The thread on panic attacks prompted me to begin a thread on hypnopompic paralysis - otherwise known as sleep paralysis, or 'paralyze dreams.'

What is sleep paralysis?

"The isolated sleep paralysis event occurs most often at sleep onset. An individual, even though aware and maintains that he is awake, is atonic, and has great difficulty moving. This atonic state is similar to the atonia experienced during REM sleep. This experience also may produce great anxiety and fear, while the individual struggles to 'wake up'

Individuals who experience sleep paralysis often report concurrent hypnagogic (that drowsiness that precedes sleep) hallucinations. A commonly reported hallucination is the feeling of a presence or entity in the room in which the individual sleeps. At times this presence may seem threatening and evil giving rise to the folklore belief of the 'night-mare,' the 'old hag,' and the 'incubi.' "

Personally, I used to experience these things all the time. Before I knew the Lord I would have these 'paralyze dreams' once or twice a night. As a young man, I became so used to having these, that I found if I could just move one limb I could 'get out of it.' When I was married, my wife learned that when I became rigid as a board, and my whole body began to tremble violently - it meant that I was having a paralysis dream, and she would shake me till I was free from it.

After a couple of years though, she stopped bothering. At first I think it freaked her out so much that she was willing to shake me awake every night - but after a few years, she got used to it, and stopped waking me up altogether.

When I came to the Lord, the phenomenon abrubtly stopped. I still got them once in a while, but not every night. I could go months without an instance - and when they did come, I was not afraid.

In this altered state, I was often set upon by voices or images. Having been brought up in a mix of superstition and catholicism - I didn't know the Lord, but I did know about evil. I supposed (and still do) that whatever I was experiencing was of the devil or of his minions.

I say, I believe it is of the devil, because it stopped almost entirely when I became a Christian (considering it had been a nightly occurance for decades prior to that), and because when they happen now, I simply call on the name of the Lord, and the voices or images blow themselves out - sometimes in a rage, sometimes in a whisper - I don't care which, but they always leave, and when I am 'realeased' I can praise the Lord.

Am I the only one who has ever experienced this on the board?

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Daniel van de Laar

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Ron Bailey

Yeah the weird stuff is, well,... weird.

The common factor seems to be lucidity - that is, it would be misleading to describe the state as 'sleep' since the individual is lucid.

Whatever the case, there is much on the internet about it.

Dan

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Daniel van de Laar

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Robert Wurtz II

Rob:
Like yourself, I developed a way to wake myself up. First I learned to open my eyes - if I could just... force... one... lid... open!

Then I learned to chatter my teeth - I laugh to think of it - but I was able to lay there wide eyed - chattering my teeth.

Eventually I learned to turn my head - but it was so violent to any onlooker - imagine a wide eyed, teeth chattering, man thrashing about on the bed, head turned violently to the left - now to the right - again and again. I am smiling as I write this knowing how ridiculous our odd it must sound to any who hasn't experienced it.

I never tried breathing differently - my efforts were always to 'break through' the paralysis.

Thanks for sharing!

Dan

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Daniel van de Laar

Is this at all related to night terrors? My son who just turned 9 has had these off and on. Especially when he is sick and has a fever or is worn out. He awakes in the middle of the night dreaming ,but his eyes are wide open. He can look right at me (actually it looks like he is looking through me). He is always seeing something happening that I can't see and it scares him badly. He can be sitting up and I can even get him out of bed, but he still is in the dream. I try and try to wake him up and I pray over him, but it takes a long time to wake him up out of it. He used to not have any memory of them the next morning, but lately he has remembered that he had a bad dream. It is frightening to us as well, to see him and his facial expressions knowing that he is frightened by something that we can't see.

His most recent ones have been about spinning or going very fast out of control. And now when he moves really fast in a turning or spinning motion, he says that he feels like the dream is coming back. In the night terrror he said he felt like everything was moving a lightening speed and he couldn't stop it.

Anyone know about these?

In Him, Chanin

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Chanin

I can see some folks being afraid to go to bed tonight if we keep this thread going! ;-) I have enough hits on all this symptoms to say 'yes, that's it' and enough misses to say 'no, that's not me'.

Here's something to tuck you up with...

How do Thy mercies close me round!
For ever be Thy name adored!
I blush in all things to abound;
The servant is above his Lord.

Inured to poverty and pain.
A suffering life my Master led;
The Son of God, the Son of Man,
He had not where to lay His head.

But, lo! A place He hath prepared
For me, whom watchful angels keep;
Nay, He Himself becomes my Guard,
He smoothes my bed, and gives me sleep.

Jesus protects; my fears, be gone!
What can the Rock of Ages move?
Safe in Thy arms I lay me down,
Thy everlasting arms of love!

While Thou are intimately nigh,
Who, who shall violate my rest?
Sin, earth and hell I now defy;
I lean upon my Saviour’s breast.

I rest beneath the Almighty’s shade;
My griefs expire, my troubles cease;
Thou, Lord, on whom my soul is stayed,
Wilt keep me still in perfect peace.

Me for Thine own Thou lov’st to take
In time and in eternity;
Thou never, never wilt forsake
A helpless worm that trusts in Thee.

Charles Wesley.

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Ron Bailey

Ah, just received a note from my son, the doctor...
Dad,

If these hypnopompic symptoms are strongly associated with sleeping on your back, then obstructive sleep apnoea is likely to be the cause and that is well worth a visit to the GP. The initial advice will always be to lose weight...
Sleep apnoea has adverse effects on the heart long-term and so it is well worth getting it sorted out...This is interesting in that 'sleep apnoea' can, apparently, be a [u]cause[/u] of hypnopompic symtoms...

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Ron Bailey

This is not a joke, i was just watching our local news about 2 minutes ago and they were doing a spot on sleep apnea. The lady interviewed was very overweight and they showed from her tests (going to the sleep clinic and seeing how many times she stopped breathing for a second or so) that she stopped breathing over 100 times a night. She then had to wear a breathing mask at night. The risks of sleep apnea are :higher risk of stroke and heart attack, not to mention sleepiness during the day- and more weight gain because you feel hungry and unsatisfied becasue of the lack of good sleep.

Anyway, she was ordered to lose weight. That was 130 pounds ago. She only had to wear the mask for 2 months because after she lost some weight she could breath much better. It has something to do with the circumference of the neck. The bigger it is, the harder to breathe at night.

Just thought that was weird that we got that "news' at the same time.

In Him, Chanin

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Chanin

I have experienced 'sleep paralysis' many times and I seem to go through phases of it. It is similar to the things described below/ I wake up but I can't move, sometimes it feels as if I am being pinned down and I have tried to reach for my phone before in a moment of panic and I could see it but I couldn't move to get it. When I woke properly my phone was in the same place and I could move again. It is very strange and I am not sure whether it is spiritual or just some very light stage of sleep where it takes your body a while to wake up. I sometimes worry about it but it doesn't happen as often as it used to. Things like the poem that Ron posted below really help because it quickens my faith and helps me to realise that Jesus is with me and I just trust that he is looking after me and that nothing can happen to me when I trust in Him.