Sleep paralysis/waking nightmare

Had an episode this morning at about 6am. Absolutely, categorically the most terrifying 5 minutes of my life. Never felt fear like it, and I’ve still got headache 7 hours later.

Anyone else had it? Does it keep coming back? I’m not looking forward to bedtime tonight, I can tell you that.

Used to happen all the time when I slept on my back, doesn’t any more for some reason.

I think it could be demons though, demons from Hell, stopping you from waking. 😉

Did you do anything to stop it? I’m not keen to experience it again, so I’ll try pretty much anything.

Used to get it quite a bit.

The wierdest manifestation was waking up, walking arround but being unable to talk or conciously do anything. I basicly sleepwalked arround the house fully concious in my own head, but unable to speek or coordinate what I was doing !

Nah, I didn’t really do anything consciously to stop it, just tried not to fall asleep on my back. I’ve read somewhere that it may be stress related too, have you been having a rough time of it recently?

It is pretty horrible though.

I’ve had it but not for a few years – very scary – but as it happens more often you get used to it and can relax a bit more….

Just stopped happening and forgot about it till this thread.

I wasn’t up and about. I had something kneeling on my chest and holding my arms down, leaning in and whispering at me. It felt like I was in the presence of pure evil and I was totally paralysed. I couldn’t even shout to wake up Mrs Flying Ox. In the end I was kind of whimpering/moaning when she finally told me to shut up and go back to sleep, which brought me fully round.

I get it when I’m very tired. This summer, relaxing at home after a festival, I’d nod off on the sofa and then wake up, be able to see but not move a muscle. The panic that I would be awake to feel myself suffocate to death would trigger an adrenaline boost and I’d sit up, gasping for air like Mia Wallace. That happened four times in one day, horrible

Oh yeah, once when someone else was there (different summer, post-same festival) I managed to get out a ‘uuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrgggggghhhhhhhhhhh’ which attracted their attention and they brought me out of it.

I had something kneeling on my chest and holding my arms down, leaning in and whispering at me.

ooft, thats shit yer breeks territory that.

I often experience “visions” if i’ve not been sleeping well, mostly manifesting themselves as animals or insects crawling around (the other night if took an imaginary spider off my phone charger and into the bathroom)but on one occasion i cold see someone hanging outside my bedroom window. never been frightened as such, just look a bit glazed.

Just both watch paranormal activity tonight, then neither of you will sleep

I had it once and it was the scariest thing ever. Couldn’t move, tried to scream for help and couldn’t do that either. No idea how long it lasted but it felt like ages.
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Heard a program about it on the radio, IIRC it is something to do with most of the brain waking up but not the part that controls the motor functions so you are concious without being able to do anything. I rememebered this program when I woke again and thougt about what had happened but at the time it was going on I was not in a mood for rational though.
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Fortunately that was a one-off for me.

That was your wife kneeling on your chest…tomorrow it’ll be the pillow over your face…

I’ve never had paralysis (or whispering evil beings kneeling on my chest! 😯 ) but I used to have nightmares which I couldn’t shake when I was awake. They weren’t really nightmares, though, just feelings. One was a scale thing: either being incredibly small in an impossibly large bedroom, or incredibly large in an impossibly large bedroom.

The other thing was a texture, very rough and very smooth at the same time, like silk over thorns. Sounds just a bit weird, but I used to find it absolutely unbearable. The worst was waking up, not being able to shake it, ending up with the light on at the foot of my bed on my knees and elbows with my hands clawed up away from the floor so I wouldn’t touch anything, sobbing because the feeling was so unbearable. A tiny part of my mind was still rational, thinking “holy shit, this is awful! this is proper madness! How long am I going to be like this?”

Not had it badly since I was 16 or so, occasionally I get the scale feeling, but more remembered than imposed in me, if that makes sense, I think I find it almost comforting now.

Don’t envy you this, though. I hope it doesn’t last!

paranormal activity

most dissapointing film ever

I get this quite often, usually only for 30 secs or so, scary dream followed by knowing I need to wake up, then being awake but not able to move.

Scary at the time but it passes. The only variable I have ever managed to trace it to is being to (chooses words carefully) warm in bed e.g. heating on and too many covers and covers all wrapped around my head.

Never sleepwalked tho that sounds really cool !!

