Sleep Paralysis: An indepth look at a global phenomenom

[Bluntman]

Sup folks, I just stumbled on this site, and I thought my first post should be a constructive one. First off, I'd like to introduce myself as an individual with a vested interest in dreams and what lies behind them. I've always found my dreams to be odd, from a lifetime of premonitions and dreams with religious undertones, to being able to control lucid dreams at age 14 and regular bouts of sleep paralysis starting at age 17. But to get back on topic, I'd like to share my experiences with sleep paralysis. My experiences are a bit unique. Where most people only experience sleep paralysis once or twice in a lifetime, I went through it nightly for over a year. I became so accustomed to it, I learned how to turn it into a waking lucid dream. It didn't start out quite so peachy though. I remember my first bout of sleep paralysis quite vividly actually. I'd just gotten out of jail, was involved with gangs and drug trafficking, and my life was a wreck in general. One night, I fell asleep only to wake up a few seconds later. I found myself unable to move any part of my body but my eyes. I had the overwhelming sense that something dark and sinister was in the room with me, about to strike at any moment. Words can't begin to express the terror I felt at the time. With my past, I was completely unafraid to die, but this feeling was much different. I felt like I'd died, and the devil himself had come to collect my soul. I fought with every essence of my being to move, to run away, but I was completely immobile, and the dark presence was getting closer with each second. After a few minutes, which seemed like an eternity, I finally "woke up". When I came to, I was covered with sweat, and I felt like a part of my soul had been taken from me. I'd wrote this experience off as a freak occurence, but it started to happen to me every night after the first time. I felt like God had turned his back on me for the first time in my life, and I had no protection from evil at all. It got to the point where I was terrified to fall asleep at night, because I knew what would happen. Every night it was the same thing...I'd fall asleep, only to be awoke shortly thereafter to the same feeling of a great evil coming for me. Every time I "woke up", I felt like I'd lost a little more of my soul. After about 5 months of this happening on a regular basis, I became accustomed to it. What had started out as short intervals of paralysis turned into bouts of up to an hour at a time. The fear started to subside after awhile, as I started to not care what happened. I knew what was coming when I fell asleep, and I was prepared for it. Until one night when I happened to fall asleep on my back, which was a rare occurrence for me. Normally, I never saw the presence I felt, but this time was different. I awoke to the feeling of a great weight on my chest, and I felt as though I was being strangled. When my eyes focused, I saw something I can't even fully describe. I saw what resembled a woman, only it was far from it. The woman appeared to be well over a hundred years old, and spawned from the depths of hell. Her skin was wrinkled, her fingers were long and boney, her eyes were a sickly yellow and her teeth were pointed like a dog's. As usual, I couldn't move a muscle, and this woman was strangling the life out of me while cackling like a witch out of a bad horror movie. When I finally broke free from the paralysis, she was gone. This, I assume, is why the disorder is affectionately called "Old Hag Syndrome". It's a bit late, so I'll continue this post tomorrow.

[1342576]

If I ever saw a great first post, this is it.

[Karillion]

Great first post Bluntman. Welcome to the forums. Look forward to reading more tomorrow.

[pj]

"Affectionately", indeed. I'm looking forward to the continuation. Welcome to DreamViews!

[1342576]

What if the reason he didn't continue his post wasn't because it was "late"? I don't think we'll be hearing the continuation.

[Blue_Dog84]

I'm glad you posted that. I seem to have some sort of sleep paralysis problem; it happens to me fairly frequently. I find that if I sleep on my back or I nap, there's a greater chance of experiencing sleep paralysis. I'll wake up and find that I'm unable to move my body, which is a frightening experience in itself. I always think that I hear my Dad coming into my room, and it frightens me even more to think that he'll try to wake me up, find that he can't rouse me from sleep, and think that I'm dead or in a coma. I always try to move my arms and my head, thinking that by working my muscles, I'll be able to "unlock" them. Sometimes, this wakes me up (feeling groggy and tired). Sometimes, it doesn't work and I decide to fall asleep again, hoping that I'll wake up unparalyzed. I posted on this very subject in the "Sleep and Health" thread. Blue

[Mitsus]

I get SP all the time, but I do not feel any weight or an evil presence. I get kinda scared at first and I move my head side to side, and that wakes me up after a couple of seconds. If I stop, I will be pulled into a lucid dream. Either way I'm happy, but being pulled in isn't the funnest experience. Atleast it feels like I move my head, I doubt I'm actually moving it. I heard that when in SP you can't actually see. You just think you can. Can anyone confirm this?