Sleep paralysis can affect men and women of any age group. The average age when it first occurs is 14 to 17 years. It is a fairly common sleep problem. Estimates of how many people have it vary widely from 5% to 40%.
Causes of sleep paralysis
insomnia. disrupted sleeping patterns – for example, because of shift work or jet lag. narcolepsy – a long-term condition that causes a person to suddenly fall asleep. post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Sleep paralysis can begin at any age, but initial symptoms usually show up in childhood, adolescence, or young adulthood. After starting in the teenage years, episodes can occur more frequently in later decades.
Sleep paralysis (SP) is a common condition that affects approximately 7.6% of the general population during their lifetime [1].
Up to as many as 4 out of every 10 people may have sleep paralysis. This common condition is often first noticed in the teen years. But people of any age can have it. Sleep paralysis may run in families.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Recurrent isolated sleep paralysis (RISP): multiple episodes over time that are unrelated to any sleep disorder or medical problem that may cause excessive daytime sleepiness due to fear of sleeping. Note: RISP is extremely rare, occurring in less than 0.5% of healthy people.
- 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.
Episodes of sleep paralysis last from a few seconds to 1 or 2 minutes. These spells end on their own or when you are touched or moved. In rare cases, you can have dream-like sensations or hallucinations, which may be scary.
Recurrent isolated sleep paralysis (RISP) is a type of REM parasomnia. Individuals experiencing anxiety disorders, PTSD, exposure to chronic stress, or shift work are at risk of developing this sleep disorder.
During an episode of sleep paralysis, people may feel like they can't breathe, but that's not actually the case — a person continues to breathe throughout the episode. Sleep paralysis can happen just once and never again.
Short-term cannabis use appears to increase the time you spend in deep sleep, the stage that helps you wake up feeling refreshed. However, THC decreases the amount of time you spend in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, when you spend more time dreaming, processing emotions, and cementing new memories.
Signs and symptoms
The core symptom of sleep paralysis is the inability to move the body when falling asleep or waking. However, during these episodes, people may experience other symptoms, including: being unable to speak during the episode. having hallucinations and sensations.
Similarly, the auditory (hearing) hallucinations in sleep paralysis can range from routine to bizarre. Many people hear various noises, but hearing voices is the most common. The voices may sound like whispers, screams, or laughter.
It is a common sleep disorder that is classified as a “parasomnia.” Episodes can cause you to feel intense anxiety. Sleep paralysis occurs when the line between sleep and wakefulness is blurred. Normally your brain paralyzes many of your muscles during the stage of rapid eye movement sleep – or REM sleep.
This means that they can think, see, and breathe while they lie awake, but they are unable to move their body.
It is a fairly common sleep problem. Estimates of how many people have it vary widely from 5% to 40%. You may be more likely to have it if a relative also has it. A lack of sleep can make you more likely to have sleep paralysis.
The sensory impact of sleep paralysis could even be sounds or smells, or physical sensations such as feeling like something is pressing you down, or that you are being watched or touched. All of this adds to the way this sleep-related PTSD symptom can be severely distressing.
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]'.
Usually remembered in the context of Narcolepsy-Cataplexy syndrome, isolated sleep paralysis (SP) and hypnic hallucination are widely prevalent and because of the overlap of symptoms with schizophrenia, their identification is important but unrecognized.
Scientific studies have reported a correlation between sleep paralysis and posttraumatic stress disorder, explaining why for some, these incidents manifest during stressful periods of life.
According to information from the National Health Service, sleep paralysis can be triggered by anxiety, stress and depression — which may explain why my first encounter with the condition came during a time of grief.