

Some research shows that neurological activity responsible for causing daytime hallucinations and dreams is responsible for hypnagogic hallucinations. Here’s where experts have hit a blind spot as they are not entirely sure what causes these hallucinations. Nightmares are particularly frightening but hypnagogic hallucinations may not evoke this kind of terror, although they may feel unsettling.
AUDITORY HALLUCINATIONS WHILE FALLING ASLEEP SERIES
While nightmares occur during the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) stage of your sleep cycle, hypnagogic hallucinations occur when you’re falling asleep.Īlso, nightmares are vivid dreams that tend to have a storyline whereas hypnagogic hallucinations are usually just a series of moving images, sometimes accompanied by sounds or sensory experiences. People with schizophrenia believe their hallucinations to be real.Ī key difference between hypnagogic hallucinations and nightmares is the time when these hallucinations occur. Secondly, a person experiencing hypnagogic hallucinations is aware of the fact that these sights, sounds, and experiences aren’t real. Hypnagogic hallucinations are different from nightmares, and are starkly unlike hallucinations related to mental health disorders, such as schizophrenia.įirstly, unlike schizophrenic hallucinations, hypnagogic hallucinations are experienced only when you’re falling asleep.

Hypnagogic Hallucinations VS Nightmares & Hallucinations

Let’s learn a little more about this unusual sleep experience to demystify it. But these hallucinations are quite common, and there’s largely no cause of concern. These hallucinations are also short-lived and occur as you’re falling asleep, indicating that your sleep cycle has just begun.Īs with sleep disorders, hypnagogic hallucinations can seem scary and confusing when you’re experiencing them. You may see a kaleidoscopic image (visual hallucination) or hear a doorbell ringing (auditory) without any attached plot. (1) A trademark feature of these hallucinations is that they are pretty straightforward and do not have a storyline, unlike dreams. Sensory hallucinations include experiencing bodily sensations, such as weightlessness or the feeling of freefall.Īs per the data sourced by the Sleep Foundation, 86% of hypnagogic hallucinations are visual, 8-34% are auditory and 25-44% are sensory. Auditory hallucinations involve hearing sounds, voices or music. If you’re having a visual hallucination, you may see patterns, shapes, faces of animals, and other vivid images. You might feel, hear, see or smell something that’s not real or present. What are Hypnagogic Hallucinations?Īs the name suggests, hypnagogic hallucinations are hallucinations that occur just as you’re falling asleep. Read on to find out more about it and its symptoms. Similarly, hypnagogic hallucinations are another type of sleep disturbance. These are commonly known as sleep disturbances, the latter more well known as sleep paralysis. Maybe it’s a nightmare, or the feeling of someone is sitting atop your chest, making it hard for you to move or breathe. Some of us have strange experiences when we sleep.
