Sleep Paralysis Stories: Demons Or Hallucinations?

image of a classical painting representing sleep paralysis

Sleep paralysis stories typically involve unusual and frightening experiences. Perhaps you have one or two of these disturbing tales of your own to tell.

If not, I’ll first share one of mine to give you an understanding of what it can be like.

Then we’ll take a closer look at whether sleep paralysis demons or ghosts really exist. Or if science can provide a logical and comforting explanation.

My sleep paralysis experience

Imagine the following scenario: it’s been a long day, you go to bed later than usual and fall asleep quickly through sheer exhaustion.

But instead of waking up peacefully in the morning, you half wake in the middle of the night. And in the darkness of your bedroom, it slowly dawns on you that you can’t move your body…and that someone, or something, is watching you.

A weight pushing on your chest

You feel a weight on your chest, pressing you down and preventing you from sitting up. And not only is your whole body paralyzed, but you can’t so much as move your lips to call out for help.

You’re not sure who or what is pushing on your chest. Even though you seem to be able to move your eyes just a little, it’s too dark to see anyway. Regardless, you just feel that there’s a presence there. Something strange. Something frightening.

This happened to me last year and was a very unsettling experience. Fortunately, there was no demon, ghost or burglar in my bedroom.

After a minute’s panic, the feeling passed. And I was then able to stumble to the bathroom to make sure my face wasn’t decorated with demonic symbols. It was a classic case of sleep paralysis.

What is sleep paralysis?

Recurrent isolated sleep paralysis is classified as a parasomnia, which is a group of sleep disorders involving unwanted behaviors that accompany sleep.

The main symptom is being awake and unable to move your body. It might also be accompanied by hallucinations or dreams/nightmares whilst still awake.

It typically lasts from a few seconds to a few minutes before movement is regained. And although it may feel like it at the time, it’s not believed by medical organizations to be harmful.

What causes it?

The exact reason for why it happens to some people and only on some nights isn’t known. However, scientists do have a theory about what goes on during sleep paralysis.

During the night, you cycle through different sleep stages. When you enter the REM stage of sleep, your brain stops your muscles from moving – known as REM atonia. One explanation for this atonia is that it prevents injury from acting out your dreams in bed.

During sleep paralysis, the atonia starts, or continues, while you’re awake. And during this time, you might also experience what’s known as sleep hallucinations, or dreams while you’re awake.

So your body and brain are temporarily out of sync while transitioning between sleep stages, potentially creating a frightening experience.

As Dr. Michael J. Breus neatly explains:

Sleep scientists believe that sleep paralysis may occur when the transitions in and out of REM sleep and other sleep stages don’t go smoothly.

How many people experience sleep paralysis?

Sleep paralysis stories like mine are surprisingly common. In 2011, researchers aggregated 35 sleep paralysis studies to find out how many people had experienced it at least once in the past year, finding:

  • 7.6% of the general population
  • 28.3% of students
  • 31.9% of psychiatric patients

And according to the handbook of sleep disorders, it will happen at least once in a lifetime of 40% to 50% of normal subjects, but is “far less common as a chronic complaint”.

Who is more at risk of having sleep paralysis?

Scientists might not know the precise reason only some people have sleep paralysis yet, but there are a growing number of risk factors becoming apparent.

For example, researchers who analyzed 42 studies found several risk factors and associated conditions:

  • Sleep problems, changing sleep patterns and shift work.
  • Sleep disorders such as narcolepsy, obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia and nocturnal leg cramps.
  • Stress.
  • Some psychiatric groups, particularly those with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, anxiety and panic disorders.
  • Substance and medication use.
  • Physical illness.
  • Personality and anomalous beliefs.

Is there a genetic component to sleep paralysis?

In 2015, British researchers published a study of 862 twins and siblings aged between 22 and 32. They did find some evidence of a genetic role, but only a small one:

In this sample of young adults, sleep paralysis was moderately heritable

Interestingly, they also found other independent risk factors, including:

  • Disrupted sleep cycles
  • General sleep quality
  • Anxiety symptoms
  • Exposure to threatening events

Polls – readers’ experience of sleep paralysis

I polled readers of this article for a year to find out what kind of sleep paralysis episodes they had.

Note that it’s likely that many people who search online about it will have had the more frightening episodes, skewing the results.

But they still provide a fascinating insight into what people experience and how they cope.

Poll 1

In poll 1, the most common episode was thinking there was a demon or other being in the room.

chart showing the results of my poll about the type of sleep paralysis experiences people have

Poll 2

Poll 2 shows that many readers find sleep paralysis terrifying. Again, those who search online for it are likely to have found it particularly disturbing.

chart of poll results for how scared people are during sleep paralysis

Poll 3

Poll 3 shows that many readers first experienced sleep paralysis during adolescence.

chart with poll results about the age people first have sleep paralysis

Poll 4

Poll 4 shows that most readers don’t experience sleep paralysis on a regular basis. 

chart showing poll results about how often people have sleep paralysis

Poll 5

Poll 5 shows some of the ways readers deal with episodes. You’ll find more coping mechanisms below.

chart showing the results of the poll about techniques for stopping sleep paralysis

The not so scientific explanations for sleep paralysis

image of a woman floating above the bed

Since first writing this article several years ago, there has been an extraordinary number of comments. And the comments show that not everyone accepts the scientific explanation.

Interestingly, some people struggle to accept it even though they consider themselves to be scientifically minded generally. I think these cases highlight just how realistic the experience of sleep paralysis can be; how it can linger in your memory and makes you question what happened for a long time afterward.

The possibility of demons, ghosts, spiritual beings, and aliens all crop up from time to time in the comments too. And while many people accept their experiences as hallucinations or dreams, some people choose to believe another explanation – that those entities are real.

Despite these beliefs, there’s one clear theme: nothing bad ever actually happens, other than being frightened and perhaps losing some sleep after an episode.

Around the world

Cultural beliefs also appear to play a role in how sleep paralysis is perceived by some people.

