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I Feel So Scared, It's As Though I'm Dying...

by Tammi
(Berkshire, England)

I've only just found out that I've suffered from sleep paralysis since I was around 18 years old. I am now 37. I thought there was something medically wrong with me!


It's when I've dropped off to sleep that it happens. I awake in sheer terror, unable to move all of my body apart from my eyes. At that point I think I'm dying. When I eventually "break the force" I try to keep myself awake for as long as possible. However, I usually fall back asleep.

Sometimes it happens five or more times. On occasion I've actually got up and turned my light on because I'm too scared to sleep.

Over the last few years I've found that making a snoring noise breaks the paralysis much quicker. I have noticed that my SP is more frequent if I'm stressed or tired. It's horrible and I wish there was a cure for it. Even though I know now I won't die, I still find it an extremely scary and traumatic event.

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Welcome! This site is continuously being created by students of Dr. William C. Dement's Sleep And Dreams course at Stanford University.

We made this site as a call to action for people all over the world to live healthier, happier, safer, and more productive lives by learning about their own sleep. We have faith that reading the information provided on this site will motivate you to be smart about your sleep deprivation and strategic about your alertness in order to live life to your fullest, most energetic potential.

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The Zeo

Track Your Own Sleep With Zeo

A revolution in personal sleep tracking, the Zeo is a wireless headband that transmits your brainwaves in realtime to a dock (pictured here) or your smartphone. The result? You can wake up and see exactly what stages of sleep you were in during the night! Unprecedented personalized sleep knowledge.

Sleep Paralysis: A Dreamer's Guide

Sleep Paralysis Treatment Book

Ever woken up paralyzed? A surprising number of us have, believe it or not. But few know the actual causes of this phenomenon, and fewer still how to exert control over it. Dream researcher and sleep paralysis expert Ryan Hurd shares breakthrough insights into how to do just that.

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