Polish researchers Wróbel-Knybel, Wołkowski, and Karakuła-Juchnowicz made another attempt to treat sleep paralysis—they tested a meditation-relaxation therapy on two patients. The course lasted eight weeks.
The method’s creator—another well-known scientist in this field, Baland Jalal—proposed that sleep paralysis is essentially a panic attack that happens in the dream world. According to the method, instead of fighting the paralysis, the person should break the vicious cycle of fear and anxiety, which only intensify the experience. To do this, one should perform four steps during an episode:
1. Reframe the experience—remind yourself that it’s not dangerous and won’t last long.
2. Try to suppress your emotions—fear will only intensify the unpleasant sensations.
3. Focus on pleasant thoughts and images to distract yourself.
4. Relax your muscles as much as possible without trying to move or control your breathing.
The results were varied. One patient who had experienced terror and fear of death during sleep paralysis experienced decreases in the frequency and intensity of episodes, as well as in her overall anxiety level. Although the second patient showed no changes regarding sleep paralysis, her symptoms of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder lessened, and her levels of cortisol—the stress hormone—normalized. Thus, the method’s effectiveness may depend on individual characteristics and co-occurring psychological problems.
Have you ever been frightened by episodes of sleep paralysis?
The article was published in the Archives of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy.
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