In Fiji, for example, the demon is sometimes seen as a deceased relative coming back to discuss an important or unfinished matter.

In Chinese folklore, it’s also seen as a ghost rather than a demon or intruder.

Some people in Iran and Pakistan interpret it as demons or spirits taking over your body. This could be due to black magic performed by an enemy.

The common theme is that the entity is usually something to be feared. I’m yet to find a culture which believes it’s a friendly creature!

Sleep paralysis treatment

When to see a doctor

Fortunately, most people don’t experience sleep paralysis very often, and no treatment is usually required.

However, if the following apply to you, it’s a good idea to speak to your doctor:

  • It happens regularly.
  • You’re anxious about sleep paralysis and going to sleep.
  • You don’t get enough sleep.
  • You feel very sleepy during the day, sometimes fall asleep suddenly or lose control of your muscles.

What medical treatment is available?

If you see a doctor, they might take the following action:

  • Refer you to a sleep specialist to assess if you have another sleep disorder, like narcolepsy.
  • Treat any underlying psychiatric condition.
  • Discuss any medication or substance use that might be a factor.
  • Explain the biological processes involved in sleep paralysis to reassure you.
  • Talk to you about developing good sleep habits. This is thought to help reduce the frequency of sleep paralysis.

Readers’ techniques for coping with sleep paralysis

Over the years, many readers have described how they cope with sleep paralysis, and I’ve created a list of the most frequent ideas below.

The first seven in the list are also suggested by sleep experts. The rest are a mix of personal opinions. Please bear in mind that none are guaranteed to work:

  • Don’t let yourself become too sleep-deprived.
  • Stick to a regular sleep schedule.
  • Try to reduce stress and anxiety in your life.
  • Try to vigorously flutter your eyelids or move your eyes, as this tends to be an area of the body that’s less affected by the paralysis.
  • Focus on wiggling just one finger or a toe.
  • Don’t take recreational drugs or drink alcohol in the evening.
  • Don’t sleep on your back.
  • Stay calm.
  • Tell yourself that you’re in control. You can order the experience to stop.
  • If you feel a weight on your chest, imagine there’s something friendly causing it.
  • Film yourself sleeping so you can see there was nothing in the room.
  • Don’t think about what it could be. Your imagination will probably make up something scary in the darkness.
  • Organize your bedroom in a way that makes you feel safe and secure.
  • Don’t hang dressing gowns, coats, or hats in places that make them look like figures in the dark.
  • Sleep with a night light, music, or radio on.
  • Remind yourself that nothing bad will happen.
  • Imagine your body rolling from side to side in your mind and count each roll. Focus on this and try to grow the capacity for movement from there.
  • Count numbers to focus your mind on something else.
  • Don’t sleep with a high pillow.
  • Keep your eyes shut and try to clear your mind.
  • Squeeze your eyes tightly shut if you can control the muscles.
  • Keep well hydrated – drink water before going to bed.
  • Talk about it to family or friends – they may have experienced it too.
  • If you have it once, get out of bed for a while to reset the brain.
  • Many people say prayer helps. Some also say that calling on their religious beliefs and commanding what they see to leave helps them.
  • Check if any sleeping pills or herbal remedies you’re taking are causing it.
  • Use sleep paralysis to lucid dream by relaxing and going with the experience instead of fighting it.
  • Once the episode has passed, tell yourself that you overcame it, are not afraid and will always overcome it.

How I recently stopped an episode of sleep paralysis

I successfully used two of the above techniques to stop a recent episode of sleep paralysis.

I woke to find myself in a strange position with my arms crossed on top of my body. And I could literally feel strong hands pinning my wrists to my chest.

I have to admit I was immediately petrified. The whole event was blurry, and I think I was having some dream overlap, but can’t remember exactly what now.

Stay calm and wiggle a finger

Two things sprung to mind after a moment of panic: stay calm and try to wiggle a finger.

The calmness I only managed with moderate success. But I did manage to focus my efforts on moving a finger. It felt quite odd – like my fingers were wiggling in different directions!

Eventually, I felt my arms loosen as well, and soon afterward I was able to shake the whole sensation away as I regained full control.

I then spent a few minutes doing some breathing exercises to ground myself and calm down, and then fell asleep again.

I think just knowing about the finger wiggling technique was enough for me to remember it when the sleep paralysis occurred.

Share your story of sleep paralysis

Have you had sleep paralysis? What happened, and do you have any suggestions to help others deal with it?

Please feel free to share your experience in the comments below.

3,365 Comments

  1. i had this “sleep paralysis​ demon” every night for almost 20 years. what i can say is that one night i finally decided to get out from under the bed (where i was hiding in that moment) and to grab that demon by the neck. he never showed up again and i finally understood that i can get my self out of this “between worlds” state where you can’t speak or move by simply moving a finger. of course you can also move but that requires a lot of effort as you first need to feel your body before moving it. Finally i confronted my demon and got rid of him… From my experience the nightmares are the cause of this “sleep paralysis” sindrom, the trigger of a long disturbing “first seat at the conjuring movie” series. As a self defense mechanism my brain was waking up during these nightmare episodes though my body was still asleep.

  2. i had this “sleep paralasys demon” every night for almost 20 years. what i can say is that one night i finally decided to get out from under the bed (where i was hiding in that moment) and to grad that demon by the neck. next thing i remember is that he never showed up again and i finally understood that i can get my self out of this “between worlds” state where you can’t speak or move by simply moving a finger. ofcourse you can also move but that requires a lot of effort as you first need to feel your body before moving it. Finally i confronted my demon and got rid of him… From my experience the nightmares are the cause of this “sleep paralysis” sindrom, the trigger of a long disturbing “first seat at the conjuring movie” series. As a self defense mechanism my brain was waking up during these nightmare episodes though my was still asleep.

