The Nightmare, by Henry Fuseli (1781) is thought to be one of the classic depictions of sleep paralysis perceived as a demonic visitation.

Normally I wouldn’t post on this kind of thing, if not for the fact that it happened to me this morning. Probably one of the most terrifying experiences of my life. I’m telling my story because if I had known about this phenomenon, I probably wouldn’t have been so frightened.

Just after 9am this morning when I lay down to watch the news, I apparently fell asleep. Not long after, I woke (or at least I thought I had) to find myself paralyzed. My eyes could move and I could see in front of me. I even looked for details, like which of my husbands shirts was hanging on the rocking chair. I could hear the Fox 10 morning newscast playing on the TV. I tried to move my head and move my body but nothing was happening. I could not speak and I could not scream. At this point I panicked and tried to focus on moving my hand toward my phone to call 911 and hope that someone would discover me and help me.

Soon after that I felt a presence in my living room and began to hear and see things/people out of the corner of my eye. I won’t get into detail since I did eventually fully awake, regaining movement and realizing everything was ok. I immediately went to google and searched paralyzed dream and came across a phenomenon called sleep paralysis, which I had never heard of. I found an abundance of recorded accounts that either matched or went above and beyond what I experienced.

I guess what I wondered most is “If this is common and happens to around 30% of people, why had I never heard of it before?”

From Wikipedia: “Sleep paralysis occurs when the brain awakes from a REM state, but the body paralysis persists. This leaves the person fully conscious but unable to move. The paralysis can last from several seconds to several minutes by which the individual may experience panic symptoms. As the correlation with REM sleep suggests, the paralysis is not entirely complete; eye movement is still possible during such episodes.

In addition, the paralysis may be accompanied by terrifying hallucinations and an acute sense of danger. Sleep paralysis is particularly frightening to the individual because of the vividness of such hallucinations. The hallucinatory element to sleep paralysis makes it more likely that someone will interpret the experience as a dream, since dream-like objects may appear in the room alongside one’s normal vision. Some scientists have proposed this condition as an explanation for alien abductions and ghostly encounters.”

From Another Site: “Statistics report that 20% to 40% of people report having had some or other version of sleep paralysis. For a third of them the experience is nothing more than a momentary fear of the possibility of paralysis followed by a swift return to normal. A substantial two thirds of those who report having experienced sleep paralysis describe episodes of hallucinations of varying degrees. In simple language the hallucinations are similar in nature, distinguished only by their association with those experienced at sleep onset and those upon waking.

Features of the hallucinations have often been postulated as an explanation for the proliferation of reports of alien abduction and demon visitation. The reason for this is the characteristic nature of the hallucination. There tends to be certain uniformly experienced features that include the “sense of a presence” that is felt to be malevolent in nature.

People who suffer from sleep paralysis often report the sense of there being someone in the room with them. They speak of a pressure or weight felt on the body, often in the vicinity of the chest area. Whatever the particular configuration of symptoms, all report a vivid level of fear. This is shared by all, even those who, on some level, recognize that the experience is not altogether real.

This vivid and horrific experience of sleep paralysis is not culture specific. It affects people across the world and literature and mythology are full of references to it. In Canada it is called “a visit from the old hag”, in Japan it is being “bound and fastened in metal”. The Mexicans use a phrase that means ” the dead getting on top” and in the southern United States it is known as “the witch riding your back”. “

EDIT: Western Culture refuses to acknowledge these occurrences and they are put off as psychotic episodes. No wonder people don’t speak openly about this. It makes me sad that this happens to people and they are made to believe they are crazy, when all along there are countless recorded accounts and there is a legit scientific explanation!

All I know is I hope it never happens to me again, but if it does I may be more relaxed knowing that it will eventually come to an end. Has this ever happened to any of you?

Marc Jacobs

Vera Wang

Michael Kors

Francisco Costa

Brian Atwood kills with a HEEL… seem familiar ??

For Harper’s Bazaar’s September issue, stylist, Rachel Zoe immortalizes her infamous catchphrase, “I Die” with a clever pictorial. Super legit.

Source: Huffington Post

In the name of beauty, would you roll 200 micro needles all over YOUR skin? The idea of the Derma Roller is to puncture the surface skin and cause trauma to the upper layers of the skin which stimulates collagen growth and cell turnover. My favorite lady, Angelina Jolie, is rumored to use one of these as an anti-aging method to hold off on needing plastic surgery.

Thoughts?

Artist Jessica Harrison plucks the legs off of dead flies and glues them onto her lashline.

MAC Venomous Villains Collection – September 2010

Read on for images and info…

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I remember the first time I heard the word “Debutante”. I was in the 10th grade at Arcadia High School and Janice Edwards was passing around a photo of her posing in a huge, white ball gown. “Is that from Prom?”, I asked. “No”, she said, “It’s from my COMING OUT ball, you know, for DEBUTANTES.” I thought to myself: Coming out? From where?… The closet?… A coma? I went home to ask my mother her thoughts on this elusive “Debutante Ball” and her only reply was: “It’s for rich people”. Later on, someone explained to me that a Debutante Ball or Cotillion, is an event in which a young female (typically associated with wealthy and socially influential families), is formally introduced into society. At the time, I felt a bit left out. I couldn’t help but wonder: What doesn’t make ME good enough to be invited to that party? Why don’t I get to wear that poufy white dress? Was my family so far off the radar of “social influence” that an invitation never found its way to our mailbox? Guess I’ll never know. Nowadays I like to think I AM in fact a debutante, in my own IMPOLITE society. Recently my bf explained that there are even male versions of debutantes called the “Men Of Distinction”. YIKES. Is this really STILL a rite of passage in this day and age of cutbacks and frugal fashionistas? What do you guys think? Culturally significant tradition or old fashioned ass backwards?

China Glaze Awakening Collection – Halloween 2010

“Sink your claws into these three ghoulish glitters from China Glaze, perfect for a night of fright! Uniquely alluring and unlike any other Halloween colors before them, this collection is sure to entice.”

These are so unique and amazing. They are getting me super excited for Halloween.

I’ll just let the photos speak for themselves…

Mummy May I: Vampy, wine colored purple with flecks of hot pink glitter

Zombie Zest: A mossy green shade with gold flecks of micro glitter

ICK-A-BOD-Y: A dark green base chock full of orange glitter

MAC Venomous Villains Collection will launch in September and each Villain will have their own mini collection of products. Stay tuned for more photos and collection details.

Are we happy with the packaging…

or do we think this looks like something we might find at Toys R Us?

I personally was expecting more…

image via WWD