sleep paralysis and breathing difficulties

[natt_u]

ok so i went to see my psychiatrist and i told her about the sleep paralysis sort of thing and she didn't tell me what exactly it it but she increased the dosage of the pills i take for mixed anxiety and depression.and she jus wrote "sleeping difficulties" in the prescription.i didn't ask her about it cus i was kinda nervous about it but i still want to find out what it is.is this a specific kind of sleep disorder?
and from time to time i am having difficulties in breathing it gets worse when i run,climb stairs or get stressed or nervous.my palms have gotten very dry and i couldn't sleep for one whole night because i couldn't breath well.what is going on?

[AdalineAnna]

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[wishforchange]

Hi,

This is interesting.  Have looked at other posts on sleep paralysis here before and found this feeling of being electrically charged with energy comes up quite a few times.  I don't experience that myself.  I'm not sure what you mean by the sexual element, could be that you are maybe having sexual dreams when it happens?

I wonder with you, and those who get the 'electrical' feeling, and with your tiredness, if there is a night time epilepsy connection?  Have you ever had a sleep study done?

My sleep paralysis is sometimes preceded by an overwhelming sleepiness, which comes over me suddenly.  Or it can just happen during a normal night's sleep.  I don't get particular hallucinations or feelings of evil presence in the room as some do.  I do often go back consciously into my dream and move in that state, hitting myself violently, throwing myself out of bed, anything to wake up.  It becomes so real I am sometimes convinced I have woken and open my eyes to find myself sitting up or on the floor.  But the struggle to breathe gives me away, and I know I have just given in and gone back to sleep and the illusion of being awake is a dream.  So I pull myself out of it back to lying helpless on the bed, waiting, buried alive, always convinced I will never move again.  

In the past I would come out of it suddenly, then flap around on the bed and get up immediately, of I didn't I would go straight back to paralysis.  Now the awakening is more gradual, parts of my body moving, usually my legs, while my chest and arms and head are still paralysed.  I kick and kick until I wake up.  

In decades of this I have never found a solution and the hell is always the same.

I had a sleep study done recently.  My worst fears were not confirmed, thankfully.  I have neither apnea nor narcolepsy.  However I do sleep very badly, barely sleeping beyond the lightest sleep in fact, and waking again and again for extended periods, of which I have no memory.  It explains my daytime exhaustion, I sleep constantly whenever I am not stimulated, hence the fear of narcolepsy.

I suffer severe chronic pain and the doctor thought this was the cause of the problem.  I am not convinced, althought the chronic pain of course is not helping.  But I had these problems long before my pain issues started.  Given I take a lot of strong pain medication and muscle relaxants, it was difficult to decide on a treatment.  So they are trialing me with an initial low dose of Clonazepam, which I can double if it doesn't work.  It is a slow acting sleeping pill which should give me the deep sleep I am missing.  Will trial it.  If it works my energy may come back in the day.  About to do a bit of research on it.

I must have been sleep deprived for years.  The neurlogists, epilepsy specialists, think my sleep paralysis is related to ths.  I'm aware that Clonazepam is an epilepsy drug, but I was told I definitely do not have epilepsy.  Just an inability to sleep.

Well worth getting a sleep study done if you can.  Let me know how you get on.

wish

[catjh]

hi there,

i have just joined this forum today and read your posts, i too suffer sleep paralysis i am 39 yrs old and have had them since i was 25yrs, i have looked it up on the net 3yrs ago as i was getting them regular at the time and i had discussed it with 2 of my close friends who then bth experienced it within a week of each other for the first time !
I am keen to get some answers, i was diagnosed with fibromyalgia just over a year ago which puts a lot of things into one box for me, one of the most profound symptoms of this syndrome is the tiredness that goes with it, however, 2 nights ago i was aware i was enduring yet another bout of sleep paralysis and it pains me to admit this but mine can have sexual connotations as this particular one did,

as i became aware that i wasnt asleep but couldnt move a muscle yet again, but i am aware that i am almost electricly charged with so much energy its overwhelming but still paralised, its hard to expain, anyway i give up and let it run its course and during this im thinking when it stops im gona make myself a warm drink and read to take my mind off it before i go back to sleep

no sooner has it finished im so drained of energy i just drift straight back into a deep sleep, it totally drains me, so much so, yesterday i spent most of the day in pain in all my muscles and just couldnt keep awake, i was in a dreadfull state, hense, here i am

I would very much like to compare my experiences with you and i hope i hear from you soon

[wishforchange]

Congratulations on being the first post I've picked out at random to answer and it's not even on my regular forum.  Just want a five second break from my own horrific issues.

I have sleep paralysis which has plagued me most of my life from adolescence until now in my forties.  I recently had a sleep study done.  No paralysis on that night but I am clearly sleeping very badly, barely ever getting beyond light sleep and awakening frequently.  When I did go into deep sleep, I woke suddenly in distress, in my case pain.  I wonder if the paralysis with me is my waking suddenly out of REM sleep, but then I haven't always been in pain.

Do some research, check on your meds whether they could be affecting your sleep.  Keep away from alchohol.  Make sure you get enough darkness when you sleep, it helps you produce melatonin, a hormone which if too low can increase the chance of sleep paralysis as well as daytime depression.  Don't sleep on your back, experiment sleeping on different sides or even moving the bed to see if any position helps.  Don't eat a heavy meal before sleeping.

Get a blood cound done, with the breathlessness you may be anaemic, while you're at it get an ECG.  If you live with someone ask if you snore.  If your sinuses are blocked or you are not breathing when you lay down or sleep, a common neurological condition called apnea, this could be causing you added distresss.  If this is the case sleeping sitting up for a while or even wearing a special oxygen mask may help.  A sleep study can identify all this.

Just noticed your age.  You may be lucky and grow out of this, most people with sleep paralysis do.  I am a rarity.  Regarding the above why not ask your parents to look in on you while you sleep, to note if you are snoring eg.

Now I feel less confident about giving you advice given your age, as so much of what you are experiencing may be due to the natural process of growing up - should have checked this out before I started replying!

Anyway, hope my advice helps, and the doctor is right in telling you to trust your instincts regarding how you feel about your clinician.  Thank you for letting me answer your post, needed to think away from my own issues for a bit, hope I helped.

[Dr Vinod]

The most common reason for having sleep disturbances are anxiety and depression.
You should first solve the primary problem of what is disturbing you and try to find a cure.
Go for a psychiatric session and keep taking the prescribed pills.
Do not bother about what she thinks, the clinician is trying to help you out. You should help yourself and believe in the treatment given to you.
If you are still not satisfied you can go to another clinician and you always have that option.
You yourself are experiencing that whenever you are having stress you are getting these breathing difficulties.
Lead a healthy lifestyle and try to have proper sleep and please continue medication and believe in the treatment metted to you.
Please do take care!