Thread: Sleep paralysis?

Originally posted by cynical_bob
I am just asking this because of accounts I have heard of people suffering from sleep paralysis when they are not asleep. Anyway...

Is the body actually temporarily paralyzed, or is the mind just detatched (in its own little world)? I have never experienced sleep paralysis and have risen easily from the later stages of WILD and straight from REM sleep without ever noticing anything.

Sorry if its a stupid question.

Sleep Paralysis is a mechanism that prevents the body thrashing around and hurting itself during Dreaming. If everything is in Synch then you never really ever have to experience Sleep Paralysis, since, really, by the time you wake up it would no longer be serving a purpose. In a well co-ordinated system, as you come out of the REM cycle, whatever paralysis that was inhibiting motion would simply fade off. But sometimes, if you are awakened suddenly enough, you will notice Sleep Paralysis. But typically the Dream tries to incorporate the Sensory Perceptions that would wakeup the Dreamer so as to keep the Dreamer in the dream long enough for the Sleep Paralysis to fade.

I have heard of very tenacious individuals who have laid in bed and absolutely refused to fall asleep, but who have laid dead still all night. It must be very confusing for the body that does not quite know what it is supposed to do. and these people have reported going into Sleep Paralysis.