Sleep Paralysis anyone?, page 1

My first sleep paralysis experience (that I can remember) was when I was about 12 years old. I've experienced it hundreds of times. Although, about 5-6 years ago, I figured out how to keep the experience from happening. If you know your body well enough, you should have no problem pre-empting the effects of the process.

From what I recall, sleep paralysis is usually caused by extreme exhaustion from lack of sleep, or from you just being physically and mentally beaten. Sleep paralysis hit's us when we are inbetween the dream world and the real world (yeah, sounds like the Matrix, lol). Normally we wouldn't notice when sleep paralysis hit's us, because we are fully unconscious. But, sometimes we become conscious of the process, and that's when we the "terror" starts. You can actually feel the effects of sleep paralysis coming on if you are fully aware and familiar with your body. So, how do you prevent it?

Well, most people don't realize what's happening until it's too late. You see, most of us let it happen without realizing it. When you wake up during the process, you are usually already fully "crippled" (as well as having many different experiences in the process caused by the frantic firing of neurons in our brain, which I can only explain as having our "dreams" become "reality" - hence, that is why so many people have so many different experiences with sleep paralysis and have a hard time believing it to be this thing called "sleep paralysis") The only thing most of us can do to snap out of the process, when we are stuck in the middle of it, is to try and call for help, or yell, or just say something. It usually takes a few seconds, sometimes a few minutes - though, it always seems to break the process.

So, to answer the question I presented above: how do you prevent it? Or should I say, how do I prevent it? Well, like I said, you must be fully aware of your body. The dawning effects always seem to be the same: You're in a dream (not always), yet somehow, you are also conscious. You feel your body becoming heavy. You start to feel strange tingling sensations. You become aware that you can't move your arms and legs. You become aware that it feels like someone is pushing down on your body. You began to feel etc...

As soon as you start to feel your body becoming heavy, and you start to feel the tingling sensations, that should be your trigger to wake up! It takes a while to perfect, but it can be done. The only problem with it is, if you wake up and then go immediately back to sleep, the effects will return in a matter of seconds, or minutes, because you are still not fully conscious (at least, thats from what I can see and feel). So, you must stay awake for at least five to ten minutes, maybe longer. Walk around, read - do something other then lie in your bed, close your eyes, and stay motionless. I've helped a few people perfect the pre-empting "procedure." =-D

You can sometimes be so exhausted that the dawning of sleep paralysis might occur multiple times throughout the night and you have to do the above quite a few times. I very rarely have sleep paralysis episodes any more, and when I do, I natually pre-empt them now. I figure the more you can pre-empt them, the less conscious you become of the sleep paralysis and it's effects (you're not caught inbetween the dream world and the real world as much :-). You can even get a better night's sleep.

What type of episodes have I had? Well, before I was totally familiar with sleep paralysis and night terrors (which, in my mind, are caused by sleep paraysis - because sleep paralysis is definitely worse than a nightmare), I had many "full effect" episodes. I'll talk about one episode that always sticks in my mind.

I was living in Japan, and I was home alone. My mother was off on some type of vacation in China. I went to bed like normal. I slowly started drifting off to sleep. I started to feel the effects of sleep paralysis a little while later. I still was ignorant as to what was actually happening to me at the time. So, I didn't wake up or anything, I didn't know how. When the effects fully enveloped me, I tried opening my eyes, but I couldn't. My whole body felt like it was being pushed into my bed. It felt like I had many "hands" pressing me down. I felt the strange "tingling" effect (it feels like electricity going through your body). I then started to hear "voices," many of them! It felt like there were beings in the room, other then me. And then I started to see bright "lights" through my eyelids. I tried yelling, but I couldn't. I kept on trying and trying, and then finally, I was able to let out one loud yell... the effect subsided. I was back in control of my body. I was a little shaken up to say the least.

My question is, does this sound familiar to anyone? It sounds like a typical "alien abduction," right? Think about it. When I awoke, there was nothing there but me and my ignorance. I never really talked about it with anyone - I had a feeling there was something more to it then a bunch of damn "aliens."

