MIDNIGHT PARALYSIS

             

My friend had experience with midnight paralysis, a terrifying phenomenon that left him unable to move. Until that night, he never knew what lucid dreaming was but on this occasion, he was caught in a walking nightmare.

While his body remained immobile and trapped within its own self, his soul kept escaping from it yet he could do nothing about it. His legs were jelly, though his thoughts raced all over the place. The demon kept coming closer until he was filled with terror. He made desperate attempts to yell or flee; nonetheless, he felt stuck as if immobilized and voiceless at once. In the end of this strange and dreadful experience trembling with fear and blessed to see sunrise again. Was it only a dream? Or did he gaze into an abyss?

My irregular night shifts began unexpectedly, but I welcomed the change. As an IT professional, I received extra compensation for working through the night, a silver lining that made the solitude worth it. I relished the peace, avoiding the chaos and stress that came with interacting with others. I felt like I had finally found my sweet spot.

However, my victory was short-lived. A teammate struggling financially requested a shift change, and I begrudgingly obliged. Unbeknownst to me, this alteration would disrupt my sleep patterns, sending my usually steady sleep graph into a tailspin. My well-oiled routine was about to get derailed, and I was powerless to stop it.

The first nights were very difficult because I was unable to sleep until exhaustion got the better of me. One night, I fell asleep early, my head dropping with tiredness.

However, it did not last long. Suddenly, I woke up as my eyes flew open, sensing an unsettling presence. There was a figure standing near my bed, and it seemed so close that it felt like one could touch him or her. With fright gripping me and immobilizing me in place, I couldn’t get myself to look at them. My body wouldn’t obey; it just remained there without moving any of its parts even slightly. The only sound was the intruder’s heavy breathing which indicated their wrath and danger.