Recently I’ve been experiencing something weird and even frightening. At seemingly random times during the night (sometimes before I get up to go to the toilet and most of the times about one hour before I usually wake up) I become aware that I am asleep - but not dreaming - just asleep and I try to wake up but I cant - its like my mind is awake but my body is asleep or something.
I try to open my eyes, move my arms, my legs - but I cant, and I put real effort into it. Then I try harder and more desperately to move my limbs, and they twitch and jerk but I still cant control them. And then comes this choking feeling, like I cant breathe, like my throat is blocked by my tongue and I cant move it away, and after some serious efforts about 5 minutes maybe I finally break free and wake up with my heart racing.
Several months ago I had this happening every day for weeks but I didnt do anything to figure it out and then it just stopped one day. I hadnt even heard of lucid dreams then, but now, a few weeks ago it happened again just 2 times so far but on those nights I was trying to induce a lucid dream.
Can anyone explain this? Could I use this somehow to enter a lucid dream or is this more like an astral projection thing? I’ve no idea what it is and I had decided to try to be calm the next time it happens and just see how that goes. But it hasnt happened since and now Im wondering if Ive lost something that wasnt actually so bad and could’ve been used to project or become lucid if I’d handled it differently.
It is called sleep paralysis (SP).
That’s nothing weird, tho.
Everyone gets SP…but when they fall asleep.
SP prevents us from moving while we are dreaming.
The only difference is that you get it while you’re awake.
But you could turn it to your advantage.
It’s the crucial part for WILD (search the knowledge base for WILD topics 
)
You could also induce an OBE.
Try to really come out of your body with your soul.
But I’m not experienced with OBE, ask someone else about that.
Good luck
This sounds a lot like SP…I’ve never had it happen to me but i read about it in the guide…It usually goes with the WILD technique
OK so its a common thing then. Does that mean its not dangerous and I cant really suffocate and the choking feeling I get is not real, because that is whats bothering me and stopping me from experimenting with it.
Exactly, it’s not dangerous at all. You get SP every night 
What happens is at one point your SC takes over breathing, but as you are conscious you still try to consciously breathe, but you can’t! So that’s why you feel like you can’t breathe, but don’t worry, you ARE still breathing Just try to let go and trust that you are fine 
Ok, thanks for the info
Is there a way to get sp to happen.
don’t know why but I would like to see what this feels like.
I have to wakeup early (6am) every weekday morning by allarmclock.
As soon as the allarmclock wakes me I jump of bed because I know that if I stay there I won’t get up. Wouldn’t this be the best way for sp to happen since I’m waking up very quickly .
Any Idea’s ???
I really dont know how it happens, it just does.
I only know that when I didnt know what it was (I thought it was a nightmare), it used to happen every day (it started when I went to live in a new place - maybe it was the stress). Then I learned what it is and it started happening less often like 2 or 3 times a month. Now I want it to happen and it hasnt happened so far.