  3. I experienced sleep paralysis a couple years ago. I fell asleep on a movie on the floor. I remember being extra tired. I was sleep on my back (which I heard is one of the occurrences of SP) I tried to awake but I couldn’t move. My arms, legs & everything was paralyzed. I felt like my mind was awake & through my eyes I seen some demonic presence on top of me smiling. I was terrified and couldn’t breathe. It was nighttime and dark but I seeing somewhat detailed features. Another strange thing that’s hard to explain is I felt sexually harassed by the presence. It took full advantage of me. I began to tear up & pray in my head with a screaming tone. It then looked at me as if it got frightened by my thoughts. It finally disappeared and let me go. Then I was able to
    move and yelled my brother’s name. I then did my research on my exact experience with a sexual demonic presence. They are called incubus and succubus. I think mine’s was a woman. I’m almost sure of it. Which is the succubus. I am a woman as well.

  4. I have sleep paralysis quite frequently…the most recent one was the most disturbing of them all!! My eyes opened in the middle of the night…my body paralyzed my eyes wide open…my mind fully aware of what was going on…I couldn’t speak…I couldn’t move…I couldn’t breath…I felt pressure on my chest as if something that I couldn’t see was holding me down…all I could do was lie there…then through the door way of my bedroom walked in an entity!! Completely transparent…wearing a white dress…she approached the foot of my bed…my eyes watched her as she walked around to the side of my bed where I slept….she stopped next to me…I was still watching her…no way to move or scream or call for help…she then started to reach for me. I felt the urge to scream but still…nothing!!! Then all of a sudden my body started to move and I was able to roll over….most frightening sleep paralysis event yet

  5. Hi, I’ve had these occurrences happen to me all the time through out my life. The worst one was when I was “falling asleep” and I felt my body being jerked as if I was being yanked by someone. Then I would fall asleep and I would be on my back and I would lift my eyes and couldn’t not move nor breathe, I would watch a all black figure come over me and choke me and I couldnt do a thing about it. Happens often still, it’s very horrifying but praying helps.

  6. I’ve had many sleep paralysis AND out-of-body experiences and while they are similar, they are definitely different. Before having my first experience, I didn’t believe that such a thing was possible, but I’ve since had about six of them and I now firmly believe that I am “astral projecting”. Why? Each time that I have one, I can feel myself being “plucked” from my body, and a sensation of flight. They occur spontaneously in what I’ve determined are transitional periods between sleep and wake. Not only do I feel myself flying up, out of my body, but I also feel myself land and am able to survey my location for a short time (and know where I’m at) before the process reverses and I find myself flying back into my body. The first time it happened, I thought it was sleep paralysis because before I returned to my body, my eyes snapped open and found myself unable to move. I actually felt myself “hit” my body as I fell into it and then was immediately able to move again. I wish I could control it. I have had so many episodes of sleep paralysis that they no longer scare me. They were absolutely terrifying at first – hallucinations – visual, audio, and tactile accompanied by a feeling of serious dread. To anyone who’s suffering from this – just remain calm and remind yourself that it will pass shortly… Good luck to anyone who’s suffering from this. If out of body experiences and sleep paralysis are indeed related, then maybe you should consider yourself lucky instead of cursed and should try to do something with your ability besides freak out and go into panic mode.

  7. I’ve had this happen to me two times. The first time I was around 23 and woke up in the middle of the night unable to move and it scared me half to death. I tried to scream, but all that came out was a small, strangled sound. I saw two men standing in the doorway smiling at me. After that, I regained control of my muscles and fell back asleep after spending a few minutes trying to comprehend what had just happened. The second time was a couple years ago and, once again, woke up unable to move. The room was filled with a dim light and I heard a scuttling sound on the roof above me. I just knew without a doubt that aliens were walking around up there. I was panicked and tried to wake up my husband, but couldn’t move a muscle. All I could do was just barely open and close my mouth. So, I started to lightly bite his arm even though I barely had the strength. He wouldn’t budge. I heard their footsteps walking toward the front door and then heard the doorknob rattling. Right after that I was able to move and all the noises stopped. It was terrifying. I had one other weird experience unrelated to SP, but thought I’d share anyway. Trying to fall asleep, and in my mind I see a man silhouetted in the doorway pointing a gun and I see the flash and hear the “bang.” At that moment, my boyfriend grabbed a hold of me and said, “What if someone came in hear and tried to shoot us?” That was THE SCARIEST thing ever to happen to me during bedtime! To this day, I have no explanation for that one. Spent the rest of the night wide awake with every light on, constantly checking the locks and windows.

  8. Here’s my experience i would like to share it with you guys!… So i m a science stream student and you know science is hard. I was having my exams so i slept for only 4 hours for like 2-3 nights. At one night, me and my brother was sleeping on the same bed. I said ‘hey.. I m going to sleep’. He didn’t answer as he was busy with his phone and got his earphones on. So i slept. In the middle of the night it was like 12:00am i think.. I woke up. My eyes opened. I looked at the ceiling and then saw my brother who was still on his phone. I tried so hard to say his name as to give me some water. But i couldn’t. I looked around and felt very uncomfortable. I tried so hard to move my fingers and toes, but failed. At last i was able to move my toes and slowly got up. My head was like banging. It was really terrifying.

  9. Oddly enough, my experience was positive yet scary. I woke up to myself sleep talking and I literally heard myself say “God take me with you.” I didn’t see a light, or a dark figure, but I did experience an outer body experience, a little pressure on my chest and the most loud ringing noise…. So that’s the part I don’t get. After reading a million comments, I still have not seen/heard of anybody hearing anything such as bells, or ringing noises. The noise wasn’t necessarily a bad one… It was like bells ringing (but very loudly.) Finally, I felt I gained consciousness and changed my mind, and told God I wasn’t ready yet. That’s when I felt the paralysis. That was the scary part (the noise freaked me out too.)

    I felt a tingling sensation all throughout my body, and finally I started moving my fingers and my toes. After what felt like several minutes (I am sure they were more like seconds,) I was able to move the rest of my body. It was very odd, and I was scared, but it probably took about 5-10 minutes for me to fall back asleep. This was two nights ago… After talking to a friend, he told me that was a demon, and his aunt experienced the same thing, except she saw a demon. I didn’t see anything, except my ceiling fan, but of course I freaked out, and was unable to sleep last night. Anyway, I’ve read for the most part, unpleasant experiences. I wouldn’t say I was thrilled to have my sleep paralysis, but I can certainly say, mine wasn’t the worst.

