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I had an episode about 12 years ago that terrified me. I was aware of being in bed, looking around in the semi-darkness at my alarm clock, light, bathroom, window, feet. It occurred to me that I must be awake, as the clock was displaying the time correctly. It said 5-something AM, which was still an hour-and-a-half too early (usually I woke at 7:00 to prepare for work).

I tried to roll out of bed, and realized I was paralyzed. In fact, it had just been my eyes looking about the room, but I couldn't turn my head.

I felt a presence in the far right corner of the room, darkest and most difficult to see in because of the contrast with the window, which had some outside light weakly spilling in.

I thought: is this how I'm going to be abducted? I've been selected by aliens to be probed!

Suddenly I broke the spell, somehow managing to turn my head to the left, and leaped out of bed, searching the house with all the lights on until I was convinced I was alone. After my thumping heart quieted with the realization I'd hallucinated about the ominous presence in my bedroom, I went back to sleep and re-awakened when the alarm went off at 7:00.

My mother, years later, told me about her "male visitor" who watched her lay in bed for several minutes while she lay paralyzed. And a buddy of mine, while camping with his boyfriend, lay paralyzed in his tent while a "UFO" buzzed overhead; he was unable to call out and watched in wonder and terror while shadows encircled the tent, all while his boyfriend slept blissfully beside him.

So, after reading this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis, relate your own "ghostly," "close encounter" with night terrors. And, any sexy ones?

http://www.realjock.com/gayforums/22962/

Reposted my post there since I'm lazy.

Sleep paralysis... a very interesting phenomenon.

In the Philippines, we have a term for it - Bangungot. Translated roughly and wrongly to english as 'nightmares'. Bangungot actually refers to sleep paralysis and is personified by a monster sitting on top of you making you unable to get up.

My own interpretation of it is that your consciousness surfaces before the body is awake.

I have had several really scary instance of this happening.

It used to happen a lot to me, last time was like 2 years ago. There were two vivid instances of waking up and just knowing that something is on top of me or very near me. Some kind of black malevolent presence. Heh. Not getting supernatural here - I AM atheist after all. It wasn't a person exactly, more like a state of mind. It wanted me to let go and the scary part is I had to fight against that happening.

The weird thing is, I can move my fingers and wiggle my toes, and even whisper. And my eyes were OPEN! Well... half-open, but yeah, It's pretty terrifying. I couldn't actually see them,they were more like an absence that made me conclude that they were dark. Kinda like a shadow that is not a shadow, or a cloud... or... hm.... sun dogs... yep.. like sun dogs - the afterimage you get after staring directly at the sun. And try as I might it was VERY hard to move anything. With ENORMOUS concentration I would manage to move an arm or a foot and wake up gasping.

I found out that 70% of these 'attacks' began with warnings. In which, minutes after I close my eyes and relax there would be this kind of buzzing and I feel like I'm withdrawing somewhere. Not an out-of-body experience, but more like getting woozy. Vertigo and the feeling you get after twirling around is the closest approximation to the feeling - as if part of your mind is drawing away. And it's always a very intoxicating experience. Kinda lulls you somewhat. In a way it's like a demon tempting you. Heh

The worst attack was when I woke up with sleep paralysis and I was lying nearly facedown on my pillow. Only one nostril was open for breathing. Since I am claustrophobic, I started hyperventilating, and I very nearly suffocated though I managed to break out of the sleep paralysis. I didn't go back to sleep that night. LOL

It usually happened when I fell asleep very tired or with a full stomach. But as to why it happens, I still don't know really. It also only happened during my periods of intense depression or extreme stress.

Now for nightmares. I have many, but the worst so far was ironically a nightmare about sleep paralysis. LOL. I dreamt that I woke up and couldn't move and just beside me, I could feel but could not see (since I couldn't turn my head) another body. One of the hands was covering mine actually, and our shoulders were touching. And I somehow knew that it was dead. I was screaming silently! ROFL! It wasn't a real sleep paralysis though, since a few seconds later I woke up and realized that the bed in my dream was entirely different and the room was lit with a reddish light while in real life it was turned off.

THAT was really incredibly scary. LOL. I went back to sleep with the lights on.

Haven't had full-blown nightmares for two years now, though. And I've never experienced lucid dreaming. My sister had a book about it, and I read it and tried to do it for myself. Doesn't work for me though, heh.

That ominous presence in your bedroom was the Moth Man. Remember the movie The MothMan Prophecies? It was just on cable the other night. It has to do with some being that looks like a dark angel that predicted death and or took lives. It's supposed to be based on real life events. It was quite fascinating.

MUA HA HAHAH AHAHAHAHAH HAH AH!!!

Okay, in all seriousness I'd like share my experience which was somewhat similar in terms of paralysis but not as spooky as yours.

