Sleep Paralysis

The thread on panic attacks prompted me to begin a thread on hypnopompic paralysis - otherwise known as sleep paralysis, or 'paralyze dreams.'What is sleep paralysis?"The isolated sleep paralysis event occurs most often at sleep onset. An individual, even though aware and maintains that he is awake, is atonic, and has great difficulty moving. This atonic state is similar to the atonia experienced during REM sleep. This experience also may produce great anxiety and fear, while the individual struggles to 'wake up'Individuals who experience sleep paralysis often report concurrent hypnagogic (that drowsiness that precedes sleep) hallucinations. A commonly reported hallucination is the feeling of a presence or entity in the room in which the individual sleeps. At times this presence may seem threatening and evil giving rise to the folklore belief of the 'night-mare,' the 'old hag,' and the 'incubi.' "Personally, I used to experience these things all the time. Before I knew the Lord I would have these 'paralyze dreams' once or twice a night. As a young man, I became so used to having these, that I found if I could just move one limb I could 'get out of it.' When I was married, my wife learned that when I became rigid as a board, and my whole body began to tremble violently - it meant that I was having a paralysis dream, and she would shake me till I was free from it.After a couple of years though, she stopped bothering. At first I think it freaked her out so much that she was willing to shake me awake every night - but after a few years, she got used to it, and stopped waking me up altogether.When I came to the Lord, the phenomenon abrubtly stopped. I still got them once in a while, but not every night. I could go months without an instance - and when they did come, I was not afraid. In this altered state, I was often set upon by voices or images. Having been brought up in a mix of superstition and catholicism - I didn't know the Lord, but I did know about evil. I supposed (and still do) that whatever I was experiencing was of the devil or of his minions.I say, I believe it is of the devil, because it stopped almost entirely when I became a Christian (considering it had been a nightly occurance for decades prior to that), and because when they happen now, I simply call on the name of the Lord, and the voices or images blow themselves out - sometimes in a rage, sometimes in a whisper - I don't care which, but they always leave, and when I am 'realeased' I can praise the Lord.Am I the only one who has ever experienced this on the board?

"The isolated sleep paralysis event occurs most often at sleep onset. An individual, even though aware and maintains that he is awake, is atonic, and has great difficulty moving. This atonic state is similar to the atonia experienced during REM sleep. This experience also may produce great anxiety and fear, while the individual struggles to 'wake up'Dann,This is interesting. I was talking to my son, who is a doctor, just last week about something quite similar. I get these physical symptoms every once in a while but with very little of the weirder stuff. He mentioned this as a possibility and also 'sleep apnea' which I understand may have some physical similarities.Another difference is that I almost always know that I am dreaming. Throwing myself out of bed always succeeds in waking me up! :-P I've sent my son your email. I'll keep you posted ! ;-) meanwhile this article might interest you. Sleep Paralysis

Yeah the weird stuff is, well,... weird.The common factor seems to be lucidity - that is, it would be misleading to describe the state as 'sleep' since the individual is lucid.Whatever the case, there is much on the internet about it.Dan

Am I the only one who has ever experienced this on the board?Hi Dann,I thought I was reading my own experiences reading of yours. My wife would shake me also. It happened so much and for so long that I learned how to wake myself up by breathing very deeply. This would alert those around me as they saw me doing this. The only thing I could ever control in this 'state' was my breathing. It happened to me all my life since I was about 17. About 7 years ago they almost stopped completely. It was weird because there was a guy I worked with that was a good friend that also suffered from it. It stopped with him at the exact same time. It has happened maybe 10 more times in 7 years and they have been very violent episodes. It is definately a demonic attack- but I believe it is set off by a physical problem. It is as though the enemy knows we are in that state and takes advantage. Thank God my wife still knows to wake me up if she hears it and will shake me real hard. As Bro. Ron said I also knew it was a 'dream state.' I knew everything that was going on to me at the time. I could also sense that it was coming on when I went to bed and would ask the wife to stay up until I was good and asleep and 'watch me.' God Bless,-Robert