Anyways, I talked about that episode (and some others) with a therapist (I was seeing a therapist to please my family - just talk my problems out, and to see if the vascular headaches "with a side of migraines" could be cured, lol) years later, just to see if she knew anything about such episodes. All she brought up was night terrors, nothing about sleep paralysis. And of course the information got to the shrink of the building and I was prescribed an Anti-Depressant, as well as an Anti-Psychotic (which supposedly had the effect of treating vascular headaches and migrains - BS. I found out later she told my Uncle I might be developing mild Schizophrenia, lol). I won't go into how many type of drugs they put me on and I willingly took, just to please the family, but that Anti-Psychotic literally made me dead. Not only did it enhance the effects of my vascular headaches and migraines, it kind of cut of my higher functioning. That inner-voice that everyone talks about - it was gone. It did a lot more, but anyways... :-D

All that because those morons couldn't tell that I was waking up during sleep paralysis. Sleep paralysis probably never even crossed their minds. Hell, maybe they had never even heard of it.

Suffice to say, I've been prescription drug free for over a year and I'm feeling fine. I think it is very rare to find a credible doctor anymore. I think most of these doctor's are getting kickbacks from the drug companies to prescribe everyone these drugs. All of my immediate family members have been on Anti-Depressants sometime in their life. One of them has been on Effexor for over two years. I was even on Effexor. That family member thinks it helps him, but I think it's because he can't deal with his problems very well, as well as his stress. In fact, all those family members who have been on them have never been able to deal with their problems or stress very well. I'm just going to put this one out there, but I think most people can't deal with their problems or stress very well. So, they get put on these drugs and truly believe they have a "chemical imbalance," and everything is hunkey dorey because of drug X.

I thought every one (as in, the world) was doing pretty well until we were introduced to all these brain drugs. Sure, you have the mental cases here and there, but overall, not too bad. But now, it's like every one is a head case - or so they want you to think. Effexor was the last prescribed drug I was on. I felt myself having this false happiness on it. I really felt brainwashed. I really didn't give a damn about much anything anymore. There were more effects then just those of course. I was on 150mg of the stuff. I had been on it for over 6 months. I started running out of the stuff, I called my (a different shrink from the one before) shrink to get another precription and the moron, even though I told her my name, thought I was some other patient and was saying that I didn't show up to my appointment 3 weeks before, lol. I didn't have another appointment from the time I called for another month. So, I dropped her, and I decided to do the worst thing anyone can do on that type of dosage - I went cold-turkey.

I got the shakes, slight fever, trouble balancing, and a similar sensation to the tingling felt from sleep paralysis. It lasted about 24 hours. It took another few days to become fully balanced again. And another 2 weeks or so to revert back to a non-drugged human. I found myself thinking clearly again. I found myself feeling again. Not the false drug feelings that everyone get's from being on those drugs - they are very different feelings indeed. You really forget the difference - that's why so many people become dependent on them. They truly began to think they need them. It also doesn't help when your family and shrink tell you that you need them.

The fact is, the sooner we start facing our fears, problems, and stress head-on, the sooner we can gain back control of ourselves. We are out of control because we aren't dealing with ourselves anymore. Dealing with ourselves comes in the form of a pill now. And for those who say it makes them happy again - of course it makes you happy, the damn things are firing off your natural happy-brain-drugs. But the happiness is a false one, because we are never truly happy on them - we make ourselves believe we are.

Happiness genuinely comes from within, it is not something that can be given to you. Those natural happy-brain-drugs can be fired off naturally from doing the things you love. Also, the number-one thing prescribed for depression is exercise. But, most people are unwilling to exercise because it takes effort. So, they get their doctor to prescribe them a drug, or the doctor never brings up exercise to begin with (I still think there are kickbacks for them). Music can also take you out of depression, but it has to be good music. Hanging out with positive people helps. Sticking with negative people (especially a negative family) will just make it worse.

So, what the hell does this have to do with sleep paralysis? Because sleep paralysis helped get me put on Anti-Depressants and Anti-Psychotics because of ignorant doctors, or most of them intentionally falsely diagnose you with certain things to put you on prescription drugs. Hell, that's all they seem to do anymore. Tell them a few things, and they put you on a drug. Somehow they are able to "diagnose" you with something that quick? And they can put you on a drug just like that? It really makes you wonder. Kickbacks, kickback, kickbacks...

Anyways, for those who read my rant, you have a lot of time on your hands. :-D

For those who need help pre-empting sleep paralysis, U2U me.

[Edited on 6-20-2004 by EmbryonicEssence]