A state where you cannot move. Sleep paralysis or how to get rid of the night attacks of the “old witch”
According to statistics, approximately 60% of the world's population claim to have experienced or periodically experience symptoms of sleep paralysis. The term sleep paralysis is not classified as a medical disease, but nevertheless it has its reasons, characteristic symptoms and methods of elimination.
In terms of physiology, sleep paralysis is similar to real paralysis, that is, a person cannot move a single muscle group, while believing that full awakening has already occurred.
Conducted research has revealed that sleep paralysis is explained by a person’s disruption of all phases of sleep. Very specific reasons can lead to such an imbalance, and usually immediately after they are eliminated, everything returns to normal.
Causes of sleep paralysis
Sleep paralysis occurs in two cases - at the moment when a person begins to fall asleep or vice versa, at the stage of awakening. It is noted that muscle paralysis never occurs when the alarm clock rings, that is, stupor occurs during the natural course of one of the phases of sleep.
At the moment of falling asleep a person is in the phase slow sleep, in which the muscles are already relaxed, and consciousness is not yet turned off and, moreover, registers the quietest sounds.
A sudden awakening at the moment of transition to deep sleep causes activation of the brain, but the body is not yet able to respond to impulses. That is, it seems to a person that a command from parts of the brain takes too long to get to the desired “address” and the limbs react to it with a slowdown.
A similar condition is also recorded in people who wake up before the end of the REM sleep phase. Although many people feel like they experience paralysis for more than 10 minutes, in reality this pathological process rarely exceeds a 2-minute period.
The muscles gradually begin to work, the person gains a voice and the ability to make movements, but the feeling of horror remains for a long time. Causes leading to sleep paralysis include:
- Lack of sleep, especially over several weeks.
- Prolonged stress and neurological disorders.
- Biorhythm shift, for example, when flying from one time zone to the exact opposite.
- Mental illnesses.
- Dependence on drugs, psychotropic substances.
- Sleep paralysis can develop while taking nootropics and antidepressants.
- Often this condition occurs in conjunction with narcolepsy and periodic night leg cramps.
Some researchers argue that sleep paralysis has a genetic predisposition. Cases of repeated attacks of stupor during sleep have been recorded among blood relatives. Therefore, if you have had similar cases among relatives, then you have a much greater chance of going into sleep paralysis.
For the first time, sleep paralysis most often begins to appear after 10 years and can bother you until the age of 20-25. In mature people, the state of immobility during sleep with full consciousness is recorded much less frequently.
Most people experience paralysis from 1 to several times throughout their lives, but 5% of patients who consulted a neurologist were less fortunate - their attacks recur up to several times a year or even a month.
How to call?
Sleep paralysis has the same effect on the psyche of most people - they get scared, are afraid of a repetition of a similar state, and experience severe horror. But there are brave souls who try to artificially experience sleep paralysis in order to understand the secrets of their subconscious. There are certain body postures and techniques in which you can intentionally enter a sleepy stupor:
- First, you need to take a position that is more conducive to paralysis - lie on your back, tilt your head back, placing a small cushion under your neck.
- It is necessary to achieve the sensations that arise when falling upside down with high altitude. That is, you need to achieve a feeling of weightlessness, create noise and whistling in your ears, and a gust of wind in your face. If you completely, as in reality, achieve such a state, you will also experience sleep paralysis.
- You can create sleep paralysis by achieving immobility in your sleep and causing severe fear in yourself. When you fall asleep, you need to remember what really scares you.
- Some people achieve sleepy stupor if they drink coffee before bed. First, the slow-wave sleep phase will begin to take effect, but as soon as caffeine interacts with the body's systems, the person will immediately wake up sharply.
The onset of sleep paralysis is indicated by the appearance of auditory hallucinations– you can hear footsteps in the room, extraneous rustles and even the movement of objects.
Symptoms
People who experience or have once experienced the mechanism of action of sleep paralysis usually characterize their condition in approximately the same way. The most important thing is the immobility of any muscle groups with apparent full consciousness; stupor is often accompanied by unusual sound illusions. Signs of sleep paralysis include:
- Feeling of panic fear.
- Feeling of pressure on top part torso, especially on chest and neck.
- Difficulty in inhaling and exhaling, inability to make sounds.
- During sleep paralysis, your heart rate always increases.
- A person does not orient himself in space, and the illusion arises that he is in an unfamiliar place.
- Visual hallucinations include the fixation of shadows, unclear, dark silhouettes.
- Auditory illusions are accompanied by noise, the movement of shadows around the room, some feel the breathing of a foreign creature next to them.
Such sensations in most cases occur in people who prefer to sleep on their back or right side; often throwing back the head also contributes to partial immobility of the body upon awakening. Some people find it easier to fall into sleep paralysis. This is due to their suspiciousness, anxiety, neurological disorders.
A nearby relative can also notice that a person is experiencing sleep paralysis by tense muscles in the face, twitching of the arms or legs, or intermittent, heavy breathing.
Treatment
Most neurologists believe that sleep paralysis is specific treatment doesn’t need it and you can’t fight it that way. But this is only if a person does not have depressive state, neuroses, sleep disorders, alcohol or drug addiction. Paralysis will periodically occur until these provoking factors are eliminated.
In order to prevent a recurrence of an attack of sleep paralysis in the future, it is necessary to achieve normalization of sleep. In some cases, the simplest tips help with this:
- It is necessary to regularly exercise outdoors. This approach to a healthy lifestyle links together the work of the brain centers and muscles, which ensures the coherence of their functioning in all phases of sleep.
- Helps normalize sleep bad habits. There is no need to get carried away with strong tonic drinks in the evening.
- Before going to bed, the room should be well ventilated, it is advisable to take a relaxing bath or drink a decoction of soothing herbs.
- You should try to fall asleep on your side. You can put tangible objects under your back so that turning onto your back causes discomfort.
- You need to sleep a sufficient amount of time - for some people it is 6 hours, for others a little more. You should try to fall asleep at the same time.
How to get out?
In most cases, you can interrupt the regularly recurring stupor in a dream in the following ways:
- During paralysis, you need to relax as much as possible and try to move your fingers or toes, or make a sound.
- For some, activation helps them quickly return to their normal state. brain activity– counting numbers, solving problems, mental singing. Prayer is said to help, but that's more because you have to concentrate to remember the words.
- Breathing control. If you feel paralysis, you should try to make even, deep breathing movements. Once you master this technique, you can always overcome paralysis.
- During a state of paralysis, it is usually possible to make eye movements. You can try to close and open your eyelids several times.
- If the state of paralysis recurs periodically, then you can ask your husband or wife to always pay attention to your behavior in your sleep. It is enough to move the person or call out to him for him to quickly come out of his stupor.
It happens that a person begins to experience sleep paralysis almost every night or several times. In this case, it would be a good idea to visit a specialist to conduct an examination and prescribe sedatives.
