weird experience

Memento Mori · Aug 27, 2011

Last night I tried falling asleep on my back. I'm trying to teach myself to sleep in this position, but I just can't seem to do it. I usually just give up after 10 minutes and turn on my side.

Well, last night I was able to fall asleep. Kind of. After 5-10 minutes, my whole body fell asleep, but I was fully awake mentally. I've never experienced that before, and it was so strange. I felt totally detached from my body, like "I" was somewhere else. About 30 seconds after realizing I was asleep-but-not-really, I felt an intense spinning sensation, like I was going to fly right out of my body at any moment like a spinning top. I got so freaked out that I lifted my arms, which woke my body up and snapped me back "into" it.

Can anyone shed some light on what I experienced?

Vendetta · Aug 27, 2011

Did you have any hallucinations or anything? I've had sleep paralysis a few times. Most recently, I woke up and heard demonic voices going in and out of my ears, and God fighting them off. Sleep paralysis is where you're awake, but you're still in REM and you can't move. Then again, since this was only like 10 minutes after you fell asleep, you couldn't have been in REM. Weird.

Memento Mori · Aug 27, 2011

Nope, no hallucinations or images. Just that sensation that I was spinning very fast.

Gwendolyn · Aug 27, 2011

Hypnagogia. You are in between sleeping and waking and having a lucid dream experience. I have had hypnagogic hallucinations my entire life. Other people get sleep paralysis. You were basically on the edge of consciousness. This stuff is common.

Nanopants · Aug 27, 2011

I had an interesting sleep experience once (not exactly dream related but freaky).

One night I was in a deep sleep and I don't even remember what the dream was about, but I kept hearing this methodical beat: three beats, pause, three more times, pause, and so on.

I slowly began to wake up out of my dream state and to my dismay my arm and hand was the culprit, it was smacking me in the chest! It wasn't until I was fully awake and realized what was happening that I could stop it.

I'm not sure why this happened, but I have a tendency to stop breathing while I sleep like my grandfather who suffers from sleep apnea.

Gwendolyn · Aug 27, 2011

My guess is your body was trying to wake you up, but that is so weird that you were hitting your own chest!

Sometimes I settle myself into weird positions when I am sleeping, which makes breathing difficult. If I am dreaming, in the dream someone is suffocating me. That scares me enough to wake up and take deep breaths again.

Apparently I am also an avid sleep-talker, according to my family who have heard me yelling/screaming if it is a scary dream.

ZooMom · Aug 27, 2011

This happens to me alot. Only I feel like I'm falling, and then I jerk awake. Babies do it alot...if you've ever watched one sleeping, and suddenly they gasp and jerk their arms up. It's common...and normal.

May I ask why you are trying to train yourself to sleep on your back? It really isn't an optimal sleep position.

AllieBaba2012 · Aug 27, 2011

I have very vivid dreams, often very complicated dreams, and dreams of flying (they are beautiful and startling, or very, very fun). When I was a child, I believed I was levitating at night. I would dream very distinctly that I floated to the ceiling, and had to push myself back down into my bed. I believed it!

Position very strongly affects my dreams, so if you are not used to sleeping on you back, I would imagine that is exactly why you are experiencing this. The only way to know if it will go away is to keep doing it!

ZooMom · Aug 27, 2011

I do that, too! Not so much flying, but levitating. The sensation is so vivid! And I'm so aware of the fact that I am doing it in my dream...the actual sensation of just pushing off the ground very slightly and moving in any direction I wish to go without touching the ground again. It's an exhilarating experience. I love those dreams.

Gwendolyn · Aug 27, 2011

AllieBaba2012 said:
I have very vivid dreams, often very complicated dreams, and dreams of flying (they are beautiful and startling, or very, very fun). When I was a child, I believed I was levitating at night. I would dream very distinctly that I floated to the ceiling, and had to push myself back down into my bed. I believed it!

I have those dreams all the time when I am first falling asleep. I always know that I am falling asleep because first I dream that I am levitating and floating above my bed, then I float around my house, and I am kind of lucid so I think, "YAY, I AM FINALLY SLEEPING!" and then I go into serious dream mode.

