Introduction
Sleep paralysis is seriously one of the coolest things ever. Some people get it naturally all the time. Others, like me, don't. Unlike many people, I had always wanted to experience this phenomenon, and it never happened. So I decided to figure out how to make it happen to me instead. It's really fun when you're in control of it, and it's not too hard to induce after some practice. It just takes a bit of patience, and once you've done it once, it's easier every time. Just because it doesn't happen to you naturally doesn't mean it never can :)
If you get sleep paralysis naturally and it's horrible and scary every time it happens, learning to induce it on your own when YOU are in control of it and know what's going on can really help. But if you don't want it to happen to you at all, it goes without saying, DON'T TRY THIS.
Also, I'm not an expert on getting lucid dreams or stuff from this. What I AM good at is the part where you don't move. If you want to lucid dream, I am not the right person to ask. I've been trying different methods for about 10 years now with little success. However, if you can't do it and need someone to sympathize with, I completely understand your pain. Apparently about 1 in 4 people have no dreams or hallucinations at all when they do sleep paralysis, and I am one of those people. Your experience may vary.
This method is what works for me, at least. Also, if you suffer from REM sleep behavior disorder, your body actually doesn't do SP naturally at night during dreams like it's supposed to, so I do not yet know if it's possible for someone with the disorder to do this. If it is, that would be awesome. So anyways, here are the steps!
If you get sleep paralysis naturally and it's horrible and scary every time it happens, learning to induce it on your own when YOU are in control of it and know what's going on can really help. But if you don't want it to happen to you at all, it goes without saying, DON'T TRY THIS.
Also, I'm not an expert on getting lucid dreams or stuff from this. What I AM good at is the part where you don't move. If you want to lucid dream, I am not the right person to ask. I've been trying different methods for about 10 years now with little success. However, if you can't do it and need someone to sympathize with, I completely understand your pain. Apparently about 1 in 4 people have no dreams or hallucinations at all when they do sleep paralysis, and I am one of those people. Your experience may vary.
This method is what works for me, at least. Also, if you suffer from REM sleep behavior disorder, your body actually doesn't do SP naturally at night during dreams like it's supposed to, so I do not yet know if it's possible for someone with the disorder to do this. If it is, that would be awesome. So anyways, here are the steps!
How to induce sleep paralysis
Here's a nice step-by-step guide.:
- Make sure you are comfortable in a comfy outfit and you have gone to the bathroom. Get ready to go to bed about 30 minutes earlier than usual. If you are too tired, this will not work since you have to lay in bed for a while without falling asleep. Doing it right after you wake up is fine too, and really, the best time to do it is just any time you are relaxed and won't be interrupted for a while.
- Lay on your back in a position you can stay in for at least 10-20 minutes. Close your eyes and don't move (this is the most important part of not being able to move). If you move, you'll have to start over.
- With your eyes closed, focus on an imaginary point that would be about 3 inches in front of your eyes. It's okay to strain your eyes for a bit (sometimes this actually helps). Also imagine energy going into your body, and try to feel the energy. If done right, your body will get slightly weird. That's a good sign.
- Stay like that, and once again, don't move (this is the most important part of not being able to move). At this point, you are still physically able to move, but if you do, you will mess it up. Focus occasionally on the area in front of your eyes to build up more energy. Also, completely relax your body if it's not, and stay still and calm for about 10 minutes. You can think about whatever, but don't fall asleep.
- At some point, your limbs, usually starting with the legs will start to feel like they are just things attached to you, but not your real body. Or, you can just imagine you don't have any limbs and that you have dead arms and legs attached to you, but they are not part of you. In fact, imagine your entire body is no longer a part of you. All you are is your thoughts.
- Eventually, you will get an extremely weird screwed-up feeling in your body. It's hard to describe, but I promise that you will know when it happens. It may spread across your body and become stronger, and it may give your a slight feeling of emptiness, uneasiness, and unreality. If you're still not sure how to tell if you've reached this point, then this time, I want you to try to move. Maybe lift up your arm, kick your leg.
How to snap out of it
If you find yourself horribly frightened, you may panic and freak out. This will only make it worse. On the contrary, if you want a more frightening stronger experience, feel free to panic and freak out. Saying to yourself, "Oh my god, I can't move!" is always a good way to have a stronger fear and more intense experience. But if you want it to stop, try this.
1. Calm down. Say to yourself that it is not real but just a state of mind.
2. Often, the head and neck will be the first area you regain control of. If you tilt your neck forward, the rest of your body will move slightly. Once you feel the bed again, your body will be awakened, and you should be able to move again fairly easily.
3.Another method is to think about your movement and visuallize the signal going from your brain, through your spinal cord, and into your body as you try to move. It helps a lot.
4. Wait. It will go away eventually if you do nothing. Maybe... :P
Note: If you are fully awake and aware but suddenly find you can't move a body part for real, even after doing all this and tapping the affected body part, this is not sleep paralysis. It's an emergency.
1. Calm down. Say to yourself that it is not real but just a state of mind.
2. Often, the head and neck will be the first area you regain control of. If you tilt your neck forward, the rest of your body will move slightly. Once you feel the bed again, your body will be awakened, and you should be able to move again fairly easily.
