Nowadays, due to hectic modern lifestyle, excessive mental stress, irregular daily routine and lack of adequate sleep, people are facing many strange health problems. One of these very scary and mentally disturbing conditions is 'Sleep Paralysis', which in common parlance is called locking of the body or becoming numb while sleeping. Many times, while sleeping at night, a person's eyes suddenly open completely, his brain is also completely awake, but not a single part of his body is able to move. He is unable to move his arms and legs even if he wants to, is unable to call out to anyone, nor is he able to get up from the bed. This feeling is so scary that the person starts feeling as if the weight of something heavy is placed on his chest or some invisible force is holding him. In the language of medical science, it is a state related to sleep, which arises when a person suddenly wakes up during Rapid Eye Movement i.e. REM sleep cycle, but his body remains in the paralyzed state of deep sleep at that time. Due to this strange situation, great fear sets in the minds of people, and they start associating it with some ghost or mental illness, whereas there are deep scientific reasons hidden behind it. Why and how sleep paralysis occurs, breakdown of coordination between brain and muscles. If we understand this entire process from a scientific point of view, then when we are in sleep, especially when we are in the dreaming stage i.e. REM sleep, then our brain temporarily paralyzes or deactivates our muscles. This is done so that whatever we are seeing in the dream, we cannot physically hurt ourselves or the person lying near us. Usually, when our sleep is complete, both the brain and muscles come back to normal and we easily stand up. But in the case of sleep paralysis, this balance breaks midway. Your brain suddenly becomes completely active and wakes up, but the effect of the neurotransmitters that paralyze the muscles does not end immediately, due to which the brain is not able to give orders to the body to move despite being awake. During this technical gap, the person feels completely helpless for a few seconds to a few minutes. There can be many major reasons behind this like excessive fatigue, disturbed sleep cycle (Sleep Deprivation), family history of schizophrenia, anxiety, or wrong sleeping position. People who stay awake too late at night and sleep late in the morning, their body's internal clock (Circadian Rhythm) gets disturbed, due to which the chances of developing such problems increases manifold. Easy ways to avoid sleep paralysis, better sleep and important ways to bring changes in lifestyle. If you or anyone in your family is repeatedly falling prey to this scary condition i.e. sleep paralysis, then instead of panicking, there is a great need to bring some positive and disciplined changes in your lifestyle. First of all, decide on a fixed time for your sleep and wake up time and get at least seven to eight hours of deep and quality sleep every day. Avoid excessive use of mobile phones, laptops or TV screens just before sleeping, as the blue light emitted from them confuses your brain and disrupts the sleep cycle. Also, completely avoid consuming heavy meals, caffeine, alcohol or nicotine at night, as these elements spoil the quality of sleep by stimulating your nervous system. Even if you ever experience sleep paralysis at night, there is no need to panic at that time, rather try to keep yourself calm and try to move your fingers or eyelids slowly. Within a few moments, this temporary lock of muscles opens automatically and you start feeling normal. If this problem starts happening very frequently and affects your mental peace, then you should consult a good neurologist or sleep specialist doctor and get proper medical guidance.
