During REM, the brain is very active, and dreams are at their most intense. But the voluntary muscles of the body — arms, legs, fingers, anything that is under conscious control — are paralyzed.
During REM sleep, your body is relaxed and your muscles don't move. Sleep paralysis occurs when the sleep cycle is shifting between stages. When you wake up suddenly from REM, your brain is awake, but your body is still in REM mode and can't move, causing you to feel like you're paralyzed.
Sleep paralysis is when you cannot move or speak as you are waking up or falling asleep. It can be scary but it's harmless and most people will only get it once or twice in their life.
One of the primary differences between sleep paralysis and other states such as dreaming and nightmares is the fact that the individual is awake during the experience. Determining wakefulness is challenging however, especially when using subjective reports.
Sleep paralysis may include hallucinations, such as an intruding presence or dark figure in the room, suffocating or the individual feeling a sense of terror, accompanied by a feeling of pressure on one's chest and difficulty breathing.
During an episode of sleep paralysis you may: find it difficult to take deep breaths, as if your chest is being crushed or restricted. be able to move your eyes – some people can also open their eyes but others find they can't.
Wiggle your toes or fingers
The suffocating feeling is felt most strongly on the chest, shoulders and throat. Shift your focus to the furthest parts of your body. Moving your fingers or wiggling your toes may help break the paralysis.
Lilitu: Some of the earliest writing related to sleep paralysis comes from Mesopotamia. View Source around 2400 BC. These accounts refer to Lilitu, a female demon.
The results indicate that although pain is rare in dreams, it is nevertheless compatible with the representational code of dreaming. Further, the association of pain with dream content may implicate brainstem and limbic centers in the regulation of painful stimuli during REM sleep.
At the end of NREM, your sleep shifts to REM. Your eyes move quickly and dreams occur, but the rest of your body remains very relaxed. Your muscles are "turned off" during REM sleep. If you become aware before the REM cycle has finished, you may notice that you cannot move or speak.
Sleep paralysis is a state of involuntary immobility occurring at sleep onset or offset, often accompanied by uncanny “ghost-like” hallucinations and extreme fear reactions.
During a sleep paralysis episode, you're aware of your surroundings but cannot move or speak. But you can still move your eyes and breathe. Many people hear or see things that aren't there (hallucinations), making episodes even more frightening.
These instances – sleep paralysis and sleep hallucinations (also referred to as “sleep demons”) – can be incredibly scary things to experience. And, yet, aside from the fright, they're harmless. They're simply the results of disrupted sleep. Still, that doesn't help quell the fear when they happen.
In sleep paralysis, the body's transition to or from rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is out of sync with the brain. The person's consciousness is awake, but their body remains in the paralyzed sleep state. The body alternates between rapid eye movement (REM) and non-rapid eye movement (NREM).
It's entirely safe to wake someone up from sleep paralysis. In fact, they will probably be hugely grateful. If you suspect your bed partner is experiencing sleep paralysis, you could try talking to them, tapping their shoulder, or gently shaking them.
During a sleep paralysis attack, try to stay calm and concentrate on your breathing. Understanding what is happening helps release the paralysis faster.
Sleep paralysis lasts from a few seconds up to several minutes. During this time, you can breathe and open and close your eyes, but your body is still in REM mode, which can make you feel like you're paralyzed.
- No matter how much you try, even if you consciously know that you're undergoing a sleep paralysis—you can't wake your body up. A very miniscule amount of people can slightly move their fingers, wiggle their toes or facial muscles, which eventually helps them wake up the rest of their body.
Sleep paralysis (SP) is a psychobiological phenomenon caused by temporary desynchrony in the architecture of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. It affects approximately 7.6% of the general population during their lifetime.
Key facts about sleep paralysis
It's a brief sensation and at most it will last for a few minutes. Despite the scary name, it's not harmful. While it might feel bizarre, it's completely normal. Lack of sleep can trigger an episode.
Sleep paralysis can happen just once and never again. But, for a few people, it may be a regular occurrence. Either way, it can be a big relief to know what's happening. That's why the best course of action is to see a doctor and get checked out.
The first clinical description of sleep paralysis was published in 1664 in a Dutch physician's case histories, where it was referred to as, 'Incubus or the Night-Mare [sic]'.