shaking / lucid dreaming

I woke up this morning and, as I often do, decided to go back to sleep. When I closed my eyes, though, I began to have very vivid imagery that started out as very small and then expanded to take up my entire field of vision. At the beginning there was a low ringing in my ears, and then I entered a dream that was like a car racing game, in which I was the car racing through a city. I'm pretty sure I was awake throughout the entire thing. I've had dreams like this before, but the part that troubles me is I remember shaking in my bed (mostly my arms) and I was unable to just wake myself up. (I finally managed to kind of shake out of it, so to speak) but when I opened my eyes again some small visuals remained for a few seconds.

This is the first time anything like this has happened, although there have been a few occasions where just before I fall asleep I feel a sensation down my spine and cannot move for a few seconds. Any thoughts?

Hey,

I'd like to say that it's just down to a 'glitch' of the human brain (or 'faulty wiring'). However, that's too easy an answer! Does this sound familiar to you:

http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/rhythmove.html

??

Kevin

That doesn't sound exactly like me... What I experienced wasn't quite as extreme. I did some research and think it's most likely sleep paralysis, although that doesn't explain my arm shaking, which I have experienced one other time since posting this thread. Thank you for your help, though.

Whenever my first girlfriend was tired, her arm would begin shaking which, for her, was the sign of a potential epileptic fit. Could you have epilepsy? I don't know all of the symptoms of epilepsy, so cannot really say anything concrete.

I know this forum is old, but I have great interest in sleep paralysis so I want to talk about it: he was actually right, it is sleep paralysis, I have it....it feels like shaking, but most likely he was never even moving.....In sleep paralysis you are experiencing REM sleep and are also awake at the same time...I too experienced the flashing lights, I usually hear grinding or bussing in my ears or a deep loud voice......I actually like it now, even though it is terrifying, it is kind of insightful...during sleep paralysis the amygdale is activated which in turn activates the fear center in the brain...this gives the extreme sense of impending doom....your body remains paralyzed because in REM your body is paralyzed so that you don't hurt yourself. So you are dreaming and awake....If anyone ever wants to reduce them, get better sleep, they happen more often when sleep deprived...ever since I got my new mattress they have almost completely stopped, I think I only had one sleep paralysis episode this whole year versus the once a month I used to have....They tend to also go away with age and are most common in adolescence....they also run in families and are often under diagnoses because most doctors aren't aware of this condition, and also under reported (because honestly, if you wake up can't move hear buzzing in your ear, feel your body vibrating, see flashing lights and something pushing on your chest.....you don't want to tell anyone, you sound crazy!)....it doesn't feel like a dream because you are completely aware of everything around you, you have clear thoughts, and you just want to move, because when you move you become un-paralyzed...I think everyone, whether they have it or not, should look it up...it is quite common and quite interesting....I have also heard you can go lucid from SP, I tried it once and it didn’t work, all it did was make me feel like I was spinning and it became harder for me to move….