Scottish actor says goodbye to her partner and goes back to sleep. Minutes later, she sees someone standing over her bed — but none of it was real
I’d be scared to sleep again.
Sleep is supposed to be a sanctuary, but not everyone gets that luxury. Scottish actor Erin Caldwell (@erincaldwellxox) recently opened up about how sleeping has become a “full-on rubbish” battlefield for her.
In a candid TikTok story time, Erin detailed a recent experience of trying to sleep after waking up once. As she drifted back to her dreams, she suddenly heard footsteps. Seconds later, she saw her bedroom door wide open and a shadowy figure standing over her bed. The worst part? It was her own brain playing the ultimate villain.
Erin’s partner left, and she decided to sleep again. But her brain had other plans
Erin begins by detailing the events of earlier that morning when her partner left for training. Having woken up at 5 :00 AM, she decided to go back to sleep. However, as she fell back into a light sleep, she heard footsteps coming up the stairs and into her bedroom.
Erin also revealed that she sleeps with an eye mask on, which made the situation worse. Despite having her eyes covered, her brain configured a reality where she could see underneath it. To her horror, she saw her bedroom door wide open. Pair that with the footstep sound? Yeah, I’d run immediately.
The footsteps stopped right at the other side of her bed
Erin panicked when she saw the figure and tried to get out of her bed. However, she found herself unable to move. At this point, she began to feel like the “figure” was putting pressure on her chest, arms, and shoulder. It was almost like she was being “gently suffocated.”
Thankfully, Erin also knew that all this wasn’t real. It was a classic sleep paralysis episode. She explained that her episodes typically occur when she wakes up early and then attempts to fall back asleep. So, it was nothing new. At the same time, she admitted that it all feels too real. “If someone was to tell me that it’s not real, I would really argue my point that it is,” she said.
Her usual ‘pinky finger’ trick failed to wake her body
To combat these episodes, Erin usually relies on a technique where she moves her pinky finger to “trigger” her body to wake up. However, during this first episode in her new home, the trick failed, sending her into a state of panic. “I was almost at the point of being like, ‘Today’s the day they’re finally going to get me,'” she admitted.
After multiple attempts and a “fly on the wall” struggle, she eventually woke up fully. She also found out that her eye mask perfectly in place. This means, her brain had hallucinated the entire visual and tactile ordeal.
”This just shows you how crazy and wonderful and wacky, the human brain is.”
The biological science behind sleep paralysis
Sleep paralysis occurs when the body transitions between stages of sleep, specifically during Rapid Eye Movement (REM). During REM, the brain typically paralyzes the muscles (a state called atonia) to prevent people from acting out their dreams.
If someone wakes up before the REM cycle is complete, they may be conscious but unable to move. This state often triggers the amygdala, the brain’s fear center. It then leads to vivid hallucinations of a “presence” or physical pressure on the chest.
How to navigate and end a sleep paralysis episode
If you find yourself “stuck” in a waking nightmare like Erin, try to follow her lead. To begin with, focus on small extremities. Trying to move a finger or toe is often more effective than trying to “flail” your arms or legs.
While you can’t move your limbs, you often still have control over your breath. Taking deep, calm breaths can signal to the brain that you are safe. And at all costs, avoid the ‘back to sleep’ loop. If you wake up from an episode, get out of bed for a few minutes. Falling straight back to sleep, as Erin did, often leads to an immediate second episode.
To solve the issue by its root, understand your triggers. Episodes are often triggered by exhaustion or irregular sleep schedules. Maintaining a consistent routine can reduce the frequency of these occurrences.
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