Why is sleep paralysis dangerous?
The state of horror that occurs during sleep paralysis plunges many into panic, but stupor in itself is not dangerous. Within a few minutes, everything returns to normal, breathing and heartbeat normalize, and the person falls asleep again.
An educational video that talks about the causes and symptoms of sleep paralysis:
It’s worse when sleep paralysis occurs periodically in overly suspicious people. They may decide that they are susceptible to lethargic sleep, heart disease, and neuroses. Constantly thinking about the impending stupor, a person causes insomnia and neurotic disorders, which will require adequate treatment.
Imagine: you wake up and can’t even lift a finger. The room is dark, but you feel someone’s ominous presence - someone is standing next to the bed, or maybe sitting right on your chest, preventing you from taking a breath. You want to turn your head at least a little to see him, but nothing works, someone (something?) is holding you back, while eye movement continues, you try to move your limbs, but in vain - you can neither move nor to speak (since it is impossible to open your mouth), you seem to be frozen, there is a feeling that you are suffocating due to the fact that someone is standing on your chest. Horror and panic cover you... The picture may seem incredible, but many people have a similar experience. If you have experienced something similar, then you are familiar first-hand with the unforgettable horrors of sleep paralysis, or “sleep paralysis syndrome.” old witch" What is sleep paralysis?
Sleep paralysis is the inability to move. In the vast majority of cases, it occurs either at the moment of falling asleep or immediately after waking up, which is why it is called “sleepy”.
Symptoms. Sleep paralysis is characterized by complete awareness of a person and at the same time an absolute inability to move. Usually this condition is accompanied by a strong feeling of horror and panic, as well as fear of death, suffocation, stiffness of all movements, a feeling of something foreign, heavy on the body (usually on the throat and chest, sometimes on the legs).
Often, sleep paralysis can be accompanied by visual, auditory and even tactile (i.e. physically felt) hallucinations. A person can hear footsteps, see dark figures hanging over him or standing nearby, and feel touches. Often there is a feeling that someone has climbed onto the chest and is strangling the sleeping person.
It has been noted that sleep paralysis can occur only upon natural awakening, and never upon awakening from an alarm clock or other irritants. It is believed that between 40% and 60% of people will experience sleep paralysis at least once in their lives. The most risky period of life is from 10 to 25 years. It is at this age that most cases are recorded.
Causes of sleep paralysis
“Sleep paralysis” has been known for a long time, and its symptoms were already described centuries ago. Previously, this phenomenon was associated with brownies, demons, witches, etc.
So, in Russian folk tradition this phenomenon is associated with brownie, which, according to legend, jumps on a person’s chest in order to warn of either good or bad.
In Islam it is ifrit- one of the evil genies, considered a servant of Satan, who can seriously harm people.
In Chuvash mythology it is evil spirit Wubar , which appears at night and, taking the form of domestic animals, a fiery serpent or a person, falls on sleeping people, causing suffocation and nightmares. According to myths, by attacking sleeping people, wubars thereby improve their health. A sleeping person cannot move or say anything.
In Basque mythology there is also a separate character for this phenomenon - Inguma, appearing in houses at night during sleep and squeezing the throat of someone sleeping, making breathing difficult and thereby causing horror.
IN Japanese mythology It is believed that giant demon Kanashibari puts his foot on the chest of a sleeping person.
Nowadays, they often try to explain this phenomenon by visits from aliens from other worlds who paralyze a person’s will for the purpose of abduction.
Explanation by modern scientists
Modern scientists believe that sleep paralysis is an unremarkable biological event that is intended by nature.
The most common explanation of psychoanalysts is muscle paralysis , which is natural state for our body during the REM sleep phase, when our subconscious specifically paralyzes the muscles of the body so that, while watching active sleep, you do not perform any actions in reality and do not harm yourself. Sleep paralysis occurs when the consciousness is already awake, but the body is not yet.
By the way, in one psychoanalytic journal they gave the following explanation: “Sleep paralysis is caused by the fact that a person has already woken up, and a certain hormone (which is released during sleep and is responsible for paralyzing the muscles) has not yet had time to leave the body.” However, there is an inconsistency with this version - if it’s all about the hormone, why does sleep paralysis never happen with forced awakening? Does the hormone get scared and instantly self-destruct?
Esoteric explanations
Another point of view is related to psychic practices out-of-body experience And astral travel . It is believed that sleep paralysis is an indicator that a person’s consciousness is on the border between the real and astral worlds. Some even manage to use sleep paralysis to “leave their bodies.” They explain this phenomenon by the fact that a person’s consciousness is not in the physical, but in the astral body, but due to weak energy, or a lack of understanding of the principles of movement in the astral world, the person cannot move. This point of view may partially explain the “hallucinations” during sleep paralysis. According to astral travelers, astral world filled with various entities.
What to do?
However, no matter what real reasons sleep paralysis, if you have such attacks, and you don’t care about medical or esoteric research, pray. This method works, especially if the person’s faith is strong.
People about their encounter with the "sleep paralysis demon"
1. “Something whispered in my ear.”
I had never encountered such a phenomenon before, and the first time it happened, I was lying on my left side and suddenly felt strong pressure in the chest area. When I realized that I couldn't move, I panicked. At that moment something whispered in my ear: "I just came to wish you Good night» . Then I felt something pull me towards the edge of the bed. It's terrible, it's really scary.
2. Cats, penguins and the shadow man, oh my!
I have experienced sleep paralysis three times in my entire life.
At dusk, I saw a dark creature that looked like a cat, which first sat at my feet, and then began to slowly crawl along the sheet until it ended up on my chest. I was overcome with fear.
The second time I saw the shadow of a man walk across the room, slip out through the open door and disappear. This is the most terrible thing I have ever experienced in my life.
A last time was the best. I saw a couple of fancy penguins walking around my bedroom. A funny and cheerful show.
3. I felt my whole body turn to stone, then the bed squashed, as if someone had sat down at my feet
A few years ago, my relative died, I still had very little communication with her before her death, and on the night when she was 40 days old (I was alone at the dacha and lived in an outbuilding), I was afraid to sleep, so I read a book until 3 am, and then she lay down with the light on, turning her face to the wall... I was lying there, and suddenly I heard footsteps, and something confused me about them, and I realized that they were heard right next to the bed, although it was about 6 meters to walk from the entrance to the annex to the bed... I felt my whole body turn to stone, then the bed creased, as if someone had sat down at my feet, and then a heaviness began to spread throughout my body, as if someone was lying down along me and trying to look into my face. I tried to close my eyes, but I couldn’t, I couldn’t scream, I tried to cross my fingers... My heart was pounding like crazy... Then suddenly the heaviness subsided, the bed returned to its previous position, again there were steps near the bed, silence. I jumped up and ran out in what I was wearing, ran to the next house, woke up everyone there and sat until the morning... I then immediately left for Moscow, because I couldn’t stand another night like that... Then I thought about everything, read about similar cases - presumably it was sleep paralysis, and the brain simply recreated it all... Although who knows... Now a lot of time has passed, but these memories still give me goosebumps...
