Sleep Paralysis

[shipereyes445]

I know that it is not unusual for people to suffer from sleep paralysis, however I have been experiencing it almost every day, and it is destroying my sleep.

I've been researching what to do when I find myself in the paralyzed state. Sometimes I am able to regain a small amount of control and either fall back to sleep, or jerk one of my extremities and wake myself up, but other times, like last night, I am laying there and I can't breathe and it really freaks me out to the point where I can't do anything.

It has happened to me on several occasions when i'm on a car ride, and I recline the seat to take a nap. I'll know that people are around me, but i'm unable to move or ask for help.

Does anybody know of a way that I can stop this, or cause it to happen less? I don't even want to sleep anymore because this continually happens.

 

[ArmyJerry]

Sounds like you have the skills and prerequisites to join the Broward Sheriff's department. If you don't want to do that, try smoking a joint before you go to sleep.

 

[Spblademaker]

 

[Sean the Nailer]

Sleep Apnea?

 

[diverdon]

Sounds like you have the skills and prerequisites to join the Broward Sheriff's department. If you don't want to do that, try smoking a joint before you go to sleep.

No Jerry, Shipereyes did not say he was a coward he said he suffers from sleep paralysis.

 

[ArmyJerry]

kidding aside, get that shit checked it could be sleep apnea and taht is dangerous , you could die in your sleep.

 

[W54/XM-388]

I don't think it's sleep Apnea, I've had that and it doesn't cause you to be unable to move when you regain consciousness.
I'm going to say you need to get that looked at by a doctor who understands it, most likely a neural specialist.
If it's to where you can't breathe then something is pretty wrong.

Here is one thing to try:
Sleep flat on your stomach or wedge yourself sideways so you can't lay on your back & see what happens.
Sleep Apnea is pretty much position dependent. Also greatly increases with body weight. If it still happens when on your stomach or pinned to your side, something else may be going on.

 

[Nik H]

I am assuming that you have spoken to an MD versus us. Although many of us have slept in a Holiday Inn, I would think you should discuss it with a professional and get some help

 

[Slapchop]

Just curious, you say that you can't breathe. What happens then, do you wake up gasping for breath, do you pass out? Obviously you're not dead yet so what comes after not being able to breathe?

 

[ArmyJerry]

so what comes after not being able to breathe?

Death, usually

 

[101stinfantry]

Death, usually

Lol! That's some funny shit right there! Not to make lite of the OP's situation in any way. I'd talk to a Dr. ASAP.

 

[DuneBoer]

Please remind me never to expect any help or sympathy from this crew!

Seriously, has to be an MD near you that can do a sleep study. Wife had one done and the treatment she underwent after helped her immensely.

 

[my human host]

I've had similar experiences. Do not go to sleep shit-faced drunk. Trust me.

 

[Maggot]

Ive had it happen but only on occassion. It can be most disturbing.. When did it start? Was there a signifigant event in your life just prior to the onset?. Do you feel that your having a roadblock in some other part of your life? Something is causing it and it may not be a medical issue.

Try this. each night before you go to sleep tell yourself that when it happens you will be instantly aware and it will stop, you will just return to a normal sleep, or move into a normal dream. Kind of like a pre programming of your mind.

If that doesnt help, try a MD like suggested above.

 

[shipereyes445]

Just curious, you say that you can't breathe. What happens then, do you wake up gasping for breath, do you pass out? Obviously you're not dead yet so what comes after not being able to breathe?

I notice I can’t breath then I can after a few second, I figured its just me hitting the panic button.

 

[shipereyes445]

Sounds like you have the skills and prerequisites to join the Broward Sheriff's department. If you don't want to do that, try smoking a joint before you go to sleep.

I think ? this could actually work. I noticed it doesn’t happen after a little drink at night.

I don't think it's sleep Apnea, I've had that and it doesn't cause you to be unable to move when you regain consciousness.
I'm going to say you need to get that looked at by a doctor who understands it, most likely a neural specialist.
If it's to where you can't breathe then something is pretty wrong.

