Cant Move

[Imogen]

Hi everyone - I used to also get very scared when I had those dreams where I felt I couldnt move and it felt like something was in the room, etc, it seems quite a few people have this. It made it so much easier for me when I understood what was really happening and I thought Ide post some info I found on Wikepedia as it lessens the panic when you know about things, (I think anyway)
The primary [[symptom]] of sleep paralysis is partial or complete [[skeletal muscle]] paralysis during the hypnopompic or hypnagogic states. In other words, it is the sense of being aware that one is unable to move or speak while falling asleep or waking up. Sleep paralysis may also be accompanied by [[hypnagogia|hypnagogic hallucinations The person affected by sleep paralysis may have trouble breathing, as if something was standing on top of their chest. Combined with visual and auditory hallucinations, this can make the person feel scared of an evil presence, such as a witch (therefore the name "Old Hag Syndrome"). Sufferers of sleep paralysis often report intense feelings of terror and dread after witnessing such a "malevolent presence" or "intruder" in a familiar setting such as a bedroom.
In Vietnamese, sleep paralysis is referred to as "ma de", meaning "held down by a ghost". Most people in this culture believe that a ghost has entered your body, causing the paralysis state.
* In [[Japanese language|Japanese]], sleep paralysis is referred to as ''kanashibari'' literally "bound or fastened in metal," from kane "metal" and shibaru "to bind, to tie, to fasten"). This term is occasionally used by English speaking authors to refer to the phenomenon both in academic papers and in [[popular psychology|pop psych]] literature.
* In [[Hungary|Hungarian]] folk culture sleep paralysis is called "lidércnyomás" ("lidérc pressing") and can be attributed to a number of supernatural entities like "lidérc", "boszorkány" (witch), "tündér" (fairy) or "ördögszeretőlidérc], Magyar Néprajzi Lexikon, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest 1977, ISBN</ref> The word "boszorkány" itself stems from the Turkish root "bas-", meaning "to press
*Kurdish people call this phenomenon a "mottaka", they believe that some one, in a form of a ghost or perhaps an evil spirit, turns up on top the of the person in the middle of the night and suffocates him/her. Apparently this happens usually when some one has done something bad.
*In New Guinea, people refer to this phenomenon as "Suk Ninmyo", believed to originate from sacred trees that use human essence to sustain its life. The trees are said to feed on human essence during night as to not disturb the human's daily life, but sometimes people wake unnaturally during the feeding, resulting in the paralysis.
*In Turkey this is called "karabasan" ("black-pressing"). It is believed that it is a creature which attacks people in their sleep.
*In Mexico, it's believed that sleep paralysis is in fact the spirit of a dead person getting on the person and impeding movement, calling this "se me subió el muerto" (the dead person got on me).
*Ogun Oru is a traditional explanation for nocturnal disturbances among the Yoruba of Southwest Nigeria; ogun oru (nocturnal warefare) involves an acute night-time disturbance that is culturally attributed to demonic infiltration of the body and psyche during dreaming. Ogun oru is characterized by its occurrence, a female preponderance, the perception of an underlying feud between the sufferer's earthly spouse and a ;spiritual' spouse, and the event of bewitchment through eating while dreaming. The condition is believed to be treatable through Christian prayers or elaborate traditional rituals designed to exorcise the imbibed demonic elements

[Dale]

Imogen, thanks so much for posting the article. Very interesting information. I have never had the experience, but it will help others who have to understand what is happening. Thanks again.
Dale

[powerdreamer]

It may well be the case that reading of anthropological literature on mysticism & shamanism is quite likely to result in the reader's obtaining developments of "lucid dreaming" experience, into "sleep paralysis" and the like. One example which I have personally known of an anthropologist taking an interest in shamanic dreaming & UFOs, did result in precognitive dreams and the like for that anthropologist.
This is a topic well-worthy of further exploration.

[Wolfjk]

Hi Imogen,
Thanks for the detailed study of the subject. However the "wikipedia" definition of sleep paralysis is way off the mark:

The person affected by sleep paralysis may have trouble breathing, as if something was standing on top of their chest.

Infact the sleep paralysis dream is a response to the breathing difficulty the sleeper experiences due to bad sleeping positions. Sleeping on ones back, bedclothes wrapped round chest, going to sleep sitting up and slouching forward and chest colds thatrestrict breathing can all cause the dream.
Cheers Wolfjk