DH sleep paralysis, Spooky

[Brownieinthewine]

DH works for a well known hotel chain, they’re currently closed to the public. However for security reasons there must always be 2 people on site. DH and his colleague do Friday to Monday, DH takes the 7am-7pm shift and sleeps in one of the rooms at night whilst the other guy takes the night shift.

Anyway, we’ve just spoken on the phone and he told me he’s been experiencing sleep paralysis. He says around 1am, he “wakes up” because he can hear footsteps coming from the door and around the bed, behind him. He said then he feels pressure on the bed, and someone get in behind him. He cannot move the whole time apparently and then suddenly he can, he turns around to find no one there.

I suggested he change rooms tonight (he always stays in the same one) and see if it happens again tonight.

It’s really freaked me out and I’m keeping my tv on tonight whilst I sleep so it’s not so quiet and spooky.

I was wondering if anyone else had experienced this or knows someone who has? It’s scary but intrigued, I want to hear your stories

Sleep Paralysis

Sleep paralysis is often described as being held down by an invisible force and can be extremely scary to the person being held in this confinement state. This sleeping disorder is most often associated with demonic or malevolent activity because the disorder 'feels' like someone is holding or pinning you down, thus preventing you from being able to move or to scream for help. According to Sleep Disorder Doctors, this disorder is common.

The IGHS gets reports describing this very event with the person suggesting the event was demonic in nature. They describe being held down, attacked, choked or sexually molested. In every case the 'victim' has not consulted a doctor about a sleep disorder, but they have contacted a priest or minister for an exorcism. It appears that their religious views color their vision of reality. Often this irrational fear is paramount to the fear held by the people during the Middle Ages and during the Salem Witch Trials. The people did not understand so they condemned and destroyed what they did not understand. However, once this disorder is recognized, the demons depart and we understand the nature of the disorder. We all have nightmares at one time or another, yet we do not claim our nightmares were real demons attacking us. We understand that nightmares are fragments from our subconscious mind leaking into the conscious mind and that they generally can be symbolic, not actual.

Unfortunately, our imaginations have been programmed by Hollywood films, such as 'The Entity' that suggest that we should expect some kind of evil demonic creature to terrify us if we should find ourselves being pinned down in bed by an invisible force. We must break free of the singularity of this mind set if we are to understand what is happening by this sleep disorder. However, this is not the case. Instead of being held down or choked by some demon, we suffer a sleep disorder, not an attack by a figure from the depths of hell

My son has had this since he was small, frequently, and he's 31 now. He was given a weighted blanket for Christmas a couple of years ago and says that stopped it! I've looked it up and it's a thing.

@Brownieinthewine it makes me think of The Shining.

I'm too scared to sleep now after reading this thread. Stuff like this has only ever happened to me when I've fallen asleep during the day though, from what I can recall.

It's terrifying when it happens. Oddly it's only happened to me after reading/watching scary things.
The worst was after watching a programme about the Enfield hauntings. I even heard the horrible voice.

My oh experienced it for the first time whilst in a hotel in Dubai. He was sure the room was haunted, as he said he saw a dark shadow and it creeped up over him. It certainly sounded like sleep paralysis to me.

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/oct/11/sleep-paralysis-nightmare-disorder-live-with-condition

I get this a lot and my triggers are being overtired or stressed. It's a horrible feeling though.

I've never had it thank God. However I do find it fascinating.
Apparently it's caused when the body is still asleep (hence the paralysis)
but the mind is awake (hence the hallucinations)
Not the same thing but my dad suffered from awful and bizzare hallucinations when he had sepsis. Well not just hallucinations but actually being in a different place. E.g. He was in hospital but in his mind he'd be on an aeroplane. He could actually see all the people and surroundings ect. Even though he wasn't there.

I've had this probably 20-30 times. It was incredibly, incredibly scary but now I'm able to keep calmer and recognise it will pass. I haven't had the other aspects, but I imagine it's your mind trying to make sense of why you can't move. Definitely stress/overtiredness related.

He's not staying in the overlook hotel is he.

Entirely normal. Because he's changed sleeping patterns.

I've had it a handful of time. All involved the complete inability to move and highlights include:

1. my ex's ex-wife stood at the end of the bed with a gun.
2. an evil demon coming up the stairs and into the bedroom.
3. Aliens holding my wrists really firmly.

It's absolutely fucking terrifying. Why brain, why?!!

As an aside, I'm told that sleeping on your side reduces the instances of sleep paralysis, and that if you wake into sleep paralysis, that you should try to wriggle your thumb (it makes the rest of you wake up).

It's really common to feel something that you would think of as supernatural but as it can be induced by any number of medications, this is highly unlikely to be the case.

It isn’t sleep paralysis
.

It’s ghosts 👻

I get this sometimes if I am overtired or have a lot on my mind and it can be terrifying.

When you fall asleep, your brain switches off signals to your muscles so you don't act out your dreams. I think what happens with sleep paralysis is that your body falls asleep before your brain, so you are still somewhat conscious but you can't move.

