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I have had something like this and a bunch of other parasomnias for a while, one of which I haven't really come across in any literature and doctors seem to hav

I have had something like this and a bunch of other parasomnias for a while, one of which I haven't really come across in any literature and doctors seem to have no idea what I'm talking about, so I'll try to explain. I can't do it 100% of the time, but I can enter a dream/unconscious state whilst being fully awake. Here's how it goes: - first stage you start seeing light swirling shapes that can take various colors, believe this is called hypnogogic hallucinations, but at this point you won't make any sense or shape of them - second stage these swirling shapes start to take form into the shapes of images, sometimes flashing between different ones - third stage directly after this is the "exploding head" part that doesn't happen 100% of the time but right in between that hypnogogic boundary I get an incredibly loud buzzing sound in my head, accompanied by a deep sense of terror - almost like you get from sleep paralysis. - fourth stage, once you get past that, you enter a light "dream" state where you start to feel like you can move your arms and legs and walk around, even if you don't see anything - it's a very weird sensation because you can still "feel" your physical body lying in the bed at this time. I believe this is when sleep paralysis is happening. - fifth stage I am in a dream state and fully lucid. I can maintain that state for a while before either losing the dream and waking up or falling deeper into unconsciousness. What's odd is in this state I am almost always in a dream-representation of my house. 99.999% of the time. Initially my doctors thought this was when I was sleep walking, but cameras ruled this out. I have a bunch of other parasomnias like sleep walking/talking and bed wetting stuff when I was younger. It's all related somehow, but no one really knows what's going on that I've talked to so far. It's kind of cool but can occasionally lead to crappy stuff like insomnia or poor quality sleep, or when I injure myself sleep walking. The only thing that's ever come up in a sleep study (which I struggle to take because in those settings I can't fall asleep normally) is that I enter REM sleep very quickly, almost like a narcoleptic, but that was never the formal diagnosis. Another thing that's happened in more recent years, ever since I experienced DMT, that I will occasionally have dreams where my sense of time literally feels like decades have passed. It'll always be super mundane stuff too, and when I wake up it's a really disturbing feeling.

pureheartlover 2y ago
That mirrors almost exactly the process of astral travelling. You might be interested in the book "How to Know Higher Worlds" by Rudolf Steiner.
kfrzcode 2y ago
This is essentially what the advanced tantric sadhana of dream yoga is all about... Lucid dreaming is a super power. Cultivate a practice of recognizing when you are in a dream state (during sleep) and building the ability to visualize intently with the minds eye is essentially what all the esoteric traditions are trying to teach. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_yoga https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_yoga
- JohnMakin 2y ago
  I don't really believe there is anything mystical about it, but yea, that stuff is interesting - and I am well practiced at becoming lucid during a dream state, due to chronic severe nightmares I've had since a very young age. But, what I am describing here looks and feels way different to me. However, this is funny: > According to Kragh, "The yogi is here instructed to think of whatever dream arises as being merely a dream and to relate to it without any fear. If he dreams of water, he should plunge into it or walk across it. He should jump into an abyss or sit down to be bitten by dream-dogs or beaten by dream enemies. He should fly in air, visit the god realms, or go sight-seeing in India." > Blessing as illusory and getting rid of fear – Here, the yogi checks their mind during the dream to see if there is even the slightest fear, and if so, they should let go of it by recognizing that they are only in a dream. Once they've mastered the feeling of complete unobstructedness, they have "blessed their dreams as illusory" (sgyu ma byin gyis brlabs pa). I basically do this but didn't know it was a thing. When I experience that sleep-paralysis like terror in a dream state, I try to conjure up the most horrible thing I can imagine until it goes away, stuff like that. Nothing ever comes.
  - david-gpu 2y ago
    If you want to learn more about Dream Yoga, Alan Wallace's Dreaming Yourself Awake is a great resource that includes guidance and exercises you can practice. When you experience fear in a dream, remind yourself that what you experience is not what you are, in the same way that the movie is not the same as the screen on which it is projected. The monsters in our dreams are a reification of our fear, and the best way to address them is by allowing conpassion to arise and kindly comfort your fear as you would do with a child who is scared. Nothing in your dreamscape can harm you. Anyway, I hope this helps. Alan Wallace recommends letting the monster hurt you in your dream, but personally I think it is not the optimum approach.
david-gpu 2y ago
In stage three I have never felt any fear. I believe what you are feeling in stage four is not your real body on your bed. You probably lost the sensations of your physical body around phases two or three. Rather, by stage four you are already experiencing a dream and you haven't "projected" a particular visual image yet. I suspect that "astral projections" are nothing but non-lucid dreams in which people dream that they are on their bed without realizing that it's not real. How much do you normally sleep? To me it sounds like the sort of experiences I have when severely sleep deprived, especially the part about entering REM really fast.
- JohnMakin 2y ago
  I don’t know, I am pretty sure I am feeling my body and I am pretty sure it is when sleep paralysis taking effect - It feels like I have two bodies, first I can start to move my arms, but I can physically feel my toes, and if I try to wiggle them before paralysis has taken effect, it can wake me up entirely. It’s an extremely strange sensation but it does not last very long. I’ve had this since at least far back as I can remember, around age 3-4. I don’t always sleep well but I’d say no less than the average person. 6-8 hours a night, but with whatever I have going on, sometimes it’s easier to do split sleep cycles like 4 hours sleeping (2 full rem cycles), 8 hours awake, 4 hours asleep. I feel much more rested when I sleep this way but it doesn’t coincide well with normal life.
ExplodingHead2 2y ago
This very accurately describes what I've been having for some time. Got laughed out of the room by a few doctors. Tests didn't find anything wrong other than an arachnoid cyst in the brain (occurs in about 1% of population, effects vary). Ultimately, fixed it by: 1) Having a glass of water before going to bed. Having another glass at night when I wake up to pee the first one out. 2) Spending 1-2 hours before sleep time gradually relaxing. No work/exercise for 2 hours before sleeping. Minimal activity for the last 1 hour. Mostly, browsing or watching something on YouTube. Works like a charm altogether.
ninetyninenine 2y ago
>I experienced DMT, that I will occasionally have dreams where my sense of time literally feels like decades have passed. It'll always be super mundane stuff too, Do this often and double your life span.