    Anyone else have a similar experience?

  10. I just awoke from this experience. Which I’ve had in the past. Except I was laying on my right side. I felt someone behind me. Very heavy and solid. I knew, excepted what I thought could be an entity. So, instead I whispered out “I love you Dave” – this was someone I lost 18 years ago. When I said it, it answered back “live you to vonny” – I knew it was not my beloved deceased fiance, which upset me a little, but stayed calm, closed my eyes until I could move again.

    I just remember I could see his arm and hand. The hand was holding mine sorta in a body lock. Wouldn’t let me move, very strong and solid. I could even hear him breathing in my ear. Weird I know, but it felt real. I thought he was there to rape me or hurt me. Unexplaneable. I believe our brains are very interesting. We can create these experiences I feel. Maybe from stress, fear, or confusion about bad past experiences.

    Whatever it is, I’m not going to fear. I’m stronger than that.

  11. I just had this incident of sleep paralysis today in the morning and couldn’t move! I was listening to this thing (scary creature with claws holding down my arms and fangs and sharp teeth.. almost like a demon ?) which was above my body and was talking out something which I can’t remember. It was a scary experience for me and this has been happening past 7 years .. and I believe it is all due to anxiety and stress!

  12. Mine seem to be continual, throughout my entire sleep until I force my mind to run to someone safe. It seems to always start with me being overly tire and that’s often as I’m one to work til I drop, so to speak. I always get the loud voice of someone call my name. I say a quick prayer for the voice of the person an move to sleep only this time it’s a loud noise. Moving into sleep this is on and off a few time. Now I struggle to wake up and not matter how hard I try I can’t. I need desperately to wake up. I can’t now the panic turns to episodes of strange scary noises and visions not of anything just fear. I just can’t wake up I need desperately to wake up. It seems hours of horrors. When finally I find my minds eye to that one safe place or person. And I realize I give up all hope of waking an then I’m awake. Confused a bit scared, finally groggy but awake. The only thing I did different today was find this page and put it to word. Now it doesn’t seem so intimidating. Still scary. Why wouldn’t it be I was out of control of life. (This seems strange to say. When my faith in the Lord teaches that God is always in control not me). So for me maybe that’s it, maybe it’s the one time in life I’ve always thought I controlled. You know setting the alarm waking myself up. Who knows? We look at not being able to awaken as a form of dead and death is scary…. I’m a Born again Christian and I believe things can be explained away, but I’ve seem somethings in my life that no one can explain away. So in conclusion. Night terrors, sleep paralysis, narcolepsy, or visits In the sleep/wake realm it’s still frightening to me when it happens and it’s happened for years. Sleep well.

  13. Hi, I have suffered from sleep paralysis for 30 years now and have tried all supposed treatments, visited doctors, taken antidepressants, herbal remedies and so on with absolutely no success.
    I can have many episodes in one night where I can’t move, can’t breath and feel like I’m going to die, then I manage to move a toe or leg and awake in absolute terror.
    There is nothing worse than being afraid to go to sleep and I will often try to balance my leg on the edge of the bed so a slight movement will make my leg fall and wake me up.
    I would have an attack at least once a week sometimes every night, sometimes 9 times in one night.
    Now I have found a cure that has worked for me and haven’t had an attack in over a year.
    Now this maybe controversial but given the alternative I’ll take it, I found that a very small amount marijuana either in tea or a joint before bed stopped my attacks COMPLETELY.
    I am a family man, I have 3 fantastic children and work as a carpenter, I live a normal life and because of the stigma attached to marijuana have told no one.
    I have no idea if this will work for you but even if it helps 1 more person it was worth sharing.

  14. Hi I had this experience we’re I only been asleep maybe 4minets and it felt like my eyes spring open I couldn’t move my body and i felt like some one had their hads around my neck .my vishion went Gray and I could see a outer figer of a person and the face was white it lasted 3minets after that I could move again .
    I couldn’t sleep for a week after that

    • The face I saw was white too! Almost like a porcelain mask. With black eyes and black where laugh lines would be.. the thing is, I felt like I was the demon. I let off a creamy as shut low growl before I was able to move again. When I could move, I was terrified to look in the mirror for fear of what I would see.
      Did that happen to you??

  15. I’ve been experiencing sleep paralysis on and off for years now and every time it happens it’s the most terrifying event of my life. The worst is when the episodes happen in layers; I’ll realize I’m having an episode, try to take control of the nightmare in which I find myself and wake myself up, only to find myself in a new nightmare. The most “layers” I’ve ever been through is seven or eight. I’ve been shot through the neck by a lover, held down and eaten by wolves, brutally stabbed repeatedly by a figure that looks like the grim reaper, drowned in a river, strangled in a prison cell, chased by crowds who change from being normal-looking people to horrific demons, had shadowy figures with red glowing eyes crawl like the grudge up my body and whisper in a foreign language in my ear, the list goes on. The episodes usually start as pleasant dreams but as soon as I realize the scenario at play isn’t legitimate, all happiness and familiar features melt away leaving behind only the purest terror I’ve ever known. If you’ve seen Silent Hill it’s sort of like when the siren goes off and the world melts away giving way to hell. There are almost always the sounds of evil laughter in the background, as though someone has orchestrated these nightmares and is amused by my suffering. In my mind each time it happens I’m screaming as loud as I can for someone to help me, but people who have been asleep in the room with me when episodes have occurred have assured me I was silent. As I type this I’m just coming out of my fourth episode of the night; every time I think about what’s happened in the past several hours I get goosebumps and start to cry. I’ve tried all of the tricks and tips to end the episodes but nothing works except just waiting for me to regain control of my body.