Years ago I was lying in bed in my studio apartment. This apartment was a special little place in terms of energy. During this time I was taking courses for meditation at a school for energy work and meditation so I was around people 2x a week for meditation practices and whatnot. I think this had to do with my unusual experiences at the time. I think this heightened my awareness of these things.

Anyway, one afternoon I was trying to take a nap and was very relaxed. I had a few things on my mind that were a bit negative. Like some confrontations I had with a few people in my life at that time. I kept playing the scenarios over and over in my head. And it was making me not want to be 'here' as in not be of this Earth. I didn't say or comprehend this thought but I was not happy with what I was dealing with and I indirectly didn't want to be here.

As I kept carrying on with my thoughts I had the most bizarre experience happen to me. With my eyes closed I could see my 'essence' leave my physical body. It was as if my essence was a gas and it started at my head and this gas was probably my soul or spirit. It began to disengage from my head and work its way down toward my feet. Sort of how you peel a banana peel from the top to the bottom. Only in this case, it was not just the surface of my body but it was energy ingrained from front to back. I remember the gas having this very beautiful pinkish orange color to it.

As this was happening I, of course, started to panic. And I tried to open my eyes and wake up. But I couldn't open my eyes and I couldn't move my body. You have no idea how much force I was using to try and open my eyelids. I became quite afraid. Meanwhile at the same time I could see the Earth below me as if I had been catapulted into the stratosphere. The Earth went from having a bed underneath me to seeing the Earth the size of a golf ball below me. This took place in a matter of seconds. It was truly amazing yet terrifying.

The whole time this happen I could hear what sounded like wind blowing and it was a very creepy unwelcoming sound. I was out of control and didn't know what to do. Fortunately I said in my mind, "Back in the body, back in the body, back in the body!!", as I couldn't say it out loud with my physical mouth as I had no control over my body. Then it was like the whistling sound of wind started to go backwards. And the pinkish like gas that was leaving my body started to reverse and go back into my physical body and once it finished by reaching the top of my head I was able to open my eyes and I then jumped up and out of bed and finally had control of my body again.

I really think that I would have died had I not said my little chant of 'back in the body.' The rest of the day I felt incredibly disconnected from my body and felt so ungrounded.

So I think I can relate to some degree.

It really is strange how similar our stories are...

I'd really want to know the reason behind sleep paralysis. Why do we feel that 'presence'? Why do we feel that 'draining away/letting go' sensation and that sense of doom and fear? Why does it take enormous effort to move anything?

Anyway... I'm curious as to what would happen if the next time I experience it, I just 'let go'?

I have a horrible feeling that it would be really bad. It sure felt like if I gave in to that thing, it'd drag me down to somewhere horrible like eternal darkness or hell. ( I know, I'm atheist. Heh)

But in reality would it be what they call astral projection? Parapsychology is still a new science after all (if it's a real 'science' that is).

I get this on a moderate basis and it's terrifying!

I get this occasionally. It is worrisome, especially when I am half in a dream and can't tell if I am awake or asleep. For some reason my dream state makes me aware of noises or things going on, but I am awake enough to want to get up and do something about them. Often it feel as if someone has broken into the house. I try to make efforts to stop them. Obviously I can't. Sometimes, I also feel like I can not breathe or scream. I try to moan or yell in order to wake myself up and get my brain to tell my body that I am in fact awake.

A friend of mine had a roomate who would imagine someone touching her at night. She could not wake up to find out. Turns out he found some of her underwear and a rag with some chemical on the fire escape. Very freaky. Give me aliens any day. I am up for some probing.

I've only had this happen once, i woke up in the middle of the night, past the foot of my bed was the bathroom door, which had a night light. In the doorway i saw someone standing there looking at me and i couldn't move. was like that for about 30 seconds, then all of a sudden, as i was staring at this person, it morphed into a shirt i had hanging by the door and i could move again. It looked really weird, kinda like when the guy Terminator 2 would change shape.

As a child I used to have this. I attribute it to a lack of blood flow/oxygen now as I used to sleep on my stomach and pretty much face in the pillow.

I would be awakened to a preseance of what I called "the witch" but was more like a floating monster that used to hover above me and hold me down with tenticles. It happened to me maybe 5 or so times but I could never scream, move or in any way cry for help. It felt as if my entire body was asleep (you know the feeling you get if your arm or leg "goes to sleep", have that going through your entire body)...when I would finally "break the spell" I would scream for help and the witch would disappear.

I attribute this now to sleeping on my stomach and depriving my body oxygen then having a nightmare as my body is trying to get me to freak out and take in more oxygen. Once I started sleeping on my side, this issue stopped.

Interesting, LaSalle, that you describe your experience as a "witch," much like the example listed in the Wikipedia entry.

Sedative, I suspect that if you just "let go," you fall deeper into sleep. The paralysis itself, as I understand it, is an artifact of being still partially asleep. The mechanism is there to prevent us from making violent movements while we dream.

I think the "presence" is part of the hallucination.

