What Happens During Sleep Paralysis?

Denise McCoy
Lenoir-Rhyne University

Running Head: SLEEP PARALYSIS

Abstract
Sleep paralysis is a short conscious moment of involuntary immobility. Usually it
happens when your rapid eye movement (REM) is awake during when you are asleep. In
other words, your REM is linked with paralysis of muscles which connects with the state
of being conscious. Sleep paralysis usually happens when you are about to fall asleep or
about to wake up from sleep when you are lying on your back. When it happens, you
slowly but surely realize you are not able to move or speak. Along with sleep paralysis,
you have dream paralysis. Typically, with dream paralysis you tend to dream about
something that frightens you. Moreover, you are still not able to move or speak as well
as wake up from your nightmare. To get a better understanding, the paper will inform
you about sleep and dream paralysis. From understanding the cause of sleep paralysis
along with cases of how other people felt when going through sleep paralysis.

Running Head: SLEEP PARALYSIS

What Happens During Sleep Paralysis?

Imagine yourself asleep. Moreover, you start to have a nightmare about being
attacked and fear overcomes you. Usually when having a nightmare, you instantly wake
up. However, when it happens you wake up but your mind and body is still asleep. You
are aware of the sounds you hear around you, but you cannot escape your nightmare.
Eventually you awaken, but you are not at ease at why you could not wake up when you
were wanting to. The indicated explains sleep and dream paralysis. Some may question
why it happens or does it happen due to the amount of sleep you get every night?
Throughout the paper, you will understand the reason in sleep paralysis and understand
the concept of dream paralysis too.
Sleep paralysis is a temporary, conscious state of involuntary immobility;
typically arising on awakening from REM sleep. Sleep paralyses is viewed as a motor
phenomena featured by a distanced state in which REM is connected with muscle atonia
(paralysis of voluntary musculature) which coexists with a wakefulness state of full
consciousness (Terzaghi, 2012). In other words, the REM is linked with paralysis of
muscles which associates with being conscious. With sleep paralysis, it happens either
when you are about to fall asleep or about to wake up; you realize you cannot move or
speak. Usually in the case of sleep paralysis, you are more likely sleeping on your back
(Cruz, 2000).

Running Head: SLEEP PARALYSIS

According to Terzaghi (2012), there was a study done describing a 59 year old
narcoleptic patient. Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder that causes extreme sleepiness and
many daytime sleep attacks. The patient showed no symptoms of depression or had any
episodes of any psychiatric disorders during his clinical interview. When about to wake
up from an Onset Rapid Eye Movement Period (SOREMP) at the fourth Multiple Sleep
Latency Test (MSLT) a sleep paralysis occurred. With that happening he was not able to
move or speak at all. After the MSLT, the participant reported experiencing not being
able to move or speak fluently as if he would have been awake. During the test, he was
asked questions. However, he could not determine if the questions that were asked was
during a dream or did it actually happened since he experienced sleep paralysis. He
stated that if the person doing the study agreed with him that he was never asked
questions during his MSLT that he would believe that it was dream at the end (Terzaghi,
2012).
With regards to sleep paralysis, the International Classification of Sleep
Disorders explained that those who go through sleep paralysis usually experience being
frightened and having acute anxiety is regular (Fukuda, 2005). However, the person is
fully conscious but is not able to move and he or she may have the feeling of being
vulnerable. During sleep paralysis, the amygdaloid is heightened, which leads to
problems with anxiety. Moreover, when the amygdala is high, emotions are varied.
Regarding to sleep paralysis, having the amygdala high it can result in fear, as well
(Fukuda, 2005).

Running Head: SLEEP PARALYSIS

Love (2012), explained many of cases where sleep paralysis had occurred and
how each individual had accepted their disorder. Within the article, we learned that
there was a case where girls of ages between 13 and 15 experienced the paralysis for the
first time. One girl stated, I vaguely remember the paralysis part, along with fear, and I
recall that I would always try very hard to move just one little finger because I knew
once I moved a fingerthat it would break the spell and would wake up conscious.
Later on in her spill of informing us about her first time experiencing sleep paralysis, we
learn that she was able to hear and be aware of her surroundings, as well (Love, 2012).
Mas (2014), review of sleep paralysis was that it can increase for college students
to around 40%. Within each race, sleep paralysis can range from 41% in AfricanAmericans, 37% in Hong Kong Chinese, 26% in Nigerians, 11% in Mexicans, and 6.5% in
Italians. Sleep paralysis tends to increase from junior high school to senior high school
for both genders. The increase can be due to pressures that escalate with age; such as
school performance and external and interpersonal stressors (Ma, 2014). Teens are
starting to look at the people around them such as their peers or acquaintances rather
than their family to help them search who they are to develop their identity. Worry,
depression, and anxiety links with sleep paralysis (Ma, 2014).
Along with sleep paralysis, there is dream paralysis. Within dream paralysis, they
usually correlate with nightmares. For example, you are sleeping and you start dreaming
about being attacked and kidnap. You are trying to run away, but you are not able to run
or scream. You are just there letting the attacker attack you. During the dream, you

Running Head: SLEEP PARALYSIS

attempt to wake up, but you realize you are not able to move or able to wake up. That
explains dream paralysis. During REM sleep, our brain sends messages to the neurons
in our spinal cord to switch off (Monique, 2012). It can result in temporary paralysis and
it can prevent us from acting out our dreams (Monique, 2012). Therefore, when we
dream that we are paralyzed, it may be that the actual physiological paralysis that
supplements our dream, sleep is happening in the dream itself (Monique, 2012).
Comparing both sleep and dream paralysis, one thing that links them together can be
that emotion determines your state of being paralyzed or not. It can go back to the state
of your amygdala.
In conclusion, both sleep and dream paralysis connects with one another due to
your emotions. Therefore, when sleeping and dreaming if you are stressed or worried
about something this paralysis can occur for a short period of time due to your
amygdala. That can increase your heart rate and anxiety can occur because of it.
However, one thing you must understand. The more you fight to wake up during the
state of being in sleep paralysis the harder it is for you to wake up due to anxiety that is
occurring (Ma, 2014).

Running Head: SLEEP PARALYSIS

References
Fukuda, K. (2005). Emotions during sleep paralysis and dreaming. Sleep & Biological
Rhythms, 3(3), 166-168.
Love, H. (2012). Sleep Paralysis. Skeptic, 17(2), 50-56.
Ma, S., Wu, T., & Pi, G. (2014). Sleep paralysis in Chinese adolescents: A representative
survey. Sleep & Biological Rhythms, 12(1), 46-52.
Monique, C. (2012). What it means to dream of paralysis dream reader. Sunday
Telegraph, 27.
Cruz, R. (2008). Sleep paralysis: rem and the "i function. Serendip Updated. Retrieved
from http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/1862
Terzaghi, M., Ratti, P., Manni, F., & Manni, R. (2012). Sleep paralysis in narcolepsy:

Running Head: SLEEP PARALYSIS

more than just a motor dissociative phenomenon?. Neurological Sciences, 33(1),

169-172.