Sleep Paralysis

There are three forms of sleep paralysis. Ramsawh (2005) found that when it occurs in non-narcoleptic individuals it is known to as isolated sleep paralysis (ISP). Another form is referred to as familial sleep paralysis, in which it is similar to ISP, but genetically transmitted (Levitt, 2009). The final form of sleep paralysis is narcoleptic sleep paralysis, which occurs as a symptom of Narcolepsy (Levitt, 2009). Isolated sleep paralysis episodes are characteristic with “infrequent attacks and a negative family history”, and familial sleep paralysis with “more frequent attacks and a positive family history” (Powell, 1998, p. 239). Each form of sleep paralysis is unique and different in the causes and symptoms they possess. Of the three

Those who have had such an experience often describe the strong sense of fear or even terror such presences provoke (Davies, 2003). Ramsawh found the variability of the “realness” of episodes is also present in ISP, as sleepers “occasionally report uncertainty as to whether sleep paralysis has actually occurred, or whether they dreamed its occurrence” (Ramsawh, 2005). Davies discovered a smaller proportion of people describe out-of-body experiences, where they float above their beds and look down upon their bodies. People describe such sensations as “flying, accelerating, rising, lifting, spinning, swirling, being hurled through a tunnel, being light-headed or dizzy”, but the experience is usually pleasant, even blissful (Davies,

French found that accused witch Susan Martin had reportedly told Robert Downer that “some She-Devil would shortly fetch him away”. That night, Downer claimed “as he lay in his bed, there came in at the window, the likeness of a cat, which flew upon him, took fast hold of his throat, lay on him a considerable while, and almost killed him.” Bridget Bishop was also accused of witchcraft in testimonies which seem to describe sleep paralysis experiences. Richard Coleman claimed that Bishop had “oppressed him so, that he could neither stir himself, nor wake anyone else, and that he was the night after, molested again in the like manner” (French, 2013). Sleep paralysis nightmares have also been implicated in the recent controversy over false memories of trauma. The most striking examples involve reported memories of UFO abductions (Powell,