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 openmind
curious
Registered: 08/03/07
Posts: 5,905
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 Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis?
#9016860 - 10/02/08 12:57 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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I figured this is the best fit forum for this as it deals with being in an altered state of mind.
Has anybody here ever experienced sleep paralysis or heard of it? I have had it happen to me several times, first time in a while last night. It is the most horrible terrifying feeling in the world. 
For those of you that are unfamiliar here is a description.
Sleep paralysis is a common condition characterized by transient partial or total paralysis of skeletal muscles and areflexia that occurs upon awakening from sleep or less often while falling asleep.
Physiologically, it is closely related to the paralysis that occurs as a natural part of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, which is known as REM atonia. Sleep paralysis occurs when the brain awakes from a REM state, but the bodily paralysis persists. This leaves the person fully conscious, but unable to move. In addition, the state may be accompanied by terrifying hallucinations (hypnopompic or hypnagogic) and an acute sense of danger. Sleep paralysis is particularly frightening to the individual due to the vividness of such hallucinations. The hallucinatory element to sleep paralysis makes it even more likely that someone will interpret the experience as a dream, since completely fanciful, or dream-like, objects may appear in the room alongside one's normal vision. Some scientists have proposed this condition as an explanation for alien abductions and ghostly encounters. A study by Susan Blackmore and Marcus Cox of the University of the West of England suggested that alien abductions are related to sleep paralysis rather than to temporal lobe lability.
The paralysis can last from several seconds to several minutes "after which the individual may experience panic symptoms and the realization that the distorted perceptions were false" . When there is an absence of narcolepsy, sleep paralysis is referred to as isolated sleep paralysis (ISP). "ISP appears to be far more common and recurrent among African Americans than among White Americans or Nigerian Blacks", and is often referred to within African American communities as "the witch riding your back"
The first time it happened to me i wasn't sure WTF had happened so when i eventually woke up completely i was actually scared to go back to sleep. After doing some research i found out what it was, but even after knowing what it is it's still a very fucked up experience.
I can't actually recall every time it has happened to me. But some things that stand out is having amazing visions of being in a completely different place, dark blob-vapor like entities...extremely strong feelings of dying, fear, helplessness. It is so odd having this happen to you...your semi conscious, eyes are open but you can not move your body no matter how hard you try, most of the time you can't even talk or make a noise it is as if someone ripped out your lungs and larynx.
Though when it happened to me last night i was able to mutter out a faint sound of agony, at least i thought i was. Last night was also the first time that i somewhat realized what was happening to me and i was able to calm myself down for a moment...Then came the crazy feelings of fear and confusion and i was flipping out again.
If anybody else has gone through this please share your experiences.
Here is a bit more reading on wiki>>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis
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Out of the cradle...onto dry land...
here it is standing...atoms with consciousness...matter with curiosity...Stands at the sea...wonders at wondering...I...a universe of atoms...an atom in the universe.
-Richard Feynman-
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 cavidez
Wonderer
Registered: 09/25/08
Posts: 25
Loc: Hawaii
Last seen: 1 year, 8 months
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 Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: openmind]
#9016882 - 10/02/08 01:15 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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i had that a few times.. one time i was w/ my gf sleeping and i woke up from one of those, creepy thing is i was looking at the ac and it said '666' on it.. also the room was all red from my computer monitor screensaver. true story.
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DrOli
Biochemist
Registered: 08/27/07
Posts: 216
Last seen: 1 year, 5 months
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: cavidez]
#9016896 - 10/02/08 01:29 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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I experience it if I sleep at odd times. You can get over it when you wake up, you just have to really, really try to move and you'll suddenly move out of the paralysis. I find it occurs when I', having really vivid dreams and am trying to get away from them.
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FractalDust
Inspired by the mystery
Registered: 03/20/05
Posts: 11,296
Loc: Blue Mu
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: openmind]
#9016906 - 10/02/08 01:36 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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I've experienced sleep paralysis all my life since I was young. For many years I felt just like you and didn't know what was happening and would get scared and fight it.
About 13 years ago I started reading about astral projection and was reminded of these night terrors I would experience and soon realized that they were related.
Because of this realization I was able to experience fully conscious astral projections within days of first reading about them.
When you wake up with sleep paralysis you naturally get frightened and want to fight it, but that is the worse possible thing you can do. You must accept this wonderful gift and experience it fully.
Instead of fighting it off you should immediately relax your whole body and still your mind. Soon you will feel vibrations coursing through your body that steadily increase in frequency and intensity.