4. “During sleep paralysis, I see demons and a guardian angel.”
When I fall into a state of sleep paralysis, demons and a guardian angel appear to me. The first are usually ghostly figures standing above me or at my bedroom door. Once I was lying on my side with my back to the door, when I suddenly felt that someone lay down next to me on the bed, climbed under the blanket and put his hand on my waist. Then I felt a strong hug and hot breath on my neck. This went on for about half an hour. All this time I tried not to show my fear, which is very difficult, especially if it seems that a skeleton with claws is hugging you from behind. The last time something like this happened again, I thought I'd get heart attack. Someone came very close to me, kissed me behind my ear and whispered: “No, it’s not time yet. I'll be back when you're ready.". It didn't sound very comforting, as if I was going to die soon. I was very scared.
I had been experiencing sleep paralysis off and on for 18 months, so I could easily tell when it was happening. That time, at first I thought that there was an ordinary demon standing near my bed who had come to me before, but I was wrong. I looked and clearly saw a man kneeling next to my bed. There was a smile on his face, but not one that makes you shiver. He was wearing a 50's style suit and hat. He didn't say a single word. I felt as if he had come to tell me that everything was fine and that he was protecting me.
5. This was the most best moment in her life
My mother once told me that when she was little, either in a dream or in reality, two men in white and gold suits appeared to her, who sat on the bed at her feet and played musical instruments. It was so easy and fun for mom that she didn’t want them to leave. But when she moved her head, she heard one man say to the other: “She's waking up. It is time". And they disappeared.
6. Lots of terrible things.
Before I learned how to deal with it, I experienced a lot of really terrible things. Horror films are now nothing to me compared to what I had to face. Here are a few things I can never forget:
A little girl stood in the corner of my room and did not take her eyes off me. Then she suddenly screamed shrilly, ran up to me and began to choke me.
A large dark figure, resembling a human silhouette, stood silently next to my bed, looking down at me.
Something rumbled and scraped right outside my bedroom door. I always lock it at night after it starts opening on its own. Note: No, the door is closed when I wake up. It opens only in a dream.
My bedroom door swung wide open and dark figures entered the room.
The last time I saw my mother enter the room, sit on my bed and immediately turn into a demon.
And many others.
The worst thing is that when you try to fight it or call someone for help, your voice disappears and your body stops listening. You just feel helpless. Phew, I don’t even want to remember. It's getting scary.
7. Hundreds of times.
I have experienced sleep paralysis literally hundreds of times. Usually an alien-like creature would come to me, black in color and about 1 meter high. I also saw a skeleton with a scythe in a black robe. I don't have auditory hallucinations, I just feel paralyzed, and to get rid of such visions, I just close my eyes tightly - and everything disappears.
8. “Even if I don’t see anyone, I feel that there is someone in the room.”
This happens to me so often that I'm not even scared anymore. It's creepy, of course, but not as bad as before. The first few hallucinations were terrifying:
The little creature was eating something greedily, sitting on the floor of my room. I blinked. Now it was right next to my face and, continuing to chew, whispered: "Do you remember me?".
stood over my head elderly woman and quietly whispered: "Cute…". I told my mom about this and she asked: “Did you think it was your dead grandmother?” No. It was evil.
Hallucinations are always evil. Even if I don’t see anyone, I feel that there is someone in the room. This is evil, nothing less. I can not move. Evil is attacking me. I can't call for help. I can only breathe heavily and loudly in the hope that someone will hear me and save me. I'm trying to move my fingers. Come on!..
9. “...and this face that grew old before my eyes.”
This was the first and only time I saw a dream turn into reality. I dreamed good dream and suddenly... In a dream I realized that I was dreaming. I opened my eyes and saw a woman’s face above me, which from young and attractive instantly turned into old, wrinkled and blackened, like everything around. I couldn't move and felt pressure on my chest and this face that was aging before my eyes.
10. They laughed at me.
The last time the demon appeared to me, he stood in the corner of the room (behind me, where I could not see him) and spoke some nonsense.
Sometimes demons walked towards me, like Jacob's ladder, and sometimes people I know, but they were possessed and often laughed at me.
11. Someone saved me.
One night, when I was trying to sleep, my hand fell through the bed. But, in fact, she was lying on the bed. When this usually happens, I just put it away, but this time my curiosity got the better of me. How long will it last? And I started swinging my arm until my shoulder slipped behind it. It was new and exciting.
However, I felt that there was something further down there. I wasn't afraid, my curiosity was out of control. I lost my caution and tried to reach out to what I thought was there, in the depths of the void.
Big mistake. My leg slipped, followed by my whole body. I started to fall. At the very last moment before this, I realized that what I was striving for was not a thing at all, but a fear that I had never experienced before. I tried to go back, but I couldn't. My body didn't listen to me.
At the last second, something grabbed me by the shoulder and pulled me outside. I don't know what it was. But definitely something strong and durable.
12. Steps.
I heard the back door open. At this time I was lying on the sofa and could not even move. I just heard someone’s steps in the kitchen, then in the dining room, they were slowly approaching the living room where I was. I couldn't move, I couldn't scream. I managed to come to my senses at the very last moment before I suffocated (apnea attack).
I know that someday I will die from this. Not at the hands of a real criminal, but by suffocation during another nightmare. Apnea syndrome drives me crazy.
13. Little black child...
This happens to me when I'm too tired and lie down to take a nap. It all depends on what I am dreaming - I “wake up”, unable to even move and with a feeling of heaviness in my body. I feel almost good and at the same time eerie, because I cannot control what is happening. Whatever I dream about, it always happens in my room. Once I dreamed of a small black child (the sight of him made me shiver). Most often, various people or “demons”, as you call them, appear to me in my dreams. I scream and fall asleep again, then it happens again after a couple of seconds, and so on several times. As a result, I finally wake up, overwhelmed with panic.
14. Beetles.
I woke up and saw in front of me a giant Egyptian scarab, which looked at me and said: “I can’t wait to taste your rotten flesh.” Then, after long speeches describing the details of my eating, he turned into hundreds or even thousands of small scarabs, which disappeared into the cracks of the walls with a terrible noise.
15. Devil-like creature
The most terrible thing that appeared to me was a devil-like creature with red skin, black clothes and huge teeth. He sat on my chest and suffocated me. I was overcome by fear. I could neither move nor scream. In the morning, my husband said that at night someone also tried to strangle him.