Here is one thing to try:
Sleep flat on your stomach or wedge yourself sideways so you can't lay on your back & see what happens.
Sleep Apnea is pretty much position dependent. Also greatly increases with body weight. If it still happens when on your stomach or pinned to your side, something else may be going on.

Sir this has be haunting me for year and I honestly don’t know how you could’ve known that if it doesn’t happen to you. Whenever I sleep on my stomach I sleep like a baby. But there a high possibility it will happen if I roll and sleep ? facing the ceiling. Good advice any ways. I have been looking for a dr. That can help with this but most are just playing guess work with me. A regular doctor knows nothing about this.

 

[predator308]

@OP sorry about your condition we all have our own different issues. all we could do here is proffer a guess solution to your problem I suggest you see neural specialist the earlier the better too.

 

[Forgetful Coyote]

You might have more abilities than you first thought.. try not to let it scare you. See my post in the other thread. It's takes some balls to "push through" per se cause it's definitely a most terrifying feeling. But you can do all sorts of crazy shit once you work up the nerve. I had 3 lucid/OOBE's in a row last night..

 

[Foul Mike]

Have you had your thyroid levels checked?
It is but a small gland that if things are upset causes all kind of problems as it helps other glands etc. to not function correctly.
My neighbor is a retired county nurse and also worked as the school nurse. As we sat one evening over a glass of wine I was bitching about how I wasn't sleeping right and my get up and go had got up and went among other things.
She got on me then to have tests done on my thyroid as hypothyriodism is common in our area. Something in the water or your diet, I don't know
I took Nurse Cratchet's advice and had those test run and she was right.
I now take a little pill each morning and a whole lot of my bitching and complaining is over.
I wish I had had that advice years ago as I now sleep better and feel so much better.
Hyper or hypo thyroid can fuck a lot of things up and it doesn't take much to correct it.
I think it is a common problem that is overlooked by a lot of Drs.
Worked for me. FM

 

[W54/XM-388]

this has be haunting me for year and I honestly don’t know how you could’ve known that if it doesn’t happen to you. Whenever I sleep on my stomach I sleep like a baby. But there a high possibility it will happen if I roll and sleep ? facing the ceiling. Good advice any ways. I have been looking for a dr. That can help with this but most are just playing guess work with me. A regular doctor knows nothing about this.

I didn't see any mention of your weight & it may have nothing to do with it at all.
However if it is Sleep apnea and sleeping on your stomach makes it go away, if you are also on the heavier side, if you can loose enough weight to get down to being fairly fit & trim, often the problem goes away.
You'll need a sleep study and then they can see if a CPAP machine might help.

In more classic sleep apnea issues, usually the person doesn't know it's happening as they are asleep, it just sounds like they might be dying to other people who are awake (long spaces with no breath followed by gasping / convolutions etc.) So you being conscious of it happening is a bit more rare.

In the car, you are pretty stuck, but for now, either roll to your side on the seat, or sleep fully sitting up bent over forwards rather than leaning back.
You might also be able to find an exact sweet spot that lets you tilt just enough to be comfortable, but not enough to start the breathing problems.

 

[Maggot]

This was just posted in another thread, FWIW.

--------------------------------------

To give it a bit more detail. Ive dealt with sleep paralysis and such all my life. It wasnt until I started researching that those with sleep paralysis issues also potentially may be able to more easily access the other side/OOBE/Astral Projex'n/etc that I started putting more thought into the funny feeling Id always get a couple - few hrs before experiencing sleep paralysis. In very simplified terms, the "funny feeling" Id get could be described as a kinda sorta restless legs feeling. Usually I just wanted to(and always did/was able to, shake that restless legs feeling by moving around suddenly and basically shaking it off).

Well after said research above, I decided to let/encourage the RL's to progress/increase. From there, it transferred/increased into a very strange funny feeling in the center of my spine. At that point, I couldnt work up the nerve to take it any further. The same things/sequence of feelings/etc occurred the very next night, and I took/pushed it just a slight bit further before chickening out once again, mainly due to fear of the unknown, along with a hunch/instinct that what I could be stepping into may not necessarily be downright evil, but that there damn sure wasnt no welcoming/good vibes either.