Although these phenomena probably don't fall on the same spectrum, narcoleptics experience the paralysis during waking or emotional episodes, and sleepwalkers experience movement autonomy while still asleep. Sleep paralysis, I suspect, is somewhere near the narcoleptic end of the spectrum.

These are fun stories. My mother still thinks her guy is a ghost. I can almost convince her otherwise.

mickeytopogigio said
These are fun stories. My mother still thinks her guy is a ghost. I can almost convince her otherwise.

Mine was a 'demon'. Pretty funny interpretation from an atheist. hehe

Sedative said

But in reality would it be what they call astral projection? Parapsychology is still a new science after all (if it's a real 'science' that is).

I have projected astrally and I don't believe that what I experienced (described above) was the same thing. I could hear, was a lot more conscious and never saw myself as a gas like matter. When I projected astrally my physical image was intact and I recognized myself immediately for it.

There was another experience similar that I had even a few years prior. I was sleeping in my bed and at this time I was living in a basement. There was something very powerful about that location. I think that house had/has a special energy. I've had experiences down there that were psycho kinetic.

But once while I was in a deep restful state trying to go to sleep I saw this image above me. It was sort of pinkish and white. It looked as if a type of lily flower was hovering over me. But it wasn't as realistic as a flower. It was more of a geometric like shape. But instead of it having many petals it had just two on opposite sides of each other. So by the looks of it, it resembled an elongated diamond shape. Then all of the sudden another set of petals protruded from the center of this figure perpendicularly to the first two so that now it sort of looked like a plus "+" sign.

Then all of the sudden, out of nowhere I felt as though this was like some sort of portal and two more petals would open perpendicularly to the previous and it started to continue to happen at lightning speed. I could feel a part of me get sucked into this like a tornado or black hole. And then I could see myself inside the throat of this image and I was traveling through it. As I went deeper into it two petals would protrude from the center and flair out perpendicularly to the last set. My poor description doesn't do this justice. It all happened so fast but I woke up as fast as I could because I wasn't sure if I was going to wind up somewhere else just like "Sedative" was suggesting.

I don't know what I will do if it were to happen again. I may just ride it out and see what happens. This was nothing like astral projection either.

Any noises associated with this one?

LOL...well at least one person is reading my long ass posts. Thanks!

I can't recall any noise. But I could clearly sense a form of sentience and intelligence from whatever that thing was.

I don't seem to have these experiences anymore. I kinda miss them.

Back then I just completed the final level of reiki classes and then I started up with a school that taught energetic healing and meditation. I now believe that being in that type of environment heightened my awareness of these types of things.

Back during this time when I first moved into that one apartment I made mention of I was lying on an air mattress as I didn't move all of my furniture yet. I think an air mattress can help induce a more relaxed state as there are no pressure points that get impinged so to speak.

So get this....I'm lying there, it's a cold November afternoon and I guess the lucid state I'm in is sort of like a trance. I'm conscious but also connected to something else. While I was lying there resting I literally felt as though someone had jumped on me and grabbed me by putting their arms around me. It was so unnerving and it created the typical 'ripple' effect with the air mattress as they landed on me. I remember the first thought that came to my mind was, "Oh fuck, did I lock my door?!!! Someone broke into my studio apartment!! I asked this because I wasn't able to quickly snap out of that state. And as I was trying to get up I saw an image of one of my previous meditation teachers but she looked different in terms of hair cut and clothing.
The following weekend when I went to my class that teacher, whom I had in the past for other classes plopped right next to me and started talking to me in a snide gloated manner. Somehow she did something and I felt her presence a few days in my studio. She was somehow playing games with me and we were both well aware of it. I just got up and walked away.
Most people that are into these types of energy work are such fucked up lousy game players. I was looking for 'my answers' and to learn and to be a part of a group. That's why I find it hard to stay with a group. I also found this to be the case with my Reiki classes.

