Can Sleep Paralysis Kill You?

You wake up in the middle of the night, your eyes are open, but your body won’t move. There’s a weight on your chest, maybe a shadow in the corner of the room. You try to scream, but nothing comes out. Welcome to sleep paralysis — one of the most frightening sleep experiences a person can have.

The question many people ask after one of these episodes is simple but loaded: Can sleep paralysis kill you? And the short, science-backed answer is no. It can feel like death is knocking at the door, but it’s not. Let’s unpack why it feels that way and what’s really going on.

What Is Sleep Paralysis?

Sleep paralysis is a temporary inability to move or speak while falling asleep or waking up. It happens during transitions in and out of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep — the stage of sleep where vivid dreaming occurs.

During REM sleep, your brain keeps your body effectively paralysed. This is a safety mechanism to stop you acting out your dreams. But sometimes, that mechanism lingers even after you’ve started waking up. You regain consciousness before the paralysis wears off.

Sleep paralysis typically lasts from a few seconds to a couple of minutes. It can happen just once or become a recurring experience.

Common Sleep Paralysis Symptoms:

• Inability to move or speak

• A sense of choking or chest pressure

• Hallucinations (visual, auditory, or tactile)

• Intense fear or panic

Can Sleep Paralysis Kill You? (Short Answer: No)

Let’s get this out of the way: there is no medical evidence that sleep paralysis can cause death. It does not stop your breathing, interfere with your heart, or shut down your brain. The sense of danger is very real — but the danger itself isn’t.

The British Sleep Society and NHS both acknowledge sleep paralysis as distressing but benign. In fact, it’s so harmless in physical terms that it’s not typically treated with medication unless it’s recurring and interfering with someone’s mental health or overall sleep quality.

There are no known fatalities directly linked to sleep paralysis alone. So why does it feel like something out of a horror film?

Why Sleep Paralysis Feels So Terrifying

Sleep paralysis messes with your sense of safety because of how the brain interprets danger during REM-wake crossover states. When your mind becomes conscious but your body is still in REM-mode, it creates a mismatch.

The amygdala — the brain’s fear centre — lights up. Meanwhile, the paralysis feels like suffocation, the room feels threatening, and your mind starts trying to make sense of it all. Often, that involves hallucinations or panic.

Common hallucinations include:

• A shadowy figure (often at the foot of the bed)

• A weight on the chest (sometimes interpreted as a demon or intruder)

• Whispering, buzzing, or humming sounds

• A sense of floating or an out-of-body experience

None of these are real — but they feel very real. That’s the terrifying magic of a REM-state brain trying to stitch together a story.

Cultural Beliefs and Urban Legends

Around the world, sleep paralysis has been woven into folklore. What modern science calls REM atonia was, for centuries, known by other names.

• In Japan, it’s called kanashibari — a spiritual binding.

• In Nigeria, it’s sometimes attributed to witchcraft.

• Scandinavian tales tell of the mare — a cursed creature that sits on the sleeper’s chest.

• In medieval England, it was often linked to demonic possession.

These myths arose because people across cultures were experiencing the same thing — but had no framework to explain it. Even today, some people interpret sleep paralysis as a supernatural event.

That can add an extra layer of fear, especially if it’s not immediately clear what’s happening. But again, it’s all happening within the brain.

What Triggers Sleep Paralysis?

While anyone can experience sleep paralysis, certain factors increase the likelihood:

• Sleep deprivation

• Irregular sleep schedule (e.g. shift work, jet lag)

• Stress or anxiety

• PTSD or trauma history

• Narcolepsy or other sleep disorders

• Sleeping on the back

• Use of certain medications or substances

If episodes are frequent, a sleep specialist might recommend a sleep study or deeper mental health screening. But for most people, it’s a response to stress and poor sleep hygiene.

Sleep Paralysis and Mental Health: The Link

Studies suggest sleep paralysis is more common in people with anxiety disorders, panic attacks, or PTSD. A 2011 review in Sleep Medicine Reviews found that individuals with psychiatric conditions had a higher prevalence of sleep paralysis than the general population.

That doesn’t mean something is wrong with the brain — but it does suggest that mental health and sleep architecture are deeply connected. Improving one often helps the other.

How to Stop Sleep Paralysis from Happening

There’s no cure for sleep paralysis, but prevention strategies are often effective.

Practical tips:

• Stick to a consistent sleep schedule (even on weekends)

• Get 7–9 hours of quality sleep

• Avoid alcohol, heavy meals, and caffeine before bed

• Use mouth tape or nose strips if mouth breathing is disrupting sleep

• Sleep on the side rather than on the back

• Try stress-reducing supplements like magnesium or glycine

• Limit screen exposure before bed (blue light delays melatonin)

In more stubborn cases, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-i) can be helpful, especially if anxiety plays a role.

Myths vs Facts: Quickfire Section

• "Can you die from sleep paralysis?" No.

• "Can you suffocate during it?" No. Breathing is automatic — even if it feels hard.

• "Can you get stuck in it forever?" No. It always passes.

• "Is it a spiritual attack?" There’s no scientific evidence for this.

• "Can you prevent it entirely?" Not always, but you can significantly reduce it.

Final Thoughts: Scary but Harmless

Sleep paralysis can be one of the most distressing experiences — but it’s also one of the most harmless, physically speaking. Once the fear is unpacked and the biology understood, the episodes become easier to manage.

In most cases, improving sleep quality and reducing stress is enough to keep it at bay.

For those who deal with it frequently, help is available — and it doesn’t mean anything is broken.

So the next time sleep paralysis hits, remember: it can’t hurt you.