3 weird and terrifing things that can happen to your body when you are asleep

Every day, there’s one specific moment I

look forward to: when I can climb into

bed and fall asleep.

There’s no better feeling than lying down

at the end of a long day in your

comfortable, cozy bed.

Most of us think of sleeping as a pleasant

experience, but for some people it’s

actually something to dread. For people

with insomnia and other sleep disorders,

getting into bed can actually be a

stressful experience.

Lots of people have heard of things like

sleepwalking and restless leg syndrome,

but there are less well-known things that

can also happen when you’re asleep like

REM sleep behavior disorder and sleep

paralysis.

Do you know anyone who has these

scary sleep problems? Someone in your

family might have one and you might not

even know it!

Read below to find out more about some

of the weirdest things that can happen to

your body when you’re asleep.

#1: You Can Become

Paralyzed

According to WebMD, “Sleep paralysis is

a feeling of being conscious but unable to

move. It occurs when a person passes

between stages of wakefulness and

sleep. During these transitions, you may

be unable to move or speak for a few

seconds up to a few minutes. Some

people may also feel pressure or a sense

of choking.”

Pretty terrifying, right? Find out more

about sleep paralysis in this article below.

#2: You Can Stop Breathing

It’s possible to stop breathing when

you’re asleep — for seconds or minutes

at a time. This is called sleep apnea.

According to the National Heart, Lung,

and Blood Institute, “Sleep apnea is a

common disorder in which you have one

or more pauses in breathing or shallow

breaths while you sleep.”

#3: You Can Act Out Your

Dreams

While some of us wish our dreams would

become a reality, we probably don’t want

to act out our dreams while we’re

sleeping — but that’s exactly what

happens in REM sleep behavior disorder.

According to the Mayo Clinic, “Rapid eye

movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder

is a sleep disorder in which you physically

act out vivid, often unpleasant dreams

with vocal sounds and sudden, often

violent arm and leg movements during

REM sleep — sometimes called dream-

enacting behavior.”