The more and more I read about Sleep Paralysis the more grateful I am that it has only happened a couple of times in my life. I was talking about it with my wife last night, and right away she told me about an experience she had when she was a kid... needless to say just one experience with SP and you'll remember...
Please comment and let me know if you've had an experience with SP
Visions and Hallucinations During SP
The creation of terrifying combinations of the dream world and the waking world.
The Old Hag
Have you ever heard the phrase Old Hag Syndrome? Interestingly enough, the hallucination of an old hag sitting on one's chest has been common enough for this phrase to spring up as a synonymous alternative to sleep paralysis.
Due to various recurrent themes in the hallucinations, other cultures throughout history have also referred to SP by all sorts of different names, such as the "Kanashibari" (retaliating spirit) in Japan, "Phi um" (enveloping ghost) in Thailand, or the "Hauka'I po" (night marchers) in Hawaii.
It is estimated that somewhere around 1 in 5 isolated sleep paralysis experiences are accompanied by dream-like hallucinations, almost always manifesting in negative or frightening forms, projected on the hallucinates actual physical surroundings.
Witches, demons, thieves, and rapists occupy the room with the paralyzed individuals, sometimes speaking to them, threatening them, or even touching them in extraordinarily life-like manners.
One can perhaps imagine very few things more terrifying than being completely unable to move, talk, or even scream while an intruder--whether human, demon, witch, or some other nefarious menace--roams about your room while you're awake. As long-time dream researcher Ryan Hurd remarks in his book about conquering sleep paralysis, "Terror is not too strong a word to use here, because it seems as if nothing can be done."
It sounds crazy perhaps if you've never experienced it before, but even taking a brief look at some of the visitor-submitted sleep paralysis stories we've received on this site below will quickly contextualize things and give you a sense of how prevalent this actually is.
Please comment and let me know if you've had an experience with SP
Visions and Hallucinations During SP
The creation of terrifying combinations of the dream world and the waking world.
The Old Hag
Have you ever heard the phrase Old Hag Syndrome? Interestingly enough, the hallucination of an old hag sitting on one's chest has been common enough for this phrase to spring up as a synonymous alternative to sleep paralysis.
Due to various recurrent themes in the hallucinations, other cultures throughout history have also referred to SP by all sorts of different names, such as the "Kanashibari" (retaliating spirit) in Japan, "Phi um" (enveloping ghost) in Thailand, or the "Hauka'I po" (night marchers) in Hawaii.
It is estimated that somewhere around 1 in 5 isolated sleep paralysis experiences are accompanied by dream-like hallucinations, almost always manifesting in negative or frightening forms, projected on the hallucinates actual physical surroundings.
Witches, demons, thieves, and rapists occupy the room with the paralyzed individuals, sometimes speaking to them, threatening them, or even touching them in extraordinarily life-like manners.
One can perhaps imagine very few things more terrifying than being completely unable to move, talk, or even scream while an intruder--whether human, demon, witch, or some other nefarious menace--roams about your room while you're awake. As long-time dream researcher Ryan Hurd remarks in his book about conquering sleep paralysis, "Terror is not too strong a word to use here, because it seems as if nothing can be done."
It sounds crazy perhaps if you've never experienced it before, but even taking a brief look at some of the visitor-submitted sleep paralysis stories we've received on this site below will quickly contextualize things and give you a sense of how prevalent this actually is.
The well-known 18th century painting "The Nightmare" by Henri Fuseli depicts what very likely is a sleep paralysis hallucination (or maybe a night terror). An incubus, or male demon, sits on the paralyzed woman's chest, applying the pressure that is so often felt there during sleep paralysis episodes.
It's amazing what kind of projections the brain can conjure, and these hallucinations have given SP a bit of infamy in various literature and art throughout history, as well as given rise to all sorts of myths and superstitions about what sleep paralysis actually is. Some cultures have ascribed it as an act of the Devil, other individuals think aliens are involved, etc.
But the fact is, these visions are by far one of the most misunderstood aspects of sleep-related things. Some people are fast to ascribe supernatural explanations to things they can't yet explain well otherwise. But let's take a brief look at what science has to say.
It's amazing what kind of projections the brain can conjure, and these hallucinations have given SP a bit of infamy in various literature and art throughout history, as well as given rise to all sorts of myths and superstitions about what sleep paralysis actually is. Some cultures have ascribed it as an act of the Devil, other individuals think aliens are involved, etc.
But the fact is, these visions are by far one of the most misunderstood aspects of sleep-related things. Some people are fast to ascribe supernatural explanations to things they can't yet explain well otherwise. But let's take a brief look at what science has to say.
