Sleep Apnea Causes

Sometimes, in the middle of the night I find myself in the throes of sleep paralysis, like last night I could see myself struggling to get from under a black sheet although there is isn’t one on my bed. It only lasts for a few seconds but very terrifying is there anything I can do to help myself from experiencing this?

Possible causes
Sleep paralysis occurs during REM sleep, thus preventing the body from manifesting movements made in the subject’s dreams. Very little is known about the physiology of sleep paralysis. However, some have suggested that it may be linked to post-synaptic inhibition of motor neurons in the pons region of the brain. In particular, low levels of melatonin may stop the depolarization current in the nerves, which prevents the stimulation of the muscles, to prevent the body from enacting the dreamt activity (e.g. preventing a sleeper from flailing his legs when dreaming about running).

Several studies have concluded that many or most people will experience sleep paralysis at least once or twice in their lives.

Many people who commonly enter sleep paralysis also suffer from Narcolepsy. In African-Americans, panic disorder occurs with Sleep Paralysis more frequently than in Caucasians]. Some reports read that various factors increase the likelihood of both paralysis and hallucinations. These include:

Sleeping in an upwards supine position
Irregular sleeping schedules; naps, sleeping in, sleep deprivation
Increased stress
Sudden environmental/lifestyle changes
A lucid dream that immediately precedes the episode. Also conscious induction of sleep paralysis is a common technique to enter a state of lucid dreams, also known as WILD .
Artificial sleeping aides, ADD medications and/or antihistamines
Recent use of hallucinogenic drugs

Treatment
During paralysis episodes, patients may be advised to try moving the facial muscles and moving eyes from one side to the other. This may hasten the termination of the attack.[citation needed]

Clonazepam is highly effective in the treatment of sleep paralysis. The initial dose is 0.5 mg at bedtime, while an increase to 1 mg per night might be necessary to maintain potency. Anecdotal reports indicate SSRIs such as fluoxetine markedly decrease the incidence of sleep paralysis. Several people who have been both on and off SSRIs have reported corresponding decreases and increases in sleep paralysis episodes. Others report no effects at all.

I’ve never experienced it before and I’m 15, I generally get quite a good nights sleep. If it was to happen, say tomorrow night and why wouldn’t it of happened before? I always sleep on my side, so will that ensure that I definitely won’t experience Sleep Paralysis? I am very scared of it happening, will my faith in God protect me from experiencing it?

Why are you worried about this. It is not that common. You have more of a chance of getting cancer than experiencing this which is a minor nuisance and lasts for a short duration

I have a heart problem that is yet to be diagnosed following tests, is it possible my reoccurent sleep paralysis is related to my heart? Or is it strictly a brain thing?

Recurrent isolated sleep paralysis is a parasomnia. A parasomnia involves undesired events that come along with sleep. Sleep paralysis causes you to be unable to move your body at either of the two following times: When falling asleep (hypnagogic or predormital form), or when waking up from sleep (hypnopompic or postdormital form). Normally your brain causes your muscles to relax and be still as you sleep. This is called “atonia.” Sleep paralysis seems to be when this atonia occurs while you are awake. Sleep paralysis is “isolated” when it appears without any other signs of narcolepsy. An episode of paralysis may cause you to be unable to speak. It can also make you unable to move your arms and legs, body, and head. You are still able to breathe normally. You are also fully aware of what is happening. An episode can last for seconds or minutes. The episode usually ends on its own. It may also end when someone touches you or speaks to you. Making an intense effort to move can also end an episode. Sleep Paralysis may occur only once in your life. It may also happen many times in a year. It can be very scary when you are unable to move. You may feel anxious and afraid. Some people also hallucinate during an episode. They may see, hear or feel things that are not there. They may even think that another person is in the room with them. These hallucinations may also appear without the sleep paralysis. Sleep paralysis tends to first appear in the teen years. It then occurs most often when you are in your 20s and 30s. It may continue into your later years. It is not a serious medical risk. Sleep paralysis can be one sign of narcolepsy,(Narcolepsy is one of the most unusual and least common of all Sleep Disorders. Narcolepsy is a medical condition and sleep disorder that causes chronic and uncontrollable instances of daytime sleepiness. It is thought that Narcolepsy is caused by the brain’s inability to adjust normal sleep-wake cycles. The cause for this irregularity remains unknown). Other signs include disturbed sleep at night and falling asleep suddenly during the day. Recurrent isolated sleep paralysis does not disturb your sleep.
I add a link which contains details of this subject obtained from a web survey

http://www.sro.org/bin/article.
dll?Paper&1818&0&0

Hope this helps
Matador 89

ive had it for years, im 20 right now. usually u hear a loud noise which i think comes from me sometimes right before you start seeing things around you. you usually see faces of people and the feeling that someone is in the room. i just want to know how to make it stop. im not afraid of it anymore, but i do try to snap out of it as soon as i can. i have developed a theory : when ever i feel myself start to slip into Sleep Paralysis i start to wiggle my fingers. it usually works and i wake up, but other times i dont do it in time. what are the causes? could it come from bad sleeping habits. i have a family history of sleeping disorders.