    • I’m so sorry. I thought I was going crazy. I too am extremely tired and keep having episodes in and out and no matter where I switch rooms to in the house I feel like a guy is behind me and my chest feels like I can’t breathe. I never have actually seen a figure of a full-on person, but I constantly see things in the corners of my eyes and when I look it disappears and moves somewhere else. But it’s just a shadow but it moves. I’m so scared too because sometimes I wake up feeling like I had sex and I didn’t! I’m scared it’s maybe a demon because that’s what I feel

  16. I have this reacurrint bout of sleep paralysis where I move in slow motion, I can’t scream or move like I want and I sink into the ground and I feels as if something pushes through my body taking my breath away. Super creepy! But this artical made me feel much better. Thanks!

  17. So I laid down for a nap and I was having a nightmare but it wasn’t all that scary because I knew I was dreaming. I opened my eyes and saw my door and then looked at my hands laying below my face and I tried moving them but couldn’t, I eventually tried so hard that I saw something happen it’s weird when I moved my hands I could feel them move and i saw this small faint outline of my hands moving while I was looking at my hands I’m confused as to how it’s possible to see my hands and also see my dream hands at the same time?

  18. Hello Everyone, this is my first time talking to strangers about my experiences I’ve had. I read a couple of your experiences, I feel better knowing theirs others who can understand the feeling. I read the scientific part. However when I’ve experienced my last episode literally an hour ago, I couldn’t call out to “God” I put my hands in my mouth to speak and couldn’t, I was awake! Then I could hear a beast behind me, I was awake! I felt an arm across my chest holding me down. It took 3 mins to gain control of my body. I am religious, so I don’t understand why I couldn’t say “God” I’ve seen ghosts before, as a child, my grandfather would “visit ” me but he had a black tux and red eyes? He would watch me sleep. I told my mom, she slapped me for talking about the dead. Anyone experienced the same?

    • Just want to share with you, Eva. My daughter’s friend is also having this sleep paralysis, she has been having this problem for quite some time. But just lately she had one serious than before according to her. She said that she can’t talk and she even saw something very scary…but the only word she could called was ‘Jesus’

    • im 16 it happened about 4 this morning o was wide awake unable to breathe n i couldn’t move at all i remembered my aunt talking about something like what i experienced and what she did so i prayed and sang a godly song the i felt that i could move my feet but when i finally got up it was if i had an asthma attack it was really terrifying and it’s now after 6 and im afraid to go back to bed. the weird thing is most of the people on here were all laying on the backs mine was on my stomach cause I’ve heard about what happens when u sleep on your back… p.s i think I’ve seen my dead father but i don’t know if its him because ive never met him.

  19. It happen to me i was thinking but i couldn’t move at all i was trying to call for help but my mouth wouldn’t open when i tried to open my eyes they would just stay shut it was so scary and it happen just last night

  20. First thing I just wanted to say what an amazing article and website you created. You’ve educated me so much on this subject and I’m very grateful. Now with my story I recently just learned about sleep paralysis but i decided to do some research because I experienced it about 10 years ago when I was 13. I recently got done watching a horror movie (exorcism of emily rose) it really isn’t scary but at the time it definitely got to me. I kept thinking about the main character waking up at 3 and that same night i woke up at 3:01am. I honestly was frightened but just shrugged it off and attempted to go back to sleep. 3 minutes later while my eyes were closed I felt something jump on me and i was immediately paralyzed and couldn’t move anything including opening my eyes. I could hear this unusual very weird noise like something breathing. It lasted for about 1 minute as I panicked all i could think to do was pray. Then the sensation stopped for about 10 seconds as I felt relieved then it suddenly overcame me again this time for about 30 seconds. Afterwards I got up turned on my lights and went to the living room lol. It’s never happened again but to this day I still remember it. I’m nowhere near religious and I don’t pray or go to church but i sincerely believe there was a demon on top of me. It was something about that noise and the presence I could feel something abnormal. All i know is when the sensation and the pressure of weight stopped for about 10 seconds i stopped praying and it suddenly overcame again then i resumed praying. I truly believe my prayer at the time saved me from the situation. Thanks again for the information!

  21. For several years I would awake at exactly 2:30am every day regardless of the time I would go to sleep. Sometimes I would have sleep paralysis and the dog would come over like he knew and would sit next to me and “keep watch” until I was good again. It happened enough I dismissed it most of the time knowing it was nothing.

    One time we were staying at my parents lake house, my wife was sleeping in the basement with the dog and I was on the main floor sleeping since I had been out with friends and didn’t want to wake her. I awoke at 2:30am again and was paralyzed. I move my eyes and see a tall man in a trenchcoat standing in the hallway. He walked into the room, turned on a light, his face was completely black, and stood there looking at me for several minutes and speaking but I couldn’t understand what was being said. I couldn’t move or speak or anything. He then went into the other room and came back into the room I was in and again stood watching me. Then down the hall and out the front door.

    As soon as he left I was “free” again. I tried to dismiss it and went back to sleep.

    In the morning my wife wanted to know who stopped by. I was floored. I asked her to explain without me saying anything from my experience and she said around 2:30am she woke up because the dog was upset and she heard the front door open and both her and the dog looked up and watched as the footsteps came to the room I was in above her. The dog was very unsettled but wouldn’t leave my wife’s side and watched where the footsteps were every step and wouldn’t take his eyes off it. She could hear a man’s voice that wasn’t mine but never heard me reply. Heard the footsteps move around the house as I had seen the man, and then heard the front door open and close again.

    As soon as that happened she said the dog laid back down and went to sleep so she brushed it off that a friend had stopped by quickly. The front door had been locked and was still locked in the morning. Friend’s don’t have a key.

    It was extremely unnerving. I’ve experienced sleep paralysis but this was on another level and for a third party to explain to me what I exprienced proved to me that it wasn’t all in my head…this time at least. But what was it?

    The odds of sleep paralysis and an intruder who picked the lock on the front door (and locked it behind them) occuring at exactly the same time, along with him watching me with my eyes open…that’s a bit of a stretch.

