Nightmares are common for almost everyone. You could see you are trapped, running on empty roads, with people whom you have never met, and some dreams are very realistic you could wake up sweating.
For some people, more than nightmares, sleep paralysis could be more frightening.
What is sleep paralysis?
Sleep paralysis is the feeling of being conscious but unable to move at the same time. It happens when a person is half-awake and half-sleep. During these transitions, you are unable to move or speak for a few seconds up to a few minutes. Some may can even feel a sense of choking.
All of these symptoms can be followed into hallucinations. They often report feeling or seeing something moving towards them in the darkness. These can look like monsters or just shadows.
The frightening part is that you will be unable to move or scream but it will just be a dream and nothing else.
Why does the body do this?
According to Dr. Michael J, during rapid eye movement (REM), the body falls to a state of paralysis known as REM atonia.
This is completely normal when major muscle groups and most voluntary muscles are paralyzed. One important part of this paralysis is to protect the body from injury during sleep.
In certain sleep disorders, including REM Behavior Disorder, the normal paralysis of REM sleep doesn’t function as it should, and people behave physically aggressively and violently in sleep.
Factors this can cause :
- Lack of sleep
- Genetic factors
- High stress or anxiety
- Sleep schedule that changes
- Mental conditions such as bipolar disorder
- Sleeping on your back
- Other sleep problems such as narcolepsy or nighttime leg cramps
- Use of certain medications, such as those for ADHD
- Substance abuse
How To Deal With Sleep Paralysis :
Sleep paralysis makes you feel helpless, but below are a few things you can do to deal with it.
1. Relax yourself
Do not fight sleep paralysis as it can be more distressful and can worsen your symptoms. Instead, just breathe deeply and remind yourself that you’re okay and you’ll be fine.
2. Move yourself
When you’re experiencing a bad dream, trying to tighten your fists or move your toes to wake up and get you off sleep paralysis.
3. Wake yourself
Once you wake up from sleep paralysis, splash some cold water on your face because laying on the bed can slip you back to sleep paralysis.