Sleep paralysis is a common condition characterized by transient partial or total paralysis of skeletal muscles and areflexia that occurs upon awakening from sleep or less often while falling asleep. Stimuli such as touch or sound may terminate the episode, which usually has a duration of seconds to minutes. This condition may occur in normal subjects or be associated with narcolepsy, cataplexy, and hypnagogic hallucinations. The pathophysiology of this condition is closely related to the normal hypotonia that occur during REM sleep[1]. Physiologically, it is closely related to the paralysis that occurs as a natural part of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, which is known as REM atonia. Sleep paralysis occurs when the brain awakes from a REM state, but the bodily paralysis persists. This leaves the person fully conscious, but unable to move. In addition, the state may be accompanied by terrifying hallucinations (hypnopompic or hypnagogic) and an acute sense of danger [3]. Sleep paralysis is particularly frightening to the individual due to the vividness of such hallucinations[4]. The hallucinatory element to sleep paralysis makes it even more likely that someone will interpret the experience as a dream, since completely fanciful, or dream-like, objects may appear in the room alongside one's normal vision. Some scientists have proposed this condition as a theory for alien abductions and ghostly encounters.[5]The paralysis can last from several seconds to several minutes "after which the individual may experience panic symptoms and the realization that the distorted perceptions were false" [6]. Very little is known about the physiology of sleep paralysis.[citation needed] However, some have suggested that it may be linked to post-synaptic inhibition of motor neurons in the pons region of the brain.[citation needed] In particular, low levels of melatonin may stop the depolarization current in the nerves, which prevents the stimulation of the muscles, to prevent the body from enacting the dream activity (e.g. preventing a sleeper from flailing his legs when dreaming about running).[citation needed]
Several studies have concluded that many or most people will experience sleep paralysis at least once or twice in their lives.[citation needed] In African-Americans, panic disorder occurs with sleep paralysis more frequently than in Caucasians.[11] Some reports read that various factors increase the likelihood of both paralysis and hallucinations. These include:[12]
Sleeping in a face upwards or supine position
Irregular sleeping schedules; naps, sleeping in, sleep deprivation
Increased stress
Sudden environmental/lifestyle changes
A lucid dream that immediately precedes the episode.

thank you, wikipedia.

I don't think I was hallucinating. I think there are realms we don't fully understand. Like in my experience with my teacher in the past. We were both aware of what was going on. She was 'pulling' on me so to speak and fucking around.

now, the interesting stuff:


in many cultures, it is considered an encounter with evil jinns and demons. It is also assumed that it is due to the black magic performed by enemies and jealous persons. Curses could also result in ghoul haunting a person. Some homes and loactions are also haunted by these satanic beings. In Srilankan Culture, this particular phenomenon is referred to as 'Amuku Be" or 'Amuku Pei' meaning the ghost that forces one down. In Mexico, it's believed that sleep paralysis is in fact the spirit of a dead person getting on the person and impeding movement, calling this "se me subió el muerto" (the dead person got on me). In Turkish culture, sleep paralysis is often referred to as "karabasan" ("The dark presser/assailer"). It is believed to be a creature which attacks people in their sleep, pressing on their chest and stealing their breath. In Chinese culture, sleep paralysis is known as "鬼壓身" (simplified: 鬼压身) (pinyin: guǐ yā shēn) or "鬼壓床" (simplified: 鬼压床) (pinyin: guǐ yā chuáng), which literally translate into "body pressured by a ghost" or "bed pressured by a ghost." In African American culture, isolated sleep paralysis is commonly referred to as "the devil riding your back" In the Cambodian, Laotian and Thai culture, sleep paralysis is referred to as "pee umm" and "khmout sukkhot". It describes an event where the person is sleeping and dreams that ghostly figure(s) are either holding him/her down or the ghosts can just be near. The person usually thinks that they are awake but is unable to move or make any noises. This is not to be confused with "pee khao" and "khmout jool" which refers to a ghost possession.

the dictionary explains it as: a "morbid oppression during sleep, resembling the pressure of weight upon the breast."

Such nightmares were widely considered to be the work of demons and more specifically incubi, which were thought to sit on the chests of sleepers. In Old English the name for these beings was mare or mære (from a proto-Germanic *marōn, related to Old High German and Old Norse mara), hence comes the mare part in nightmare.
Folk belief in Newfoundland, South Carolina and Georgia describe the negative figure of the Hag who leaves her physical body at night, and sits on the chest of her victim. The victim usually wakes with a feeling of terror, has difficulty breathing because of a perceived heavy invisible weight on his or her chest, and is unable to move i.e., experiences sleep paralysis. This nightmare experience is described as being "hag-ridden" in the Gullah lore. The "Old Hag" was a nightmare spirit in British and also Anglophone North American folklore.
Various forms of magic and spiritual possession were also advanced as causes.

probed

sounds fun

Ooh the possibilities. Maybe this was what started religions in the first place! LOL Visions of the Devil.

muchmorethanmuscle saidI don't think I was hallucinating.

That's the beauty of an hallucination...you don't have to be aware of it.

My mother won't believe it was an hallucination either. In her sleep-deprived state (which she admitted to, eventually) I don't think she would be the best judge of her medical state.

I think it's possible your meditative state made you more suggestible to an hallucination, as opposed to more aware of "energies." I could be wrong, however.

Without anything to prove, I guess, I'd have to ask: which is more likely, a dream-state induced hallucination, or a portal to another dimension? Are practitioners of meditation more prone to hallucinations or more prone to portal opening? Are purveyors of portals to other dimensions "scanning" the brains of sleeping people to determine who is best to open a portal to?

ive experienced this way too many times...a few times ive been able to open my eyes and i always see something crazy like a ghost or something...but when i cant open my eyes i always feel an evil presence...and i truly beieve it is a demon. When i realize i am paralyzed i immediatly pray for jesus to help me and to rebuke this demon and after i pray this outloud or in my mind...it always stops....

