Ever get sleep paralysis? Any other weird sleep tales?

[Architectus Assistantus]

When I was younger I actually had the ability to decide to wake up during nightmares.
When I wanted to get out of a bad dream I started dreaming that I was peforming a ritual for waking up, and then I woke up. I have lost that ability now

[blas]

I get Charlie Horses while sleeping, never while awake.

It's terrifying to wake up and one of your calf muscles is so tensed up that you can't even move it without it being in excruciating pain

I do wake up really sweaty and winded after bad dreams. And I usually can't get back to sleep. This happens at least once or twice a month.

[42_42_42]

I used to sleep walk as a child, but only occasionally. Sometimes I do move my arms or legs violently in my sleep and sometimes I talk or laugh out loud in my sleep.

Dunno if it's all related or not, but I haven't sleep-walked since I was an adolescent. Which is good cause we have stairs where I live now!

[blas]

I slept walked a few times at sleepovers as a teen, and once at Bible camp. I mean, I woke up, put my shoes on, walked outside in my blanket, and found some kids who had snuck outside and I asked them where we were.

Yeah, that bad.

Interestingly enough, as an adult, I've been able to stay at people's houses and not be affected.

I grind my teeth and laugh a lot in my sleep, as well as talk.

Pretty good thing I live alone.

[Seshat]

I get those cramps too, blas. And I'm too asleep to realise that if I straighten the leg out, I'll be in agony. So I try to straighten the leg out, and wake myself up with the pain.

My waking-up process usually involves an extended period of being aware, but unable to move. Sometimes I think I'm moving, but I'm not - phantom movements.

Sometimes (and this is awful) I dream the process of waking up and getting up and getting started in the day, then realise I'm still asleep, and repeat, and repeat.

[42_42_42]

blas, grinding your teeth is very bad for you (as I'm sure you know). As another teeth grinder here, ask your dentist about an NTI. It's a small custom-molded bit of plastic that you fit over your front teeth that keeps you from being able to close your jaw all the way so your back teeth don't touch as opposed to the other mouth guards that simply give you something to bite down on. Since I've had mine, my number of tension headaches has gone way down.

[MoonCat]

Never have sleep paralysis, but I do know about insomnia. I also have a weird thing that happens where it's like I forget to breathe as I'm falling asleep. Once I'm asleep, I breathe just fine, but as I'm drifting off, I'll sometimes just not inhale again after exhaling. I'll snap wide awake and whatever progress I made toward sleep is just gone while I catch my breath. Used to freak me out, but it's just so "normal" now, it just irritating.

Have you ever been tested for sleep apnea? This sounds kind of like that.

[Amusement Gal]

I haven't had sleep paralysis (from what I can remember, at least), but I have dabbled in Lucid Dreaming. I do get the light feeling of being unable to move though. It's not as scary, since my eyes are closed and I'm drifting to sleep, but that's the closest I can think of. For the lucid dreaming, I get into a deep sleep, and I find a trigger, usually visualizing a raindrop and its ripples, and if I'm relaxed enough, it works. Though to get more control, I usually have to go 'Inception'-style and lucid dream that I'm dreaming... It's more solid that way. The trick is more effective when my body is really hungry. Which sorta sucks.

It sounds weird, but I like trying out new things.

[Lachrymose]

As I stated in the thread RK linked to (almost a year and half ago? wow!..anyhoo), I usually get sleep paralysis at least once a night.

I think my record was about 10 times in one night.

I have narcolepsy and it is one of the many symptoms.

It used to scare the bejebus out of me, and occasionally still does. But lately it's actually lead into lucid dreaming for me.

Usually, I get auditory hallucinations with the paralysis. Typically like the sound of a crowd talking. I found out just the other night that I can willingly magnify the hallucinations. Right afterwards, I kind of slipped into a lucid dream that I was able to control.

Pretty spiffy.

[Cookie]

Have you ever been tested for sleep apnea? This sounds kind of like that.

No, I haven't. I haven't had any indication that this happens in my sleep. Never heard of it happening during a not fully asleep state.

[MnR]

I used to have full conversations with people in my sleep as a child/young teen. My mom says she'd have full on 20 minute conversations with me before realizing that no, I really wasn't just laying in bed facing the wall, I was acutally still asleep.

There was also one point in time where my best friend was sleeping over, and my mom came in to tell us to quit talking and go to sleep and was amazed at the fact that we were both completely asleep, yet carring on a conversation about basketball of all thing, considering neither of us like the sport, I am still confused about that.

Probably the weirdest physical thing for me has been the feeling of falling as I wake up, completely with spastic movements of landing on the bed.

[Mytical]

I've had night terrors when I was young..and have been able to move faster out of a sound sleep then I ever could normally (ie jump to my feet without my hands touching the ground when I was sleeping on a floor).

My two cousins and my brother (not the one that passed away) one time had a full conversation with each other..while sound asleep. My brother was use to getting them up for school, but this was on a Saturday (no school)...this was the full conversation.

B - Brother
C1 - Cousin 1
C2 - Cousin 2

B - "It's time to get up for school"
C1 - "Five more minutes."
C2 - "Yeah, I have a project do..I'm getting up."
B - "Come on C1, you have to get up for school."
C1 - "Ok, Ok I am getting up."
About 5 minutes pass..

B - "You have your backpack, books, and everything?"
C1 - "Yeah, yeah. We are ready."
(Note nobody has moved a muscle except to turn over in their sleep
C2 - "I can't find my project!"
B - "Did you look in your room?"
C2 - "No!"

Couple of minutes later

B - "Did you find it?"
C2 - "Yeah, the bus is on the street over we have to go outside and wait on it."

They quieted down after that. They didn't remember a thing the next morning.

[AccountingDrone]

blas, grinding your teeth is very bad for you (as I'm sure you know). As another teeth grinder here, ask your dentist about an NTI. It's a small custom-molded bit of plastic that you fit over your front teeth that keeps you from being able to close your jaw all the way so your back teeth don't touch as opposed to the other mouth guards that simply give you something to bite down on. Since I've had mine, my number of tension headaches has gone way down.

I just trained myself to sleep with my mouth open slightly. I hate bruxism, it put significant wear on my teeth. I directly attribute mine to wearing a retainer when I was in my teens. I got used to having to clamp my teeth together for it to fit "properly" [according to the orthodontist] that without one I was still clamping my teeth together grinding them, giving me TMJ and wearing them inordinately.

[TheSHAD0W]

When in high school, one night I had a dream that one of the bullies in school had me down on the ground face-down, was sitting on my back and grinding a fist between my shoulder blades. I was getting increasingly annoyed, and listening to this idiot's taunts, and I finally struck backwards with an elbow...

...And knocked the lamp on the bedside table across the room!

[Jester]

I have not been known for sleep-walking or other such shenanigans....but according to my mom and aunt (my father's sister), one time when my aunt was over, cooking up some meal for some holiday, I rose up out of bed, sniffing the air...and then fell back to sleep.

I guess whatever she was cooking was good!