Buzz
Bad dreams don’t bother me much; they disappear once you wake up. What truly frightens me is when my mind becomes alert, but my body remains completely still. This phenomenon, known as sleep paralysis, impacts between seven and 40 percent of people.
Sleep Paralysis Only Becomes Frightening When You Become Aware of It
Because dreams often involve movement, your brain disconnects signals to your muscles during REM, or dream sleep, to prevent you from physically acting out your dreams. In this way, paralysis during sleep is completely normal.
The frightening form of sleep paralysis happens when you are conscious enough to perceive your surroundings, yet your body remains immobile. It can occur as you drift off to sleep or as you awaken. While sleep paralysis is terrifying and often happens at night, it is unrelated to night terrors. In fact, the two are quite opposite: during a night terror, you are asleep but physically active, whereas in sleep paralysis, you are awake but unable to move.
Hallucinations Intensify the Fear
To make paralysis even more distressing, many individuals experience hallucinations during a sleep paralysis episode. These hallucinations can range from vivid visual images to a vague sensation of an unseen presence in the room. A study published in the journal Consciousness and Cognition outlines three prevalent types of hallucinations:
A sense of an intruder sharing the room with you
A crushing pressure on your chest or back
A sensation of flying or floating.
My most intense experience with sleep paralysis fits into the third category. After staying up all night, I finally fell asleep and dreamed of attending a party in an unfamiliar house. In the dream, I gained the ability to fly, gliding just above the ground. It was enjoyable until I noticed I was accelerating uncontrollably. I partially woke up but still felt like I was flying and couldn’t stop. While some people find the floating sensation pleasant, as noted in the Consciousness and Cognition report, I was overwhelmed by fear. After what felt like an eternity—whether seconds or minutes, I couldn’t tell—I managed to move and fully awaken.
Those who experience hallucinations of intruders or crushing sensations often describe them as demons, shadowy figures, burglars, or other menacing entities. A Dutch woman from the 1600s recounted encounters with a devil, a dog, and a thief. In a 2013 study published in Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry, Danish participants reported seeing ghosts, while Egyptian participants described encounters with a jinn, a spirit from Islamic lore. Cambodian refugees who survived the Pol Pot regime sometimes saw intruders as known attackers or relatives from their past.
In the study comparing Danish and Egyptian participants, individuals who identified as religious were more inclined to view their hallucinations as supernatural. Unsurprisingly, those who believed they were encountering something supernatural were more likely to describe their experience as frightening.
Understanding and Staying Calm Are Your Greatest Tools Against Sleep Paralysis
Viewing sleep paralysis as a neurological hiccup rather than a supernatural encounter can help reduce fear. No matter how terrifying the intruder feels at the time, there’s no actual threat in your room.
While the exact cause of sleep paralysis remains debated, certain factors increase its likelihood. Disrupted sleep, such as after an all-nighter, raises the risk. It’s also more common in individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder, panic attacks, anxiety, or depression. Frequent episodes are a symptom of narcolepsy, and the condition appears to have a genetic component. It’s more prevalent among students, likely due to stress or lack of sleep. Although you can’t alter your genetics, avoiding sleeping on your back and maintaining a consistent sleep schedule may help reduce episodes.
A study in Behavioral Sleep Medicine offers strategies for managing sleep paralysis in the moment. Researchers surveyed individuals who experience it, asking about their coping methods and perceived success. While results should be taken cautiously—since episodes naturally end—the most effective techniques included:
Attempting to move an arm or leg
Focusing on moving another body part, like the mouth
Relaxing through positive thoughts, prayer, or controlled breathing
The study’s authors suggest that fear and panic during sleep paralysis may escalate like a panic attack, making interventions less effective. They recommend keeping a record of your episodes to recognize their onset. This awareness could allow you to apply techniques, such as moving a limb, earlier in the episode when they’re more likely to succeed.
Baland Jalal, who headed the research on Danish and Egyptian sleepers’ experiences, recommends a four-step meditation approach to ease fear and potentially end the paralysis:
Remind yourself that the hallucination is merely a dream.
Detach from the fear by reassuring yourself that this experience is “common, harmless, and temporary,” so there’s no need to panic.
Shift your focus away from the hallucination to something positive, like a joyful memory.
Attempt to relax your muscles instead of trying to move.
While this method might be effective, it hasn’t been rigorously tested on a large group. However, since meditation is beneficial overall, it’s unlikely to cause harm.
Illustration by Angelica Alzona.
