For a few years now, I have had a weird occurrence during sleep. It is as if my mind is awake, but my body is still asleep. I am conscious, but I cannot open my eyes or move. I feel very scared, and try to move my body. Then after a short period of time I "snap" out of it and I am awake and able to move. I used to experience this at least once a week, but after I started taking zoloft, and then switched to Paxil they rarely happen. All of the sudden I had one after almost a year of not having them, and am afraid that they are going to occur on a regular basis. Does anyone know about this kind of thing or have any ideas of what it could be? Thank you for your time.

Hi carlos_jacob,
Welcome to NeuroTalk.
I hope you talk to your doctor about what is happening and hopefully something can be adjusted or sorted out more easily so that you get more sound sleep. Maybe you're waking up during REM sleep when your muscles aren't working. REM sleep is also when we dream. Anyway, I hope you get something sorted out soon. I'll leave a couple of info. sites for you. Maybe it's medication related... as you mention having had this occur before going on the Zoloft and the Paxil. Maybe the dose needs adjusting by your doctor or something like that. Please do talk with your doctor about having these episodes of temporary paralysis.

http://www.sleepfoundation.org/site/...arasomnias.htm
Ask the Sleep Expert: Sleep and Parasomnias

http://postgradmed.com/issues/2000/03_00/schenck.htm
Parasomnias
Managing bizarre sleep-related behavior disorders
Carlos H. Schenck, MD; Mark W. Mahowald, MD
VOL 107 / NO 3 / MARCH 2000 / POSTGRADUATE MEDICINE
http://psychcentral.com/disorders/sleep/rem.htm
Sleep Disorders and REM sleep

http://psychcentral.com/disorders/sleep/tips.htm
Tips for A Good Night's Sleep

Carlos,
This is the first time I've come to the sleep forum and honestly didn't even know it existed until I happened to check to see if there was one here on NT. You are describing something very similar to something I've been dealing with over the past few months. There is a condition called hypnogogia, or "waking- sleep" that you might want to look up on the internet and see if this sounds familiar to you.

Hi,

I'm not sure this is similar, but I had what I think is a sort of similar thing where I was up in the corner of my room and I was so aware of the spider webs there, and I couldn't make it, I was trying to get further up... it was a dream state... but at the time I wasn't able to breathe because of sleep apnea, and when I chose not to go to my mother who was motioning me to come to her (she's dead) I woke up coughing and trying to get air.

That really scared me and that was when I was still seeing the homeless doctor after my home was foreclosed.

He said sleep apnea was common in people who were heavy like me and that I should try to elevate my head when I slept, and lose weight if I could.

I've lost weight and I'm not waking up coughing to get air nearly as much now, but I'm still sleeping on a thick, hard pillow to raise my head.