Rob:Like yourself, I developed a way to wake myself up. First I learned to open my eyes - if I could just... force... one... lid... open!Then I learned to chatter my teeth - I laugh to think of it - but I was able to lay there wide eyed - chattering my teeth.Eventually I learned to turn my head - but it was so violent to any onlooker - imagine a wide eyed, teeth chattering, man thrashing about on the bed, head turned violently to the left - now to the right - again and again. I am smiling as I write this knowing how ridiculous our odd it must sound to any who hasn't experienced it.I never tried breathing differently - my efforts were always to 'break through' the paralysis.Thanks for sharing!Dan

Is this at all related to night terrors? My son who just turned 9 has had these off and on. Especially when he is sick and has a fever or is worn out. He awakes in the middle of the night dreaming ,but his eyes are wide open. He can look right at me (actually it looks like he is looking through me). He is always seeing something happening that I can't see and it scares him badly. He can be sitting up and I can even get him out of bed, but he still is in the dream. I try and try to wake him up and I pray over him, but it takes a long time to wake him up out of it. He used to not have any memory of them the next morning, but lately he has remembered that he had a bad dream. It is frightening to us as well, to see him and his facial expressions knowing that he is frightened by something that we can't see.His most recent ones have been about spinning or going very fast out of control. And now when he moves really fast in a turning or spinning motion, he says that he feels like the dream is coming back. In the night terrror he said he felt like everything was moving a lightening speed and he couldn't stop it.Anyone know about these?In Him, Chanin

I can see some folks being afraid to go to bed tonight if we keep this thread going! ;-) I have enough hits on all this symptoms to say 'yes, that's it' and enough misses to say 'no, that's not me'.Here's something to tuck you up with...How do Thy mercies close me round!For ever be Thy name adored!I blush in all things to abound;The servant is above his Lord.Inured to poverty and pain.A suffering life my Master led;The Son of God, the Son of Man,He had not where to lay His head.But, lo! A place He hath preparedFor me, whom watchful angels keep;Nay, He Himself becomes my Guard,He smoothes my bed, and gives me sleep.Jesus protects; my fears, be gone!What can the Rock of Ages move?Safe in Thy arms I lay me down,Thy everlasting arms of love!While Thou are intimately nigh,Who, who shall violate my rest?Sin, earth and hell I now defy;I lean upon my Saviour’s breast.I rest beneath the Almighty’s shade;My griefs expire, my troubles cease;Thou, Lord, on whom my soul is stayed,Wilt keep me still in perfect peace.Me for Thine own Thou lov’st to takeIn time and in eternity;Thou never, never wilt forsakeA helpless worm that trusts in Thee.Charles Wesley.

Ah, just received a note from my son, the doctor...Dad,If these hypnopompic symptoms are strongly associated with sleeping on your back, then obstructive sleep apnoea is likely to be the cause and that is well worth a visit to the GP. The initial advice will always be to lose weight...Sleep apnoea has adverse effects on the heart long-term and so it is well worth getting it sorted out...This is interesting in that 'sleep apnoea' can, apparently, be a cause of hypnopompic symtoms...

This is not a joke, i was just watching our local news about 2 minutes ago and they were doing a spot on sleep apnea. The lady interviewed was very overweight and they showed from her tests (going to the sleep clinic and seeing how many times she stopped breathing for a second or so) that she stopped breathing over 100 times a night. She then had to wear a breathing mask at night. The risks of sleep apnea are :higher risk of stroke and heart attack, not to mention sleepiness during the day- and more weight gain because you feel hungry and unsatisfied becasue of the lack of good sleep.Anyway, she was ordered to lose weight. That was 130 pounds ago. She only had to wear the mask for 2 months because after she lost some weight she could breath much better. It has something to do with the circumference of the neck. The bigger it is, the harder to breathe at night.Just thought that was weird that we got that "news' at the same time.In Him, Chanin