The analytical portal “Orthodox View” asked Orthodox experts to characterize the phenomenon called “sleep paralysis”:
MIKHAIL KHASMINSKY, Orthodox psychologist
Many people face this problem quite often. This disease is described in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), but modern science still cannot unambiguously, clearly and clearly explain the processes that occur with people in this state of consciousness; it gives a descriptive, speculative nature of these states, so there is still no explanation of the causes of this disease.
Sleep paralysis is a direct contact with the other world, because a person in this state passes into another reality, where real events happen to him that frighten him. And during this nightmare, a person cannot move, but being in another reality, he is helpless. This state is probably similar to the state of hell, when a person is tormented by fear and horror, but he cannot do anything.
In my practice, there were quite interesting cases related to sleep paralysis. One can try to explain this phenomenon by the alpha state of the brain, when interaction occurs between sleep and reality and penetration between realities can occur. This state of transition to another reality is very dangerous. You can compare it to going outside - you can bad person meet, and good things, but if a person does not know how to understand people, then, most likely, he will find himself in a bad situation. In order not to get into a bad story, you need to understand and distinguish between spirits.
But, we, modern people, for the most part are in a state of sin, we communicate with unclean spirits in our reality, we do not live a spiritual life as we should, and we do not have the gift of discerning spirits. That is why we need to pay less attention to dreams (which most often come from demons), and also strive less for meditation and other dangerous practices associated with an altered state of consciousness.
But if we talk about sleep paralysis, then no one specially arranges it; it turns out that the door opens by itself, the person sleeps, but at the same time comes into contact with unclean entities. One of my patients found herself in a similar state many times, many times she experienced horror, waking up in another reality, saw very vivid images of evil spirits, and the only thing that helped her get out of this was the prayer to the Life-Giving Cross and the “Our Father.” Sleep paralysis occurs in those who are spiritually weak and in order to avoid falling into such states, one must lead a spiritual life. From my point of view, this is an important factor.
HIEROMONK MAKARIUS (MARKISH), clergyman of the Ivanovo-Voznesensk diocese, church publicist and missionary
This actually happens quite often. The difference between believers and non-believers is manifested not in the phenomenon itself, but in its assessment - it deprives the non-believer of peace and tranquility in the soul, torments with mystery, torments with mystery, and for the believer it is also unpleasant, but we look at such things calmly, indifferently and , in general, without interest. A fairly accurate analogy can be given: if a child is not raised correctly, then suddenly seeing a pornographic scene will have a strong and vivid impression on him, and he will be intrigued, interested, and excited. But a normal, rationally raised child is protected from such influence, because he firmly knows that this is dirt, evil, abomination, and will turn away without unnecessary emotions. When we're talking about about the mysterious phenomena of the invisible, immaterial world, then we are all, to a certain extent, like children, but proper upbringing(religious, in this case) brings us tremendous benefit and protects us from demonic attack.
We must clearly realize that here we stand on the border of the visible and invisible worlds, and if in the first psychological and physiological research, experiments, and natural scientific methods of cognition are possible (and useful), then in the second (the border with which is blurred and uncertain) , there is nothing like this and cannot be. This is a different world, not subject to either positive experience or formal knowledge.
DMITRY TSORIONOV (ENTEO), founder of the "God's Will" movement
Sleep paralysis is a ubiquitous phenomenon in post-Christian society, direct contact between man and dark side spiritual world. IN modern Russia entire generations who grew up without God were thrown to the mercy of demons. Most modern people regularly encounter attacks from fallen spirits; for hundreds of thousands of people, daily sleep is a familiar dose of total horror, to which a person gets used to over time. As soon as demons do not mock people, they show all sorts of horrors. People describe in detail how they see dozens of demons mocking them, chained with horror. For some people, every night is a fight for survival. And only when a person begins to try, despite paralysis, with a huge effort of will, to pronounce the words of the Orthodox prayer, the demons retreat. I know many cases when, during sleep paralysis, people began to pronounce well-known orthodox prayers, although they had never even been heard before.
I remembered one interesting case about this topic. I corresponded with one of the followers of neo-Hinduism guru OSHO Rajneesh, telling him that behind Eastern mysticism lies the reality of fallen angels. In response to his ridicule of what had been said, I wrote to him that he would not laugh if these spirits came to him at night. The next day he writes me a long letter, describing sleep paralysis, the appearance of a demon, writes how his soul suffered from the approach of evil, how he felt the cross being removed on himself and was saved by a luminous man, whom he later recognized when he saw the icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. God allows us to come into close contact with the world of fallen angels, for the sake of our understanding, but unfortunately, not everyone, even after this, is ready to change their lives.
I was deeply struck by the post about sleep paralysis in the most popular public page among young people on VKontakte “MDK”. This community largely determines the worldview of a modern teenager, full of cynicism, fornication, blasphemy and perversion. The post received more than 30,000 likes and 4,000 comments from teenagers describing their experience of sleep paralysis. You can’t imagine what horrors these unfortunate, mutilated modern world and the children there described their godless upbringing. Many said that they experience this every day, many said that they have already gotten used to it.
I specifically found this message to give a few comments, which are essentially a snapshot of the spiritual state of our youth:
— “It happens to me a couple of times a month for sure. The feelings were different. One time the bed shook as if there was an earthquake. There were some leftist dialogues with deceased relatives. A bunch of hallucinations like someone touching me. In general, a lot of weird stuff. If something happens at night and I wake up or already feel that it’s going to start tonight, I just turn on the TV, set it to turn off automatically and it seems to help”;
- “Usually it comes from four o’clock in the evening to 7-8, you understand that this is a dream, but you can’t do anything, you feel like you’re being strangled, all sorts of monsters are walking around or the appearance of your family, at that moment you dream that someone will wake you up , I start moving the little finger on my hand, etc. I barely wake up and don’t go to bed again”;
— “The feeling as if huge black spiders are crawling around, devils are sitting on you, the fire is crackling deafeningly, someone is speaking loudly all around, huge monsters larger than consciousness itself and paralyzing animal fear from the depths of the universe. and so on every damn night. I hate it";
“This crap happens all the time, but I can’t even open my eyes. But you can clearly hear the handle in the room turning and someone’s steps approaching, very similar to the clatter of hooves...”;
- “It was, I sleep, everything is so normal, only I slept with with open eyes, Idk how so. After which I turned on the other side, looked blankly into the distance of the room and that’s all. Then there was a sharp ringing in my ears and it was as if thousands of slow, rough voices were shouting in my ear. Then terrible faces appeared before my eyes, they looked blankly into my eyes and screamed. It’s strange, but I couldn’t move, it was such a strange feeling...”;
- “It happened. You lie like this, and it seems like it’s a dream, there are ghosts and all sorts of demons nearby. You begin to moo in fear, move your fingers and eyes back and forth. Then the state disappears, and you lie there and don’t understand what happened right now O".
