Sleep paralysis
 

:eek: Not sure if this is a sleep disorder or not but it IS terrifying to say the least! mine is where I am awake yet niot awake ( sort of in a twilight state) And I see this really scary forest surround me, Around the corner ussually either a dark black cloud with red eyes tries to smother me( I end up gasping and my chest feels heavy) or it is some black demon shape with red slant like eyes and two pointy fangs that covers my mouth and sits on my chest, making my chest heavy and me unable to breathe. The real scary part is my eyes are wide open and i can't move.close my eyes or even scream! i told my sleep doctor about this very reluctantly, thinking he would say I was shcizoid or something. he told me I have a bad case of sleep paralysis becuz my brain is overactive and never shuts down.. Due to my ACC I guess. Anyone else have anything like this and what can i do about it? now i am afraid to sleep even with the light on.

Holy crap!! I don't have this so I'm not much of a help but I'm commenting because for years I've been calling my brother a liar and then I see this! Since we were kids he'd tell me that he'd wake up during the night and couldn't move, couldn't scream for help, could only blink his eyes and cry. Even now I didn't believe him (first time was about 10 yrs ago) he would tell me his eyes would open and he's see a dark silhouette standing over the bed looking down at him. I always thought it was bull but now I'm a believer. I pray it never happens to me because I'd seriously die of a heart attack. Did the doctor say what causes this? Sounds like something out of this world to me. I'm not sure I believe in ghosts but aliens? Good luck I hope this doesn't happen to you ever again!

I had sleep paralysis more as a kid, and only once that I can recall with any kind of looming figure. I can still get it occasionally, but it doesn't bother me much except for the nuisance it can be when I want to get up.

Recognizing it (and the phenomena below) for what it is has taken the fear out of it. I either just lie there and wait for the rest of me to wake up (like Uma wiggling her big toe in Kill Bill Vol 1 :rolleyes: :D) or fall back asleep for 15-20 minutes and wake up normally.

I also have lucid dreams and nested dreams (dreams within dreams, like in Inception). The nested ones can mess with you, but lucid dreams can be fun. :cool2:

Doc

My brain is already starting to slow down in the processing department then you expect me to try to figure out the plot of Inception?! :eek:

This sort of thing has happened to me from time to time and it's one of the signs of narcolepsy. Check out the symptoms to see if you have any of the other symptoms. You may have it and not realize it.... just a thought! :)

My boyfriend and I get this too occasionally! I have recently been diagnosed with Lyme Disease, and I believe my boyfriend has it too.

His other symptoms include :

- negative thoughts and anxiety which leads to nightmares (and thrashing around during sleep when stressed)
- night terrors, sleep paralysis, out of body experience (due to Lyme?)
- gets “brain tired” easily when stressed or has to think a lot (due to Lyme?)
- poor short term memory, brain fog, fatigue (due to Lyme?)
- occasional ringing in ears
- Zeolite causes body to heat up at night during sleep (I get this too, same with taking Artemisia, due to Lyme coinfection?)

I'm not alone, yay-ish
 

Hello!
I would like to start my reply by reassuring you that you are definitely not alone. When I was a kid I had almost this exact dream very, very often (except instead of a forest of trees it was a forest of shadow people).
I drove myself sick trying to never sleep. But now that I am an adult, I still get the paralysis every morning but without the dream.
I spent years and years practicing and reassuring myself that the scary things were a dream. I started by imagining some honorable imaginary guardian that would always protect me from the scary imp every night. Eventually, I didn't need to imagine anything at all, it just never happened.
Perhaps through practice and patience you could get rid of the nightmares with the paralysis.
I know this will get better for you and I hope really soon.

I get this paralysis every single morning. My entire family swears I have never been able to just get up out of need. Sometimes I can spend an entire day in bed falling asleep while struggling to wake up.
When I was in my early trends, I had micro sleeps. I would go limp and be stuck, still awake, then I would either blip out and it would be fifteen minutes later, of I would have a very strange dream.
The micro sleeps have (sorta) stopped. But I think I just learned to recognize when I would have one and combat it.
The not being able to wake up without the aid of another person has cost me job opportunities (in my familys own business) and can keep me from getting regular chores done.
Might I ask your opinion on what you think I should do? I really have no clue and I am too embarrassed to go to any one with the fact I don't have control over waking up.
This is an open question, by the way, I am glad to hear other people's opinions.
Thank you.

Lucid Dreams, Sleep Paralysis AND Apnea???
 

Dr. Smith's post above opened my eyes into an unknown World, as with everyone I thought I was alone, but with most problems I have, mine seems to be twisted. So here is a peek into the subconscious mind of an anxiety-ridden, pain wracked Englishman, my friends.
It always starts up to 15 minutes before conclusion (ex has heard me and done nothing). This is the latest event, all are similar. I am always aware it is a dream at some level.
I was trapped on the bottom bunk of a set of beds wrapped tightly in bedding(I use none - allodynia) with my face pressed against a cold, mouldy wall(no wall). My arms are heavy, numb, dead weights tied to my side as I struggle for breath. I feel as though some presence is coming for me. It is at this point I know I am dreaming.
I struggle in the dream, trying to move my arms(sometimes legs) and start shouting to wake myself up. When I was with my ex she sometimes left me shouting for 10-15 minutes before shaking me. The panic rises, leaving me bordering on an Anxiety Attack whilst asleep. This went on for an inordinant length of time until I shouted loud enough to wake myself.
This time, as always, when I woke I was disorientated, out of breath, and my arms (sometimes legs) were totally numb. It is very disconcerting and happens 2-3 times a month.
I sleep poorly, no more than 3 hours at a time due to my conditions, and snore(possible apnea?).
There, twisted!

Dave.