    Truly terrifying.

    Ironically, the sleep paralysis has slowed to a couple times a year since that happened instead of several times a week.

  22. I’ve had several incidents of sleep paralysis, three to be exact. My first experience happened when I was young, about 15 years old. That experience was the worst experience of my life. As I fell asleep, I instantly felt aware of my surroundings. I could hear the TV show playing, my breathing, and other family members in the house. The air was thick and I could feel a dark presence hovering over me. As I began to panic I could feel the pressure in my chest get worse and worse. I kept telling myself to get up. After what felt like hours I eventually woke up but at the time I didn’t know that it was sleep paralysis and was pretty traumatized. My second sleep paralysis was actually amazing, it happened at the age of 19. I took a nap mid day, and as I fell asleep I was again aware of my surroundings. I could see clearly that I was in my bedroom, I could hear my sister washing dishes, and my nephew running around playing with my dog. I don’t remember quite what my thoughts were but I will never forget the out of body experience. I felt as if I was on my way to another realm, I could see and feel my body being lifted from my bed slowly. Unfortunately, I became aware that I was asleep and as I woke I felt as if my body had fallen back into my bed. My last experience happened this past night, being 21 now. Same awareness of everything around me. What I noticed first is that I couldn’t move, but I wasnt afraid. I thought I was hitting my partner to wake me up and was also shouting her name over and over again. When I realized it wasn’t working I began to hyperventilate. I could feel my heart racing in my chest. I was rocking my head back forth and felt as if my body was being possessed by a demon. For whatever reason I still wasn’t afraid, although I had hallucinations I knew it would pass. So I simply waited, I stopped thinking about an evil presence but could not control my breathing. When I woke up I was gasping for air as if I had been under water for more than a minute. It didn’t take long for me to calm down and go back to sleep as it did for my first. Honestly, I enjoy having these episodes. I do realize that it only happens if I’m laying on my back. But sleep paralysis is nothing to be afraid of. I do believe that you can turn it into a positive experience and hopefully one day I can do that each time it happens.

  23. Last night was the first time I’ve had sleep paralysis it was the worst feeling in the world , i randomly opened my eyes and I saw the color red by my bed which was really odd but with all of this happening I couldn’t move , my mouth was opened and I couldn’t breathe at all this lasted for about 10 maybe 5 seconds after I was able to move I was practically gasping for air the rest of the night I was too afraid to go to sleep

  24. I struggle with combination sleep paralysis and night terrors. This has been since I was about to turn 2 years old. Initially I would have these dreams every other night, after turning 18 it dropped to a few very other month and since I turn 25 I thought they were gone but just now I awoke again from this mess. Now I get the scientific part of it…work for a sleep specialist for over 4 years and nothing has helped other than when in the state of paralysis I try to scream Jesus repeatedly.
    Now when this all started my parents had no clue what was going on because after one nightmare to rule them all, I was having night terrors during the day and night. I was pulling my own hair out, screaming, seeing monsters, waking up with crazy injuries like my nails missing, bite and scratch marks and bruises….people thought my parents were abusing me so they took me to a doctor there in Germany who diagnosed me with night terrors and said I would simply grow out of it and it was just a phase….well…ya still dealing with this. They do have the reoccurring demon theme but it does result in injury almost every time. Like this morning. I have very vivid dreams and I can always remember at least like 5 of them and they are never silly, mostly I’ll dream about another life I have had perhaps or life as someone else. Well on the last dream everything was fine I was sitting on the couch watching tv with my family when in the middle of laughter from a joke my sister turns to me and says happily “I hope you die” and starts to laugh everyone stops and looks at her and says what!? As though get this isn’t in the script. She then tells me yeah look at your ears they’re all red i really hope it kills you and starts laughing louder. Right before I can make a comment I can no longer speak followed by I can’t move and my sister’s face becomes demonic room goes dark and I’m freaking out try to wake myself up any way possible. I mumble enough that my significant other yells at me to wake up and even shakes me yelling you’re awake. This helps in getting me to sit up but I still could not fully function and was followed by 9 out of 10 sign of a heart attack.
    Usually after these dreams I have to stay awake for a good while before I can sleep again otherwise I go right back where I left off exactly.
    I’ve had a lot of bad markings from this…sometimes bites, bruises, scratches on my back/legs, and one time I sat up and tried to another my boyfriend with a pillow he woke up and asked me what I was doing and I just laid my pillow back down and went to sleep smiling. The thing that really freaked him out was one time I sat straight up at like 3am started talking in Latin and even went to repeat myself backwards with my eyes looking solid white…did I mention I don’t know Latin. Lol
    Scientific or a serious supernatural problem or mental problem I just hope it goes away. My sister wasn’t crazy about seeing me levitate above the bed thinking she was having a nightmare when actually I was and was trying to scream for her help…not to mention when she tells me about it and I tell her yeah thanks for the help while shoeing her the markings on my stomach neck wrists and ankles…she won’t sleep in that room anymore.
    Anyways…i just hope someone out there reads this and knows something I don’t about this horrible problem I’m still having awake and asleep day and night…some answers would really help. Thanks for reading.

  25. Wow! You poor dear! I have panic attacks so I know fear but I don’t have sleep paralysis but my son does. He’s 16 now. His twin does not experience them. My son has been having them since he was 7 yrs old. We asked our family doctor for help only to be shot down with a smile and a smirk.
    I believe they are demons. I also believe that God gave us power over them. Maybe you don’t believe but I believe enough for all of you. When it happens again and it will, give this a chance: As soon as you get past the initial fear of realizing that it’s happening again, scream in your head “Flee in the name of Jesus Christ. You have no power or authority here. Leave in the name of Jesus”. Pray to God for him to show you he’s real and to help you wake up. The demons will flee and God will be there to help you. You just have to ask him in. He loves you. Remember, you have to use the name of Jesus and they have to flee. Just try it. Nobody knows and you have nothing to lose. Ask God into your heart afterwards. Once they know you belong to him, they wont return. If they do, they may just need a little reminder of who you belong to, and it’s not to satan or his “minions”, lol! Good luck to you. It breaks my heart to hear of your suffering and fear.