Can you imagine what it’s like to live with this? These are ordinary children who go to school, listen to their favorite performers, discuss TV series characters, and mobile phone models. These are children who were raised by Pelevin’s generation, a generation that forgot Christ. Children for whom fornication, occultism, godlessness and blasphemy have become the norm. For these seemingly prosperous children, hell begins already in this life. I think we all need to think seriously about this.
Material prepared by Sergey SHULYAK
Materials from the portal “Orthodox View” were used
“I have never experienced such horrors in my life. I woke up in sticky sweat from someone touching me. I open my eyes - there are two people in the room, they grin and begin to pull off the blanket. I call for help, but not even a moo comes out. The body is like someone else’s...” (From the comments)
An unusual sleep disorder in which the brain works while the body sleeps - sleep paralysis. Is the phenomenon dangerous, who is at risk, in what cases should you contact medical care- in the article.
Sleep paralysis (SP) is more common
than you think. This is a fairly common sleep state, as confirmed by statistical studies in different countries.
- joint ventures had at least, once in a lifetime:
- 25-50 percent of Americans
- 30% English
- about a third of the planet's total population.
- 3-6 percent of people experience paralysis all the time.
- 8-10% have recurrent attacks within one night.
According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, sleep disorder first appears in adolescents aged 14 to 17 years. Also, SP can begin at any age, but most likely before 30-35 years.
Risk group.
As you can see, sleep paralysis is a common parasomnia among children and adults.
However, there are people who are at greater risk of paralytic attacks if they have the following factors:
Sleeping on your back.
Taking medications.
Alcohol and drug abuse.
Lack of sleep due to improper routine or shift work.
Chronic anxiety.
Depression.
Manic-depressive states.
Severe disorder of the nervous system caused by complex psychotraumatic circumstances:
PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), “Afghan”, “Vietnamese”, “Chechen” syndrome, experienced sexual violence, emotional or physical trauma, threat of death, etc.
Heredity.
Physical and psycho-emotional fatigue.
Changing the usual way of life (change of place of work or residence, new responsibilities, etc.).
Attacks of SP generally indicate a lack of smooth transitions through. Paralysis is extremely rarely associated with profound mental disorders.
Sleep paralysis danger
WITH medical point from the perspective of SP is not a disease, but a safe sleep disorder, except in cases associated with apnea, narcolepsy and other health problems.
An attack of paralysis passes quickly, in a couple of minutes, does not cause long-term physical discomfort, but can become a serious test for the psyche.
The day after the attack, people feel unwell, anxious, and afraid of a repetition of unpleasant events.
How does the intensity of SP affect performance and well-being? a group of Canadian scientists from the University of Waterloo found out:
The stronger the fear and the more vivid the hallucinations, the more “broken” the person will be in the future. Flying and other illusions of movement while paralyzed also aggravate the condition.
Affects a person’s well-being and attitude towards the phenomenon:
people with developed logical thinking they tolerate seizures more easily.
Impressionable natures Those who believe in the supernatural and mystical stories suffer more severe paralytic attacks.
And there are plenty of stories: every nation has its own version, explaining the strange experiences of paralysis and the presence of evil creatures tormenting people.
Treatment options for sleep paralysis.
Most people do not need treatment for sleep paralysis. But in severe cases, When episodes occur at least once a week for 6 months, you need to seek medical help.
This is especially necessary if the attacks reduce the quality of life: they worsen the psycho-emotional mood, relationships in the family, in the team, or interfere with work.
Experts will determine background diseases, provoking SP, such as narcolepsy, apnea, leg cramps, mental or sleep disorders.
The doctor may refer the patient for a polysomnography (an inside-out sleep study), which will require an overnight stay at a hospital or sleep center.
During polysomnography on the chin, scalp head, electrodes are placed on the outer edge of the eyelids to measure brain waves And electrical activity in the muscles.
The sleep specialist also monitors breathing and heart rate. In some cases, the video camera records movements while you sleep.
Based on the results of the study, the doctor will prescribe medications.
The most commonly prescribed stimulants and SSRIs are selective inhibitors serotonin reuptake (psychotropic drug, treats depression and mental disorders). Stimulants are aimed at improving sleep.
The prescribed treatment must be followed regularly until the sleep deficit is completely overcome, otherwise paralysis may return.
Summary
A paralytic attack is a little-studied phenomenon, although it has a centuries-old history. Scientists have yet to find out whether sleep paralysis is dangerous.
Doctors are confident that there is no harm to health if the seizures are not accompanied by sleep disorders, mental disorders, narcolepsy, apnea, or leg cramps.
If you have been exposed to SP, remain calm, do not give in to fear. Remember that this is a short-term phenomenon.
Based on materials:
Stanford University pages about SP, R. Bruce “Astral dynamics”, Clete Kushida “Handbook of sleep disorders” (2008)
Elena Valve for the project Sleepy Cantata.
Sleep paralysis is a state of muscle immobilization that occurs when a person is on the border of sleep and wakefulness. If the consciousness wakes up before the body or the body turns off before the consciousness has time to fall asleep, the functioning of the motor center in the brain is disrupted. This state is the antipode of sleepwalking, in which the consciousness sleeps, but the body wakes up, can walk and even talk. Sleep paralysis is scary and causes hallucinations, but is not harmful to health.
The picture of sleep paralysis is always the same: a person wakes up and realizes that he cannot move. Because of this, panic begins - even those who have such attacks often become scared; This is due not so much to paralysis as to the fact that the person does not fully understand what is happening. Due to incomplete awakening, the subconscious actively manifests itself, and a feeling of someone else’s presence in the room appears.
It is not surprising that such attacks have been the subject of hoaxes in the past. Some peoples considered paralysis to be the tricks of a brownie, others - the curse of a witch. Because of such beliefs, there was no scientific interest in sleep paralysis for a long time. However, modern researchers have found an imbalance between brain function and skeletal muscle tone during sleep.
Medical explanation for the condition
An analysis of people who have experienced sleep paralysis has shown that it occurs only in cases where sleep is shallow or restless. Rarely, the condition is associated with mental disorders.
There are two types of sleep paralysis:
- hypnagogic - occurring when falling asleep;
- hypnapompic - happens upon awakening.
The condition can last for varying amounts of time - from a few seconds to a couple of minutes. It appears after REM sleep.
Sleep is divided into two phases:
- REM sleep - brain activity is at a level similar to wakefulness, but the body completely shuts down, except for the eyes, which move quickly. REM sleep lasts 15–20 minutes. It is during this phase that a person sees memorable dreams; It’s easiest to wake up in it.
- Slow sleep. Lasts up to one and a half hours. It is divided into 4 stages, differing in depth. At the deepest of them, the bulk of dreams are dreamed that are not remembered. Despite the fact that the brain is deeply asleep during this phase, the body does not lose muscle tone.
