TedTest

From the Ted Talk by Ami Angelowicz: The terrors of sleep paralysis

Unscramble the Blue Letters

Imagine this: You're fast asleep when all of a sudden you're awoken! And not by your alarm clock. Your eyes open, and there's a demon siittng on your chest, pinning you down. You try to open your mouth and scream, but no sound comes out. You try to get up and run away, but you realize that you are completely immobilized. The demon is trying to suffocate you, but you can't fgiht back. You've awkoen into your dream, and it's a nmthriage. It sounds like a Stephen King movie, but it's actually a medical condition called sleep paralysis, and about half of the population has experienced this strange pnomoehenn at least once in their life. This panic-inducing esidope of coming face-to-face with the creatures from your nehmtigars can last anywhere from seconds to minutes and may involve visual or auditory hallucinations of an evil spirit or an out-of-body feeling like you're floating. Some have even mistaken selep paralysis for an eunoetncr with a ghost or an alien abduction. In 1867, Dr. Silas Weir Mitchell was the first medical professional to study sleep paralysis. "The subject akwaes to consciousness of his environment but is incapable of moving a muscle. lnyig to all aaracenppe, still aselep. He's really engaged for a struggle for mmevenot, fraught with acute mental distress. Could he but mnaage to stir, the spell would vanish iatnnlsty." Even though Dr. Mitchell was the first to ovsrbee patients in a state of sleep paralysis, it's so common that nearly every culture throughout time has had some kind of prroaamanl explanation for it. In medieval Europe, you might think that an incubus, a sex-hungry demon in male form, visited you in the night. In Scandinavia, the mare, a damned woman, is responsible for visiting sleepers and sitting on their rib cegas. In Turkey, a jinn holds you down and tries to strangle you. In Thailand, Phi Am bruises you while you sleep. In the southern United States, the hag comes for you. In Mexico, you could blame subirse el muerto, the dead person, on you. In Greece, Mora sits upon your chest and tries to asphyxiate you. In Nepal, Khyaak the ghost resides under the staircase. It may be easier to blmae sleep paralysis on evil spirits because what's actually happening in your brain is much haedrr to explain. Modern scientists believe that sleep pasyilars is caused by an abnormal overlap of the REM, rapid eye movement, and waking sagtes of sleep. During a normal REM cycle, you're experiencing a number of sensory stimuli in the form of a dream, and your brain is unconscious and fully asleep. During your dream, spciael neurotransmitters are released, which paazrlye almost all of your muscles. That's called REM atonia. It's what keeps you from running in your bed when you're being chased in your dreams. During an episode of sleep paralysis, you're experiencing normal components of REM. You're dreaming and your mecsuls are paralyzed, only your brain is conscious and wide awake. This is what causes you to imagine that you're having an encounter with a menacing presence. So this expinlas the hallucinations, but what about the feelings of panic, strangling, choking, cshet prsersue that so many people describe? Well during REM, the fiotcnun that keeps you from acting out your dreams, REM atonia, also removes voluntary control of your breiahtng. Your breath becomes more slalhow and ripad. You take in more carbon dioxide and experience a small blockage of your awariy. During a sleep paralysis episode, a combination of your body's fear response to a pecrieevd atctak by an evil creature and your brain being wide awake while your body is in an REM sleep state trirgegs a response for you to take in more oxygen. That makes you gasp for air, but you can't because REM atonia has removed control of your breath. This struggle for air while your body sleeps cartees a perceived sensation of pressure on the chest or suffocation. While a few people experience sleep paralysis regularly and it may be linked to sleep disorders such as nrclpaosey, many who experience an episode of sleep paralysis do so infrequently, perhaps only once in a lifetime. So you can rest easy, knowing that an evil entity is not trying to haunt, possess, sltagrne, or suffocate you. Save that for the horror films!