FullyMT · Aug 28, 2011

If you're aware of your body, it's not uncommon during the first 7 or so minutes of relaxation before falling asleep to have a falling sensation. I remember reading or watching something about that a long time ago...It happens to me every now and then.

In terms of flying dreams...I have two vivid flying dreams: one from kindergarten -- I was in a superman costume and could fly inside my house; the other was in late elementary school when I was swimming a lot -- I could fly by using various swim strokes. Those were some good dreams...
And now, to bed!

Irenaeus · Aug 28, 2011

What you've experienced is very common in the transition into full sleep.

Eretria90 · Aug 28, 2011

You could have had sleep paralysis, which is different for everyone. I haven't had any SP problems since high school. My episodes usually occurred every night for at least a week, with very violent nightmares that made me feel pain in real life. Usually after I had these nightmares, I would "wake up" and suddenly become alert to surroundings, knowing that my nightmares were not real.

It's possible that I've been having SP for the past year occasionally; I've been having a lot of dreams with regards to turning into some kind of bird and flying. Flight has become a popular subject in my dreams and it gives me odd dream sensations. I actually quite enjoy dream flight. Do not panic if you suddenly wake to find out you had an SP experience.

It's amazing how much we don't know about the human brain.

MKJ · Aug 28, 2011

Gwendolyn said:
Hypnagogia. You are in between sleeping and waking and having a lucid dream experience. I have had hypnagogic hallucinations my entire life. Other people get sleep paralysis. You were basically on the edge of consciousness. This stuff is common.

Yes, this happens to me occasionally too.

CruciFixed · Aug 28, 2011

I was thinking sleep paralysis as well. I have had numerous attacks of it but haven't seen a doctor for it figured it is no big deal. Usually my sleep paralysis is on my back but has happened in any position including lying on my stomach.

I once was aware of my room around me including everything that was being said. I was on my stomach and I saw the face of a man with black hair say "GUILTY" in a loud creepy whisper. I immediately jumped from my bed but was obviously sleeping just seconds before because that was a dream/hallucination.

I've had them on my back where I have full awareness of my room and can see my arms and everything as it is. Then I hear demonic voices I've even seen demonic looking creatures in my bed or at the foot of my bed.

It gets very creepy but its something very common. People often believe in alien abduction because of sleep paralysis. Some people used to believe it was demonic attacks.

Its neither but it can be very odd. One time I saw my "soul" separating from my body and it was dirty....like crusty and covered in mud. That and things were crawling up my bed and minutes later I was able to "snap out of it"

Every case I mentioned I've been told is sleep paralysis or symptoms of. Try not to sleep on your back and stress is a huge factor as well.

However as I said....I don't always sleep on my back and I STILL have these symptoms and they reoccur. So its different for each person I know.

Memento Mori · Aug 28, 2011

ZooMom said:
May I ask why you are trying to train yourself to sleep on your back? It really isn't an optimal sleep position.

Why do you say that? Mayo Clinic says it's the optimal position for relieving back pain.

Gwendolyn · Aug 28, 2011

Jared R said:
Why do you say that? Mayo Clinic says it's the optimal position for relieving back pain.

Depends on how you prop your pillows, and what kind of pillows you have. It's bad if you prop your neck/shoulders up. Those super-expensive tempurpedic pillows are designed to align the spine while you sleep.

CruciFixed · Aug 28, 2011

I need some good pillows.

foxsta · Aug 29, 2011

On the back is also bad for sleep apnea. It is much better when sleeping on you side.

ZooMom · Aug 29, 2011

Jared R said:
Why do you say that? Mayo Clinic says it's the optimal position for relieving back pain.

Well, that depends on your mattress and pillows...and the cause of your back pain. For blood flow, and breathing, it is not the most ideal.

Sleeping on your side can also cause issues, again depending on the quality of your mattress, because unless you use a body pillow your hips are not going to be aligned.

Best position for sleep is almost on your stomach, with right arm straight down and behind you and right leg straight. Left arm and leg cocked and supported by pillows to align the hips and shoulders. Greatly decreased chances of a limb falling asleep, or sudden sensations causing you to jolt awake.

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