I had an incident of this happening to me just last week. I was afraid to talk about it here on SI, but I believe I was "attacked" by some demonic entity as I slept. I am 46 and it has never happened before.I was up at around 4 am praying in my living room and became very cold. I decided to go downstairs to my daughter's bedroom and get in her bed because she wasn't home that night. I intended to continue praying and just get in the bed to warm myself. As I entered the room, I felt a presence, but I ignored it and began to pray. I must have gotten warm and fell asleep. It felt like something pinned me to the bed. I was trying to say the name of Jesus, but all I could do was say some garbled "EE-Uh". It felt like something lifted me off the bed, like I levetated or something for just a few seconds. Finally I was able to wake up. I quickly exited the room and went back upstairs to settle myself down. As I have prayed about this, I believe it was definetly a demonic attack. I have been seeking God more than ever in my life. I believe the enemy is simple trying to turn me back. Once I was able to function after the attack, I went back downstairs and took authority over it and commanded it to leave. I've never had this happen before. Don't know if it's the same thing you all are talking about here, or not. Love, Dian.

I quickly exited the room and went back upstairs to settle myself down. As I have prayed about this, I believe it was definetly a demonic attack. I have been seeking God more than ever in my life. I believe the enemy is simple trying to turn me back. Hi Dian,If we can't discuss real issues why are we here? This is reality. Sounds like it is the same or near to it. I have found that it happens at times when I really seek the Lord in prayer and worship. I don't understand it though I have discussed the topic at some length with a dear Christian brother who is both an apologist and a sleep specialist. He runs sleep clinics around the Midwest. One thing he said to me years ago is that most people have only one or maybe two episodes in their lifetime of sleep paralysis. I said, "It happens to me all the time." He described the dynamics of sleep (which I have long forgotten) and I concluded that it is some sort of sleeping disorder that the enemy uses to attack us. In the time of Jesus there were demons that would throw people into the fire and cause them to dwell in cemetaries unable to bind them with chains; granted this is a lot different in that the New Testament issues were that of demon possession, yet I know that if they could do that they could attack me when I was stuck half asleep and half awake. I also have tried to rebuke and the words would come out in slow motion. People have heard me speaking in my sleep like this and said it was real faint- like a whisper. I once was laying in the living room floor with a house full of people when it happened and was yelling in my 'dream' "Wake me up!... Wake me up!..." I finally got awake and asked those near me why they did not wake me up? They said, we heard you whispering- but we thought you were just playing around. If I feel like I am going to have a bad night I pray for God's protection and then ask my wife to watch me until I am asleep. I really think we ought to pray for one another in this thing. I'll be doing that today.God Bless,-Robert

Before I was saved I would experience something similar but probably not the same thing. My jaw would lock up and I could not open it and my neck would tighten up. I felt like I could not move. It was really frightening because my jaw would close up tighter and tighter and I would just have to wait until it ended. It seemed to be related to an overwhelming fear that consumed me.Does this sound similar to what ya'll are talking about?

