Help Please.

[Megan]

Something very strange has been happening to me the last few months.

I have been falling asleep, only to remain conscious, I have read a few posts on this board and on a few other websites and I am pretty sure that I am astrally projecting myself against my will. When it first happened, a few months ago I had the suspicion that I was lucid dreaming or having an OBE. I remembered studying a unit in psychology at school a few years ago when it was mentioned.

I cannot get it to stop. About 3 times a week I "wake up" paralysed with a vibrating, buzzing sound in my ears, and my physical self kind of floats away and I see and hear things differently..... It is terrifying. It has scared me out of sleeping and I have to sleep with my TV on because it seems to lessen the chances of me astrally projecting myself.

I'm not being in any means ungrateful, it seems to me like a lot of people really want this ability but it is really intense and scaring me!

To make matters even more interesting, I have always had a "sixth sense" - my dad also has it. I started seeing strange things at around 14 - I am now 22 - flashes of people in my house, dreams here and there that have came true, my intuition in a lot of cases is freakishly spot on. I have learnt to live with this. It doesn't really bother me (except when i have people that look like burn victims standing at the end of my bed - whoa!!) because it isn't a too regular occurrence.

But this is something different, because it is really interrupting the way I am functioning in every day life. I am scared of sleeping. I noticed that when I smoke some [insert not so legal drug name that grows in the ground] it doesn't happen. But I don't want to have to do that to control this.

Can anyone offer any help or guidance?

Thank you.

Megan

[CFTraveler]

I feel that learning to control your projections (when and where) is the way to stop having them.
If you're unconsciously projecting, I can tell you that your subconscious or superconscious is trying to show you something.  So study it, and learn it.  And control is control, if you know what I mean. 

[ka0s]

I would have to agree with CFTraveler with some additions. Maybe this is happening to you for a reason and you need to find some truth within the experiences. Mine unwillfully began at the age of 16 and started increasing in frequency after the age of 19. I've lost many nights sleep due to this (i'm already an insomniac).

There are so many questions to begin this....Are you laying any particular way when it is occurring? How far do you travel in your experiences? What is the first "feeling" you have when you are out of body besides being afraid, and what aspect of it are you fearing? Is there any sensations that you can give to us to help us analyze your situation. Have you looked at any of your limbs or anything like that? What have you done to return to your body?

I have unwillfully exited many times but have willfully induced just as many. Have you had any hypnapompic or hypnagogic hallucinations upon awakening or falling asleep?

I'm sorry to hear that it is causing problems in your everyday life. If you could tell us a bit more about the experiences with some answers to what I asked maybe we can find some resolve.

[Synergy]

There are a few things you can do to prevent sleep paralysis and ensuing OBEs... 

1. Try not to sleep on your back.  Most sleep paralysis cases seem to happen when sleeping on the back.

2. Try melatonin supplements - some say they actually help induce OBEs because melatonin makes you sleepy.  Most people just fall asleep on it and it seems to inhibit dreams (or at least dream recall)  It's safe and has been used by many to 'reset' the sleep cycles.

3. If you find yourself in paralysis, don't panic (easier said then done I know) but know that it is not dangerous or a sign of something bad at all!  It's supposed to happen to everyone,.... every time we sleep... in order to prevent us from acting out our dreams physically.  And if you want to get out of paralysis faster,.... just focus on one small part of your body like your pinky and try moving just that part.

4. If you are still bothered by this phenomenon, you can talk to a doctor. You dont need to mention the OBEs... just tell them about the sleep paralysis.  There are medications that can prevent REM events from happening outside of when they are supposed to.  Note this is a last resort though...

[Megan]

I do have the sneaking suspicion that this was happening to me for a reason - I am just not sure what it could be. To be honest, I am one of those people who wouldn't believe in the paranormal if I hadn't experienced it for myself. Until I knew my dad was kind of cluey when it came to the "otherside" i just thought I had issues haha.

There are so many questions to begin this....Are you laying any particular way when it is occurring? How far do you travel in your experiences? What is the first "feeling" you have when you are out of body besides being afraid, and what aspect of it are you fearing? Is there any sensations that you can give to us to help us analyze your situation. Have you looked at any of your limbs or anything like that? What have you done to return to your body?

I have unwillfully exited many times but have willfully induced just as many. Have you had any hypnapompic or hypnagogic hallucinations upon awakening or falling asleep?

It generally happens when I am on my side, but it has happened when I am on my back. I have only gotten as far as about 20meters (from my couch to my bedroom) and everything looked distorted, like there was to much sun glare in my house - this has only happened once. My movement was very sluggish and I had only partial control.

Most of the time I either drift, with a spiraling sensation a few meters above my bed or I am in the same position, just not attached to my body. I get back in by concentrating on moving - it brings me straight out of it.

Besides fear, I feel and hear a strong vibration, thats generally when I leave my body. I can only see my surroundings sometimes - sometimes I just see black, and I feel like I am falling.

I often hear voices when I drift off to sleep - but I have always put that down to other "friends" that visit me from time to time. lol.

4. If you are still bothered by this phenomenon, you can talk to a doctor. You dont need to mention the OBEs... just tell them about the sleep paralysis.  There are medications that can prevent REM events from happening outside of when they are supposed to.  Note this is a last resort though...

I have to admit, I have considered this. Like ka0s, I was an insomniac when I was younger - I went onto some mild sleeping tablets and then eventually stopped taking them and my sleeping patterns stayed normal.

Thank you all for your responses. Reading the experiences on this board have made me think that maybe I should try to explore this a little more - not panic as much as I had been.

[ka0s]

I encourage you explore it and honestly it will give you some relief once you do and you realize things will be A-OK. Infact i can bet you that if you do become more accepting of them you will get more sleep once you do so.

Try a few things while out of body:

Shout some commands: "clarity now". Anytime i fly out of body out of my house i shout commands like "Home" and ill actually be back in my home . Check out your voice and look back at your bed. Dont stray out of your house if you are too afraid. See if you have a cord attached to your body. I only did on a few occasions.

Goodluck! and I really do think becoming more acceptant of them will help you get more sleep once you have some relief of your fears.

[The Present Moment]

Over the years I have seen a couple of people come through here trying to stop what the rest of us spend great effort trying to start. Go through the FAQ and Permanent Topics sections and do the opposite of what is suggested. Try to activate a single muscle group if you want to break sleep paralysis, e.g. wiggle a finger tip or toe.