Study Objectives: Isolated sleep paralysis is a benign but frightening condition characterised by a temporary inability to move at sleep onset or upon awakening. Despite the prevalence of this condition, little is known concerning its clinical features, associated demographic characteristics, and prevention as well as disruption strategies.

Methods: An online cross-sectional study was conducted. The sample comprised 3523 participants who had reported at least one lifetime episode of ISP and 3288 participants without a lifetime episode. Participants answered a survey including questions about sleep quality, sleep paralysis, and sleep paralysis prevention/disruption techniques.

Results: A total of 6811 participants were investigated (mean age = 46.9, SD = 15.4, age range = 18-89, 66.1% female). Those who reported experiencing ISP at least once during their lives reported longer sleep onset latencies, shorter sleep duration, and greater insomnia symptoms. Females (vs. male) and younger (vs. older) participants were more likely to experience ISP. Significant fear during episodes was reported by 76.0% of the participants. Most people (63.3%) who experienced ISP believed it to be caused by 'something in the brain'. A minority endorsed supernatural causes (7.1%). Five prevention strategies (e.g., changing sleep position, adjusting sleep patterns) with at least 60.0% effectiveness, and five disruption strategies (e.g., physical/bodily action, making noise) with varying degrees of effectiveness (ranging from 29.5 to 61.8) were identified through open-ended responses.

Conclusions: ISP is associated with shorter sleep duration, longer sleep onset latency, and greater insomnia symptoms. The multiple prevention and disruption techniques identified in this study support existing treatment approaches and may inform subsequent treatment development. Implications for current diagnostic criteria are discussed.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2023.02.023DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

sleep paralysis
16
sleep onset
12
sleep
11
isolated sleep
8
clinical features
8
prevention disruption
8
disruption strategies
8
lifetime episode
8
longer sleep
8
shorter sleep
8

Similar Publications

Clinical and Electromyographic Characteristics of Pediatric Laryngeal Dyskinesia.

Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg

January 2025

Divisions of Pediatric Surgery and Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, The Stollery Children's Hospital and University of Alberta Hospital, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Objective: To report the clinical and laryngeal electromyographic (LEMG) parameters of children with laryngeal dyskinesia (LD) and its prevalence among laryngeal mobility disorder (LMD) requiring full airway examination.

Study Design: Retrospective uncontrolled study.

Setting: Tertiary pediatric center.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Narcolepsy type 1 (NT1) is a clinical syndrome defined by recurrent episodes of excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), episodes of cataplexy, hypnagogic hallucinations, and sleep paralysis. Symptoms typically manifest in the second or third decade with another small peak in the fourth decade. In this report we describe the case of a 64-year-old woman presenting with new-onset visual hallucinations as the main complaint.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Prayer, a repeated practice of paying attention to one's inner mental world, is a core behavior across many faiths and traditions, understudied by cognitive scientists. Previous research suggests that humans pray because prayer changes the way they feel or how they think. This paper makes a novel argument: that prayer changes what they feel that they perceive.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Autoimmune encephalitis is a disorder characterized by an autoantibody-mediated process that leads to brain inflammation. It is associated with neurological symptoms including cognitive issues, psychiatric problems, seizures, and autonomic dysfunctions. Anti-leucine-rich glioma-inactivated 1 limbic encephalitis (anti-LGI1 LE) is a rare type of autoimmune LE with a unique presentation, comprising neuropsychiatric disturbances, sleep disorders, and faciobrachial dystonic seizures (FBDS).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The differential orbitofrontal activity and connectivity between atypical and typical major depressive disorder.

Neuroimage Clin

November 2024

Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Capital Medical University, Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100010, China. Electronic address:

Objective: Atypical major depressive disorder (MDD) is a distinct subtype of MDD, characterized by increased appetite and/or weight gain, excessive sleep, leaden paralysis, and interpersonal rejection sensitivity. Delineating different neural circuits associated with atypical and typical MDD would better inform clinical personalized interventions.

Methods: Using resting-state fMRI, we investigated the voxel-level regional homogeneity (ReHo) and functional connectivity (FC) in 55 patients with atypical MDD, 51 patients with typical MDD, and 49 healthy controls (HCs).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!