Dear saints....This is mighty incredible to me. I saw this the other day and was practically floored by it."You too?"I thought it was just my own bizzaree self. This has been happening over the years somewhat infrequently, both before and after coming into the Light.It almost sounds if there is a couple of different things going on here but both Robert and Dian especially....whew, the similarities...One of the blessings of not cleaning out old email is being able to find things. Dian, I thank you for sharing what happened to you, it has prompted me not to be afraid to put this up. The following is an email I sent to Greg last year as well as Ed and think Chanin as well. Didn't want to just take excerpts from it or clean it up and all the verbage came forth as I typed it within seconds of "waking up", it's raw but...~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hey brother Here's an attachment from this mornings violent, bizarre dealings...You, Chanin, Ed likely would be the only ones that I would likely share this with...Told the wife and...no reaction... I don't know what to make of it or if I even should, but the words are true Mike--------------What just happened Lord? Moments ago 6:30 A.M. Wed 6/9/04...On my face before You in prayer, struggling, wrestling with You that you would bestow back upon me, Your Holy Spirit as it has been so strongly felt in these past weeks. I would not let go, no, not until You blessed me, I was knocking and knocking, would not give up..scriptures running through my mind...Jesus words to keep on asking...'command ye Me', Isaiah..."The kingdom of Heaven suffers violence and the violent take it by force" I resolved not to move until You Lord restored me, everything open and naked before You...everything..and my spirit was sorely distressed, but I would not give up, would wrestle like Jacob and pester like the Syrophoenician woman...Yet, was still praying for others, for Lisa that this stronghold would be broken, for Chanin that restoration would come between her and her mother, for Ed and Greg.. about Chris Clark, dead and ? where is he now?...deep heavings of spirit, groanings without words, the spirit groans..thoughts of the greatness of our God, the powers that be are as nothing, the futility of mere men and even the hosts of hell are limited in their scope by Gods soverign decree...for Revival...Then, on my face I feel into a sleep, into a dream...was working in a warehouse of sorts, tile place maybe, two other guys..trying to find the right angle on something 22 and 1/2 degrees bevel, they went to check on something, was alone, trying to read the gauge, but it was obscure, couldn't see, went outside, everything was gray, dark gray, couldn't see to read it, kept walking toward the light away from the buildings, but it was evading me...still struggling to see...one of the guys walked by, could sense his presence, but I couldn't see him, couldn't see anything...eye's wide open, but it couldn't see...Suddenly I became aware that I was here on my face..and I FELT a force pulling on me, down, down, down...FELT this...aware that I was in this state...had to pull out somehow, then an opposite force pulling me back up I FELT this..it was through me, it was lifting me up....then the pull back downward...It was the devil pullling me...tried to say 'Jesus' and it was muffled, like a hand over my mouth...was trying to cry it out, may have said it outloud...this happened, this is not a dream, because I was aware of it, totally...It was a wrestling for my soul...Jesus save me...and I felt you physically pull me up as if by the shoulders, a lifting, felt You pulling me back...had to break this...Jesus...and it stopped, my eyes were open....What just happened? got up rushed to my computer and typed these very words....Great God in Heaven, this happened...I physically felt this...as if ...how do I explain it?What just happened? I don't understand...My God! The power that was going through me...I had no control over it...stunned, what to make of this? Lord? Who will believe this? Father you know me, this happened Lord..a dream partially yes, but this tug of war I FELT Lord, I was stationary I think in my physical body but I could feel the pull and the lift as if I was a foot or two feet off the ground, and it was You Lord it was You or an angel? I could feel You HOLDING me 'out of the body' like Paul said...I think I understand what he meant by "whether in the body or out of the body I do not know- God knows"Certainly it was in the spiritual realm but I physically felt this...though it was out of the body...how to explain...Lord I knew that You would not leave me, it was not a lack of faith...it was so violent this force, completely out of my control to do anything about it, but only to speak Your Name. But I called on you..my God it tried to stop me from saying Your name! From saying Jesus!I don't understand it...I am not afraid now...what mighty battle just transpired...O give me wisdom Father, I am not given to delussions, my discernment is not towards vain imaginations...This happened. Lord You pulled back up...what happened there? What am I to learn of this? And the faces...I saw something..trying to frighten me, eyes, vauge, something evil and also eyes that were true..this while the contention over my body...thought that it was trying to drag me down to death, not sure, not to hell, no I don't think so...my God this was real...not afraid to die...but my time had not yet come...had no control over what was happening to me...right now I am neither afraid, nor full of peace..just stunned...flat emotionally..quiet in spirit...pondering the meaning of this..Show me Lord...perhaps there is nothing more to know..it just happened.Thank you Lord for saving me, for pulling me back..I understand it not.This has happened before Lord, but not like this. Where I have been aware of the fact that I am dreaming and wan't to wake up but can't break out of it, a force holding me in the dream... the need to break out of it and wake up, to break free from the dream or vision whatever it is...But Lord this was different in that it not only wanted to hold me there but take me down...It has taken me an hour to write this? But I havent or it seems it has been but a few minutes and I am wide awake now! It is 7:37 a.m. I am going to watch the Keith Daniel video now, perhaps...had watched a little earlier up to the 7:05 mark...just documenting. I don't particulary care what anyone thinks because this happened there is no escaping that, every word here is true. Alright I just looked down again at my bible and wasn't sure of this and had looked back through the time and the scriptures, correlating the two time lines...won't make this say what it is not meant to be. But my eyes feel back to the bold type in the study section...John 6:30 "What sign will You perform" and the correlating 7:37..."On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and CRIED OUT*, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink." (* "cried out" is highlighted in my bible)Another note, prior to all this, the point I had gotten to in the video was of him reading Eph 6:10 :Eph 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Eph 6:11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Eph 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Eph 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; Eph 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Eph 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; Had stopped right in the middle of brother Keith reading this, as it was early and felt that I needed to be in prayer first before watching this...going to start from the begining... keep coming back to add and clarify as I am watching this...as the thoughts come back to what transpired, not to embellish, that would be a lie. No...9:00 a.m. 24 minutes through the video...poof...everything goes down, computer, office...get up ask Lisa if the power went out in the bedroom, no...Just in here...hmmm, Jesses monitor blew up yesterday...hmmm, back to the video