This is the crucial point now because shit can get pretty weird. The vibrations are strong and loud, the feeling of not being able to move and not being in control can be overwhelming. To top it off you usually will feel like your not alone. Another presence is felt and it usually will seem to be sinister.
Ignore that shit. Don't give in or you will ruin everything. Keep relaxing and force your mind to remain still and thoughtless.
At this point you can start to use your mind to move yourself up and out. It will be smooth. You will feel yourself start to rise out of your body.
When you are still close to the physical body you will have very little control, and will most likely be blind. The number one goal is to get as far away from your body as you can, as quickly as you can.
Move up and out your window and you will feel the change as you enter the night air.
Now one of two things will happen, and I haven't learned how to control this even after all these years of conscious astral projection.
You will either stay in the etheric realm where you can still see your body, house and neighborhood, and can explore the earth-realm in real time.
Or you will be transported to the astral plane. If this happens you will find ourself in a brand new world you have never been to. This is where it gets good. You can fly around and explore, meet beings, get lost in buildings, dig in the dirt, drink the rain, and fly deep into the sky. Anything is possible, and you are just as conscious as you are right now reading this, but you are on another planet, in a different dimension.
Don't fight sleep paralysis. You have a gift. Many people practice their whole life to experience this and either it takes years of dedication, or they give up. You and anyone else who experience involuntary sleep paralysis are blessed.
I realized this years ago, and am forever grateful for this gift.
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phaseflux
Stranger than most
Registered: 07/16/08
Posts: 702
Last seen: 1 month, 6 days
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: FractalDust]
#9016965 - 10/02/08 02:37 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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actually i had sleep paralysis numerous times, especially when I was younger. I don't know what this has to do with psychedelic experience,
But anyways I just wanted to mention the fact that I noticed a pattern with sleep paralysis. It frequently happened when I was exhausted, such as if I stayed up for 2 days before finally going to sleep.
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Nihlus
ζ
Registered: 07/21/08
Posts: 658
Loc: PNW
Last seen: 23 days, 14 hours
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: phaseflux]
#9017706 - 10/02/08 09:33 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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I have. It's SUPER uncomfortable when you tell your body to move but it is unable to. Everything was kind of swaying and there was this hallucination of a decapitated cat hovering over my head drooling onto me (couldn't feel the drool or anything though) and meowing. 
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Craighead
Cheerfullygrinning
Registered: 10/01/06
Posts: 60
Last seen: 2 years, 10 months
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: Nihlus]
#9017816 - 10/02/08 10:01 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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I've only had it happen to me once. It was pretty terrifying. Especially when your girlfriend is laying next to you asleep and you're trying to get her attention but cant seem to mutter anything other than a soft groan....Though looking back, it was pretty neat. Of course, this is because it's only happened once in my life time.
At least I'd know what to expect next time. 
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OneMoreRobot3021
punky jewster
Registered: 06/06/03
Posts: 60,570
Loc: new york city
Last seen: 3 days, 19 hours
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? (moved)
#9017834 - 10/02/08 10:07 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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 This thread was moved from The Psychedelic Experience.
Reason:
Actually belongs in this forum..
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openmind
curious
Registered: 08/03/07
Posts: 5,905
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: FractalDust]
#9021768 - 10/03/08 12:00 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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Quote:
FractalDust said:
I've experienced sleep paralysis all my life since I was young. For many years I felt just like you and didn't know what was happening and would get scared and fight it.
About 13 years ago I started reading about astral projection and was reminded of these night terrors I would experience and soon realized that they were related.
Because of this realization I was able to experience fully conscious astral projections within days of first reading about them.
When you wake up with sleep paralysis you naturally get frightened and want to fight it, but that is the worse possible thing you can do. You must accept this wonderful gift and experience it fully.
Instead of fighting it off you should immediately relax your whole body and still your mind. Soon you will feel vibrations coursing through your body that steadily increase in frequency and intensity.
This is the crucial point now because shit can get pretty weird. The vibrations are strong and loud, the feeling of not being able to move and not being in control can be overwhelming. To top it off you usually will feel like your not alone. Another presence is felt and it usually will seem to be sinister.
Ignore that shit. Don't give in or you will ruin everything. Keep relaxing and force your mind to remain still and thoughtless.
At this point you can start to use your mind to move yourself up and out. It will be smooth. You will feel yourself start to rise out of your body.
When you are still close to the physical body you will have very little control, and will most likely be blind. The number one goal is to get as far away from your body as you can, as quickly as you can.
Move up and out your window and you will feel the change as you enter the night air.
