Question

Like most people with ME my sleep has been badly affected. I never manage to get a solid night’s sleep and always feel ‘sleep deprived’ on waking up.

More recently, I’ve had a more unusual symptom which can best be described as feeling ‘paralysed by sleep’ when I wake up. I can’t move or speakfor a short period of time – after which everything quickly returns to normal. My GP isn’t sure what is going wrong. Could this be connected to ME?

Answer

It sounds as though you may have a rather unusual type of sleep disorder called, not surprisingly, sleep paralysis. This produces a temporary inability to move or speak and normally happens when you are waking up.

Although you are awake, your body is briefly paralysed, after which you can move and speak as normal. The paralysis can last from a few seconds to several minutes.

Sleep paralysis does not cause any harm, but being unable to move can obviously be very frightening. While some people have sleep paralysis once or twice in their life, others experience it a few times a month or more regularly.

It is quite normal for muscles to be paralysed at certain times during sleep. Sleep paralysis occurs when the mechanism that cause muscles to relax during sleep temporarily persists after waking up. This can also be a symptom of narcolepsy – a relatively rare sleep disorder that causes people to fall asleep suddenly and unexpectedly.

Factors that increase the risk of sleep paralysis in relation to ME/CFS include sleep deprivation and irregular sleeping patterns and age. It is more common in teenagers and young adults.

Sleep paralysis can be improved by altering sleep habits and sleeping environment and preferably having 6-8 hours of uninterrupted sleep each night. Going to bed at roughly the same time each night and getting up at the same time each morning may also help.

If sleep paralysis is particularly severe, your GP can refer you to a sleep disorder clinic. A short course of an antidepressant called clomipramine may be used for more severe sleep paralysis.

More Information:

• The MEA has a recently updated information leaflet covering the management of sleep disorders in ME/CFS. This also covers restless legs syndrome – which is more common in ME/CFS – and the use of melatonin.