I’ve had a recurring dream (maybe once a month or less) since about age 9 which goes like this:
It’s a sunny day. I’m walking along the pavement towards my Junior School and notice my legs stop functioning normally. It’s an effort to lift one foot off the ground but I’m still determined to keep going. It’s like they’ve gone numb or I’ve forgotten how to walk. I feel embarassed about people seeing me but luckilly no-one is there.
It only lasts 5 minutes and I’ve dreamt it so many times, I always recognise the feeling from the last dream.
Anyway, I wondered if it could actually be SP I’m experiencing in the dream?
This sounds so familiar! Once in a dream like that, my father told me: “That’s because you are sleeping.” Have you noticed that this usually comes in the beginning or in the end of a dream? It might be easier to feel the SP when we are closer to waking up…
I’ve had this paralysis quite often during childhood nightmares. Whenever someone comes after me, my legs won’t work and it’s a terrifying struggle to run away from the attacker. Sometimes this was so bad I became lucid instantly while cursing “Why the *** can’t I run away?? This is a dream so what’s the problem?”. However, about two years ago I had one of these childhood nightmares again, but now I fully realized I was dreaming. Upon realizing this, the motion went all normal and I could fly away. I don’t think it’s genuine SP, but more like a mental blockage. How do you feel before this happens?
It’s hard to tell when in the night it happens as I can’t remember anything before or afterwards During the experience I never feel very scared, more frustrated. I treat it as if it’s nothing out of the ordinary.
Perhaps this feeds the blockage? If you treat it as something normal, how then could a possible blockage be resolved? Only by recognizing it as it is (a mental obstruction), you can resolve it. At least imo
But in any case, this phenomenon is not something uncommon, since many people here seemed to have experienced it.
During the experience I never feel very scared, more frustrated. I treat it as if it’s nothing out of the ordinary.