New Member- scary experience

Hi I am really freaked out as this has never happened to me before, I fell asleep although I felt like my body was conscious. I don't practice astral or anything I don't know what they call it meditation etc. I was dreaming that I had taken someones dog because they lost it and it became my pet, then I started dreaming about flying into this place where there was loud music it was like a tattoo place and I may have been under the influence of taking drugs I do remember a guy from the pub I met on Saturday and he was tripping out on acid, so yeah I'm flying around then all of a sudden I'm sleeping I'm back in my room to the present time and I'm watching myself it's like I;m laying down but I'm behind myself I feel and see this darkness/wave just wash over me and I started panting for breath it was trying to choke/take every breath out of me. I thought omg if I don't get this off me I'm going to die I managed with all my might to shake it off and woke up. I have no idea what I just experienced but it was scary I'm afraid to go to sleep I still feel like theres something here.

all of a sudden I'm sleeping I'm back in my room to the present time and I'm watching myself it's like I;m laying down but I'm behind myself I feel and see this darkness/wave just wash over me and I started panting for breath it was trying to choke/take every breath out of me. I thought omg if I don't get this off me I'm going to die I managed with all my might to shake it off and woke up.

That part reminds me of Sleep Paralysis...?

reply to post by Elton


what can cause sleep paralysis?

reply to post by maria411


Yes, that does sound scary. It sounds like you may have experienced a slight panic attack. After you've got your 20 post requirement under your belt, you can start a thread on this in maybe the dreams forum. You'll find many here, who can relate to your experience, and talk about it with you.

Welcome to ATS...

Des

reply to post by Elton


Nevermind,doesn't matter,this thread's gonna be locked.

But if you stick around OP,welcome to ATS!

reply to post by maria411

I managed with all my might to shake it off and woke up.

There, see? You do have the power to control your life. I would be glad at this point. If it returns, do the same thing again.

The only thing we have to fear...

Originally posted by maria411
reply to post by Elton

 

what can cause sleep paralysis?

There are a few different theories I think - this one seemed like it back when I had it

that sleep paralysis is a parasomnia resulting from inappropriate overlap of the REM stage of sleep and the waking stage of sleep.

... I had it a few times one summer, I was not depressed or terribly stressed out or anything at the time but I would be sleeping and feel like something dark was on my chest holding me down. I would struggle and eventually wake up, sometimes when i finally woke up my arms and legs were still pretty much asleep (it was not fun, but once I found out about it as sleep paralysis and not something awful it got a bit easier to deal with). I think I had it 4 or 5 times.

It's sort of seemed like my brain sort of awoke from REM but my body was still asleep and then the mind makes up a weird hallucination.


an interesting bit from the wiki page:

There are three main types of these hallucinations that can be linked to pathologic neurophysiology. These include the belief that there is an intruder in the room, the incubus, and vestibular motor sensations.

Many people that experience sleep paralysis are struck with a deep sense of terror because they sense a menacing presence in the room while they are paralyzed which will hereafter be referred to as the intruder. Sensing a malignant presence in the room during an episode of sleep paralysis is believed to be the result of a hyper vigilant state that is created in the midbrain. More specifically it is believed that the emergency response is activated in the brain when individuals wake up paralyzed and feel extremely vulnerable to attack. This feeling of helplessness can intensify the effects of the threat response well above the level typically found in normal dreams; this could explain why the hallucinations experienced during sleep paralysis are so vivid.

Yup sleep paralasis is a doozy.

Get it when i wake up lookin off the bed. i just tend to ignore it and go back to sleep.

Gets your heart going though.

At least you didnt say you were being abducted by aliens. This would have a whole different outcome lol

Originally posted by maria411
reply to post by Elton

 

what can cause sleep paralysis?

Nobody knows

Thats probably a premonition of the futur
when we dream .. our brain still fonction
there is many part of our brain more accessible when we sleep
but we usualy dont remember .. they are only glimpses like a puzzle
to help you out during your long road
thats why so many have "deja-vu" experiences
probably old visions that can only be accessible via our subconscious
cant remember until the same image is brought out again and trigger a new reactions
maybe last time in another paralelle dimension you didnt choose correctly what to do
there is your second chance .. this time you will be more focus
you had to had this vision .. maybe your highself did wanted you to have that glimpse

reply to post by maria411


Sleep paralysis is when you wake up before your body does. The thing in place that prevents you from moving at the speed of your dreams (which are super-fast) has not let go of you. So you can't move.

The added issue is that since you're still being controlled by a dream state (the paralysis) you're likely to hallucinate, severely.

And then, even further, it's scary.

To prevent it, don't try getting up immediately from sleep. Just lay there, for 5 minutes, as a habit, eyes closed, as relaxed as possible. Play music that interrupts sleep brain patterns.

I too had experienced something similar to what you have described.I too experience this sort of random sequence of dreams/thoughts/imagination which will have no relevance to the sequence in which it occurs.

Thanks for the help guys, I have kind of been refusing to sleep but now that it's getting to day time I might try and have an hours kip or something, tbh I do not ever want to experience that feeling again but if it happens I will take on board what you have said thanks

Yep.. theyre right. I get this OFTEN. Your brain just releases chems at the wrong time.. or so says my neurologist. Your entering the wrong stages of sleep at the wrong times. I HATE it.. cause I know Im awake and asleep and it still scares the hell out of me. Mine come with intense feelings of fear. Stupid brain... They have come often at times when I am under stress or have had little sleep.. I get all out of whack.I went to the neurologist for it when I was an RN in a trauma level 1 ER and was pulling crazy shifts and living on mtn dew and hot pockets.. with little sleep. It got so bad Id do whatever I could NOT to fall asleep so I wouldnt have to deal with the event.. which made it worse.

Get some sleep, eat good, cut down on stress.