First of all, I have to say that I'm not 100% sure if this was a dream or not. Meaning that I can't remember clearly.

Second of all, all of the Sleep Paralysis experiences I've had, after becoming fully awake I always wonder whether I was dreaming. But after researching it, I'd say no.

All Right -- Onto my story.

My friend and I have been discussing Astral Projection lately. Since I'm into the Occult, and he into the paranormal in general, he asked whether I have tried to Astrally Project or not.

I said I haven't.

However, as our conservation went on, we started to discuss other things such as ghosts, vampires, etc. Eventually our discussion went to Sleep Paralysis and night terrors. And as such, I told him about my NUMEROUS experiences with Sleep Paralysis, and he was intrigued.

As this little talk droned on, we came back to the subject of Astral Projection -- my friend said that from his research, it is easy to Astrally Project from a state of Sleep Paralysis.

I have not experienced any Sleep Paralysis from that point on.

HOWEVER -- Two nights ago, I once again experienced Sleep Paralysis sometime during the morning. Immediately remembering our conservation, I tried to "float up" if you will. From reading and listening to experts discussion Projection, I used my mental facilities to "will" myself to float up.

It did not work as expected. As I tried to go up, it felt as if my "Astral Body" doesn't WANT to separate.

As it refused to bulge, I tried harder. And harder. And harder. Strangely, as I tried to FORCE myself to "float up" I had a strange feeling of going up slightly, but then sinking back down. I thought that perhaps this was the first step!!! However, there was one catch.

During the "up, down, up, down" experience (it was like that, but it felt like I was moving by the millimeters), my body, breathing, and everything felt strained. As I tried to "float up" it felt as though I was suffocating, my muscles getting tired, etc. I couldn't breathe properly, and I was forced to "go back down" as a result. . . .

Furthermore, my "Astral Body" wouldn't bulge very far. It felt I was constrained to millimeters of movement, and that any more would stop my breathing, and as I tried to go up, it felt as though my chest area (as well as the rest of my body, but chest pronounced) felt heavy and something was putting quite a bit of pressure upon it.

And hence. . . my asking you here. What the hell happened?

Hmmm...if you relax while you are on paralysis then you have a fair chance of floating, and stay awake cuz it will turn into a dream state.

Have you had this happen to you in the past, (sleep paralysis) feel pressure? In my case I didn't feel any pressure just couldn't move(If you're considering the possibility of a physical attack by an entity) I've been tying to astroproject(sp) for some time now but can't seem to get THAT relaxed. And when I get close I feel these strong vibes thru my entire body and I lose focus.

It could simply mean your not ready to astroproject and need more time to practice, or something doesn't want you to.

I first experienced Sleep Paralysis at the age of 4 or 5. . . . . can't remember. I remember staring at the closet doors and being freaked out by not being able to move.

In a few years I discovered that this was a normal phenomenon, and by that time I had gotten used to it.

Before me trying to Astrally Project, I'm so experienced with Sleep Paralysis that I just brush them off as mere annoyances and another excuse to fall back to sleep.

So what I have been doing is since I can't move my body, I just relax ALOT, and fall right back to sleep. Then I wake up and all is good.

Sleep Paralysis, for me, is actually REALLY comfortable. . . it's relaxing to a certain degree. I'm not TRYING to move, I'm trying to enjoy the sensation lol.

Be EXTREMELY careful!

You're not supposed to have physical problems from doing this, as I understand it. (I've never tried it, I've only read about it) But I have read that in certain cases, trying this can be dangerous!

However. I get the feeling that perhaps, for some reason, you are not supposed to astral project,,,and doing so might endanger your life!

Hmmm. . . . that I, personally, my BEING is not supposed to Astral Project?

Or people in general.

No, I mean, that YOU PERSONALLY might shouldn't. There may be health issues involved with YOU...

In the books that I've read on this subject, I've always seen health warnings and disclaimers, and the like.

If you were having breathing problems, that could certainly be an indcator that you shouldn't continue to try this again.