I might be afriad to lucid dream?

Ok well I'm not afraid of dreaming, but it's what happens before I fall asleep, when I enter sleep paralysis.

It seems like it's getting easier for me to enter SP...but when I do, I feel like my breathing is slowing down, or stopped. I can already feel my body going numb or whatever, but I can't tell that I'm breathing or not.

I'm pretty sure this is called "the old hag," but how do I get rid of this problem, or that I know it's actually happening? If I'm right, sleep paralysis can be a big help to LD, right?

It can be a help but it is not the only way. I have never tried that method but instead rely on reality checks during the day and await the chance in a dream to perform them.
WILD's seem to also be an 'easier' way to achieve lucidity but not the only or best way.

If you are spending too much energy in fear of the SP then try something a bit more relaxing and natural to you. The added focus may help you get what you are looking for.

If you are interested try this:
take long deep breaths in and out, trying to keep no pause between the breath filling your lungs and then releasing out . Focus on the moment between the breath coming in and the breath going out. (similar to a rolling wheel going from forward to reverse. there is a moment where the wheel has to come to a complete stop no matter how fast it is moving before it can go in reverse). Focus on the moment where there is no breath coming in and no breath going out and keep a mantra in mind regarding your LD experience. i find that repeating "i am going into a dream.i will soon be unconscious. I will wake up in my dream and be fully lucid."
Something about the build up of nitrogen and oxygen from the deep breaths i believe keeps the mind sharp and aware as you drift off. You may feel lightheaded or dizzy but you'll probably be lying down while you do this (im not sure if anyone here has a habit of sleeping vertically like a Conehead ).

Hope it helps! :)

Yes your mind's imaginable phase has started! ( confirmation needed ) It's really not scary, laugh at it :D You are only scared of yourself as your mind is part of you! I think it's amazing how dreams forum.

Whoa the person above's me advice is awesome! I shall use it for myself.

Slayer? You asked this! You're the one that wants to have something paranormal happen to you. You also had a very scary avatar/signature going on. You can tough it out, buddy :D

The Old Hag is just a sensed malevolent presence, a hallucination of something being in the room with you that then often takes on a visual form (aka sensed presence, intruder, old hag, whatever).

The first step is, as you've done, reading about it and understanding that what you are experiencing is just hallucination. The suffocation sensation is actually often called the 'incubus' (makes sense, if you think about it.)

Quote:

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One factor consists of a feeling of an unseen ‘‘felt presence’’
(FP) nearby, along with visual, auditory, and tactile hallucinations.
When sufficiently elaborated these are frequently interpreted
as evidence of a threatening intruder and hence we
have labeled this factor ‘‘intruder.’’ A second factor comprises
breathing difficulties, feelings of suffocation or choking, pressure
on the chest or other body parts, pain, and thoughts of
immanent death. The foregoing experiences form the incubus
factor and, when sufficiently elaborate, are interpreted as
physical and sometimes sexual assault. Intruder and incubus
factors are positively correlated with one another as well as
with intense fear and may combine to produce nightmare
scenarios of threat leading to physical and sexual assault.

The body unbound: Vestibular–motor hallucinations and out-of-body experiences
J. Allan Cheyne and Todd A. Girard

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When lucid dreaming was a relatively new concept to me, and sleep paralysis would set in, I found it comforting to remind myself that the hallucinations where just a natural physiological process. That all feelings of suffocation, a presence, etc. were just electrical impulses in my brain; nothing else.

It helped make inducing WILDs less intimidating for me. Maybe it will work for you.

some people can take SP, others can't. not all SP's are made equal, some are down right scarier.

you dont need SP to lucid dream though. Good dream recall is number 1 in lucid dreaming.

