Is this sleep paralysis?

[Liv7117]

For the past week, I've been experiencing what I think might be sleep paralysis. Last night it was particularly bad. It happened every time I started falling asleep. I would fall asleep and suddenly would be unable to open my eyes or move I couldn't wake up and felt like I couldn't breathe. Eventually I would jolt awake gasping for breath. Is this sleep paralysis or something worse? I heard that with sleep paralysis your eyes are open, but in my case I couldn't open them at all. And it's been happening multiple times a night which really scares me

[Emilym80]

Well, like you said, people in sleep paralysis can typically move their eyes. That's always been my experience, but I don't see why the paralysis couldn't affect the eyes, too. I don't think it could be anything worse or more sinister either.

Stop sleeping on your back if you do- this is how I avoid having hypnagogic hallucinations (same thing without the paralysis) nightly. Most people who have sleep paralysis sleep on their back or are very stressed/unlucky. The main thing is to recognise it for what it is and patiently wait for it to pass, instead of resisting it. Focus on moving your toe/finger or any part of your body that isn't paralysed, which might be the case, and work towards being able move again.

Hope this helps :)

---------- Post added at 02:29 ---------- Previous post was at 02:26 ----------

Yep- I just googled 'sleep paralysis can't open eyes' and it's not that uncommon. I'd avoid googling it as there are a lot of unpleasant stories about hallucinations but you can rest assured that the majority of people who have sleep paralysis don't hallucinate. The advice I gave you should be sufficient in preventing or stopping it but if you need to read about it, do so selectively.

[Liv7117]

Thank you so much for your response. I'm just very anxious to go to sleep again tonight. It really feels as if I'm dying! I almost never sleep on my back and typically sleep on my side. Can it still happen while sleeping in your side?

[Emilym80]

Hi again,

I suppose it can happen if you sleep on your side. The most common reason is back sleeping but the other is a disrupted or irregular sleeping schedule or fatigue. Does this apply to you? I know anxiety/stress can also cause it or make it more likely to recur. If you're waking up on your back when this happens, you can pin some socks to the back of your shirt, which will stop you rolling onto your back when you sleep but won't wake you up. Whenever I get it, I've usually woken up on my back after a poor night's sleep.

Take care :)

[Liv7117]

I haven't had an irregular sleeping patten nor have I been fatigued and almost always wake up on my side when it happens. I have been more anxious lately though. Thanks again for your response:)

[MyNameIsTerry]

Hi Liv,

I remember coming across this when I was reading about hypnogogia not long ago. It is VERY common in the general population.

I tend to refrain from posting things from Wiki and I don't usually post things on the HA board as they can contain things which could be triggering to people but I think you need to read this because it does show quite high numbers of people who have experienced this and it explains the processes which cause it. These are also seen as normal processes, not disorders and I think you need to use that to rationalise because it just means you are experiencing what anyone else can and its your reaction to it that is making your anxiety/panic escalate:

Sleep paralysis
Humming, roaring, hissing, rushing, zapping, and buzzing noises are frequent in conjunction with sleep paralysis. This happens when the REM atonia sets in sooner than usual, before the person is fully asleep, or persists longer than usual, after the person has (in other respects) fully awoken. Sleep paralysis is reportedly very frequent among narcoleptics. It occurs frequently in about 6% of the rest of the population, and occurs occasionally in 60%. In surveys from Canada, China, England, Japan and Nigeria, 20 to 60% of individuals reported having experienced sleep paralysis at least once in their lifetime. The paralysis itself is frequently accompanied by additional phenomena. Typical examples include a feeling of being crushed or suffocated, electric "tingles" or "vibrations", imagined speech and other noises, the imagined presence of a visible or invisible entity, and sometimes intense emotion: fear or euphoria and orgasmic feelings. Sleep paralysis has been proposed as an explanation for at least some alien abduction experiences, the Oight Hag and shadow people hauntings.

So, whilst people think sleep paralysis and then think of some form of neurological disorder causing it, how many of us think about the fact its a normal physiological process and nothing to worry about?

I've definately had some of that. When we are anxious with these disorders we feel a strong need to avoid triggers and control not only our surroundings but anything that could impact on a symptom or physical sensation. This feels outside of our control and we panic. You have the additional issue of then focussing on it being a symptom of something serious which then will create obsessiveness and catastrophizing leading to further anxiety over a longer period.

[Liv7117]

Wow thank you so much for such an in depth response. I went to sleep last night with no problems, and am now feeling much more relaxed about everything. Thanks to everyone for their kind replies:)

[feelthelove]

I have suffered sleep parylisis and my eyes were never open , it sounds like sp to me . I'm a Christian and i make the sign of the cross before sleep and i haven't had it since . Yep you probably think i'm crazy ha ha but it has worked for me .