Now one of two things will happen, and I haven't learned how to control this even after all these years of conscious astral projection.
You will either stay in the etheric realm where you can still see your body, house and neighborhood, and can explore the earth-realm in real time.
Or you will be transported to the astral plane. If this happens you will find ourself in a brand new world you have never been to. This is where it gets good. You can fly around and explore, meet beings, get lost in buildings, dig in the dirt, drink the rain, and fly deep into the sky. Anything is possible, and you are just as conscious as you are right now reading this, but you are on another planet, in a different dimension.
Don't fight sleep paralysis. You have a gift. Many people practice their whole life to experience this and either it takes years of dedication, or they give up. You and anyone else who experience involuntary sleep paralysis are blessed.
I realized this years ago, and am forever grateful for this gift.
Thank you for your input, i will probably never look at my ISP the same. A few months ago i read an article on astral projection, that was actually the first time i heard about it.
Now after reading what you said, i plan on doing some more research and practice on astral projection.
Can you point me towards some good material online?
Quote:
To top it off you usually will feel like your not alone. Another presence is felt and it usually will seem to be sinister.
This is so true that i got chills when i read that...I have even seen dark entities approach and move around me, even the sensation as if they are pulling me into a different place where ever that may be.
Now my ISP experience the other night, for the first time i was able to realize to a certain degree what was happening and was able to calm myself down for a few moments...but the emotions, feelings, and confusion were to much and took hold of me again. I never woke up but rather fell back into deep sleep for another hour or two.
--------------------
.
Out of the cradle...onto dry land...
here it is standing...atoms with consciousness...matter with curiosity...Stands at the sea...wonders at wondering...I...a universe of atoms...an atom in the universe.
-Richard Feynman-
.
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meams
Blessed
Registered: 01/11/05
Posts: 16,161
Loc: In a Tree
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: openmind]
#9022664 - 10/03/08 07:31 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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I have always been petrified of the thought of sleep paralysis. I heard somewhere it runs in the family - and since my dad and aunt get it (My aunt's is accompanied with the "old hag"), I've always been fearful. However, after reading FractalDust's post, I welcome the situation - and desire to experience this Astral Projection sensation.
Some good material would be a huge help, I tried finding some myself yesterday but came across a wealth of homemade geocities-like sites that were only moderately helpful
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hoodbran
Dosser
Registered: 06/01/08
Posts: 1,318
Loc: Phloston Paradise
Last seen: 44 minutes, 29 seconds
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: meams]
#9022694 - 10/03/08 07:39 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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Yes, i've [suffered] with it- emphasis on suffer, it's damn uncomfortable and the evil presence scares the crap out of me, seeing dead folk in my room is no fun and when it happens to me i get bouts of anywhere between 10-30 episodes one after another; prolly cos i'm sooo sleepy... Sitting up in bed or getting out of it stops them and i can fall asleep normally. <<endured since childhood.
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Not all drugs are good, Some are great.
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jazzillion
Conscious
Registered: 04/22/08
Posts: 1,679
Loc: PNW
Last seen: 1 year, 11 months
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: hoodbran]
#9023069 - 10/03/08 09:46 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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I have read up on sleep paralysis because I wanted to write a novel about an individual who suffered severely from it. It just seemed like an interesting condition to delve into. From reports I've read the hallucinations/manifestations are extremely powerful, have been mistaken as one being possessed, and can truly be terrifying. Any other visual stories?
FractalDust, what a fantastic write up. I'm going to have to research astral projection, and this might spark new life in the book that I set off to the side due to lack of time and substance. Thanks for sharing.
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When it rains, it spores 
"Consciousness is the Universe recognizing itself." Once we perceive that everything is conscious we can then ask, "How does consciousness take all these varied forms?" - The Primacy of Consciousness by Peter Russell
All works of poster are of absolute fiction to be used for no other purpose but amusement.
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hoodbran
Dosser
Registered: 06/01/08
Posts: 1,318
Loc: Phloston Paradise
Last seen: 44 minutes, 29 seconds
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Re: Has anybody experienced Sleep paralysis? [Re: jazzillion]
#9023247 - 10/03/08 10:24 AM (3 years, 7 months ago) |
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I think it's definitely a pathway to the sleeping world, the unconscious and the realm of pure awareness! I can feel myself drift and enter this strange place at the same time see my room; for some reason my eyes are either half shut or i have control over them (just as in REM sleep) and i can see... Usually it's of a lady i found who suicided in 96, i see her clear as day... now i know there's a perfectly good no-nonsense medical explanation to this but i can help think it's mystical
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