Prevalence and Clinical Picture of Sleep Paralysis in a Polish Student Sample

Wróbel-Knybel, Paulina; Karakuła-Juchnowicz, Hanna; Flis, Michał; Róg, Joanna; Hinton, Devon E.; Boguta, Piotr; Jalal, Baland

doi:10.3390/ijerph17103529

Cited by 13 publications

(26 citation statements)

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“…It assesses the frequency of SP episodes, the presence of psychological and somatic symptoms, prevalence rates and the level of knowledge about this experience [32]. The questionnaire was used in SP studies in Italy, Turkey and Poland [7,27,33,34].…”

Section: The Sleep Paralysis Experience and Phenomenology Questionnaire (Sp-epq)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some muscles, e.g., respiratory and oculomotor muscles, are not affected, so that a person experiencing SP can breathe and move their eyes [ 5 ]. During SP visual, auditory, sensory and kinesthetic hallucinations often occur [ 6 , 7 ]. Usually, the experience of SP is accompanied by strong psychosomatic sensations such as palpitations, chest tightness and increased anxiety or even fear of dying from the event [ 7 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…During SP visual, auditory, sensory and kinesthetic hallucinations often occur [ 6 , 7 ]. Usually, the experience of SP is accompanied by strong psychosomatic sensations such as palpitations, chest tightness and increased anxiety or even fear of dying from the event [ 7 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sleep Paralysis among Professional Firefighters and a Possible Association with PTSD—Online Survey-Based Study

Wróbel-Knybel

Róg

Jalal

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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The prevalence of sleep paralysis (SP) is estimated at approximately 7.6% of the world’s general population. One of the strongest factors in the onset of SP is PTSD, which is often found among professional firefighters. Our study aimed to assess in the professional firefighter population (n = 831) (1) the prevalence of SP, (2) the relationship between SP and PTSD and (3) the relationship between SP and other factors: the severity of the stress felt, individual tendency to feel anxious and worried and lifestyle variables. The incidence of SP in the study group was 8.7%. The high probability of PTSD was found in 15.04% of subjects and its presence was associated with 1.86 times the odds of developing SP [OR = 1.86 (95% CI: 1.04–3.33); p = 0.04]. Officers who experienced at least 1 SP during their lifetime had significantly higher results in the scales: PCL-5, STAI-T, PSWQ. The number of SP episodes was positively correlated with the severity of symptoms measured by the PCL-5, PSS-10, STAI and PSWQ questionnaires. Further research is needed to assess the importance of SP among the firefighter population in the context of mental and somatic health and to specify methods of preventing SP episodes.

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Section: The Sleep Paralysis Experience and Phenomenology Questionnaire (Sp-epq)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sleep Paralysis among Professional Firefighters and a Possible Association with PTSD—Online Survey-Based Study

Wróbel-Knybel

Róg

Jalal

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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“…Our study contained a higher percentage of experiential symptoms that often accompany SP than in most other studies Kliková et al, 2020;Sharpless & Doghramji, 2015, p. 75;Spanos et al, 1995;Wróbel-Knybel et al, 2020). A comparison is difficult due to the different wording of the items.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 77%

A German online survey of people who have experienced sleep paralysis

Mayer

Fuhrmann

2021

Journal of Sleep Research

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Summary We present some key findings from an online survey on isolated sleep paralysis. The aim of our study was to get a differentiated picture of the correlation between the frequency of sleep paralysis and several phenomena (symptoms, experiences) as well as factors correlated with these phenomena. We also investigated the role of gender in relation to the experience of sleep paralysis. We used a selected sample of subjects who had had at least one sleep paralysis experience, with a total of 380 subjects. On average, the participants experienced 10–20 sleep paralysis episodes. We found high and expected positive correlations between the frequency of sleep paralysis experiences and the amount of phenomena, emotions, and perceived shapes and forms experienced during sleep paralysis. An increased frequency of sleep paralysis also appears to lead to habituation and de‐dramatization in some affected individuals. Interestingly, significant correlations are missing where one would have suspected them based on the previous hypotheses. Neither self‐perceived general stress nor poor sleep hygiene appeared to influence the frequency of sleep paralysis. We found highly significant gender differences in some items. Women reported more experienced phenomena and emotions overall, had more frequent sleep paralysis experiences of the intruder and incubus type, and were significantly more likely to perceive concrete forms such as human figures or people they know. They were also more likely than men to report experiencing fearful emotions, especially the fear of going crazy. Most of these findings were based on exploratory questions; they require replication for validation.

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“…The questionnaire developed by Baland Jalal and Devon Hinton assesses the frequency of SP episodes, the presence of psychological and somatic symptoms, prevalence rates, and the level of knowledge about the experience [41]. Hitherto, this version of the questionnaire has been used in SP studies in Italy, Turkey, and Poland [40,45,46]. It is an extended edition of the sleep paralysis questionnaire (SPQ) used in SP research in Cambodia [47], Nigeria[48], China, America [49,50], Egypt, and Denmark [23,41].…”

Section: Sleep Paralysis Experience and Phenomenology Questionnaire (...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Risk Factors of Sleep Paralysis in A Population of Polish Students

Wróbel-Knybel

Flis

Róg

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Background: Sleep paralysis (SP) is a transit dissociative state associated with the REM sleep phase that affects approximately 28.3% of the student population during their lifetime. The reasons for the high prevalence of SP in the student population are not entirely clear. Research indicates possible influencing factors such as the intensification of anxiety symptoms, a tendency to worry, the presence of PTSD symptoms, and behavioral factors such as the consumption of psychoactive substances (caffeine, alcohol, nicotine) and poor sleep hygiene. The study aimed to assess the prevalence of SP and its risk factors in the Polish student population. Methods: The study used a battery online consisting of a set of questionnaires (a personal questionnaire, 2) the SP-EPQ, 3) the PCL -5, 4) the STAI-T, 5) the PSWQ). The questionnaire was sent via Facebook to 4500 randomly selected students from different universities in Poland. The questionnaire was completed by 2598 students. To unify the participant sample, people over 35 were excluded from the study (45 students). Ultimately, data from 2553 students were analyzed. Results: A total of 33.14% of individuals experienced at least one episode of SP in their lives. The highest odds ratio for SP was associated with: the presence of three or more health problems (OR: 2.3; p = 0.002), the presence of any mental disorder (OR: 1.77; p = 0.002), including mood disorders (OR: 2.07 ; p = 0.002), suffering from at least one somatic disorder (OR: 1.34; p = 0.002), a high level of anxiety as a constant personality trait (OR: 1.20; p = 0.035) and smoking (OR: 1.48; p = 0.0002), alcohol consumption (OR: 1.52; p <0.0001), physical activity (OR: 1.31; p = 0.001). Conclusions: The results of our research indicate that a large proportion of students experienced isolated sleep paralysis. Mental and somatic health problems and lifestyle factors were found to predispose to this disorder. Due to the numerous risk factors for SP, it is necessary to conduct additional research to confirm the impact of these factors and to investigate the mechanisms of their influence on SP.

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Prevalence and Clinical Picture of Sleep Paralysis in a Polish Student Sample

Cited by 13 publications

References 65 publications

Sleep Paralysis among Professional Firefighters and a Possible Association with PTSD—Online Survey-Based Study

Sleep Paralysis among Professional Firefighters and a Possible Association with PTSD—Online Survey-Based Study

A German online survey of people who have experienced sleep paralysis

Risk Factors of Sleep Paralysis in A Population of Polish Students

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