In Hong Kong and elsewhere in China, similar phenomena are usually attributed to demons by people (not just Christians). In our slang, this is sometimes called "crushed/pressed by a demon/ghost." (Actually, I just read Clueless's post, I think the best way of translating this Chinese expression is, "pinned down by demon")In my culture, it is generally thought that people who suffer this have more contact with the (dark) spiritual realm. I know two brothers who are twins who were "dedicated" to the evil spirits in a temple as mediums, and they often experience this during their sleep -- while they were conscious, they could not move and sometimes found breathing to be difficult.After they accepted Christ, the phenomenon stopped. It had maybe come back to haunt them once or twice, but once they prayed, they are fine. I was there on one occasion when he yelled in his sleep that he could not move his limbs. When a brother and I laid our hands on him and were about to pray, all of a sudden he seemed to be released.I was never sure whether this is a medical condition or something of demonic origin. But the experience seemed real to me -- once I said "Lord Jesus..." my friend seemed to be immediately relieved.So, to conclude, some of the symptoms described have long been known to Chinese people and quite often these symptoms were described as evil spirits "pinning down" or "pulling up" the sufferers, causing them to be immobilized while they are fully conscious in their beds. Are evil spirits the real cause? I don't know. But whatever's causing it, it's not healthy.

Psa 4:8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety. Pro 3:24 When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet. Here are some scriptures. I pray they comfort you. I belive these are some promises of God that I pray will be yours.

Hi everyone, i bumped into this topic via google. The last two days i've had two horrible sleep paralysis episodes, which confused me very much.Many years ago, before i became a christian, i was involved in the occult. I don't want to tell any details, but this was when the sleep paralysis started. I woke up at night, unable to move, and frequently saw dark spirits circling around my room. This happened more and more often, and after a while they sometimes removed me out of my body, and threw me across the room. Or at least, that was what i experienced. After a few years, after trying a lot of things to get rid of the sleep paralysis i tried to get rid of them by calling Jesus' name. It worked, they disappeared immediately. Not long after this, i became a christian, and got baptized. The spirits disappeared. I threw away all my new age books, tarot cards, crystals, etcetera. Every now and then the sleep paralysis came back, but not as often as before i invited Christ into my life.The last two nights i got the paralysis again, and it's very confusing. This is why i started googling about it again. I don't really see what's causing it. Is it the demons again? I really prayed to be free of the demons, i confessed all my sins (the occult stuff) and threw away most of my stuff. A few days ago i threw away some books from the Jehova Witnesses i still had in my closet. Maybe this is why they returned. Does actions like this make Satan angry? Does anyone recognize this?Two days ago i woke up at night, and saw a young woman dressed in black (they're always black, or dressed in black). I was very afraid. But she was afraid too, 'cause she looked at me and said: "Please, don't wake up, no, don't wake up, please!"She was obviously afraid that i would wake up. Meanwhile i was trying to wake up, 'cause i was very afraid that she might kill me. After a long struggle i could move my arm and touched her hand (she wore a black glove). When i touched her, she backed off and disappeared through my rooms door. I was able to move again. Somehow praying is very difficult at those moments.Last night it happened again, only this time it wasn't a woman, but a very tall dark spirit standing next to my bed. He seemed to destroy the lamp that stand next to my bed, but after i woke up there was nothing really broken.Two days in a row. That hasn't happened in years! Why? I have to say that i also have an anxiety disorder (social fobia), probably caused by something that has happened in my youth (i can't remember what exactly happened, but it probably got to do with my parents hitting me). I'm confused really. Sometimes i fear that i'm getting insane or something, when experiencing all this. I also fear that i might not be totally free of the occult influence.. but i must be free for i - and many others - prayed for this lots of times. I'm not sure why i replied to this topic. This is the first time i see a christian topic about it, that might be the reason. Maybe i just seek some proof that i'm not getting insane. Ah, one more thing. I often experience a headache the day after sleep paralysis, in the back of my head, near the neck area. Is this recognizable?That's about it for now. Thanks for 'listening'.. And let's put our trust in the Lord.

