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Hi guys,

Just curious if anyone actually knows much about this -- I usually go through weeks where this happens every night, and I can't remember what its scientific/medical term is -- but basically, when I'm falling asleep, I will have these times where I wake up, but my body/mind haven't synched back up. I will be mentally conscious, but I can't move. There are all kinds of audible and sometimes visual hallucinations. If I wasn't logical, I have to be honest, these things would scare the crap out of most people. I think its often been termed as "witch on the back" or something along those lines. Anyways, any info on what usually causes these or whatever, would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Ryan

There is something in your brain that causes you not to move so you remain still while sleeping and dreaming. Usually you will regain movement before consciousness. Like when you roll over while sleeping for example. However sometimes when you wake up you come to full consciousness, with your memory working 100%, before you are able to move.

Here is an article about it. It is in the physiology of REM sleep. It is called REM atonia. As you will see some people have the opposite problem.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/REM_atonia ... _REM_sleep

Here is a page about REM atonia. However they seem to define it as the problem when it goes wrong. When really it is a normal function. But this describes very well how it goes wrong.

http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art ... lekey=9811

Hallucination could be night terrors which is something completely different.

its funny even bringing it up, but i know its just an issue with how my body is shut off so it can rest. its just a different experience when you know you cant move, like youre there, but you cant move. even one time, i thought someone was right over my bed like snuck into my place to steal my stuff or something, but when i finally came to, the sounds and visuals disappeared.

Ah, I understand. You were partially conscious while still technically in REM, at least as far as some parts of your brain are concerned. That's nothing to worry about, but at the time it can be pretty scary. I'm not sure if there is treatment for that or not.

That is actually what is responsible for belief in alien abduction and witches putting a spell on you.

Sleep paralysis. I used to get this when I was younger. Scared the hell out of me. I found I could wake myself up by slowly forcing my tongue between my teeth and slowly biting down. I don't know if that's recommended or not, but I did it.

But yeah, scary. I felt like someone infinitely heavy was laying on top of me.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis

I do it by forcing my eyes open. I don't worry too much, just would be nice to get rid of it.

I've had the same thing and to me its hard to tell wether your awake or not the only thing you know is that you can't move no matter how hard you try. Except one time I must have done something bad becuase i moved but i couldn't move my limbs!! like i had no use of my arms and def felt paralysed. I have had it more than one time and took it as a challenge to move and only moved once lol but like i said it was a rollover movement and i couldnt move my arms kinda funny when you think about it.

I have noticed such effect befor but I used to think that I'm too lazy to wake up and get up... And that is why it is recommended not to get up as sson as you wake up and to wait for several minutes in the bed...

Hey there! Digging up old threads is delicate art. You really have to be sure that you have something great to say, to make people go back and read the whole thread (which most don't remember because there weren't members when it happened, or just because we don't remember details for over 3 years) and then be challenged, enlightened, surprised or greatly educated enough by your new response, to feel that it was worth the effort!

In general, it's best to leave alone any threads that are more than a few weeks old, IMHO.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

This should be a sticky.

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Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.~Hippocrates
Strength is the adaptation that leads to all other adaptations that you really care about - Charles Staley
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Thanks TimD

I dug an old one up to ask Bob about an injury and how he was coming along, because I was having the same one. Maybe im works better for that, but seemed to be the right move, then others also see his progress.

Well, bumping something that concerns people who are currently active, especially something that would have some change or progression to ask about it seems like a legitimate thing to me. Digging up something old just to add a minor comment, or criticism, or whatever is annoying.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

good point

That's the only reason they aren't locked.