Sleep paralysis serves a purpose, believe it or not. I don't know if anyone else has touched on it because I only skimmed the thread, but if it weren't for sleep paralysis, you'd be waking up every time you dream. When there's any movement whatsoever in your dream, your body will want to mimic that. If you're running, your legs will want to move; if you're flying, your arms will want to move; if you're screwing the hell outta someone, your entire body will want to move. As you could imagine, it would be kinda hard to sleep if you're moving every time you have a damn dream. Alas, sleep paralysis.

Genius, eh?

But aliens...? That's a bit of a stretch.

This post is really interesting. Sleep paralysis sounds similar to "waking dreams" that I think I suffer from. In the past I have been trying to fall asleep listening to music, but my partner will say "you were snoring". And I will respond "that is impossible I was still awake!" It is almost like my brain and body are on separate levels of consciousness if that makes any sense.

I have also had intense nightmares of my birth in which I am basically paralyzed with fear of moving (I was a breach). Sort of like being buried alive.

I had a boyfriend who had this, i told him i would take advantage of him when it happened because it happened quite often. He got mad that I was joking about it, I just figured hey, one man's misfortune, can be another man's fortune, lol.
okay on a serious note as much as I wasnt kidding, it did seem to get to him, I felt bad because he was really scared and he did say he felt someone in the room such as a dark shadow. I told him it was okay and not to pay attention, just keep his cool and try not to think of the dude, that he would go away and meant no harm. I guess I just tried to comfort him as much as I could because he really was terrified of this shadow figure.

If you get aware sleep paralysis regularly, you should probably see a neurologist at some point to rule out narcolepsy.

Way to go Ikaros... reading this thread right before going to bed was a STUPID IDEA
Now I'm severely creeped out and wide awake

muchmorethanmuscle saidI don't think I was hallucinating. I think there are realms we don't fully understand. Like in my experience with my teacher in the past. We were both aware of what was going on. She was 'pulling' on me so to speak and fucking around.

I liked your posts! Very interesting to read. And I don't think you were hallucinating. I think the word hallucinating is used to describe experiences almost as much as God is used to explain things we don't know.


I've had pretty basic sleep paralysis. In high school, I'd have to wake up really early in order to get ready for school in time for the bus. So about 5am. Alarm clocks don't do it alone so I developed this way of going to sleep at night while at the same time trying to wake up.( Hey, made sense to me:roll And it worked. I'd go to bed and the next thing I know my alarm is ringing.

On one occasion that I went to sleep on my stomach, I dream that me and a group of people were in some underwater room. It had furniture, lights, and a television in the wall but you couldn't watch t.v. with the t.v., you can only watch other people watching t.v. The other guys were having fun partially passing through the t.v. to freak out the people on the other side when I start thinking,

"What's going on here...?"

A few moments later I realize it. I say to our group,

"How are we supposed to breath under water?"

Some random guy says " Damnit" and everyone makes a mad rush for the surface of the ocean. Once we make it up, I realize we're on a dock in the middle of nowhere. The sky was dark and cloudy, the sun wasn't shining. At the same time, two girls in our group started fighting (cat fight) and then one starts running away down the dock, back towards the ocean. The other girls cartwheels after her and I followed them too (why not?)

The first girl sprouts webbed appendages and jumps into the water and the girl chasing her cartwheels into the water right after her. I dive into the water right after them. When I opened my eyes, I found myself about 20 feet below the surface and everything was pitch black beneath me, like an abyss. I couldn't see the girls any where but I saw this dead guy floating nearby wearing a suit with his boxers hanging around his ankles. Needless to say, I was effing freaked out. So I start swimming for the surface. And swimming. And swimming. But no matter how hard I swam I couldn't make it back to the surface. Instead I was getting dragged down into abyss. (Reminds me of Sedatives post)

About this time I suddenly realize that I CAN'T BREATHE! And I also realize that my real body isn't breathing as well! Even though I was still dreaming ( well, lucid dreaming at this point) I could feel what position my body was in, and it turns out I was face down in my pillow. No oxygen whatsover. I'm dieing both in my dream AND in real life.

I started stuggling to wake my real body from within the dream to no avail. I was sinking more and more into the dark depths of the ocean.

As the darkness gradually clouded my vision, I mustered all of my energy into one last attempt and finally managed to turn my head to the side.( Not even enough to wake up) The dream faded to black and I lost conscieness for a while longer, danger averted.




I realize now that that abyss was the world of the dead for me and that if i'd just 'gone with it' I would be dead right now. Smothered to death. How's that for sleep paralysis keeping you from injuring yourself in your sleep!

Why I was chasing girls I will never know...