So on the 3rd night, once again, same thing. And this time, I said FUCK IT! Whatevers out there, for better or worse, I may as well go head and see what its all about. As each time before, it started with restless leg feeling which I focused on/laid still to allow it to progress to the tingly funny center-of-spine feeling. Please bear with me, this is horrendously difficult to describe & Im doin my best! So now I'd reached the point where I'd usually have chickened out and as said, this time decided to take it all the way. So I "focused"/"pushed"/etc fully on the tingly spine feeling and.. like, fuck idk... like, a astral/inter-dimensional tunnel formed, with the tunnel entrance beginning at the center of my spine where the funny feeling was. And my.. "being"(?)/"soul"(?) was partially sucked in the/my spine tunnel & partially me voluntarily entering said tunnel. At this point, the notion of time ceased to exist completely. As I traveled through the tunnel, I cant really recall any G-forces so to speak but there may've been some. After travelling through the tunnel(remember - theres no such thing as "time" at this point), it emptied out into an infinite nothingness/darkness - with Darth Satan's bodyless-head smiling at me trying to speak to me in some crazy ass non-human/earthly language. I didnt pay much attention to what he had to say as at that I began struggling with all my might to get back to my body.

Thank god I was able to struggle hard enough to get back to my body... where I then laid paralyzed for 10-15min straight, screaming at the top of my lungs for one of my family members to come help(which of course, noone did) as everyones doors were shut along with it being 3am/everyone dead asleep.

The eeriest part of all, as I was brushing my teeth the next morning, my brother told me a crazy dream he had - in which him and my mom were standing over me as I was screaming and with eyes that were solid black. AND HE TOLD ME ABOUT HIS DREAM BEFORE I HAD GOTTEN THE CHANCE TO TELL HIM MY EXPERIENCE THE NIGHT BEFORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Take this for what you what ya will, Im just another dude on the internet. And to add, no I absolutely dont believe it has to do with me having a evil soul deep down or anything of that sort. Aside from a few bad decisions, I like to think I'm atleast a half decent human being. I think it was just that I stepped out into the other side, and that once I voluntarily entered the tunnel, I was in "their" house and had no control what entity(s) I came into contact with/was or was not approached by...

SOrry for the long winded reply. Just... that was hands down the most insane daggum shit I ever seen't my entire life. FWIW Ive been a believer LONG before this occurred. And without intending to start any religion discussion, this experience hasnt so much shaken my belief as made me think things are a bit more complex than the bible(or your chosen religion) makes them out to be..

Have you had your thyroid levels checked?
It is but a small gland that if things are upset causes all kind of problems as it helps other glands etc. to not function correctly.
My neighbor is a retired county nurse and also worked as the school nurse. As we sat one evening over a glass of wine I was bitching about how I wasn't sleeping right and my get up and go had got up and went among other things.
She got on me then to have tests done on my thyroid as hypothyriodism is common in our area. Something in the water or your diet, I don't know
I took Nurse Cratchet's advice and had those test run and she was right.
I now take a little pill each morning and a whole lot of my bitching and complaining is over.
I wish I had had that advice years ago as I now sleep better and feel so much better.
Hyper or hypo thyroid can fuck a lot of things up and it doesn't take much to correct it.
I think it is a common problem that is overlooked by a lot of Drs.
Worked for me. FM

Thanks, Mike, I wake up 3-5 times every night. Ive written it off to pain, and occasionally take some pain meds just to get a good nights sleep. I think Ill look into this.

 

[RickyRodney]

Get your Iron level checked it is a risk factor for restless leg syndrome.

And guys sleep apnea wakes you up, or makes you sleep less effective. Your body gets intermittently hypoxic because of your floppy airway tissue. Its tough to keep your brain happy without its two favorite things one being oxygen.

If you having sleep problems ask your MD for a sleep study, sleep paralysis could be caused by exaggerated REM sleep. Also consider any of your medical problems. Do you have any? Anxiety? Stress? Do you exercise? Do you sit behind a computer all day? Drink a lot of caffeine? The best treatments are prevention, and altering the primary cause of the problem not a medical intervention. Any psychoactive medication you take is NOT going to be a cure all. You need to go have an honest conversation with your PCP and see what he says, and if your not happy go talk to another one.