Slayerrrrr... Being afraid of sleep paralysis should not hinder your will to lucid dream by any means. You can enter a dream without feeling sleep paralysis at all. :/

You can have a lucid dream by other means than WILD. Keep that in mind.~

It wil take a few tries to get used too.. First time, I had a eyeball jumping on me. I did not feel any panic or fear. Next time I had a zombie when I opened my eyes, no fear felt. Thennnnnnnnnn... A giant rainbow tap dancing guy with a top hat and a cane! Oh my gosh that was the best sleep paralysis ever.

If you want to get out of sleep paralysis, move your big toe. But opening your eyes is a lot easier.

I think you guys are getting the wrong idea...

I'm not scared of audio and visual hallucinations at all. Audio hallucinations aren't scary at all, and when I hallucinate, I only see small little fuzzy things on the walls (like in Spirited Away) when I open my eyes.

I'm afriad because when I start to enter SP, it feels like I've stopped breathing, and after I realize this, I quickly snap back and take a deep breath. I think Robot Butler told me that it is possible to stop breathing when you enter SP.

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Originally Posted by slayer

I think you guys are getting the wrong idea...

I'm not scared of audio and visual hallucinations at all. Audio hallucinations aren't scary at all, and when I hallucinate, I only see small little fuzzy things on the walls (like in Spirited Away) when I open my eyes.

I'm afriad because when I start to enter SP, it feels like I've stopped breathing, and after I realize this, I quickly snap back and take a deep breath. I think Robot Butler told me that it is possible to stop breathing when you enter SP.

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Oh silly me. I think that is a hallucination. Let me find my hallucination poll one second.
Here it is :) 21 people have the difficulty breathing hallucination.

http://www.dreamviews.com/community/...ad.php?t=72632

I would just relax and try not to think about it too much, maybe try to paint a dream to get your mind off it. Surely if this was a problem you would of been dead a long time ago from suffocation :D

*Off-Topic*

Shift has a dancing pig!

It's just a hallucination.

Ah...Ok then, guess it's not anything bad.

All hallucinations are scary to meh...

SP hallucinaions are like having someone say "here. Watch this movie. It's scary, but its only a movie, so you shouldn't be scared of it."

Well damn, if I see something creepy the first thing I'll do is freak out - the only problem is when I freak out in dreams it is magnified 100 fold so that fears tend to come to life.

I too have that horrible suffocating, not being able to breath feeling when I enter SP. It has recently gotten worse, since I've really picked up on LDing. But like all of the responses have said, it is only a hallucination, and you really won't stop breathing and die....

I had two SP episodes where i got the suffocationg feeling but I just laid there and told myself soon I would be dreaming.Then, I felt like I fell through my mattress and everything went numb, I did the nose plug RC and boom I was dreaming.

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Originally Posted by slayer

I'm not scared of audio and visual hallucinations at all. Audio hallucinations aren't scary at all, and when I hallucinate, I only see small little fuzzy things on the walls (like in Spirited Away) when I open my eyes.

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I'm so glad you said this. I've hollucinated a lot in my life and am glad I am not the only one who does.

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I'm afriad because when I start to enter SP, it feels like I've stopped breathing, and after I realize this, I quickly snap back and take a deep breath. I think Robot Butler told me that it is possible to stop breathing when you enter SP.

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Yeah, I have trouble with 'breathing' also. I often have this strange, painful, gurgle/growl sound in my throat and have to wake myself up or the sound wakes me up, or more often than not the sound and pain is encorporated in the dream somehow and I have to wake myself up. Sometimes I can't stop swallowing and get to sleep and once I was in bed, asleep, but aware and I noticed that I had stopped breathing. I wasn't afraid but I woke myself up to start breathing again.

You might prop up your pillows or use some anti snoring product that keeps the throat open. I might have 'sleep apnea' so I am working to loose some weight.

Or just tell yourself to breathe and not get scared and not wake up.

:-)

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Originally Posted by Lady Grimbones

I'm so glad you said this. I've hollucinated a lot in my life and am glad I am not the only one who does.

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Lots of people hallucinate before they fall asleep. I only hallucinate if I'm really tired and have my eyes closed, then open them up.