So, waking up in fast phase, you can experience sleep paralysis, and if you wake a person in a state of slow-wave sleep, an attack of somnambulism is possible. An attack occurs due to an imbalance of neurotransmitters, which leads to disruption of the smooth transition between phases of sleep.
The feeling that the mind is separated from the body is the main symptom of sleep paralysis.It is very simple to distinguish sleep paralysis from lethargic sleep, madness and other groundless fears. This condition has very specific symptoms:
- The ability to think and move the eyes in the absence of tone of other muscles. Sometimes complete paralysis is not felt - you can move, but it seems that a lot of time passes between the impulse to move and the physical movement of the body.
- Visual and auditory hallucinations. It seems that there is someone in the room (fuzzy silhouettes, ghosts), other people’s voices and footsteps are heard. Audibility increases, the frequency and volume of the sound increases - it turns into a squeak.
- Due to the stupor of the intercostal muscles, pressure is felt on the chest, there is not enough air - it seems as if someone is sitting or something heavy is lying on the chest.
- Fear, disorientation. Leads to increased heart rate.
- The feeling of separation of consciousness from the body, the feeling of flight - this is associated with active work vestibular apparatus.
Similar symptoms occur not only with sleep paralysis, but also with a number of mental illnesses. However, in most cases it is still a simple disruption of neurotransmitter communication.
Sleep paralysis is also called sleep/wake cataplexy. If muscle stiffness occurs not only before sleep or after waking up, it may be a symptom of narcolepsy or schizophrenia. ABOUT mental illness additional signs indicate - heightened senses, vivid dreams that are difficult to distinguish from reality, hallucinations in reality, a feeling of persecution.
According to statistics, signs of sleep paralysis were observed at least once in their lives in 40% of people aged 10–25 years. The risk group includes:
- easily suggestible people;
- those with a weakened psyche;
- introverts;
- people exposed to increased physical activity;
- people under stress, nervous disorder, overwork.
Most often, this condition affects teenagers whose lifestyle is not conducive to healthy good sleep. However, adults are not protected from sleep paralysis; The prevalence of attacks in adults is unknown, since somnological studies are carried out mainly on students.
Causes of pathology
Most often, sleep paralysis occurs when a person falls asleep on their back or right side. It can only happen if a person wakes up on his own - forced awakening or sharp sounds always lead to a complete interruption of sleep.
Attacks are provoked by the following factors:
- moving between time zones causing a crash biological rhythms regulating sleep - the risk of sleep paralysis will drop sharply after a short adaptation period;
- restless sleep associated with stress and various experiences;
- lack of sleep;
- addictions - drugs, nicotine, alcohol, gambling and others that do not allow a person to completely relax;
- restless legs syndrome;
- psychiatric diseases;
- hormonal imbalances;
- taking antidepressants, neurostimulants.
There is also an assumption about the hereditary nature of sleep paralysis. Researchers know of entire families who suffer from repeated attacks of this condition from generation to generation.
Treatment and prevention of attacks
In order for an attack of paralysis to end quickly, you need to calm down, which can be difficult if the attack occurs for the first time. It is important to breathe correctly - strongly and deeply, despite the immobility of the muscles. If you try to scream, there will be no sound, but the brain will understand that it’s time to turn on the muscles. After finally waking up, it may be scary to fall asleep again, but the attack will not happen again if you wash your face with cold water.
If there is a tendency to attacks of paralysis, it is necessary to exclude factors that provoke them:
- lack of sleep - sleep should last at least 8 hours;
- stress, neuroses and disorders - for this you should drink soothing herbal decoctions before bed;
- taking medications - you should stop taking them for a while;
- use of drugs, toxic substances, exclude other addictions.
In general, sleep paralysis does not require treatment unless it occurs systematically. In this case, a course of antidepressants may be prescribed to cope with stress and normalize the psycho-emotional state, which will allow you to begin to sleep calmly and deeply.
To successfully combat pathology, it is necessary to get rid of bad habits. Effective relief from attacks is possible only after an accurate diagnosis and determination of the cause of paralysis. For this it is necessary.
When a person wakes up in horror from the feeling that someone scary is sitting on his chest and strangling him, this only means that he has encountered sleep paralysis, which means panic is inappropriate. The state on the verge of sleep and reality has been playing such “fun” games with the human brain and body since ancient times. To counter this harmless but frightening phenomenon, which irritates the nervous system and interferes with normal sleep, you just need to deal with it and help yourself.
What is sleep paralysis or "old witch syndrome"
Sleep paralysis is one of the interesting physiological phenomena studied by somnology (medical and neurobiological research of sleep), which since ancient times has had the mystically frightening name “old witch syndrome” or “old hag”.
Sleepy stupor or paralysis is a specific condition that occurs at the border of sleep and awakening, manifesting itself in the form of severe muscle weakness- short-term muscle paralysis, which is not pathological in nature and does not threaten health.
It seems to the person that he is completely awake, but is unable to move, although he sees and hears everything. In this case, this phenomenon is accompanied by a feeling strong fear, and not just because of the inability to move or speak. The “victim” feels an invisible heaviness and pressure in the chest, like an evil witch, as in ancient beliefs, sits on his chest and is about to strangle him. For this reason, most people associate this condition with an attack by otherworldly forces, and if 200–300 years ago these were witches, spirits, brownies and genies, today they are mainly aliens, “outsiders.”
For one person, an attack of sleepy stupor may occur once in a lifetime, for another - several times during the night, which is directly related to emotionality and the state of the nervous system. Single attacks of this type of sleep disorder in healthy people are found in 30–40%, periodic in 5–6%.
Based on extensive research, doctors claim that the syndrome is completely harmless.
The main thing to remember: during sleep paralysis, nothing threatens a person, he will not die, will not go crazy, will not fall into Sopor. He'll wake up and everything will be fine.
Causes and risk factors
Based on many studies in neuropsychology and neurochemistry, it has been established that sleepy stupor develops as a result of a disorder in the sleep regulation function. In this case, the following happens: certain parts of the brain have already “woke up”, and the muscle reaction is delayed, or, conversely, the muscles completely relax, ahead of the moment when a person completely immerses himself in sleep.
Forms of manifestation
It is known that sleep includes phases of rapid eye movement and slow wave sleep (REM and NREM, respectively). Based on the time of development, there are two forms of muscle stupor:
- In form I (hypnagogic), the old witch syndrome occurs in a semi-drowsy state, and the moment of entering the rapid eye movement (REM) phase is recognized by the brain. Normally, when falling asleep, the brain turns off a couple of seconds before the physiological relaxation of the muscles, so the person does not remember when this happens.
- In II (hypnopompic) and the most common form, sleep paralysis overtakes the “victim” upon awakening in the REM stage of sleep. And most often - if he lies on his back, especially with his arms thrown behind his head.