    • I used to believe they were demons, until I was put on an antidepressant, and it completely stopped. I had it bad too. Felt horribly evil, and everything else bad you can think of.

  26. When I experienced sleep paralysis I woke up and closed my eyes again to try to fall back asleep. I tried wiping my chin because I am sometimes a drooler in my sleep. I realized that I couldn’t move and my blood ran cold as I remembered watching a video about sleep paralysis. I was sleeping on my side and my ankles felt heavy as if they were being held down by a strong grip. I then felt someone watching me from behind me and from under my covers I felt an extremely hot hand sliding towards my back. I felt a burning sensation as the hand burned by back before moving back. I could feel the covers had something under them while the sleep paralysis lasted. I then heard breathing behind me for a couple of minutes until the sleep paralysis passed. My windows were shut and I live in a rural town so my room was completely silent. Also, I live alone. A tip from me is to close your eyes and take even breaths. Do not open your eyes until the sleep paralysis is over or you may see some nightmare fuel.

  27. First off at this very moment I am so thankful to be reading this article / discussion. My identical twin and have had these dreams since the 1970’s and never knew there was a name to it until last night. I had another terrifying night, but this time my sons heard me squealing and came to my room and woke me out of it. They said my eyes were wide open and that, quote, “mom, you looked demonic.”It is the first time ever I was awoken out of one of these episodes. They are so scary because you are paralyzed and you know you are somewhat awake but you can’t move. The dreams are so vivid as well. I have such a sense of relief today because I now know there is a name to it. Sleep paralysis and that is because one of my teenage sons said to me after waking me up that they have been studying this in there science class. So I have been on the computer reading all about it. For so many years my twin sister and I thought we were a couple freaks possessed or something. We thought all kinds of things over the years. Unfortunatly my identical twin sister died three years ago unexpectingly so I am an able to share this news with her. I’m emotional today but so glad and relieved to have an answer. Thank you for all the article / discussion.

  28. I’ve experienced sleep paralysis for the past two nights. It’s happened three times already. This isn’t the first time though, I’ve had occurrences like this for about a year now, but it only happens a few times in about three or four months. I’m pretty sure I know why it started happening again yesterday night. (It’s because when I got home from school I feel asleep and messed up my sleep schedule.) I’m only 13 by the way, so I don’t really like being up at night by myself, plus I’m really big on ghosts and stuff just like my mom. So, I get anxiety from it and I usually don’t feel safe. But whenever it first happened to me it was apon wakening. Whenever it first happened I was 12 and my first thought was “there’s a ghost on top of me help!” And I couldn’t see a thing. When it stopped happening I went straight to my mom, who was about to go to my grandma’s house. I tried to tell her what happened but she didn’t really listen. Probably my most terrifying experience was one of my most recent occurrences. I was laying on my back (I know, bad idea to do that) and just falling asleep like normal except it was at 11:48 at night or something and I had a very unsetaling feeling. Like there was something in the room, other than my cats, who were laying beside me. So I ignored the feeling and tried to go to sleep. And then it starts. My first reaction was to stay calm and regulat my breathing. So I counted every breath. When I got to 11 I tried to move my wrist. I could feel from my wrist up but that was it. While I was moving it, the pressure I felt on me suddenly intensifies. It felt like someone had just jumped on top of the other person that it felt like was on top of me. I was starting to painic because that had never happened before. About 5 seconds in, I hear a little girl crying, but it’s a faded voice. You know, the ones you hear in the horror movies. (And No, I do not have a younger sister, im the youngest child.) After a few sobs, everything just stops. Including the crying. And I sit up and look at my cats (hint: it’s a mama cat and her two babies) and mama cat looks at me, knowing what happened but didn’t know what it was. I’ve also had experiences where I was dreaming and SP just suddenly happens while I’m in my dream, completely ruining it. Even though it wasn’t that good of a dream. Another time I had moved my leg entirely off of my bed and it all stopped. I’ve had times where it’s occurred when I was laying on my side (hint: the two most previous times) so I’ll wrap up this comment. I think I made it to long.

  29. The scariest nightmare I’ve ever had, two days in a row. The first time scared me out of my mind. I was as if half asleep, half awake, and it felt like a tingling sensation all over my body and I felt myself being levitated into the air. At one point I could actually feel my back hitting the ceiling. The second time, it was a bit less scary, but nontheless still scary. I woke up feeling the tingling sensation and I thought,” Oh no, it’s going to happen again.” So I got up and went to sleep with my sister and it was maybe 3 am when I felt it again. It happened twice on the same night. I was semi-awake and I couldn’t move. I started to move my hand, I could feel it trying to move towards my sister but I couldn’t. It was like a force repelling and pushing me away from her. So I thought, “Ok, I’ll just wait for it to pass by.” Today I decided to research it and I found this among other articles that hopefully will put my mind at ease.

  30. But Ethan, I deeply appreciate your effort to bring people together, to discuss SP scientifically and also understanding the religious and honouring the cultural beliefs associated with SP. Good job, keep the people connected..Being strong is the only solution personally I feel.

  31. Hello Ethan and everybody here, all these days I felt I was alone…But it made me feel reassured that I have one whole SP community here. My problem doubled up because I am a doctor and I am not supposed to deviate from scientific explanation. But there are few things the science has not reached and beyond scientific exploration. As per my experience, i too had similar experience…Out of body experience…Unable move….The only way i have found to overcome SP is face it, be strong, try to wriggle immediately, if not possible, pray, visit temple or church, meditate, but don’t give yourself no matter what,….

  32. Here’s a question what about Jezebel ?
    Incubus and succubus?

    I’m sure science cannot explain the supernatural
    As to one person who has had sleep paralysis since as far back as I can remember I was around 7 yrs old.

    Just last night I woke up at a strange time at night 2 30 am or so
    And now I have scratches on my leg and I dont even have long nails …so someone explain that to me since science claims its a neurological state.

