"It all seems very real and it's very, very frightening," French says. "But what is happening is that people are still in a kind of REM sleep - the kind associated with dreams - which is coming through into consciousness."
Most people who experience sleep paralysis shrug it off, but a fraction are more concerned about the experience. In some cultures, the phenomenon has been thought of as a sign that evil spirits or other nasties have taken over your body.
Nothing you haven't heard before, but it gives me an excuse to reiterate my exasperation with "bedroom visitations." Obviously, I can't prove some of them aren't genuine visits from nonhumans, but I find the venue highly suspect; I think most, if not all, bedroom "abductions" are instigated by little-understood psychological phenomena. Some of my conviction stems from my having experienced "weird" sensations while asleep or half-asleep. (Strange noises? Check. Sense of presence? Check. Temporary paralysis? Check.)
Of course, some readers will assume that I'm an "abductee" in denial. Or, worse, out to belittle people who've endured truly inexplicable episodes. There's a seldom-spoken suspicion within the paranormal community that interest in the strange and unusual directly implies a history of (or predisposition to) reality-bending experiences. Since I'm working on a book that postulates nothing less than aliens in our midst, maybe I should issue some sort of cautionary statement.
I'll leave it at this: I've never had a run-in with aliens. Alas, not even a nocturnal light. However, given the opportunity, I'd love to meet representatives of these "cryptoterrestrials" I've been writing about. (Given, of course, they're friendly.)
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