Much less often, muscle paralysis occurs if a person sleeps on his stomach and side. And it never occurs when the alarm clock rings, the lights are turned on in the room, or a forced awakening occurs. That is, old hag syndrome develops only at the moment of the natural transition from sleep to awakening, and vice versa.
What happens during a “witch attack”
Doctors consider sleep paralysis as a functional (not painful) condition in which the processes of turning on consciousness and the muscular system do not work synchronously (not simultaneously).
Hypnagogic paralysis
If, when falling asleep, the muscles managed to relax, and the body practically “fell asleep”, but the consciousness has not yet switched off, the person feels that he is unable to move or even utter a word, and since he does not know the reasons, he experiences real panic.
Hypnopompic paralysis
Occurs in moments of awakening. The deeper the sleep, the more relaxed the muscles. In the FBS phase, the muscles are practically disabled, and brain activity, on the contrary, is sharply increased (we are having dreams).
If at this moment the part of the brain responsible for consciousness is half awake, and the part of the brain responsible for motor functions is still “dormant,” the person is aware of reality, but since the signals to the neurons muscle fibers have not yet reached it, he is unable to even move, which gives rise to a feeling of defenselessness and horror.
To become toned, muscles need time from 5 - 10 seconds to 2 - 3 minutes. This is exactly how long sleep paralysis lasts, but this short-term state seems to stretch on for many tens of minutes. At least, this is how a person who has been attacked by an “old witch” feels.
Risk factors
Although in the vast majority of “victim” cases the syndrome is not associated with neurological or mental disorders, it is often found in people suffering from certain types parasomnias (sleep disorders) such as narcolepsy (uncontrollable sleepiness) and somnambulism (sleepwalking).
In rare cases, along with many other signs, sleep stupor can serve as a symptom of manic-depressive psychosis (bipolar disorder).
It should also be emphasized that very frequent visits of “witches” are typical for people suffering from vegetative-vascular dystonia with panic attacks. This further upsets the nervous system, so such patients must understand the essence of sleep paralysis and not be scared, so as not to provoke a panic attack.
Factors predisposing to the onset of an imbalance in the regulatory mechanisms of sleep include:
- violation of the quantity and quality of sleep (lack of sleep, insomnia, frequent changes in sleep patterns);
- hereditary predisposition;
- acute stressful situations and latent (hidden) long-term psycho-emotional stress, often not realized by the person himself;
- long-term use of certain medications, including tranquilizers, antidepressants;
- dependence on alcohol, drugs, substance abuse;
- presence of restless legs syndrome;
- habit of sleeping lying on your back.
The “Old Witch” visits people of different genders and ages, but more often teenagers from 12 years old and young people under 25 years old are subject to her “attack”.
Symptoms and signs
External manifestations and internal sensations at different shapes have both similarities and differences.
Table
| Form | |
| Hypnagogic (when falling asleep) | Hypnopompic (on awakening) |
Something like this " white noise“It is possible to hear it while awake (in silence), but it is much less intense and does not cause fear. |
As a rule, people are trying to wake up, and strong emotional stress often helps a person to groan or jerk his hand in order to finally wake up. |
| General manifestations | |
In addition to paralysis of the muscles of the entire body, in both forms the following symptoms are common:
All symptoms are short-lived - and gradually subside within 2 minutes, although it seems to the person that a lot of time has passed.
|
|
Diagnostics
For most people, sleep paralysis is not a pathology. However, given that in rare cases it may be one of the symptoms of mental disorders, it is better to consult a doctor for clarification of the diagnosis, especially if:
- sleep paralysis does not occur once, but develops regularly and, even more so, if it happens every night of the day or several times a night;
- the symptoms of night stupor are very pronounced and deplete the nervous system;
- a person cannot figure out what is happening to him and is very afraid;
- the syndrome is accompanied by other sleep disorders (sleepwalking, irresistible daytime sleepiness, nighttime insomnia, vivid nightmares);
- sleep paralysis develops in parallel with other unpleasant symptoms: panic states during the day, the development of unmotivated aggression, a feeling of split personality, excessive suspiciousness, suspicion.
To put accurate diagnosis and to exclude mental illnesses, in practice the following methods are used:
- Keeping a diary, which describes all cases of night paralysis with detailed sensations and symptoms, indicated accompanying illnesses, risk factors (for 4 – 6 or more weeks). Based on the diary, a specialist can quickly determine the cause of sleep paralysis in a particular case.
- Polysomnography is a computer sleep study with recording of data on a polysomnogram.
If the old hag syndrome does not have serious pathologies in the psyche, abnormalities are not detected on a polysomnogram. In addition, this test helps identify other parasomnias (abnormalities in sleep behavior).
During the examination, if all the signs are severe and bother the patient, he is referred to a somnologist - a doctor who studies sleep disorders.
Treatment
Most often the syndrome special treatment does not require. If this condition torments a person, it is recommended to study algorithms for getting out of it. If it is a sign of neurological disorders, therapy should be aimed at these diseases.
How to behave during an attack of sleep paralysis
It is difficult to block an attack of sleepy stupor of your own free will in the first seconds, because common sense Half asleep, I also haven’t woken up yet. But driving away the “evil witch” is within the power of any person.
First of all, it is necessary to clearly understand that a person’s experiences with the arrival of the “old witch” do not have any otherworldly power, are short-lived and harmless. This thought should be the first, which, like fire in the night, will warm the soul and calm frayed nerves.
To cope with panic during an attack of sleepy stupor, you should adhere to the following rules:
What NOT to do:
- there is no need to feverishly resist muscle weakness, since it has been proven that until the muscles “wake up”, the fight against paralysis will increase panic, creating a feeling of the body being bound by invisible fetters;
- there is no need to hold your breath, which often happens when you are frightened - this leads to the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the lungs and aggravates the feeling of being unable to breathe;
- You should not breathe quickly and shallowly - this leads to hyperventilation (excessive ventilation of the lungs), which again aggravates unpleasant experiences.
What YOU NEED to do to wake up from a nightmare:
- don’t tense up, but try to relax;
- take a deep breath;
- since a person is not able to open his lips, he needs to make a sound from the nasopharynx such as a groan, growl or “moo” - as loudly as possible;
- close your eyes sharply, even if they are closed;
- start moving your tongue or puff out your cheeks;
- try to make a small movement - move your thumb on your hand or foot;
In addition, intellectual “movements” of the brain are very helpful, for example, counting from 1 to 10 and back or a vivid memory of events that happened the day before, and not necessarily pleasant ones (for example, how you were scolded at work for being late);
Such actions quickly help you begin to control your body.
When prayer is priceless
Reading the prayer will help both the believer and the atheist. Since it is difficult to concentrate in a state of panic, it is better to say to yourself a short, but the most effective magic spell in Christianity - the Jesus Prayer.
