Forced paralysis?

I managed to trigger the sleep paralysis attribute while I was awake.

I was laying down sideways holding my phone to check the time , feeling time was going by to slow. So I waited , and thought of myself dying in my sleep from a drowning scene. I picked up a scenario where I jumped in the lake and from then on I could feel my body tighten up , and the deeper I got into the water , the stronger the paralysis. I got out of this state by moving my fingers keeping my cool but deep in my mind I was scared as hell. So I try again another minute later but I didn't need to think of myself drowning, its as if it only took two seconds for me to become temporarily paralyzed again. But this time was different and really bugged me out. My body froze and I felt like there was this thick shadow hovering over me yelling "GO!". All I could do was keep cool till I saw movement on my fingers. Once I was free of the hold , I got up and left me house for a walk.. mind you this all happened with me being awake!

I don't think I'd want to try it again because next time I feel like I'm going to die in my sleep , I should have also stated that the paralysis made it harder for me to breathe when I was thinking about drowning in the lake

reply to post by Rufone

Sounds like a case of conversion disorder, also known as hysterical paralysis. This is a real phenomenon, and you can read about it on the web, such as here.

In your case, it sounds like such a mild and transitory event that I wouldn't worry about it. Consider it a panic attack and let it go. I bet it doesn't happen again.

Conversion disorder is not fatal, and is temporary. It is not too common, but not extremely rare either.

Self hypnosis.
You had an intent. You made this suggestion to yourself.
You relaxed and let it happen.
You also knew the way out.
It was easier the 2nd time because you knew the way.

Now that you have accomplished this, can you find something truly useful to you to work on? Heal injuries, change habits, more self confidence, earn more money, develope a great relationship etc.

This is not the same as so-called sleep paralysis that is commonly discussed.

Originally posted by OhZone
Self hypnosis.

Yes, that is obviously it. Forget my previous post about conversion disorder. I am pretty sure you have nailed it, OhZone.

I would think conversion disorder if it lasted a day or so, but your diagnosis is much more accurate.

Good thinking!

I have never seen anyone get the meaning of a medical diagnosis so completely wrong in my life, Buck Division. Conversion Disorder? Wow. I have studied neurology and neuroscience for years and I rarely ever see Conversion Disorder mentioned except when talking about the late 19th century and Charcot. I'm just so amazed I couldn't help bumping this topic.

Originally posted by Cyborg Ninja
I have never seen anyone get the meaning of a medical diagnosis so completely wrong in my life, Buck Division.

Yeah. I better be clear about this. I'm not a medical doctor. I have studied cognitive science. It is my understanding that conversion disorder is a real phenomenon:

In 1980 the American Psychiatric Association officially changed the diagnosis of “hysterical neurosis, conversion type” to “conversion disorder.” In that diagnostic manual the word "neurosis" was removed entirely for any conditions.
...
A similar usage refers to any sort of "public wave" phenomenon, and has been used to describe the periodic widespread reappearance and public interest in UFO reports, crop circles, and similar examples.

en.wikipedia.org...

I agreed with OhZone, in a previous post, that a more likely diagnosis would be self-hypnosis. Perhaps a panic attack. So you are right to challenge my diagnosis, but you are too late. OhZone already did that successfully.

I also want to say that the term "hysteria" is pretty out dated, having a stupid gender connotation that is slightly demeaning.

Question: Would you say that conversion disorder is not a real phenomenon? I thought it was. I really don't know and would value your opinion on that.

Thanks for the update Cyborg, and any further comments.

What were you trying to achieve? Paralysis or astral projection?

You know, Cyborg, I can't resist posting one more thing here about conversion disorder. I was looking at this article:

"Is Hysteria Real? Brain Images Say Yes. " (New York Times, 2006)

I think there is actually a consipiracy against this diagnosis, as detailed in the above article. I think temporary conversion disorder is more common than people will admit to. One possible reason this is under reported: the disorder is linked to recreational (and illegal) drug use? Just an idea, based upon a very few people I've known, who have reported similar experiences to that described in the OP

The fact is, nobody can say whether this is a real phenomenon or not, because there is (apparently) no neurological root cause for it. It is all in your mind, and who can say what "mind" actually is?

I've never experienced this myself. But I am assuming it is real, just like hypnosis is real (something else I've never personally experienced.)

I apologize for bringing up a topic that appears to have died over a year ago but I felt as if I should add my two cents.

I came across this thread while researching if there was any direct corrolation between the mechanism responsible for sleep paralysis (not so much the disorder but the normal function of the brain intentionally paralyzing the motor functions during REM sleep to prevent one from running, jumping or punching their way out of their bed).

The truth is Conversion Disorder is very much real. I should know. I have it.

Although it is viewed as a psychological disorder there are various physiological signs that can be shown beyond the symptoms. In Motor Conversion Disorder, FMRI's have shown that the part of the brain that normally shows activity when moving a limb actually shows little or no activity when one attempts to move a limb that is paralyzed due to conversion disorder.

The biggest frustration is having more knowledge of the disorder than most doctors I have spoken to and, in numerous cases, actually having to explain the disorder to them.

Unfortunately, because of the lack of knowledge of the disorder and the fact that it is fairly rare, there is a lack of real research, an abundance of assumptions, a great deal of ignorance on the subject within the medical community, and basically a whole lot of guess work in white coats.

One item that is commonly listed is that it is much more likely to occur with someone of lower than average intelligence and a high level of ignorance in modern medicine. This is not the case with me because I have a college degree, a fairly decent understanding of modern medicine and have several independent IQ tests listing my results in the mid 140s.

Another common assumption is that the disorder is short-term and will tend to go away after the assumed trigger has passed. This is, again, not the case with my particular experience with the disorder because over the past 5 years I have had 14 occurances or "reactions" with no identifiable trigger and no real connections between occurances and the length of time of each reaction has ranged from the first one being 2 and a half weeks to the 13th one lasting a full calander year. I am currently in my 14th one and rapidly approaching the 9 month mark.

One possible reason this is under reported: the disorder is linked to recreational (and illegal) drug use?

This is highly inaccurate. This disorder has nothing to do with recreational drug use in any way. What the disorder is most commonly linked with is a stressor to the subcontious part of the brain or in some cases a trauma of some sort. One particular conversion reaction that has been given the most exposure is "Hysterical Blindess". They even made a movie about it with Uma Thurman, though the way it was portrayed was grossly inaccurate.

I guess the whole point I am trying to make is that the disorder is real and in my opinion should be taught to med students, exposed to current doctors and researched far more than it is.