Discussion Sleep paralysis

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I'm dealing with this since my teens/early adult years and currently it's coming back frequently after a long time. Today I woke up in paralysis, unable to move, but feeling my mouth filling more and more with saliva. I was afraid of choking on it.

If I keep my eyes closed and try to wiggle my toes, it usually stops soon. Fighting it only makes everything worse. My first sleep paralysis was terrible, I had auditory and visual hallucinations and thought I was having a stroke. Learning about sleep paralysis eased the panic, but it's still exhausting when it occurs several times in a row during the night.

It happens to me mostly in supine position (even if I fall asleep on my side, I then wake up lying on my back in paralysis), how is it with you? What are your tricks to deal with this and get out of paralysis? How was your first paralysis? Why do you think you get them?

 

[sadbadpsychogirl]

same here! it started in me early teens. nothing scared me as much as this. thankfully now i have benzos prescribed and that seems to have stopped it almost completely. but for years i dreaded going to sleep.

 

[Makko]

I rarely get this but it's pretty scary when it happens. I have vivid and bizarre dreams which are benign and enjoyable in themselves, but having them play in front of my eyes when I'm stark awake in my bedroom is a bit too close to schizophrenia for comfort.

 

[Black Sky]

I also have this quite regularly, about twice a month.

First time I got it was when I was 16. I was laying in bed, on my back, head slightly tilted to the side, when I realize I can't move and the air in the room starts to feel thick with malevolence. That vague presence soon materialized into a hairy, beastly creature with sharp teeth that was about to bite my neck. When I tried to scream, I couldn't make a sound. Then the creature turned back into a shadowy mist and dissipated entirely. I woke up utterly terrified. At the time I had no idea what the heck that was ( though I'm thinking maybe I watched Dracula one too many times).

Since then, I've had pretty much every kind of hallucination there is associated with this phenomenon, whispers from beyond, the feeling of being possessed, evil dolls, floating, cold wind, presence next to me trying to choke me, crawling insects, consumed by worms, etc. I like to think I've gotten used to this, but... It's still driving me pretty nuts.

Worst part is, it's adding to my reluctance to ctb. Despite my usual skepticism, sometimes I fear death could be like that, but without ever waking up. I really hope it's not.

As for what helps... sleeping with lights on makes them a bit less frequent and aggressive for me. Whenever the dark catches me asleep, it's an almost guaranteed episode. I've tried to control it, turn it into positive lucid dreaming experiences, but with limited results. I guess the darkness is just too strong, lol.

 

[UseItOrLoseIt]

I had sleep paralysis frequently as a side-effect of either venlafaxine or quetiapine, or a combination of both. Since I've stopped taking meds I didn't have one single episode.
Still, what an awful experience. Just remembering it makes my skin crawl.

 

[KolK]

I used to get that. Then I got suicidal and whenever I got sleep paralysis, I simply sink in, wishing it would really kill me. I kinda enjoyed it. Now, I don't get sleep payalysis anymore.

Nothing good ever happens to me.

 

[Carrotcake]

I have some weird sleeping moments but I'm not sure if it's more like sleep walking or sleep paralysis.

Sometimes I get conscious and I can't move and I try to scream but I can't move my mouth so I'm only making an odd "mmmhhhMMh" sound. Usually it wakes up my boyfriend and then he wakes me up and everything is fine.

Another thing that is happening the last few months is that I semi-wake up, I'm standing somewhere in my bedroom, but I'm lost. I'm conscious enough to realize I want to go somewhere and that I can't find it, but I can't use my mind to rationalize where I am and how to get out of it. Very strange, usually combined with a lot of panic. Lol the thought of never finding my bed again is terrifying in that moment, but also in any other moment hah.

 

[Antigonish]

So I've been dealing with this since I was a child. I usually try to move my arm. Once I do I either wake up or wake up in another dream. Inception yo. Mine usually comes after having a nightmare. Or when I dose off and don't realize I'm sleeping. Most of the time it happens I'm sleeping on my back. I don't think there is a way of preventing it. I just try not to sleep as much.

The hallucinations are the scary part. Usually they don't always start. But everytime. It's like I here a person or thing approaching from a distance and usually right when they appear before me or right when they're close I wake up. I saw it a couple of times and its always a special monster of my own design. I'm kinda scared I might die in my sleep one day from a heart attack.

One day, I was dreaming and 'awoke' in a sleep paralysis state. And couldn't breathe. When I finally willed my self fully awake. I was surprised that I was covering my mouth and nose with my hand while I was sleeping.