Sleep paralysis is really a protective mechanism
where the brain shuts down your body control
to prevent you from injuring yourself by acting out what is going on in your dreams while you sleep

sometimes..
this shut off is delayed or is shut off before you wake up
this sounds like what you were describing
now the dark figure or aliens that people describe
where does that come from?
Your mind... needs to point to something that is responsible for this seemingly Inexplainable inability to move
so it makes up something

I remember once I was sleeping on my stomach and I felt something heavy lying on top of me my door was locked but the window was open. There is an indian saying of a churail,english version of succubus, but I don't think a female would be able to suck me if I ain't hard! There is a male called inccubus, but he usually fucks women. I think it was a fag-ulus.

I had tried to astral project once because a friend told me about it. I was trying and felt something rising out of my chest, but never 'came out' of my body because I was afraid to stop breathing. (Now I think it is bull ).


There are episodes in my dreams where I was killed (but I brought myself back to life ) or being chased or attacked or smothered by certain people, or ghosts in my house. Usually in between waking up and sleep, I am trying to wake up and 'escape' but obviously its sleep paralysis,(but I don't remember i am in sleep paralysis) and I am breathing really heavy trying to wake. I thought it was the spiciness of the food I ate but, it is random events and random occurances.
It scares the crap out of me tho..


Has anyone after boxing or intense training have your arm or leg move 'sub' or 'un' consciouly? Like if I was intensely punching consciously before sleeping then gone to bed. While sleeping, my arm would punch even though I didn't consciously punch. I also kicked and kneed making that breathing sound through my teeth like it was autonymous. Must be bad for anyone sleeping in the same bed.

God damn... I just had something like this happen to me last night. I was apparently still dreaming and in the dream/nightmare I could feel something grabbing hold of me. I remember feeling my back getting hotter and hotter almost burning. I opened my eyes (I was most likely still dreaming), but I remember the lights in the room flickering on and off. I close my eyes and open them once again and it's now dark in my room except for the light entering through the windows. My back is still getting hotter and I do remember trying to scream or talk, but am unable to. I'm really trying to wake up here, but nothing is happening. As most of you have said, I felt somewhat of a presence in the room. What really wigged me out was when I thought I saw something in my ceiling, it looked like a black mist with squiggly things in it. Once I saw that, I was finally able to scream. The fucked up thing is that it felt so fuckin real, what the hell is up with THAT??? I get the whole feeling like something is in the room or that it's a dream, but why does my back feel extremely sensitive today if this was all a product of my imagination??

I've only had this happen to me a couple of times and they both occurred in the same room. It was back when I was in rad. tech school. I worked 3rd shift and 2 or 3 times a week I'd have my clinical rotations at the same hospital. I'd try to grab a nap in between. The special procedures room seemed perfect to me because it was very dark, quiet, and cool. I laid down and didn't even think I had time to close my eyes before it began. I got the most frightening, ominous, dreadful feeling....I was completely terrified of something but I couldn't even move my head to see it. I could hear it...strange sounds so close like it was right by head just outside of my vision. I knew it wanted to hurt me whatever it was. My heart was pounding and I thought I would hyperventilate I was breathing so heavy and fast. It felt like I was laying for several minutes struggling to move, to get out of there. Finally, I was able to get up and darted out...ha. I could swear I'd never fallen asleep and I don't remember waking up at any point. It really felt like a very dark presence took hold of me. I can honestly say it was the scariest thing I've ever experienced.

I shook it off and did try to sleep in there again....it was exactly the same scenario. I don't know why the only times this has happened would have been in that room...makes me wonder. I was always exhausted back then and wanted to attribute it to that but why did it never happen any where else over those 2 long years.

I've only had this happen a few times, although I always have this sense that I'm being held down by two men on either side of my bed. I wake up, unable to move, and it feels as if I sense this presence of two guys pinning my body against the bed. They're not actually visible when I look around my bed for them (a bit frantically), but I always feel the pressure of their bodies. When I realize what's going on, I try to put as much of my mental energy into moving a limb, and the pressure is usually released within about 10 seconds.

On a slightly related note (I think), I've recently been having the feeling of floating while I'm awake. It usually comes after spending entirely too long working on a project or on the computer. I'm sitting there, slouched in my chair but still awake, and suddenly I get the feeling that my mind is about a foot higher than my body. And when I go to move any limb (like when I go to continue writing or typing), my movements experience a delay, as if the extra distance the signal to move has to travel takes more time. I'm obviously awake and completely aware of the situation, but all of my movements are sluggish and delayed.
A couple minutes after realizing what's going on, though, everything reconnects and I'm working at my usual speed. It comes at times when I don't even feel tired, which confused me.

I have had this happen to me many times and I can attest that it is absolutely terrifying. Its the same pattern, I wake up and realize that I can't move. I struggle the best I can to keep myself awake and not drift back into sleep, as I feel like I will be stuck forever if I don't do something right away. I concentrate absolutely as hard as I can to try and move, even just start with a finger or anything, lying there completely helpless staring straight ahead at something. After a terrifying few minutes (which feels like a lifetime) I eventually will regain control of my body, and most likely will stay up for a couple hours with the lights on. It often happens in conjunction with a nightmare, and I have had on several occasions the feeling of that same presence that several of you describe.