After the attack
After the final awakening and throwing off the “shackles of the old witch”, it follows:
- roll over onto your right side;
- drink water with a soothing tincture;
- those who don't have diabetes mellitus, you can eat a delicious candy or a piece of milk chocolate (this, firstly, stimulates the production of “happiness” enzymes and calms you down, and secondly, increases the blood sugar level, which decreases at night, causing a drop in pressure, which can also indirectly affect the development syndrome);
Some people calm down when they turn on the light and wash their face cool water, but such actions are usually very invigorating. And in such cases, it is better to develop a certain scheme of action yourself, which definitely works.
Based on research data, people with an analytical, critical mindset are calmer and faster out of sleep paralysis, “turning on” logic, and are less depressed after an attack.
After a Dementor attack, a smart professor advises Harry Potter to eat a chocolate bar, because it helps a lot after an attack of sleepy stupor.
Drug treatment
If sleep stupor causes significant anxiety and prevents sleep, or if the specialist identifies more serious reason For this condition, the patient is prescribed medications, including antidepressants and tranquilizers.
Taking them on your own is extremely dangerous for this type of sleep disorder, since very often they themselves are provoking factors for the syndrome. This requires a very careful selection of dosages and prescription of specific medications with minimal side effects.
The following over-the-counter sedatives are approved for use on their own:
- Novo-Passit (Great Britain) in syrup and tablets;
- Unisin (Finland);
- Alvogen-Relax;
- liquid passionflower extract;
- Valevigran (capsules);
- tincture of peony, valerian root, motherwort;
- Motherwort extract in tablets;
- Persen and Persen-forte;
- Valoserdin, Valocordin, Corvalol;
- Bellanaminal;
- Afobazole;
- Dormiplant;
- Tenoten;
- Valosedan;
- Sedariston;
- Nervoflux;
- Adonis-bromine;
- Bromocamphor;
- herbal mixtures Fitosed, Fitosedan.
In many sedatives, including herbal ones, there are components that are not recommended for children, women expecting a child, people with heart pathologies or high blood clotting. Certain substances provoke. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully check the composition of the medicine and contraindications.
Folk remedies
Sedatives of traditional medicine provide positive influence on sleep processes and the nervous system. But, since any medicinal herbs have contraindications (for example, oregano, hops, tansy are not recommended during pregnancy), home recipes should be treated with the same caution as when using pharmaceutical drugs.
Some recipes:
Blue cyanosis infusion
Blue cyanosis is almost 10 times stronger than valerian root as a sedative herbal remedy. The infusion is used for depression, nervous disorders, fear, neuroses of the heart and even rabies.
For 200 ml of boiling water, take a teaspoon of crushed dry rhizomes and cyanosis measles, keep for half an hour in a water bath (or leave for 8 hours). Drink 50-100 ml of infusion after meals.
Milk pine decoction
A handful of pine needles are boiled in milk (250 - 300 ml) for about 10 minutes. Drink a tablespoon up to 4 times a day, after meals.
Valerian milk
Milk (warm boiled) and valerian root tincture are taken in equal proportions, mixed and drunk three times a day, 150 ml.
Infusion of flowers and herbs
A good sedative is obtained from a mixture of rose hips flowers, oregano stems, valerian and sweet clover roots, mint, which are taken in equal parts. Two tablespoons of the mixture are poured with boiling water (1 liter), left for 20 minutes, filtered and taken 100 ml before meals 3 times a day.
Oatmeal broth
Oat grains (400 - 500 grams) are washed in cold water, pour boiling water (1 liter) and cook until the grains are half soft. Drink a glass every day, adding honey.
Hawthorn tea
Dry hawthorn fruits in the amount of 2 tablespoons are poured with boiling water (2 cups). Infuse the drink for 2 - 3 hours and drink in small doses(2 teaspoons) up to 5 – 6 times a day before meals and always before bed.
Photo gallery of medicinal herbs that help with sleep paralysis
Rosehip flowers are not only beautiful, but also useful for sleep disorders
Oregano is often used for neuroses. 
Hops calms and relieves stress 
Hawthorn berries are removed in decoctions nervous tensionAromas that help you calm down
If not, you should not ignore the opportunities that aromatherapy gives a person. For this purpose, they also use aromatic candles, pillows with “sleepy” herbs, and warm baths to which decoctions are added. herbal infusions. If oils are used, they should all be exclusively natural.
Juniper, chamomile, lavender, cypress, bergamot, chamomile, and orange help you fall asleep peacefully. Ylang-ylang, sandalwood, rose, neroli relieve fears and anxiety. Vanilla oil works great as a delicious relaxant.
When believing in the other world
If people suffering from sleep paralysis are strongly influenced by the occult or are simply unable to free themselves from the irrational fear of the hostility of the “old witch,” it will not hurt at all, but will only be reassuring to have “light” plants in the room.
Since ancient times, herbs and their smoke have been used, which surround a person with protection from bad dreams, spirits and other unexplainable phenomena. The strongest include: wormwood, laurel (common bay leaves), thistle, juniper, blue cornflower, basil, blessed willow.
Prevention measures
IN specific prevention there is no need, all measures are elementary and logical. If this condition is provoked by neurological disorders, dystonia, panic attacks and any nervous tension, prevention involves the mandatory identification and treatment of these diseases.
Healthy people, to one degree or another, should change their lifestyle:
- develop a rest regime for yourself, which includes a mandatory 7-8 hours of sleep at night;
- wake up to an alarm clock or television timer, which will eliminate sleepy stupor, which develops only with natural awakening;
- ask loved ones to wake themselves up in the morning and at night if they observe strange symptoms (moans, tension in the facial muscles, the feeling that the person is having a nightmare);
- acquire outdoor sports habits (running, walking, football);
- don't study physical exercise and do not eat before bed, since the activation of muscle fibers and digestive processes will interfere with restful sleep;
- if possible, “get away” from stress, prevent conflicts, and if they are inevitable, treat them as natural situations (this is an everyday matter, as Carlson says);
- before going to bed, use sedatives, warm baths, relaxing massage, drink Herb tea, milk with honey;
- for those who love sweets, do not deny yourself the pleasure, except for eating dark chocolate and cocoa;
- play beautiful, relaxing music in a well-ventilated room before bed;
- exclude mental activity before bedtime: watching news and movies, computer games and active communication on social networks, preparation for lessons, exams, night intellectual work (this activates the work of the brain, which cannot relax for a long time).
- do not sleep on your back with your hands behind your head.
Thus, in most cases, sleep paralysis is a physiological condition and is not a sign of insanity or mental pathology, but simply indicates that nervous system exhausted by stress, anxiety, or working in a state of prolonged tension.
Old hag syndrome does not pose an objective threat to health or life. It is possible to prevent night attacks by optimizing your sleep patterns and lifestyle. If the syndrome develops against the background panic disorders, parasomnia, including sleepwalking and neurolepsy, a psychotherapist and somnologist will provide the necessary medical assistance.
