Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

Last night I experienced the most frightening thing in my whole life.

Options
  • 10-05-2013 5:10pm
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 659 ✭✭✭


    Okay before you read this, understand that I am just a normal 19 year old lad. I'm not religious one bit and I don't really believe in the paranormal. I have no history of mental illnesses. Nothing out of the ordinary has ever happened to me.

    If you believe I'm crazy, then you can. Just have to tell someone about this. I also agree there is possibly a scientific explanation to all of this.

    I went to sleep last night like any other night, just reading for a short while before going to sleep. In the early hours of the morning I woke up, struggling to breathe. I was completely paralyzed I remember being absolutely terrified. I couldn't even move a finger.It also felt like I had pins and needles all over my body.

    I couldn't turn my head but I was faced towards my bedroom door, and standing there was a tall, black shadow. I couldn't tell if it was male or female. It started moving towards me slowly, while this was happening the pressure in my ears ( I think?) was making a noise which was getting louder and louder.

    As the shadow was moving towards me,I was panicking,sweating like mad. I was calling out for help but I couldn't, I had no voice. the shadow started pressing down on me breathing heavily on me, and it then put its arms around my neck and started to choke me. I was gasping for air. My eyes were closing, I obviously must have fallen asleep then. It felt like hours but it was probably only minutes.

    It was definitely not a dream, I remember waking up and being terrified, I never remember my dreams but I remember all of this.

    I woke up the next day having completely forgotten until I realized I had a sore neck, I didn't think much of it. When I went to the bathroom I noticed in the mirror red marks around my neck. I took a picture because I know nobody will believe me.


    I've read about sleep paralysis and hallucinations today, so that sort of reassured me that there really isn't a demon trying to kill me.

    Has anyone else ever experienced this? or worse awoken to relevant injuries?


«13

Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 425 ✭✭deecom


    Emmm, i'd lay off the cheese before bed if i were you.


  • Registered Users Posts: 69 ✭✭kennryyr


    HowAreWe wrote: »
    sleep paralysis and hallucinations
    No way.

    Boogeyman


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 485 ✭✭Play To Kill


    I've had similar experiences when I was in my 20's. The paralysis, the shadow at the door etc etc but the most frightening thing I had was that throughout the dreaming stage I would realize i was asleep and wake myself up, unfortunately this was actually a part of the dream so I would see a demon coming towards me and think it was actually real, but then I'd realize that I hadn't actually woken up and force myself awake but the same thing would happen again' I wouldn't be awake and still see the demon, when I did wake for real I never knew if I was really awake and would be terrified that I'd see the demon again.
    I also would be someone who says that I don't ever remember my dreams so and these episodes were extremely vivid and I can still now many years later remember every little detail.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,075 ✭✭✭IamtheWalrus


    Yet another 'paranormal' event happening at night/sleeping state.

    They never happen at my desk at work. Chance would be a fine thing.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 714 ✭✭✭PlainP


    Slenderman...

    On my phone so can't link but a quick Google will show you what I'm on about......


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 5,992 ✭✭✭TheMilkyPirate


    Sounds like "the aul hag" The shadow you see is just your brain playing tricks on you seen as your still half asleep. The paralysis and difficulty breathing and talking is very real. There's a reason it happens I'm not arsed searching now but do a quick google about it and you'll get all the info you need.

    Here's a little article:

    http://paranormal.about.com/od/humanenigmas/a/Old-Hag-Syndrome.htm


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 485 ✭✭Play To Kill


    baraca wrote: »
    The paralysis and difficulty breathing and talking is very real.

    This is very true, years after I first had these dreams I was diagnosed with sleep apnea and I go for long periods without breathing when I am asleep, I think it was this that initiated the dream of being unable to breathe because I was being strangled by a demon.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 5,377 ✭✭✭zenno


    You haven't had a real nightmare until you have had one of those encounters in your sleep that's for sure.

    I used to have them a lot years ago but not any more, but the thing that gets me is the feeling of absolute fear and dread while paralysed and having the feeling that something pure evil is coming at you, it's quite an experience.