I remember the first time it happened I had a terrible nightmare, I awoke wanting to run away but realized I was paralyzed. It was first year in university and my roommate was still awake on his computer, I was looking at his back while he was playing and trying to scream for help for probably 10 minutes before I was able to wake up. Completely terrifying.

This is something I experience every so often ever since I was in Middle School and it's always the same:

I 'wake up' to a huge spider hanging in front of my face on a web. I swat at it a bunch of times, turn on the light, an search for it until I realize what actually happened. Sometimes it's some other sort of bug, but it is ALWAYS an insect of some sort.

I've read a lot about this topic. It happened a few times to me and scared the bejesus out of me. I had the presence in the room thing too, and what I could only consider now to be a 'Demon' holding me down and whatnot. Keep in mind I was very christian at the time, so that probably had something to do with it.

I've come to believe that, yes there is a natural physical cause. But, simultaneously I don't see a problem with some spiritual externality or w/e triggering it.

Scientists are always too quick to equate cause with effect, and or get them backwards. Especially in matters such as this.

In my case, I think it's equally likely that the 'demon' caused a physical paralysis, as it is that the physical paralysis caused me to hallucinate a demon. Who knows, I cant really say.

(insert Descartes', and Kant's philosophy here to explain cause and effect and physical v. metaphysical)

The important thing though was that I learned quite a lot from the experience.

Timberoo saidprobed

sounds fun

`

lol

Seriously, though – I like this term sedative chose: non-presence. I could have written so much of what’s here – it feels exactly the same way I’ve experienced a lot of these things.

My favorite dream experience was of hovering off my bed, off to the side. A light seemed to be shining through the window, and there was some loud buzz accompanying it.
Under my hovering form, there was nothing. Nothing, as in, The Abyss, the End of It All, Pure Darkness, the Void, etc. Here was the catch: if I so much as allowed a flicker of fear, it would pull me in – forever. Like panicking in quicksand. I had to allow myself to drift around for an undefined amount of time before I could ‘wake up’ – which, thankfully, I did.

This has happened to me before. I've woken up paralyzed and screaming...though no one can hear me.

It hasn't happened in many many years but I used to wake up from sleeping and not be able to move. I would be able to move my eyes but that's it. It happened so frequently that I developed a way out of it. I would concentrate on moving a finger then my hand then my arm and eventually I would break out of it. The process would exhaust me so much I would be drained of energy if I didn't go back to sleep.

At one point I met this woman who had the same experience along with her sister. They shared the same room growing up and the only difference was that they would actually see some demonic creature take turns slowly approach them. She had told me that her and her sister would see the same thing.

One of the last times it happened to me I was at a friends house. I had been told to let myself in using a spare key they hid outside since nobody would be home. I was told that the maid would come by and not to freak out about it. Eventually I got bored and fell asleep in a chair in the living room. I woke up not being able to move and in front of me was a ladder with a short Asian teenage girl on it dusting the top of the ceiling fan blades. It didn't take her long to notice me and she said, "Oh your awake. It's okay go back to sleep. Nothings going to hurt you. You're okay. Go back to sleep. You're okay. Go back to sleep." So I did and when I woke up the ladder and the girl were gone. Hearing a noise from the kitchen area I got up to investigate.

The noise ended up being from the laundry room. I expected to see the girl that I had seen before but what I saw was an overweight middle aged Hispanic woman putting clothes in the wash. I greeted her and she said that I looked so restful that she didn't want to disturb me. I mentioned the Asian girl and when she said that nobody else was here I told her that I must have been dreaming.

The thing to point out is that all of this always happened in full real life color and I always dream in black and white.

Its called laziness, or still sleep

I get this all the time. Since you're still in a semi-dream state hallucinations are not uncommon and they definitely happen to me when I'm in this state. It used to be terrifying, as if some kind of dark power / demon that I couldn't see was somehow present. In fact it was so terrifying that it would always break me, as far as fear goes. Also, one of the downsides for me is that once it happened, I needed to fully wake up first before going back to sleep (stay awake for like 30 mins) or else there was a 95% chance that it would happen again, and again, and again. But once I learned what it was it became easier ot deal with. I've even learned to manipulate the hallucinations I get sometimes. Now it's just inconvenient because when it happens I have to stay awake for 30 mins and it interrupts my sleep, but otherwise it's no big deal these days.

I've had sleep paralysis and it's very scary at first. I would make my German shepherd sleep with me at night sadly she passed on a while ago. But when I had sleep paralysis I would see black things move around my room I don't believe they were ghosts or anything of that sort but it was definitely scary. If you do get it try and wiggle your fingers the minute you make the connection and move a body part you can break free so to speak.

