In defense of Kim (not a phrase I ever expected to be typing. . .), my mother, a medical professional, was not aware that sleep paralysis was a thing until after I told her that I experience it (thankfully only 1-2 times per year). It is crazy scary. In addition to the paralysis part, like many others with this sleep disorder, I experience the terror of thinking ("knowing") there is another presence in the room out to do me harm (in my case a dark figure standing next to the bed just at the edge of my peripheral vision holding either a knife or a syringe). I can only take comfort in the fact that those who suffer from sleep paralysis are less likely to experience exploding head syndrome (another sleep disorder).