    If i ever have one again i'll let it play through just to see what happens but i can see older people that experience this having a heart attack because it is seriously frightening to experience, and i would say that some folks died in their sleep because of having one of these.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,047 ✭✭✭demakinz


    Happened to me a few times before but its just a weird dream. If only i could dream the shadow in the room into a sexy lady.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 2,381 ✭✭✭Doom


    Shadow people, google it.


  • Advertisement
  • Closed Accounts Posts: 676 ✭✭✭Dietsquirt


    It sounds like Sleep Paralysis, i've experienced it before, feels like a you're having a seizure and totally aware of it. It generally happens to me when i fall asleep on my back (supine). Sleep on your side and it shouldn't happen again. It is a horrible feeling but i've experienced 4/5 of them and i'm used to it now.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 5,377 ✭✭✭zenno


    Dietsquirt wrote: »
    It sounds like Sleep Paralysis, i've experienced it before, feels like a you're having a seizure and totally aware of it. It generally happens to me when i fall asleep on my back (supine). Sleep on your side and it shouldn't happen again. It is a horrible feeling but i've experienced 4/5 of them and i'm used to it now.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis

    They used to happen me when i slept on my left side.

    With me it wasn't anything like a seizure, it was just like i woke up in the real waking world normally but not being able to move and waiting in horror as the evil feeling got more intense the longer it went on.

    For some reason i remember i could get out of it from physically trying very hard to tense my body and eventually i would come out of it, then i'd sit up in bed thinking something real happened sweating like crazy. It does feel real on a major scale.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 4,652 ✭✭✭I am pie


    Nope, definitely shadow people. You´re done for.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,353 ✭✭✭Galway K9


    It's sleep paralysis. usually before going to deep sleep or before waking

    you see the room, can't move , shadow at door....believe it or not the room looks real and vivid but your eyes are actually closed. the only way of subsidi.ng this is to give in to the fear....you won't win fighting it.

    possible causes of sleep paralysis are stress etc.

    paranormal speaking....it's believed that in sleep paralysis it's caused by your ether (spirit) coconnected by cord has no entered the body fully so you can't move.


    also I get them twice a week about no specific days. very used to it now I just give up and it goes within seconds
    HowAreWe wrote: »
    Okay before you read this, understand that I am just a normal 19 year old lad. I'm not religious one bit and I don't really believe in the paranormal. I have no history of mental illnesses. Nothing out of the ordinary has ever happened to me.

    If you believe I'm crazy, then you can. Just have to tell someone about this. I also agree there is possibly a scientific explanation to all of this.

    I went to sleep last night like any other night, just reading for a short while before going to sleep. In the early hours of the morning I woke up, struggling to breathe. I was completely paralyzed I remember being absolutely terrified. I couldn't even move a finger.It also felt like I had pins and needles all over my body.

    I couldn't turn my head but I was faced towards my bedroom door, and standing there was a tall, black shadow. I couldn't tell if it was male or female. It started moving towards me slowly, while this was happening the pressure in my ears ( I think?) was making a noise which was getting louder and louder.

    As the shadow was moving towards me,I was panicking,sweating like mad. I was calling out for help but I couldn't, I had no voice. the shadow started pressing down on me breathing heavily on me, and it then put its arms around my neck and started to choke me. I was gasping for air. My eyes were closing, I obviously must have fallen asleep then. It felt like hours but it was probably only minutes.

    It was definitely not a dream, I remember waking up and being terrified, I never remember my dreams but I remember all of this.

    I woke up the next day having completely forgotten until I realized I had a sore neck, I didn't think much of it. When I went to the bathroom I noticed in the mirror red marks around my neck. I took a picture because I know nobody will believe me.


    I've read about sleep paralysis and hallucinations today, so that sort of reassured me that there really isn't a demon trying to kill me.

    Has anyone else ever experienced this? or worse awoken to relevant injuries?


  • Registered Users Posts: 514 ✭✭✭Savage93


    HowAreWe wrote: »
    Okay before you read this, understand that I am just a normal 19 year old lad. I'm not religious one bit and I don't really believe in the paranormal. I have no history of mental illnesses. Nothing out of the ordinary has ever happened to me.

    If you believe I'm crazy, then you can. Just have to tell someone about this. I also agree there is possibly a scientific explanation to all of this.