This very phenomenon has been happening to me a lot lately...strange

that happens to me pretty regularly.. I used to freak out, now I mostly just wait. Night before last was an exception as something felt very wrong inside the house, oddly and of course I freaked the hell out, battling my eyelids until they decided to function.. I had to sit up in bed as were I to relax at all I could feel myself swiftly being pulled back in that state. I didn't sleep much after, considering everything still felt very off, which was unusual considering how frequently it happens.

I skimmed through most of it, but if you want a metaphysical term of this... Astral Catalepsy.

It used to happen to me frequently. It became almost a nightly episoed. Finally, It's over now and hasn't happened in over 5 years.

I remember I was studying and i fell asleep with the light on, and for some odd reason I also thought i was awake, but i couldn't move at all including my eyes. I would try to look but it was like i was having a seizure with my eyes rolling back in my head. After I remember waking up again, but I was able to move.

A degree of this happens to me fairly often. Being "paralyzed" in your sleep is a normal protective measure, that prevents excessive body movements that might be harmful. Not only is there a danger of hurting ourselves with sleep movements, but our distant ancestors were probably safer from predators if they remained still in their sleep.

I once knew a gay guy who seemed to lack this response, and would fling himself all over the bed the whole night long while asleep. After being pushed out of bed repeatedly by him, and being startled awake by hits from his flailing arms again & again, I had to spend the rest of the night on the floor. Believe me, you WANT people to have the sleep paralysis trait in order to share their bed, or they will act out their dreams in the most alarming ways.

I most often experience it when something starts to wake me up, most often a chill because my partner has swiped the bed covers, or else a full bladder because I had something to drink right before bed. It's just enough to wake me half-way, but not enough to overcome the paralysis.

So I'll lie there thinking to myself "I gotta pull some covers over me, I'm freezing" since we sleep naked, but my body won't move. Or that I should get out of bed for the bathroom, but I'm likewise immobile. (Fortunately I never have an accident, even at my age... yet)

Sometimes I'll finally overcome it, by concentrating on waking more fully. Which runs the risk that I won't be able to get back to sleep. So I do experience what appears to be this sleep paralysis phenomenon.

This interesting...I thought only few people experienced this.
It happened to me last week and was about the forth episode.

I used to think it was demons trying to smother me while I was sleeping, especially since I grew up in a strict religious household.

But then I did some research and found out it was Sleep Paralysis and nothing to be afraid of. Even still it's a very unpleasant experience.

But I have to say the illustration/painting that symbolizes Sleep Paralysis is a bit creepy...

2 schools of thought here. The Scientific or the Spiritual. For me, these experiences started when my family and I started getting really involved in church. Episodes became more frequent and ended up being almost every night. One night I awoke frozen and the entire bed was shaking. Other times I could feel something jumping on the bed and myself, like a cat, but I don't have one. Always there was the feeling of a demonic presence. Fear is an understatement. It's absolute TERROR. Always, I would pray and it would slowly dissipate. Finally I got fed up. When I last happened, I got out of bed, turned on all the lights and commanded, out loud, for the demons to leave. The nightly horrors stopped instantly! Now it's been over 5 years that I no longer have a fear of going to sleep. It has never returned.

For me, this seems more spiritual than scientific. Sleep paralysis would explain why you can't move, but it doesn't explain the presence you see or feel.

Had one just last night...wasn't that freaked out was pretty aware it was happening and tried not to freak out or make a big deal. Even the dark figure was there too I just thought "Hey...get lost"

I figure there's one of two things that might've helped let me slip into that, or it could've been both...I forced myself to stay awake the entire day on little sleep so I could fix my sleeping schedule so I went to bed exhausted(Going to sleep too tired?) and I ate big carby meal a few hours before I went to bed.

I did notice though I've been sleeping plenty lately(sleeping in a lot) and my sleeping has been just fine, calm dreams, feeling rested, etc. but last night was the opposite; very restless, vivid dreams, the sleep paralysis, and waking up constantly. I figure it was the stress cause by staying awake as long as possible on little sleep. I do notice when I'm stressed it affects my dreams/sleep...especially my dreams, which than feels pretty much feels like being awake but reality is wilder and inconsistent.

It use to happen to me so often.

It started when I was around 11 or 12 years old and I would wake up, not be able to move and everything would feel so heavy on my head like I was slipping away. I would always sense a presence in the room sometimes even seeing figures walk around or approach me or sometimes even speak to me about things that are suppose to happen.

Sometimes it would feel really hard to breathe and my heart would hurt when I would wake up.

I had a doctor tell me they were nothing but hallucinations. Hypnogogis as she refferred to it.

Only it always seemed so real and would only not happen if I had all the lights on or someone else in my bed whether it be a person or a cat or a dog.

That would usually stop it and even then maybe once a month while sharing a bed with someone it would still happen.

I don't like it. I never have and I still think to this day should I give into that feeling of slipping away I'm probably going to die. But luckily it doesn't happen so much.