This seems to trigger very frightening semi-conscious dream states where you know you are lying in bed, it's as if you can see the whole room even though your eyes are closed, but someone is staring at you or sitting on you or crushing you, or you can't breathe, or your head is filled with extremely loud noise.

For me the most distressing thing is not being in control of my breathing. My body is getting on with the business of breathing without any input from me but I can't consciously choose to take a big breath. It helps to focus on what's happening and realise that my body is actually breathing fine and I'm not asphyxiating, even if I have no conscious control.

Wiggling a toe or a finger can help you wake up but sometimes it happens multiple times before you finally go to sleep properly.

As well as not getting overtired, your DH should make sure he's getting enough exercise. That has made a big difference for me.

Why are you so bothered by it?

All it is is that he's sort of woken up and his body/muscle hasn't woken up yet. People have been experiencing it forever - hence the myths about demons, incubi and succubi. It's an extremely unpleasant, but perfectly normal physical phenomenon.

I used to get sleep paralysis regularly. I now sleep with the TV on which has stopped it. If the TV gets switched off while I'm sleeping, enter sleep paralysis, every single time. I don't usually get hallucinations but when I have the worst ones were the first time it ever happened and I thought a man was sitting on my chest, I thought he must have got in through the window, and a few times I've had this feeling like I'm being dragged around the room. I really hate sleep paralysis. I don't know why it happens to me so much.

I've had it loads over the years, always when overtired or stressed. Most common is seeing white spiders on the walls. Worst one was a demon curling it's fingers around the door frame and snarling at me. DH had it recently and was dragged out of bed by his ankles.

I get it if I fuck around with my sleeping pattern. Naps in the day, late nights or overtired and stressed and it gets me. Horrible aural hallucinations...hearing doors slam downstairs and someone stomping up the stairs. Its accompanied by a terrible feeling of dread. So bizarre!

I have it when I'm overtired. Quite a lot recently. But I remember the first time. Felt like someone was in the room. I always end up trying to scream but nothing comes out

It's terrifying

It's horrible not had it for a long time I use to get it as a teenager (probably over tired and hormones and also a few times when I was sleep deprived with babies) that's the last time. Horrible feeling of panic, heart beating fast, being lifted up or held down seeing the bed your in, and screaming in your ears. Quite terrifying as you are struggling to wake. I thought it was like a panic attack in your sleep. No wonder people think it's spooky though when I was a teenager I thought it was until I looked it up.

It definitely feels supernatural so I can I understand why people think that. I remember one night, there was a shadow person stood by my side of the bed and I was terrified, desperate to scream and wake my then partner up but no noise came from my mouth. It was fully traumatising. Such a stupid quirk of the mind to induce such terror.

Wow, it's so interesting to hear everyone's stories. I remember reading a thread about it and thinking 'well yeah, who doesn't get it several times a week, that's normal!'. And the added paralysis loop of - wake up, can't move, realise it's because you're still asleep, go back to sleep - 'wake up', can't move, realise it's because... - repeat several times. Then fighting with yourself to just please wake up!

Anyway, people saying about sleeping on your back and stress - it makes so much sense now!

OP, sounds like it might be a bit harder for him than simply moving rooms, but at least there's not a ghost!

I get this a few times a year, it really is horrific, years ago before I found out it was actually a real phenomenon I was convinced the house must be haunted, I was so relieved when I found out it was actually a sleep disorder suffered by many, although I still get it. I can deal with it better I just repeat in my mind it’s not real, it’s not real on a loop until I can manage to wake up, though the tall dark thin male figure looming over me is still real disturbing. What I don’t get is why the visions have to be so horrific? Why does are brain not conjure up cute puppies and kittens, why demons? Weird.

I used to get this quite a lot when dh worked away, not so much now he's home, I think it's because I feel safer and calmer. The worst time was when we were going through a bad patch and I dreamt dmil was pinning me down on the bed (she was lovely and died years ago) it was so real and I felt she'd come back to punish me for being mean I felt proper fucked up for days afterwards!! These days I just get the 'exploding head' syndrome thing, which is also a bit shit, not had sleep paralysis for years

I used to get this in my late teens and 20s, only very occasionally now. It was especially bad after having the DC. It only occured during daytime sleeping, when I've been tired and stress doesn't affect it (then I get insomnia).

Fortunately, I've never dreamt of hags or demons, but have just been consious of being unable to move, take a deep breath or speak. Usually I try to wake myself. If I can't I try to go back into proper sleep. Sometime I get stuck in a cycle.

In my teens I had two hallucinating dreams. Part awake, part asleep. The fear woke me both times. One involved a huge spider crawling down my curtain towards me, the other was an auditory hallucinations during sleep of the sound of a rattle snake. I actually got my boyfriend to get up and check the bedroom for that one.

I’ve had this several times. Once it was someone creeping into my flat and getting into bed with me 😱 another time it was me in a changing room and suddenly a pair of hands came under the curtains, grabbed my legs and dragged me off, another time it felt like I was being electrocuted and I could feel an electrical current running through my body and a loud buzzing sound, another time I was floating off into the sky. I really hate it but it doesn’t happen too often. I can’t think of any triggers other than being on my back.