pureheartlover 2y ago

That mirrors almost exactly the process of astral travelling. You might be interested in the book "How to Know Higher Worlds" by Rudolf Steiner.

kfrzcode 2y ago

This is essentially what the advanced tantric sadhana of dream yoga is all about... Lucid dreaming is a super power. Cultivate a practice of recognizing when you are in a dream state (during sleep) and building the ability to visualize intently with the minds eye is essentially what all the esoteric traditions are trying to teach. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_yoga https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_yoga

JohnMakin 2y ago
I don't really believe there is anything mystical about it, but yea, that stuff is interesting - and I am well practiced at becoming lucid during a dream state, due to chronic severe nightmares I've had since a very young age. But, what I am describing here looks and feels way different to me. However, this is funny: > According to Kragh, "The yogi is here instructed to think of whatever dream arises as being merely a dream and to relate to it without any fear. If he dreams of water, he should plunge into it or walk across it. He should jump into an abyss or sit down to be bitten by dream-dogs or beaten by dream enemies. He should fly in air, visit the god realms, or go sight-seeing in India." > Blessing as illusory and getting rid of fear – Here, the yogi checks their mind during the dream to see if there is even the slightest fear, and if so, they should let go of it by recognizing that they are only in a dream. Once they've mastered the feeling of complete unobstructedness, they have "blessed their dreams as illusory" (sgyu ma byin gyis brlabs pa). I basically do this but didn't know it was a thing. When I experience that sleep-paralysis like terror in a dream state, I try to conjure up the most horrible thing I can imagine until it goes away, stuff like that. Nothing ever comes.
- david-gpu 2y ago
  If you want to learn more about Dream Yoga, Alan Wallace's Dreaming Yourself Awake is a great resource that includes guidance and exercises you can practice. When you experience fear in a dream, remind yourself that what you experience is not what you are, in the same way that the movie is not the same as the screen on which it is projected. The monsters in our dreams are a reification of our fear, and the best way to address them is by allowing conpassion to arise and kindly comfort your fear as you would do with a child who is scared. Nothing in your dreamscape can harm you. Anyway, I hope this helps. Alan Wallace recommends letting the monster hurt you in your dream, but personally I think it is not the optimum approach.

david-gpu 2y ago

In stage three I have never felt any fear. I believe what you are feeling in stage four is not your real body on your bed. You probably lost the sensations of your physical body around phases two or three. Rather, by stage four you are already experiencing a dream and you haven't "projected" a particular visual image yet. I suspect that "astral projections" are nothing but non-lucid dreams in which people dream that they are on their bed without realizing that it's not real. How much do you normally sleep? To me it sounds like the sort of experiences I have when severely sleep deprived, especially the part about entering REM really fast.

JohnMakin 2y ago
I don’t know, I am pretty sure I am feeling my body and I am pretty sure it is when sleep paralysis taking effect - It feels like I have two bodies, first I can start to move my arms, but I can physically feel my toes, and if I try to wiggle them before paralysis has taken effect, it can wake me up entirely. It’s an extremely strange sensation but it does not last very long. I’ve had this since at least far back as I can remember, around age 3-4. I don’t always sleep well but I’d say no less than the average person. 6-8 hours a night, but with whatever I have going on, sometimes it’s easier to do split sleep cycles like 4 hours sleeping (2 full rem cycles), 8 hours awake, 4 hours asleep. I feel much more rested when I sleep this way but it doesn’t coincide well with normal life.

ExplodingHead2 2y ago

This very accurately describes what I've been having for some time. Got laughed out of the room by a few doctors. Tests didn't find anything wrong other than an arachnoid cyst in the brain (occurs in about 1% of population, effects vary). Ultimately, fixed it by: 1) Having a glass of water before going to bed. Having another glass at night when I wake up to pee the first one out. 2) Spending 1-2 hours before sleep time gradually relaxing. No work/exercise for 2 hours before sleeping. Minimal activity for the last 1 hour. Mostly, browsing or watching something on YouTube. Works like a charm altogether.

ninetyninenine 2y ago

>I experienced DMT, that I will occasionally have dreams where my sense of time literally feels like decades have passed. It'll always be super mundane stuff too, Do this often and double your life span.