3.Another method is to think about your movement and visuallize the signal going from your brain, through your spinal cord, and into your body as you try to move. It helps a lot.
4. Wait. It will go away eventually if you do nothing. Maybe... :P
Note: If you are fully awake and aware but suddenly find you can't move a body part for real, even after doing all this and tapping the affected body part, this is not sleep paralysis. It's an emergency.
Tips and Troubleshooting
Q: It doesn't work! You suck!
A: The first time you do it, it can take over 30 minutes and may only affect one part of the body. The legs are typically easier to get than the arms, so try separating yourself from just your legs at first. But it does take a lot of practice to get in the right state of mind. Don't worry about what exact position your body is in. Pretend it's in a bunch of random different positions for the fun of it. Also, don't be afraid of SP. You should go into it calm and willing to let go of your body and movement. Also, not all methods work for everyone. If this method doesn't work, it doesn't mean you can't do it. It just means perhaps a different method will work better.
Q: Can I die from this?
A: I've done it about 100 or so times in the past 4 years. I'm not dead yet. It happens naturally in your sleep every night, and when you induce SP, your breathing will not be affected, although it may become shallower or faster. You won't die though. The closest you could come is if you have panic attacks and are freaked out when it happens. But again, if you do it calmly knowing you won't be able to move, you'll be fine. Nothing about SP can actually hurt you. However I don't suggest doing it while swimming or if your house catches on fire.
Q: I keep feeling this urge to move whenever I try to induce SP.
A: That's actually a good thing and means you're almost there. Your body is checking to make sure you're "asleep," by giving you urges to move. It knows that SP freaks people out (and is also very inconvenient) while they're awake, so it likes to make sure you're asleep before activating SP. It checks by creating an urge to move so that if you're awake to sense the urge, you'll move and your body will know NOT to do SP. If you resist the urge to move after a few minutes, sleep paralysis will activate.
Q: I did this and now I'm getting SP way more without inducing it.
A: Yeah, that happens. About 2 years after I induced SP for the first time, I finally had it naturally and I'll admit it scared the s--- out of me. In my dream there were doctors around me telling my parents I had died of what they called "fast onset ALS" and I was still alive and trying to say "Hey, I'm not dead yet! I'm not ready to die!" but I couldn't, and for 5 seconds, I was fully convinced that I was going to die. Good times... But anyways, first and foremost, if you want it to stop, don't try to induce it. Also don't stay up late, and don't worry about it. Sometimes if I don't want to have a nightmare about something, I think about it briefly and tell myself that it's in my conscious mind, no longer my subconscious where it will become a nightmare. Addressing things and worries while you're awake is sometimes a lot better than shoving them to the back of your mind where they will be amplified by nightmares.
A: The first time you do it, it can take over 30 minutes and may only affect one part of the body. The legs are typically easier to get than the arms, so try separating yourself from just your legs at first. But it does take a lot of practice to get in the right state of mind. Don't worry about what exact position your body is in. Pretend it's in a bunch of random different positions for the fun of it. Also, don't be afraid of SP. You should go into it calm and willing to let go of your body and movement. Also, not all methods work for everyone. If this method doesn't work, it doesn't mean you can't do it. It just means perhaps a different method will work better.
Q: Can I die from this?
A: I've done it about 100 or so times in the past 4 years. I'm not dead yet. It happens naturally in your sleep every night, and when you induce SP, your breathing will not be affected, although it may become shallower or faster. You won't die though. The closest you could come is if you have panic attacks and are freaked out when it happens. But again, if you do it calmly knowing you won't be able to move, you'll be fine. Nothing about SP can actually hurt you. However I don't suggest doing it while swimming or if your house catches on fire.
Q: I keep feeling this urge to move whenever I try to induce SP.
A: That's actually a good thing and means you're almost there. Your body is checking to make sure you're "asleep," by giving you urges to move. It knows that SP freaks people out (and is also very inconvenient) while they're awake, so it likes to make sure you're asleep before activating SP. It checks by creating an urge to move so that if you're awake to sense the urge, you'll move and your body will know NOT to do SP. If you resist the urge to move after a few minutes, sleep paralysis will activate.
Q: I did this and now I'm getting SP way more without inducing it.
A: Yeah, that happens. About 2 years after I induced SP for the first time, I finally had it naturally and I'll admit it scared the s--- out of me. In my dream there were doctors around me telling my parents I had died of what they called "fast onset ALS" and I was still alive and trying to say "Hey, I'm not dead yet! I'm not ready to die!" but I couldn't, and for 5 seconds, I was fully convinced that I was going to die. Good times... But anyways, first and foremost, if you want it to stop, don't try to induce it. Also don't stay up late, and don't worry about it. Sometimes if I don't want to have a nightmare about something, I think about it briefly and tell myself that it's in my conscious mind, no longer my subconscious where it will become a nightmare. Addressing things and worries while you're awake is sometimes a lot better than shoving them to the back of your mind where they will be amplified by nightmares.