One was a scale thing

The other thing was a texture

I know those *exact* dreams. Frightening not in a fear way, but in a “this is just so very very wrong” way. Not had them since I was a nipper though.

I still get those dreams where you always wake up before you finish pleasuring the ladies. Brilliant dreams but frustrating.

I remember once I woke up and I was still dry humping the air 😐

I am sure Mr Freud might have had a bit to say about this kind of thing !

No nightmare thing here just wake up – eyes open but completely unable to move / talk etc. Feels like 5-10 minutes, but its probably a lot less. Probably happens one a week. You get used to it.

I get this, but it’s always associated with dreaming that I’m dead, so I don’t need to breathe. Until the conscious part of my brain points out that I’m not dead and that I might want to start breathing, in no uncertain terms. It’s somewhat unsettling when it happens.

Sobriety – I’m a Librarian not a Doctor but that sounds more like Sleep Apnoea

Wow! @ nedrapier and The Flying Ox. I thought I was the only one.
I also get those exact same dreams of scale and texture.

Have tried to wake myself up by splashing water in my face etc. Doesn’t work straight away though.

Feel more normal now!

@nedrapier .. I have had that texture thing too.. Im sure it was some curtains I had as a really young kid… and the scale thing.. properly thought it was just me!

Thankfully have yet to experience the joys od demons kneeling on your chest whispering!!!

I had a horrible dream a few weeks ago where I fell into some kind of well, that was just like a large pipe in the ground with no brick structure on the top. I remember the feeling of the cold water and the inability to climb out as the sides were smooth and slippery. I woke up sweating and thought how awful that would be if it was for real. Imagine my surprise when two days later on the BBC news website I saw how a young Chinese kid had fallen into an exact looking well, luckily he was rescued. Dreams are freaky.

I’ve had similar quite a few times (more often if napping on sofa during the day curiously).
My take on it is that I never actually woke up, it was just a very detailed dream that felt like I had woken up. If you go back and think, was your bedroom exactly how it really is??? when I looked at it more, I realised I must have been still asleep.

Mind you, I’ve heard some people with really bad cases think they are awake and go about a whole day’s business in ‘real time’ or longer before waking up 😯

Used to get it quite a bit.

The wierdest manifestation was waking up, walking arround but being unable to talk or conciously do anything. I basicly sleepwalked arround the house fully concious in my own head, but unable to speek or coordinate what I was doing !

Don’t think that’s the same thing is it, sleep paralysis is where you’re awake and conscious but the mechanism that allows your body to move isn’t functioning, so all you can do is lie there and breathe.

nedrapier – Member
One was a scale thing: either being incredibly small in an impossibly large bedroom, or incredibly large in an impossibly large bedroom.

I got that as a teen too – sometimes they involved huge blocks of matter in a white space, other times the blocks were battleships. I now wonder if they were more about (lack of) control and the beginnings of a sense of infinity?

Regarding the kneeling on your chest thing, there was a prog on Radio 4 about that yesterday morning. It’s common to cultures throughout the world. The Germans call it something along the lines of a sleep witch and the Newfoundlanders have a similar story about sleep hags (disclaimer: was only half listening). So you’re not alone!!!

I used to get this throughout my 20’s. Was quite regular but has decreased since I have been in my 30’s. Quite scary at first, but once I knew what was happening, I found it became a bit easier to cope with/get out of.

I was talking about this with a mate from work last night so the timing is a bit of a coincidence!

I had it once about 10 years ago – “asleep” in bed laying on my back, woke up as someone was walking from the door of the bedroom and along the side of the bed. I was trying to move and shout but was totally paralysed untill they were right by my head and at which point I “woke up” properly and flailed my limbs around shouting unintelligibly and as I did so the person vanished.

The weirdest bit was part of me knew exactly what was happening and was saying I just need to wake up, nothing to worry about etc etc. The other “dreaming” half was **** bricking it…

Never had it since but I know my mum has had it at least once and my grandad does all kinds of mad stuff in his sleep – hides my nana in the wardrobe whilst he prepares to fight the germans coming in the house etc!

First time I had sleep paralysis I thought I was dying.

Now it’s actually quite pleasant.