    I went to sleep last night like any other night, just reading for a short while before going to sleep. In the early hours of the morning I woke up, struggling to breathe. I was completely paralyzed I remember being absolutely terrified. I couldn't even move a finger.It also felt like I had pins and needles all over my body.

    I couldn't turn my head but I was faced towards my bedroom door, and standing there was a tall, black shadow. I couldn't tell if it was male or female. It started moving towards me slowly, while this was happening the pressure in my ears ( I think?) was making a noise which was getting louder and louder.

    As the shadow was moving towards me,I was panicking,sweating like mad. I was calling out for help but I couldn't, I had no voice. the shadow started pressing down on me breathing heavily on me, and it then put its arms around my neck and started to choke me. I was gasping for air. My eyes were closing, I obviously must have fallen asleep then. It felt like hours but it was probably only minutes.

    It was definitely not a dream, I remember waking up and being terrified, I never remember my dreams but I remember all of this.

    I woke up the next day having completely forgotten until I realized I had a sore neck, I didn't think much of it. When I went to the bathroom I noticed in the mirror red marks around my neck. I took a picture because I know nobody will believe me.


    I've read about sleep paralysis and hallucinations today, so that sort of reassured me that there really isn't a demon trying to kill me.

    Has anyone else ever experienced this? or worse awoken to relevant injuries?

    How your man stayed up on the surfboard after 14 pints of stout:D:D:D:D:D


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,047 ✭✭✭Kettleson


    I'd say put it down to a bad, but natural enough experience and forget about it.

    You might want to have a look at this.

    There's a part in it (24:05) where a "Priest" reckons there is a spirit involved in one case, but in my opinion its all sleep paralysis and he's talking sh1te for whatever reason.

    I wouldn't ordinarily be recommending this video as a worthwhile use of anyone's 49 minutes and 05 seconds, cos I want mine back. :D

    http://youtu.be/5dEeHU6farA


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 5,377 ✭✭✭zenno


    None the less, it is an interesting topic especially in relation to people that have actually had this crazy experience and can relate to each other as the experience is so similar.

    What makes it unique is that when it happens it seems very real (too real) compared to an ordinary dream, this is what makes it very interesting.

    Like a previous poster said... play it out and it will go quick/in seconds, not sure if that would work for everyone unless you have a very personally controlled mind, easier said than done but possible.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 485 ✭✭Play To Kill


    zenno wrote: »
    None the less, it is an interesting topic especially in relation to people that have actually had this crazy experience and can relate to each other as the experience is so similar.

    It has always puzzled me how similar the dreams of others who have had this experience are to my own experience. It seems to be always described as an evil presence at the far end of the room or outside the door that is coming closer at first which later in the dream becomes a demon, the marks on the skin the next morning, in my own case they were around my neck and I guess I did them myself while trying to stop the imaginary demon from choking me, the description of the sheer panic when you realize you are paralized, trying to scream for help but unable to do anything more than whisper and thinking you have woken up only to find that you are still asleep and the nightmare continues. Its a terrifying experience but thankfully it either stops happening after a while or you develop an ability to deal with it.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,075 ✭✭✭Rasmus


    HowAreWe wrote: »
    Okay before you read this, understand that I am just a normal 19 year old lad. I'm not religious one bit and I don't really believe in the paranormal. I have no history of mental illnesses. Nothing out of the ordinary has ever happened to me.

    If you believe I'm crazy, then you can. Just have to tell someone about this. I also agree there is possibly a scientific explanation to all of this.

    I went to sleep last night like any other night, just reading for a short while before going to sleep. In the early hours of the morning I woke up, struggling to breathe. I was completely paralyzed I remember being absolutely terrified. I couldn't even move a finger.It also felt like I had pins and needles all over my body.

    I couldn't turn my head but I was faced towards my bedroom door, and standing there was a tall, black shadow. I couldn't tell if it was male or female. It started moving towards me slowly, while this was happening the pressure in my ears ( I think?) was making a noise which was getting louder and louder.

    As the shadow was moving towards me,I was panicking,sweating like mad. I was calling out for help but I couldn't, I had no voice. the shadow started pressing down on me breathing heavily on me, and it then put its arms around my neck and started to choke me. I was gasping for air. My eyes were closing, I obviously must have fallen asleep then. It felt like hours but it was probably only minutes.