i usually get sleep paralysis when i take afternoon naps that usually lasts for a few hours(i intended on making up for lost sleep but it tends to backfire by causing sleep paralysis) it’s a dreadful, helpless feeling.i can hear all that’s around me,yet i cannot move,as if i was under anesthesia.i also try to wiggle my fingers and later i bolt awake!i think naps disrupt my body clock’s sleeping schedule, so my body is confused and reacts irrationally whenever i take sudden naps.so i would suggest to stick with your regular sleeping schedule and try to avoid taking over limit naps(the suggested nap time is about 15 minutes.anything more is too long) or other bad sleeping habits.

ive had it for years, im 20 right now. usually u hear a loud noise which i think comes from me sometimes right before you start seeing things around you. you usually see faces of people and the feeling that someone is in the room. i just want to know how to make it stop. im not afraid of it anymore, but i do try to snap out of it as soon as i can. i have developed a theory : when ever i feel myself start to slip into Sleep Paralysis i start to wiggle my fingers. it usually works and i wake up, but other times i dont do it in time. what are the causes? could it come from bad sleeping habits. i have a family history of sleeping disorders.

i usually get sleep paralysis when i take afternoon naps that usually lasts for a few hours(i intended on making up for lost sleep but it tends to backfire by causing sleep paralysis) it’s a dreadful, helpless feeling.i can hear all that’s around me,yet i cannot move,as if i was under anesthesia.i also try to wiggle my fingers and later i bolt awake!i think naps disrupt my body clock’s sleeping schedule, so my body is confused and reacts irrationally whenever i take sudden naps.so i would suggest to stick with your regular sleeping schedule and try to avoid taking over limit naps(the suggested nap time is about 15 minutes.anything more is too long) or other bad sleeping habits.

I have terrible nightmares, which are likely episodes of Sleep Paralysis. I am looking for ways to calm myself to lesson the fear during these episodes but I don’t want to do anything which might cause an out of body experience or astral projecting. I am not even sure these things exists, but don’t want to cause my brain to think they do….any thoughts?

Dont worry Out of Body Experiences can never happen if your afraid or anxious.

When I have Sleep Paralysis (can’t move or talk) I always feel sleepy and want to fall back asleep. Is this dangerous?

No, you shouldnt be awake during this time anyways. As I’m sure you know, our body’s are paralyzed during sleep, but most people’s body will ‘unparalyze’ when we wake up… apparantly you have some sleep disorder and your body is not recognizing when you become conscious. Anyways, it can’t possibly be dangerous to go asleep, when you are supposed to be asleep anyways. The paralysis can’t last that long anyways. I feel like I am saying anyways too much. Anyways, good luck with your paralysis, it sounds like a very scary thing…especially the first time it happened!

When I have Sleep Paralysis (can’t move or talk) I always feel sleepy and want to fall back asleep. Is this dangerous?

No, you shouldnt be awake during this time anyways. As I’m sure you know, our body’s are paralyzed during sleep, but most people’s body will ‘unparalyze’ when we wake up… apparantly you have some sleep disorder and your body is not recognizing when you become conscious. Anyways, it can’t possibly be dangerous to go asleep, when you are supposed to be asleep anyways. The paralysis can’t last that long anyways. I feel like I am saying anyways too much. Anyways, good luck with your paralysis, it sounds like a very scary thing…especially the first time it happened!

Sleep Paralysis is when you wake up and suddenly you can’t open your eyes, move your body, sometimes still hearing or feeling things and can’t breathing, even though your conscious and awake?
This is sort of a frequent thing for me, believe it or not.

I did once and it was the most frightening experience in my entire life. I woke up from a dream and I felt like there was a body lying on top of me, keeping me down and preventing me from moving. I could barely see anything because it was very dark. I was very scared, I felt like I was in danger, so I tried to scream, but no sound came out. I remember forming the words "MOM!", in my head, but I couldn’t make a sound. Then a hand moved over my mouth, and I felt like I was being suffocated. My next thought was to throw myself off the bed, anything to be out from under the thing that was crushing my body. I don’t remember what happened next because I fell asleep. I did not sleep at all the next night, but it has never happened again.

I am currently seeing a doctor for possible PVST (Paroxysmal Supraventricle Tachycarida) and it’s wearing out my energy. When I take naps in the afternoon I experience Sleep Paralysis, and occasionally at night.

They are two different conditions. the PVST involves a rapid beating of the heart due to an affectation of the AV node, which is treatable. Actually, this could provoque the whole opposite effect, such as an anxiety state.
The sleep paralysis is something I know first hand, and I know how it feels, they are two different conditions. That could be a secondary effect of the fatigue your other condition gives you. I get it (the paralysis) when i am really tired too.

you will be OK, just do what the doc says. Wish you the best!