I had a horrible dream a few weeks ago where I fell into some kind of well, that was just like a large pipe in the ground with no brick structure on the top. I remember the feeling of the cold water and the inability to climb out as the sides were smooth and slippery. I woke up sweating and thought how awful that would be if it was for real. Imagine my surprise when two days later on the BBC news website I saw how a young Chinese kid had fallen into an exact looking well, luckily he was rescued. Dreams are freaky.

First time I had sleep paralysis I thought I was dying.

Now it’s actually quite pleasant.

Weirdo 😯

Used to get them quite a lot. I like nightmares but the sleep paralysis thing is just a bit too much for me. Especially as I got aways got like OP with the feeling someone or something is pinning you down and your life was in mortal danger yet you can’t walk, talk or move.

Give me a good old fashion nightmare or falling dream anyday.

I once had a dream I was in a car crash, the car I was in hit a brick wall at speed and I thought I was dead. Everything went black and I could feel blood filling up in my ears. Genuinely thought that was it for me, it was just black for ages.

It shook me up for a day or two…

nedrapier and others, its actually called Alice in Wonderland syndrome 🙂

I used to get this a lot as my family has a history of poor sleep, and am very familiar with episodes like the OP describes with the feeling of terror, loss of movement etc. Totally normal (I forget the name of it, but basically its a nightmare when you’re awake but your brain forgets to stop).

I used to get it so much I learned to control it, together with altering my AIWS perception (I could even bring it on half the time as I liked the feeling), and sometimes also my dreams too, rarely nowadays I get lucid dreams where I see my dreams infront of what I’m looking at in bed (normally a wall) but my dreams are smaller and kind of in black and white.

Nothing to be afraid of and don’t worry about tonight, just try to remember its not real 😉

Fascinating really when you think about it, interesting too the history to sleep disorders, and the origins of demons, poltergeists, and night MAREs, etc 🙂

I get this quite a lot – it’s like being a prisoner in your own body! A very weird experience when you first suffer/experience it. Sometimes it’s accompanied by a dream where physical restraint is present, on other occasions I can be lead on my back and my minds ‘awake’ but the bodies yet to catch up. I’ve got used to it – it’s difficult to articulate but if it happens again, keep calm and actually try and move your body – mentally force yourself to roll over and I promise you, you will snap into full wakefulness. In fact I’ve got a bit bored of it and can make myself fall back into sleep 😀

sleep paralysis is often due to anxiety. I used to get it a lot in my 20’s but not so much now in my 30’s.

I’d generally get it if I went for a nap in the daytime.

It doesn’t last as long as it feels.

Best thing is to just try and relax as much as possible.

I get it almost every time I fall asleep on my back – I think it’s physiological rather than psychological with me as I am the least anxious person in the world.
normally wake up before it gets too bad, but I have had some episodes where I feel like I’m suffocating.
I just make sure I never sleep on my back.

The Flying Ox – Member
Did you do anything to stop it? I’m not keen to experience it again, so I’ll try pretty much anything.

This runs in my family, so much so that my great grandfather has made a tonic that works wonderfully, I can supply you with some of this special tonic for a reasonable introductory price.

nedrapier – Member
One was a scale thing: either being incredibly small in an impossibly large bedroom, or incredibly large in an impossibly large bedroom.

I got that as a teen too – sometimes they involved huge blocks of matter in a white space, other times the blocks were battleships. I now wonder if they were more about (lack of) control and the beginnings of a sense of infinity?

wow! I thought my very own weirdness!! The scale bit of the dream was enormous blocks that whilst not threatening, i was completely powerless to shift which was pretty troubling.

the texture bit was always quite distinct but always featured in the same dream. i also experienced cold. it felt like sliding down a very smooth “flying fox” made of ice.

guess i must have been primary school age when i had that dream the most, but i also had it a few times during my teens. as an adult, i put it down to coping with learning you are not the centre of the universe (as you naturally think you are as a child)

quite amazing that others have experienced the same thing!!

Two different friends, who don’t know each other, both said that when sleeping in our spare room overnight, they’d woken up during the night and felt like they were being pinned down & couldn’t move.

Okaaaaaaaayyyyyyy then…. eek!

I’ve had similar dreams/’mares about scale and similar impossible, but still happening, weird situations.
But then i’ve also had dreams about some weird event happening (maybe just someone doing/saying something/going somewhere), which has then happened later that day. Freaks me out!