Conciousness while sleeping.
By coldnpale
@coldnpale (555)
Greece
April 30, 2012 6:16am CST
Earlier I started a topic a bout lucid dreams, which brought to my mind something that has happened to me twice. It's been a few years now.. I was sleeping while all of a sudden I woke up but couldn't move any part of my body, i was seeing everything clear, but my hearing was somewhat distorted and hearing a lot of whispers. Then after a while all of a sudden my body started functioning again. The first time this happened it was really scary, whilst the second time I was more familiar with it, thought it was still quite scary. I made a research and found out that in many cultures they believe that this is happening due to a demon pressing your chest or something.:P The scientific explanation is that you wake up kinda unpredictable, and while your brain fully wakes up and gives you complete conciousness of your surrounings, your body is still in a sleeping state. In order for it to wake up there is a certain function that must be made, something like a little adrenaline boost, and this functino was obviously skipped, so you have to wait in that state until this happens and you can regain control of your body. It can be quite scary, especially cause many time this is acompanied with severe audio/visual hallucinations :P.
Anyone has any experience over this? I would be interesting to learn about it.
1 person likes this
7 responses
@megamatt (14291)
• United States
30 Apr 12
That sounds a bit creepy, but it does seem to me like some kind of rather twisted state in between dreams, where you are thrown right between two worlds, worlds in which that you are neither completely awake or completely sleep. To have all knowledge of the things that are going on around you, but restricted body functions, that would freak people out for sure.
I would be wondering if I was rather lose my mind, as I try and clear up the cobwebs right in my head, as I was sleeping right during that state of mind. It is a rather curious quality to have. Obviously that would be worthy of some kind of freak out. There were times where I was kind of awake with minimal movement but this seems several shades beyond that.
2 people like this
@coldnpale (555)
• Greece
30 Apr 12
An interesting threory, as dreams can be very misleading or deceiving. Many times they are so real and detailed you understand it's a dream only after you completely wake up and take your time to think it over. It's still really difficult to explain it to someone who didn't experience this particular thing himself. It is also weird that everyone who has experienced it understands at once what you are talking about.
@Cranos (273)
• Belgium
1 May 12
Seems to be sleep paralysis, I've had it a few times too. I always started freaking out and then I could move. It always happened when I was extremely tired, like after pulling an all-nighter. Hasn't happened to me lately though, maybe my sleeping pattern is healthier now or something.
1 person likes this
@coldnpale (555)
• Greece
2 May 12
Hehe...it surely isnt't. Especially if you are hearing weird, low-pitched, dream-like voices in the meantime!
@tigershark (202)
• United States
30 Apr 12
I remember having a lucid dream just a few nights ago. I was holding something in my dream, and it was some sort of bag. I remember feeling it, but I suddenly realized how weird the situation in the dream was, and tried feeling the handles of my bag again. They weren't there, and I suddenly realized I was in a lucid dream. I think that the dream was a bit too unstable, because the next moment, I woke up. I want another lucid dream; it would be interesting to live in my dream and all the while understand that it IS one. My life needs a little spice, and I think dreams are a great place to be for that.
1 person likes this
@coldnpale (555)
• Greece
30 Apr 12
Indeed, lucid dreams are most interesting, I used to have them on a daily (nightly) basis some years ago.. lately i'm begining to miss them so much. :( By the way, not to be rude, but i think you confused my discussions:P. The one about lucid dreams is a diffrent one, this one is about consciousness while sleeping, that is considered a different phenomenon, even though its title might be confusing with lucid dreams.
1 person likes this
@besweet (9859)
• Ireland
30 Apr 12
It has never happened to me but my friend has experienced it. She said the same, that she was hearing a whisper and she was feeling a pressure at her chest. She also told me that the whisper was a men's voice and she understood a word or two, with a bad meaning. It was probably just a very vivid dream but it was still scary!
The only thing that I have experienced a few times in my sleep, is that I am having a bad dream and I "wake up" but I realise that I am still dreaming that I woke up. Then I feel panic because I know that it's still a dream and I actually open my eyes.
It hasn't happened to me for a few years now, but it's weird to dream that you wake up from a dream when you are still sleeping. Have you ever had that experience?
@coldnpale (555)
• Greece
30 Apr 12
Thank you for your answer. I'm pretty sure what your friend had is the same thing that accured to me as well. As for your dream experience, i've neever had it as far as I can remember. It is pretty scary though, and I have seen it happen in many horror movies, when the protagonist is having a nightmare, then she wakes up, or at least thinks she is awake, only to realise that the nightmare continues. That's some hardcore nightmare if it happens!:P
1 person likes this
@else22 (4317)
• India
30 Apr 12
A few years back I had this experience for some five or six months.At night I used to fall asleep,but fully conscious of what was going on around me.After getting up in the morning,my body and mind used to be fully relaxed.By nature I am careless about my health and so I did not consult my doctor about it.I did not have any breathing problem then either.
1 person likes this
@Eucalyptus (151)
•
1 May 12
Some of what you have described points to possible sleep paralysis. I am not a medical physician so my opinion is by no means reliable but I have experienced sleep paralysis and it is very similar to what you mentioned. This does not sound typical of lucid dreams, but something more. What is your sleep cycle like? How many hours sleep do you get?
1 person likes this
@coldnpale (555)
• Greece
2 May 12
Thank you. As another user mentioned, it actually is sleep paralysis (as you said as well), I was just not familiar with the term. I had this experience twice, however, it's been many years since that happened. My sleeping cycle is actually pretty weird. I sleep after 4 in the morning every "night", and wake up after 12 at noon. However, as unusual the times might be, that schedule is steady, and is not responsible for any sleep paralysis issues.:P
@hotsummer (13837)
• Philippines
30 Apr 12
i had experience. like i was awake already but i can't move my finger at all. or any part of my body. i just usually relax and pray and after a while i can move my body already. i don't know why this thing happens. but usually it happens when i try to force myself to sleep out of boredom . and so when i can't sleep at all now i don't try to.
@coldnpale (555)
• Greece
30 Apr 12
Yes..this sounds pretty similar to my problem. I don't know either exactly why it happens. The first time it happened to me though, it was while i was having a bad dream, and was trying to force myself to wake up. Once I woke up, I was unable to move any part of my body, just like your described. I cant remember if I was able to move my eyes.
