Ever wondered about what and how to stop sleep paralysis?
There is no medical cure to it at the moment, however, learning about it, how it happens and what causes it is great because it will give you an incline on how to stop sleep paralysis.
Sleep paralysis is a type of sleep disorder like insomnia and sleep apnea, that is categorized as parasomnia, which basically is the abnormal movement that your body acts out while you’re supposed to be in a state of sleep.
As you approach your waking moment from sleep, the activity of your brain picks up, your muscles relax, and the movement of your eyes increases known as Rapid Eye Movement (REM).
It’s at this stage of sleep that you have your most vivid dreams, because the activity of your brain is heightened so your dreams feel real and you tend to remember them after waking.
During sleep paralysis your eyes suddenly open, thereby shortening the REM stage, but your muscles are still relaxed and trying to pick up, so you can’t move yet and you’re likely still dreaming.
You’re neither asleep nor awake.
Because of this you also can’t make out reality from your dream, so tend to want to act it out, but since your muscles are still in a relaxed state, it would feel like you’re being suppressed or tied to keep you from acting out.
Often, sleep paralysis is associated to spiritual or demonic attacks, so it has become a reason to dread sleep for some people.
But what if I told you it is neither spiritual nor deadly?
And provide you with ways on how to stop sleep paralysis from happening when you sleep at night.
Here are what you’ll find in this article:
How to Tell You’re Having Sleep Paralysis
Reasons You Have Sleep Paralysis
What Doctors Say On How to Stop Sleep Paralysis
How to Tell You’re Having Sleep Paralysis
Sleep paralysis can happen either when you’re just falling asleep or when you waking.
These are some things that can happen if you’re having an episode of sleep paralysis:
- Inability to move your arms, legs or head
- A suffocating feeling, especially in your chest, that could make you breathless
- Inability to speak
- A feeling of fear or panic
- Hallucinating that there is a strange figure standing over you or choking you
Reasons You Have Sleep Paralysis
It was estimated that about 7.6 of the overall population as at 2023 has experienced sleep paralysis at least once in their lives.
The exact reason for this is unknown as there are many factors interplaying to cause sleep paralysis, ranging from medical health problems to inane reasons.
It could be linked to some health-related issues such as high blood pressure, bipolar disorder, stress, anxiety, narcolepsy, post-traumatic stress, and sleep apnea.
Other factors that can trigger sleep paralysis may include sleeping on your back with your face to the ceiling, poor quality of sleep, disrupted sleep cycle, taking antidepressants before bed, irregular bedtime routine, overusing alcohol and abusing drugs.
Also, you may have sleep paralysis because you come from a long line of people who have been having episodes of the disorder.
Yes, sleep paralysis could also be genetic.
Is Sleep Paralysis Deadly?
From the beginning of this article, we already established that sleep paralysis is not dangerous or deadly. An episode is expected to be over within 10 minutes.
Although it is not a deadly experience, we cannot take away the fact that it is frightening and most times leaves its victims, especially those with recurrent experience, traumatized at the thought of sleeping, for fear that they may have another episode.
Now with this fear in mind, there will be a reduction in the quality of sleep which potentially affects your overall health, specifically your mental health, causing more anxiety and stress.
That is why it is important that you always remember that whatever you see or hear during sleep paralysis is only a residue of your dream and your mind playing tricks on you.
But a case where such conviction is ineffective, it leads us to our next point; ‘how to stop sleep paralysis’ below.
How to Stop Sleep Paralysis
Before we get to the “hows”, be sure that you’ve gone through the reasons for sleep paralysis I’ve provided above as that will help you identify your problem and its potential solution.
Alright, let me let you in on some great tip that can help you stop having episodes of sleep paralysis:
- Have A Bedtime Routine
A bedtime routine that you follow strictly can help stop reoccurring episodes of sleep paralysis because your body learns to adjust and knows what time you need to be sleeping and the time you should be awake.
Therefore, you could have a complete sleep cycle without any disruption and not wake up suddenly from the REM phase.
A bedtime routine chart could come in handy if you need some motivation on strictly following your routine.
- Avoid Sleeping On Your Back
Sleeping on your back is one of the triggers of sleep paralysis, so sleeping on your side or your belly is a good reversal position to help stop sleep paralysis.
This is also true because lying flat on the back is generally considered the best sleeping position that relaxes the muscles as it allows your spine to maintain its natural curve and evens your body’s weight distribution.
But when you sleep on your belly or your side, your muscles do not relax so much that it takes them long to wake up in any impending case of sleep paralysis.
- Move Your Fingers and Toes
Since you can’t move your whole body during an episode, making an effort to move little parts of your body like your fingers and toes is a great tip on how to stop sleep paralysis, as it can help gradually wake your muscles.
You can also try moving your eyeballs around.
- Remember to Take Slow Breaths During an Attack
Because of how scary and suffocating the experience is, you may forget to breathe and this can lead you to shock or panic attacks.
So try to remind yourself that the attack is only a phase and will pass and take slow breaths. This would also help you become more aware of reality and help you end that episode of sleep paralysis.
- Reduce Caffeine and Alcohol Intake
Taking caffeine and alcohol, especially before bedtime, is another trigger for sleep paralysis because the presence of either of these substances in your system can affect your sleep pattern, and potentially disrupt your sleep cycle so you fall into a wakeful and sleepy state where sleep paralysis occurs.
But a reverse of this habit will not only stop sleep paralysis, but will improve your quality of sleep.
- Implement Effective and Healthy Stress Management Techniques
If you want to know how to stop sleep paralysis as a workaholic, then you need to know how to manage stress healthily and effectively.
Some means you can use include meditating, exercising or doing yoga before going to bed.
Any of these will keep your body and mind at a calm and relaxed state, taking away all the stress they have accumulated in daytime, so you may have a restful night.
Also, listening to soothing music or reading a nice book, nothing too mentally thrilling, can be a helpful stress management method.
- Seek Professional Medical Help
In the case where none of the tips above proofs helpful and you keep having episodes of sleep paralysis, then you should professional help.
Although there is no medical cure yet, your healthcare provide may prescribe some antidepressants or recommend either Meditation-relaxation (MR) therapy or Cognitive behavioral therapy to help you cope with the conviction that nothing you see or hear during an episode is real and teach you some ways to relax.
What Doctors Say On How to Stop Sleep Paralysis
Doctors recommend that after ruling out any underlying sleep disorders with your healthcare provide, you should make an improvement in your lifestyle that can help stop sleep paralysis, such as;
- Establishing a regular sleep schedule
- Limit stress and anything that causes you anxiety
- Exercise more
- Talk to your healthcare provider about using sleep supplements
Takeaway
You cannot stop a problem if you don’t know where and how it came about, but from this article one can say you’ve been given a hint.
However, it’s advisable that you talk more with your doctor on how to stop sleep paralysis.
You May Also Like:
Intermittent Fasting Styles For Beginners
How Does Walking Improve Sleep Quality
Why You Should Brush Your Teeth At Night
Follow on:
Leave a comment