Hi Ahra,Hope while you are here you get to check out some of the messages, there is a lot to draw from.Wish I had an easy answer for you but you can at least take comfort in knowing that you are not alone as well as knowing Him who is Sovereign over all principalities and powers.I often experience a headache the day after sleep paralysis, in the back of my head, near the neck area. Is this recognizable?Wondering if this might not be from the straining to "snap out" of the dream state? The times that I had experienced this before very much recall trying to lift my head but it was as if it was pinned down or weighed a thousand pounds, impossible to lift.Something else along these lines is within the dreams themselves, where I can barely walk or talk, this would be different than trying to wake up, where I am 'conscious', but still the laboring to move the limbs, lift the eye's or even speak... Strange things.Do hope that none of these things frighten us inappropriately but that they would cause us to press in to the Lord in prayer and abiding in Him at all times, awake or asleep, the latter being something we might give more attention to before we doze off. I think your own words suffice:And let's put our trust in the Lord

Greetings!Sleep paralysis is definitely a demonic attack. Ever since I was a small child I remember finding myself paralized for minutes at a time. It's something I got used to, but it began to frighten me when I heard someone refer to it as "the witch riding your back." They said someone was able to solve the problem by sleeping with a bible under their pillow. I tried it, but it never worked for me.My paralysis problem continued on through college. During my senior year I got involved with New Age, and with my New Age "understanding" of Jesus, thought I had a relationship with Him and was safe. Boy was I wrong. About two years later while taking a nap, I felt something tugging at my ankles. Thinking it was a "higher spiritual being," I yielded and a demon jumped on my back, digging his sharp claws into my neck. I fought with him in my paralyzed state for what seemed like an hour trying to get him off. When I called on the name of Jesus all he did was mock me. Finally I stopped struggling and the situation ended. My fighting him only made him stronger. What I learned years later after coming to the Lord is that knowing the name of Jesus is not the same as knowing Him. The demon knew that I didn't really know Him, therefore I had no authority over him.As a believer, the attacks come much less frequent. But when they do, I rebuke the presence in the name of Jesus and that is that. It's not always easy, though. I often have to stand strong and battle, but I do not waiver in my faith and the name of Jesus always causes them to back off. What I've found though is that the reason for these attacks on believers is not always because of sin, but because of the immense calling on our lives. They want us to abandon our faith, so they come against us with all they've got, and they don't back down until they know we firmly believe in the name we're using. We must know that no matter how vigorous their attack, we must stand strong in our faith and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that because of our relationship with Jesus we have the victory.Today I had an unusual experience that resembled the experience of those with sleep apnea. I am convinced that some of those of us witnessing sleep apnea symptoms are really going through a demonic attack. As long as we are conscious of this we can counter the attack by calling on Jesus, even mentally if that's all we can do, instead of giving in to fear, which incapacitates us. Evil wants to steal the Word from us. In sleep paralysis we can still utter the Name. With sleep apnea, there is no breath, therefore the Name cannot be verbalized. Let us remember that as disciples of Christ, the Word lives within us, and in moments of crisis, if we yell it out within our innermost being, we can take control of any adverse situation.Victory is ours...in Jesus' name!!!