear of sensing somebody in the room and then I felt somebody poke me in the side. That’s all I really remember but it scared the shit outta me! I know its just my imagination but it seemed pretty damn real.
For me it’s really hard to move, but if I really really try then I will be able to snap out of it. But if I do I have to make sure I don’t fall back asleep because I will get sleep paralysis again and again and again. So I’m going to try to put these techniques to use. One thing I do know is that sleep paralysis can be caused by your diet and your sleep pattern; being sleep deprived or sleeping too much. Hope this helps. As a bodybuilder I he mind so very powerful tool, so I’m going to put it to good use as well. When I feel I have SP I will focus on happy things rather than fear. Hope you will do the same.
Im only 17 and I go into SP quite often. It is the scariest thing I have ever experienced. Its been going on for a few years now. I have anxiety so it makes SP a lot worse for me. When I go into SP everything goes dark and I feel like I’m being held down. I cannot move at all. I try so hard to tell someone to wake me up but I can’t. I start to freak out and it becomes hard to breathe. I try to move my face and head and wiggle my hands and toes and it usually works. But every time, I seem to go right back into it after I wake up. I have to immediately get out of bed after this happens. Very scary thing.
Sometimes I get Sp when I sleep right after a big meal. I would wake up and I can actually see and hear everything that’s going on around me. I used to love getting Sp, but now I’m not looking forward to getting them, because sometimes I would see demon like figure staring at me. My worst experience was waking up and this very tall demon figure staring at my girlfriend and it noticed that I was looking at him/her. The demon moved and was face to face with me. I started praying “The Lord is my Shepherd” and that thing was actually praying along with me, but in an evil way saying “The Lord is my Shepherd and Lord is my Shepppheerd”. I don’t why I get this, but I ended up on this site because I’m searching for answers and looking for people with similar stories.
Im 15 and im having sp like earlier today i took a nap and i woke up but could’t move and i could see my cousin but i couldnt say anything to him and i started to move my hand and my whole body but I guess I popped into a dream because I could see my body still laying down
Im 14 and I’ve been having SP frequently while waking up and more intense in the middle of the night. I found a GREAT way to wake from SP. Simply make your neck twitch like you’re shivering from a slight breeze that comes through the window. Do it suddenly and violently, and it should work! It worked for me.
I have had a dream the last few nights where im getting strangled by the girl from the film ‘ The Ring’ when she there i cant scream, talk or anything sometimes i also dream that my mum is shaking me trying to wake me up. its scary as anything I will jump and suddenly wake up. I also sometimes just dream im asleep and then I wake up in my dream and yet i cant move, talk etc. then i will try roll over and i cant its like im pinned to the bed and then i will try sit up and i cant i cant do anything so i will FORCE my eyes open as i have to as its as if they are clued down.
Is this SP ??
I just had an episode less than 20 minutes ago…. This is the second one in my life I am 26. I was a tummy sleeper up until my chiropractor told me to start sleeping on my back to help my spine. We all have the same problem we now know that it’s SP. There are no ghost or sprites holding you down this is a rare neurological disorders.
yeah, this happens to me all the time, i ve learned to literally slap myself awake, all it takes is a bit of concentration, you know, just chill and realize whats goin on, only then will you be able to do something about it. But sometimes i just let the sp do its thing and drag me into some sort of lucid dream, thats when it gets real fun
I just had a dream where i felt the sleep paralysis was a dream of where i was stuck in time, or a realm, the i would drift back into an even deeper secondary dream to try and accomplish a task that would free my body from the paralysis but i would keep going to the desk of this same store with the same colourful cereal box which would cause me to go back to my first level of blurry paralysis this happened about 4 times, also when i dream i can never ever controll it, if i could controll my dream i would have been able to accomplish the task in the secondary dream and break the paralysis, any ideas guys?