Often looked over, sleep paralysis is a common condition suffered by many, to prevent from further such cases, below is a detailed outline of sleep paralysis symptoms and what bring them about.

Primary Sleep Paralysis Symptoms

Sleep paralysis is not only extremely easy to diagnose, unlike some other sleep disorders, it is also one of the scariest sleep disorders for one to experience. It throws our body in a state of paralysis, just as we’re awakening from sleep or falling asleep. Our muscles don’t move at all for periods ranging from seconds to minutes, even though one can sense everything else. It often sets in stress and brings about modes of panic due to the trapped and helpless feeling, for any person experiencing it.

Sleep Paralysis Symptoms – Inability to move or talk

The primary and most obvious sleep paralysis symptom is the partial or complete inability to move or talk, you can feel heavy pressure on your chest, restricting your breathing and sometimes you might also realize a choking feeling. You will be completely aware of your surroundings and of the fact that you are trying to move but cannot. You will unknowingly continue to perform involuntary movements such as blinking your eyes or breathing, even though it might not feel like you can. This sleep paralysis symptom occurs as while you sleeping and dreaming, there is often movement and sometimes the brain signals to paralyze the muscles to prevent movement and possible injury while you are asleep and dreaming. Hence even when you suddenly wake up, sometimes the brain fails to perceive that and continues to presume you are asleep and retains the state of paralysis. It is an extremely frightening experience but brings no hard at all to the body.

Sleep Paralysis Symptoms -Hallucination

The second sleep paralysis symptom is what we see as frightening illusion images, which doctors call a hallucination. You might experience frequent episodes of hypnagogic and hypnopompic experiences. Most times these hallucinations occur in a form whereby it makes us feel that some evil presence is trying to harm us in some way, either being very closely watching the individual or in some way bodily harming the individual. In most cases it is some form of a demon or an alien. Other forms of hallucination that might take place are acoustic, where loud noises can be heard, exosomatic, vibrations or tremors are felt, it could be visual, where we view a scenario taking place of any possible nature, or it could be hallucinations within which you are experiencing extreme pain of some sort. These hallucinations can vary in intensity, could be very slight and fleeting or extremely solid where you believe it like you are awake and experiencing it. The latter sleep paralysis symptom being scarier and more dangerous to one’s mental state. Hallucination is definitely an important sleep paralysis symptom, however if it occurs always or almost always it is usually the case that it is a symptom of a different and more serious health condition, sleep narcolepsy, in which case you will definitely need to visit a doctor.

As can be seen from above there are 2 primary sleep paralysis symptoms, which you might experience, seeing as how they are pretty obviously recognizable sleep paralysis symptoms, it would be wise to act on it as soon as you can, to avoid dreadful sleep.