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Comment RSSSleep Paralysis: Alien Abduction, Demon or Physiological ?
June 23, 2010 | 8:08 pm | Sleep problems, Supernatural | 13 Comments“I couldn’t move and there was a disorientating continuous buzzing down the side of my bed which I could not turn to look at because I couldn’t move, I struggled, I was petrified, I thought I was dying. After this first one, I told no one because I thought that there was some kind of demon that came to menace me, or was it just sleep paralysis?“
Khyaak - The Demon Of The Dark
Here in Nepal, people often believe it to occur due to covering of the body by “Khyaak” when they have similar experience of sleep paralysis. “Khyaak” is a kind of ghost/demon that is believed to reside in the dark. Sleep paralysis is something of different cultures have constantly reported about for thousands of years. Different cultures at different parts of the world have different figures associated with such kind of experience. But is sleep paralysis really caused due to demon or is there some medical reason?
Medical Concept:
Medically, sleep paralysis is a neurology flaccid paralysis at sleep onset or on waking and in otherwise healthy person characterized by an inability to ‘kickstart’ the voluntary muscles, resulting in a transient ‘locked-in’ syndrome. It is associated with narcolepsy, Pickwick syndrome, sleep apnea, cataplexia and hypnagogic hallucinations. When considered to be a disease, isolated sleep paralysis is classified as MeSH D020188. When there is an absence of narcolepsy, sleep paralysis is referred to as isolated sleep paralysis (ISP). Cases of reported alien abduction are also commonly associated with this condition.
Alien Abduction Report may be a case of Sleep Paralysis
Your Concern:
An attack of sleep paralysis is usually harmless and self-limited. It tends to be over in a minute or two as soon as the brain and body re-establish connections and the person is able to move again.
Types:
a. Hypnagogic or predormital sleep paralysis: It occurs while you are falling asleep and as you fall asleep, your body slowly relaxes. Usually you become unaware of the change but if you remain aware while falling asleep, your motion and speech is ceased.
b. Hypnopompic or postdormital sleep paralysis: It occurs when you are waking up. During sleep, your body alternates between REM (rapid eye movement) and NREM (non-rapid eye movement) sleep. One cycle of REM and NREM sleep lasts about 90 minutes. NREM sleep occurs first and takes up to 75% of your overall sleep time. During NREM sleep, your body relaxes and restores itself. 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.
Occurrence:
- Around 40% people experience sleep paralysis and is often noticed for the 1st time in teenage.
- In a research conducted, the responses of 80 1st year medical students, 16.25% had experienced predormital, postdormital, or both types of sleep paralysis.
- Most people experience sleep paralysis once or twice in their life time.
Symptoms:
- Paralysis: as described above
- Hallucinations: strange electrical noise (sound), pressure on chest, false sensation of someone standing by or moving, etc.
Causes:
- Lack of sleep
- Irregular sleeping schedule
- Sleeping in supine position (with face upwards)
- Sudden stress
- Sudden environmental/lifestyle changes
- Nacrolepsy
- Medications and alcohol
Treatment:
- Improving sleeping habits and avoiding chronic sleep deprivation
- Use of anti-depressants like clonazepam at night time and ritalin at day time
- Evaluation and treatment of nacrolepsy
- Preventing stress (Relieve yourself from stress)
Sources and sites for reference:
a. Various researches
b. WebMD
c. Wikipedia
Popularity: 22%
Last updated: July 3, 2010
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Both concepts explained, Great article.
An excellent review that respects both the medical model and the cultural diversity of the phenomenon! thanks. As a sleep paralysis educator, I help people who have isolated SP (no narcolepsy or other sleep disorders), specifically by working with their fear. When SP/HH is encountered with an open heart and curious mind, negative apparitions can transform into helpful “entities” including angel visitations, ancestral encounters, and even sexual experiences.
I had never heard of the Nepalese tradition before — is there any reading material about this (in English)?
Thank you Ryan. I found interesting reading about the Old Hag Myth in following sites:
http://www.mythome.org/OldHag.html
http://theshadowlands.net/ghost/sleep.htm
May be this can be useful to you
[...] Medically, sleep paralysis is a neurology flaccid paralysis at sleep onset or on waking and in otherwise healthy person characterized by an inability to ‘kickstart’ the voluntary muscles, resulting in a transient ‘locked-in’ syndrome. It is associated with narcolepsy, Pickwick syndrome, sleep apnea, cataplexia and hypnagogic hallucinations. There is a high prevalence of sleep paralysis of about 40%. To learn about how sleep paralysis leads to ghostly hallucinations : http://medchrome.com/patient/sleep-problems/sleep-paralysis-alien-abduction-demon-or-physiological/ [...]
[...] actually being visited regularly the world would know. Alien abductions are also misinterpreted as sleep paralysis where “demons” of the night haunt our minds. It has happened to me once, where I woke [...]
i can’t wait for taylor lautner’s new movie abduction to come out…he’s so awesome!
Hi
I’m new to this and have just started doing some reserch into sp.I had another episode last nite,it felt as tho the air became thick and I couldn’t move or cry out.I heard a voice say to me if you open your eyes you will see me.but I didn’t as I was afraid of what I may see.I felt a presence in the room and as soon as it went I could move again.any feed back would be gratefully recieved.
Many thanks.
Sarah, Thanks for sharing your experience,
Medically as I said, its a physiological phenomenon,
and rarely a condition called Isolated sleep paralysis, Hope the article answers your curosity.
i am so happy to find this site..I have suffered with this paralysis as I fall asleep for months…last night it came over and over again, every time I started to doze off…the terrorizing paralysis and attacks…the screaming in my ears, the pushing on my chest, my head, my face…the evil I feel…it’s horrible. And worse,, i am aware and completly unable to move a single muscle, not an eyelash. My dog lays next to me sleeping, unaware of the horrific attack that is taking place to his master..I change postion,change to another room, another bed, no help..once I have an attack …more will follow …all night they torment me, just at the moment of falling…
Thanks for sharing your experience on this
I have had this happen to me often especially since I’m pregnant I’ve heard many things like my fiance is mexican and his family tells me theirs a demon trying to take a pure soul or something like that. But I don’t think that I think its a succubus because I get turned on when it happens to me. How I describe it is I feel like theirs something or someone in the room and then all off a sudden I can’t move but I can control my breathing it feels evil but like.. I’m not sure how to explain it like a sex evil its really strange
I hv also experienced similar events,an evil stood by my bed every night,grabbed me,pulled my legs and i could not move or breath,i tried to call my room mate sleeping in d same room but no voice..it happend continuously for 2 weeks..i became severely ill out of fear,lack of sleep..at last my fiancé consulted a psychiatrist,i was given clonazepam and escitalopram and had a few counsellings done…i am completely alright now.it was all out of excessive stress.
Thanks for sharing your experience.
This is one more proof to our Medical explanation of Supranatural things.