    It was definitely not a dream, I remember waking up and being terrified, I never remember my dreams but I remember all of this.

    I woke up the next day having completely forgotten until I realized I had a sore neck, I didn't think much of it. When I went to the bathroom I noticed in the mirror red marks around my neck. I took a picture because I know nobody will believe me.


    I've read about sleep paralysis and hallucinations today, so that sort of reassured me that there really isn't a demon trying to kill me.

    Has anyone else ever experienced this? or worse awoken to relevant injuries?

    Where's the pic?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 7,230 ✭✭✭Solair


    OP : what you're describing is sleep paralysis.

    However the difficulty breathing and pins and needles could be actually caused by sleep apnea.

    If this is a regular problem, ask your GP about visiting a sleep clinic.

    Also get the GP to run sone basic tests for blood sugars, and anything like that to rule out 'simple' problems.

    This phenomenon is often responsible for people seeing ghosts or thinking they've been abducted by aliens.

    In the meantime try and make sure you've simple things like the rooms properly ventilated and that you don't have any issues with black mould growing in the room Etc that might make breathing difficult.


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 206 ✭✭brock92


    @op I used to get this during my late teens to early twenties. Its fairly frightening for the first few times it happens, then you get used to it.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,166 ✭✭✭Stereomaniac


    I have had vivid nightmares for my whole life. But, like anything, you just learn to adapt eventually.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 4,128 ✭✭✭dellas1979


    Sure-probably is sleep paralysis. But how can he account for the marks around his neck? (can you show pic :) ?)


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 485 ✭✭Play To Kill


    dellas1979 wrote: »
    Sure-probably is sleep paralysis. But how can he account for the marks around his neck? (can you show pic :) ?)

    Self inflicted while trying to stop himself from being strangled in a very vivid dream.


  • Registered Users Posts: 659 ✭✭✭HowAreWe


    dellas1979 wrote: »
    Sure-probably is sleep paralysis. But how can he account for the marks around his neck? (can you show pic :) ?)

    I can Pm it to you if you want, but like the person above said probably just me doing it to myself.


  • Posts: 0 [Deleted User]


    Its definitely sleep paralysis, also you could have been grabbing your own neck in your sleep.

    The interesting thing about sleep paralysis is, nobody can explain how people are having similar experiences.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 694 ✭✭✭Tragamin2k2


    next time it happens, recognize it, accept it, close your eyes, and leave your body for a while

    ;)


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 128 ✭✭MrPoker


    I get episodes of sleep paralysis a few times a year. Thankfully im not the only one from reading this thread. The feeling of fear and helplessness when you are in that state is just surreal and extremely frightening. Whenever I get a episode now I understand that its sleep paralysis but it still scares me when i am in that state as my brain is fully alert and I cant call out or move any part of my body. I would not wish it on anybody.


  • Registered Users Posts: 377 ✭✭indy_man


    Next time this happens say three Hail Mary's, and then get up and bless your room and bed with Holy Water. That should take care of it. At least if you are scared it will help you feel safer, eventhough I agree with most others here this is most likely just sleep paralysis. But you never know so also consider the prayer to St Michael the Archangel.

    Saint Michael the Archangel,
    defend us in battle.
    Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
    May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
    and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host -
    by the Divine Power of God -
    cast into hell, satan and all the evil spirits,
    who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.
    Amen.


    Waking up from a demonic experience during sleep paralysis can be horrifying and believe it or not these prayers help.


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 273 ✭✭okioffice84


    indy_man wrote: »
    Next time this happens say three Hail Mary's, and then get up and bless your room and bed with Holy Water. That should take care of it. At least if you are scared it will help you feel safer, eventhough I agree with most others here this is most likely just sleep paralysis. But you never know so also consider the prayer to St Michael the Archangel.

    Saint Michael the Archangel,
    defend us in battle.
    Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
    May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
    and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host -
    by the Divine Power of God -
    cast into hell, satan and all the evil spirits,
    who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.
    Amen.


    Waking up from a demonic experience during sleep paralysis can be horrifying and believe it or not these prayers help.

    OR, OR, you cold sprinkle just dead chicken's blood over the bedroom door to prevent further demonic experiences. That should take care of it.
    Amen.


Advertisement