    • This sp issue to my opinion is not a one way thing which can just be justified by science.Its all about your experiences and finding ways to deal with it whether scientifically or spiritually. To my opinion it could be something spiritual and its best that you find spiritual help.There are some things that go beyond the five senses or rather beyond the scientific wall and you can’t wait for millions of years till science catches up with the spiritual aspects of life.

  33. I heard a noise around 4 am. Went back to sleep and woke up around 10 minutes later from a feeling that a hand was touching mine at the end of bed, my heart was pounding, and then I couldn’t move and a person was holding me down I could feel everything. Then I was screaming for help except nothing was coming out. The figure said something to me. Finally went away and I couldn’t go back to sleep all night without getting sleep paralysis and crying. Scariest moment of my life.

    • Hey Jay!

      This literally just happened to me about an hour ago. Although it isn’t the first time. I know exactly how you feel. This time was different because I physically heard mumbling. I also tried to cry out “ahhhh!” And nothing could come out. Personally, 8 am 50/50 about it being sleep paralysis and or a spirit. Not sure if you’re religious or not (I’m more spiritual) but I was told to pray for them. I heard they’re trying to communicate through you but I’m terrified of going down that path. So I just pray and ask for the spirit to leave in peace. The crazy part was this “spirit” was not the same as the past 2 experiences. What did you do to help you through with this?

    • I know that feeling, except I don’t usually saw any supernatural entities such as demons and other creatures only Shadows of people, damn I searched in google about my case since I woke up this morning after having the same experience damn it feels so real!

  34. Years ago my husband and I went on a holiday in Florida. We arrived in the room late at night and went to bed shortly after. We were too tired to bother with the two single beds across the room from each other. The next morning I said to my husband, let’s move the beds together, I had the weirdest dream last night. He said, me too what was your dream. We both had the same dream/ experience. We felt the presence of a couple in the room. I felt the female sit on the end of my bed and say, oh look dear they are sleeping. Both of us felt ‘sleep paralyzed’ during this experience. It was very strange, not terrifying but unsettling. Neither of us has had anything comparable to that night. Weird or what.

  35. I was laying kn my left side. In my dream i was facing the wall and i can’t move a single muscle apart from eyes. I was feeling that there is someone or something behind my back. It appeared that whoever or whatever there was attempting to pulling me. And then i have regained mobility in my right hand and because of terror attempt to stab myself in my arm with a knife. Then i have awaken up.

  36. The thing is, I experienced this sleep paralysis STANDING after going to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

    I was just about to walk out the bathroom door when I suddenly feel this weight on my back or shoulders (this was years ago, I can’t remember every detail :D) I couldn’t speak even though my mother was literally right before my eyes. She didn’t even glance at me and continued typing on her laptop on the couch.

    But I somehow stayed standing up by holding onto the door frame even if it was mostly crouching.

    I have learned to forget about this incident but the curious person I am, I want to know if this was some natural phenomenon or an actual entity putting it’s weight to use since it can’t do anything else. :) no offence Mr. Entity.

  37. i just had the same sleeping paralysis experience. I was in bed trying to fall asleep, and i opened my eyes and moved my head a little but i noticed i could not move at all. I closed my eyes and felt something on my chest just pushing down and i couldn’t breath, i tried to call out for her and no sound came out of my mouth, i could move my lips though. i could wiggle my fingers a little but i couldn’t move anything else and i started praying. when i started praying about two minutes after it stopped, i could move but then i found myself awake again. so it seemed like a dream but my chest hurt and i still felt like i needed to breath from whatever was holding me down, and then i realized my hands were crossed in a grave like position. it was scary.

  38. My experiences have been happening since the age of 15 I’m now 33
    for me I’m not just paralysed but the frequency in the room changes and I’ve never felt a weight on my chest.

    I have seen and felt an energy in the room it is clear and see through and vibrates as it moves. It has circled me and I feel the pressure of it as it crosses me.

    I protect myself by imagining I’m surrounded by a white light this stops it from coming near me and I can stay calm. I also pray at night and ask for protection so I can get a good nights sleep I’ve found it also only happens when I’m sleep deprived.

  39. One night I was sleeping on the couch on my back and “woke up”. This creepy old lady kept on walking back and forth from the kitchen. Each time she came over she would try scraping off a cross tattoo on my wrist. I felt a pinching sensation. I tried to scream and move but I couldn’t. It was easily the most terrifying thing I’ve ever experienced. The next night I was sleeping in my bed and woke up to see a wolf with glowing yellow eyes staring at me from the end of the bed. At least he didn’t have red eyes!

  40. hello! I first had sleep paralysis when I was 13 to 15 years old I guess, it happened for about 3 to 4 times and I’m alone in my room but I always felt that someone/s watching me though I was not still afraid that time and just let it passed by. But one time I saw a dark figure outside our window that looked exactly like my uncle but I knew it’s not him for I felt that he is dangerous. He has red eyes and stared at me furiously as if he wants to get me. Heck I was super scared but after several minutes I was already awake and its morning already. Then after several years that uncle of mine died and I was so sad I believe that somehow there is a connection, maybe it was a warning that something will happen to him and I wasn’t able to warn or save him. Years passed and I thought it will never happen again, but yesterday it happened again while I was sleeping in the afternoon. I had sleep paralysis twice because when I wake up from my 1st sleep paralysis I was relieved, but I was still sleepy my eyes are closing so I give up and sleep again then I was paralyzed again. When I fall asleep for the 2nd time I panicked, I tried to move my body or shout at my friend for I saw her at the mirror fixing her hair but to no avail nothing happened. I just let it passed by and I still felt that same sensation as if someone/s watching me but this time I felt like someone are holding my whole body pushing it down not letting me move even a finger.

    strangely though I felt like I was in a sitting position that time and moving my body left to right but as I saw my body it does not even move that’s why I was confused, scared and panicked, because I know in my mind i’m in a sitting position and moving but my body is not moving at all. :)

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