Why Sleep Paralysis Hallucinations Occur
Beyond some logical connections we can make between SP and the dream world, the precise nature of SP apparitions remains one of the biggest mysteries in dream research. The visions experienced during sleep paralysis are known ashypnagogic hallucinations(HH), or more precisely, if they occur upon awakening,hypnopompic hallucinations.
After reading the causes of sleep paralysis section above, we can understand how closely tied SP is to REM sleep. We also understand that REM sleep is the time of the night where our most vivid dreams occur. In episodes of ASP, our wakefulness intrudes on REM sleep in a way that doesn't fully extinguish the REM (hence the paralyzing).
Our eyes are often open but we are still immersed in ways in the dream state. The fact that we can perceive our surroundings enables us to project parts of a dream outward onto the actual physical space around us.
Additionally, the part of the brain that is most responsible for the intense emotions we feel, the amygdala, is already heightened from our dream state during sleep, possibly contributing to the ease at which our fears and terrors are projected during these hypnagogic hallucinations.
These connections between the dream world and our waking state during ASP make a ton of sense intuitively, but of course there's a lot more room for further verifiable explanation as to the exactness of how sleep paralysis hallucinations occur. If you're interested in learning about further explanations, Ryan Hurd, definitely the closest thing to a sleep paralysis expert I've ever come across, brings together a host of psychological and dream studies theories in the second section of his book Sleep Paralysis: A Dreamer's Guide(follow the link to my review).
The book is also centered around treating and taking control of your sleep paralysis, which is what we'll turn to next.
Sleep Paralysis Treatment
Sleep paralysis can feel like the most helpless thing in the world. You suddenly can't move, if you're frightened you can't scream or call for help, strange sensations (pressure, vibrations, etc.) may overcome your body, and if your episode is one of the 1 in 5 that comes with a dream hallucination you could have a nightmarish figure posing a terrifying threat to you.
Up until recently there really wasn't much grounded advice on how to do anything else besides cope with the experiences. But dream researcher and educator Ryan Hurd has recently changed all that. His... book, pictured, offers.... groundbreaking insight into how you can take control of your sleep paralysis, with insights and advice based in Ryan's own extensive experience with iSP (he's been battling it for 20 years, since he was a teenager) and an extraordinary collection of research and citations.
Have You Ever Experienced Sleep Paralysis?
Share your story with us and our visitors below--your insight could aid others who can relate to what you have experienced.
Original Article Here
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Nathan says: Yeah, so this is some really creepy stuff, I think I'll stick to the "normal" sleep disorders for next time.....
Be sure to join us on Facebook and Twitter for more stories, and links!
*******
Up until recently there really wasn't much grounded advice on how to do anything else besides cope with the experiences. But dream researcher and educator Ryan Hurd has recently changed all that. His... book, pictured, offers.... groundbreaking insight into how you can take control of your sleep paralysis, with insights and advice based in Ryan's own extensive experience with iSP (he's been battling it for 20 years, since he was a teenager) and an extraordinary collection of research and citations.
Have You Ever Experienced Sleep Paralysis?
Share your story with us and our visitors below--your insight could aid others who can relate to what you have experienced.
Original Article Here
*******
Nathan says: Yeah, so this is some really creepy stuff, I think I'll stick to the "normal" sleep disorders for next time.....
Be sure to join us on Facebook and Twitter for more stories, and links!
*******
Since I was a child, I have been experiencing demon-like forces taking over me while sleeping. I am of firm belief through experience this to be true. It is a force not of my brain, mind or sleep habits/patterns. It is beyond this world and people that experience this can relate to my thoughts of this force who are attacked at minimum three times a month. As a child, the demon would catch me before I fall asleep and hold me down. I wouldn't be able to do nothing even screaming at the top of my voice while asleep. It seemed though as if I was awake during this. I used to try to control this by shaking my head and pulling myself awake prior to falling asleep. That worked a little as a child, but not to any success. I would be terrified and even wet in my bed too horrified to get out of bed to go to the restroom as a kid. I talked to older adults about this back then and I would hear "oh baby, it's just the devil riding your back." I was told even "say a prayer when this happen to you or tell it to go back to hell." I tried that and the demon force held ne down harder and tighter choking me. As a child, older adolescent and adult, I felt as if I was being raped. As I got older, it feels that I am being checked during these episodes of attacks now. It no longer catches me right before I reach the delta zone of sleep, it attacks me while I am in this deep sleep pattern. There is no control over it now when it occurs. This strange un-worldly force is real and it has nothing to do with sleep paralysis. People that experience this like me knows this. I used to feel uneasy or thought of being crazy to share my experience and beliefs. But now, I don't care because I know that someone out there can relate and identify with my testimony and I don't care who the HE Double hocky sticks don't believe me. John Smith (positivestart@aol.com}
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