Open Cloze

Imagine this: You're fast asleep when all of a sudden you're awoken! And not by your alarm clock. Your eyes open, and there's a demon _______ on your chest, pinning you down. You try to open your mouth and scream, but no sound comes out. You try to get up and run away, but you realize that you are completely immobilized. The demon is trying to suffocate you, but you can't _____ back. You've ______ into your dream, and it's a _________. It sounds like a Stephen King movie, but it's actually a medical condition called sleep paralysis, and about half of the population has experienced this strange __________ at least once in their life. This panic-inducing _______ of coming face-to-face with the creatures from your __________ can last anywhere from seconds to minutes and may involve visual or auditory hallucinations of an evil spirit or an out-of-body feeling like you're floating. Some have even mistaken _____ paralysis for an _________ with a ghost or an alien abduction. In 1867, Dr. Silas Weir Mitchell was the first medical professional to study sleep paralysis. "The subject ______ to consciousness of his environment but is incapable of moving a muscle. _____ to all __________, still ______. He's really engaged for a struggle for ________, fraught with acute mental distress. Could he but ______ to stir, the spell would vanish _________." Even though Dr. Mitchell was the first to _______ patients in a state of sleep paralysis, it's so common that nearly every culture throughout time has had some kind of __________ explanation for it. In medieval Europe, you might think that an incubus, a sex-hungry demon in male form, visited you in the night. In Scandinavia, the mare, a damned woman, is responsible for visiting sleepers and sitting on their rib _____. In Turkey, a jinn holds you down and tries to strangle you. In Thailand, Phi Am bruises you while you sleep. In the southern United States, the hag comes for you. In Mexico, you could blame subirse el muerto, the dead person, on you. In Greece, Mora sits upon your chest and tries to asphyxiate you. In Nepal, Khyaak the ghost resides under the staircase. It may be easier to _____ sleep paralysis on evil spirits because what's actually happening in your brain is much ______ to explain. Modern scientists believe that sleep _________ is caused by an abnormal overlap of the REM, rapid eye movement, and waking ______ of sleep. During a normal REM cycle, you're experiencing a number of sensory stimuli in the form of a dream, and your brain is unconscious and fully asleep. During your dream, _______ neurotransmitters are released, which ________ almost all of your muscles. That's called REM atonia. It's what keeps you from running in your bed when you're being chased in your dreams. During an episode of sleep paralysis, you're experiencing normal components of REM. You're dreaming and your _______ are paralyzed, only your brain is conscious and wide awake. This is what causes you to imagine that you're having an encounter with a menacing presence. So this ________ the hallucinations, but what about the feelings of panic, strangling, choking, _____ ________ that so many people describe? Well during REM, the ________ that keeps you from acting out your dreams, REM atonia, also removes voluntary control of your _________. Your breath becomes more _______ and _____. You take in more carbon dioxide and experience a small blockage of your ______. During a sleep paralysis episode, a combination of your body's fear response to a _________ ______ by an evil creature and your brain being wide awake while your body is in an REM sleep state ________ a response for you to take in more oxygen. That makes you gasp for air, but you can't because REM atonia has removed control of your breath. This struggle for air while your body sleeps _______ a perceived sensation of pressure on the chest or suffocation. While a few people experience sleep paralysis regularly and it may be linked to sleep disorders such as __________, many who experience an episode of sleep paralysis do so infrequently, perhaps only once in a lifetime. So you can rest easy, knowing that an evil entity is not trying to haunt, possess, ________, or suffocate you. Save that for the horror films!

Solution

blame
sleep
creates
awoken
strangle
narcolepsy
triggers
airway
rapid
movement
encounter
instantly
lying
phenomenon
special
episode
shallow
explains
paranormal
stages
muscles
chest
cages
breathing
paralyze
manage
nightmare
harder
asleep
observe
fight
awakes
pressure
appearance
paralysis
function
nightmares
attack
sitting
perceived

Original Text

Imagine this: You're fast asleep when all of a sudden you're awoken! And not by your alarm clock. Your eyes open, and there's a demon sitting on your chest, pinning you down. You try to open your mouth and scream, but no sound comes out. You try to get up and run away, but you realize that you are completely immobilized. The demon is trying to suffocate you, but you can't fight back. You've awoken into your dream, and it's a nightmare. It sounds like a Stephen King movie, but it's actually a medical condition called sleep paralysis, and about half of the population has experienced this strange phenomenon at least once in their life. This panic-inducing episode of coming face-to-face with the creatures from your nightmares can last anywhere from seconds to minutes and may involve visual or auditory hallucinations of an evil spirit or an out-of-body feeling like you're floating. Some have even mistaken sleep paralysis for an encounter with a ghost or an alien abduction. In 1867, Dr. Silas Weir Mitchell was the first medical professional to study sleep paralysis. "The subject awakes to consciousness of his environment but is incapable of moving a muscle. Lying to all appearance, still asleep. He's really engaged for a struggle for movement, fraught with acute mental distress. Could he but manage to stir, the spell would vanish instantly." Even though Dr. Mitchell was the first to observe patients in a state of sleep paralysis, it's so common that nearly every culture throughout time has had some kind of paranormal explanation for it. In medieval Europe, you might think that an incubus, a sex-hungry demon in male form, visited you in the night. In Scandinavia, the mare, a damned woman, is responsible for visiting sleepers and sitting on their rib cages. In Turkey, a jinn holds you down and tries to strangle you. In Thailand, Phi Am bruises you while you sleep. In the southern United States, the hag comes for you. In Mexico, you could blame subirse el muerto, the dead person, on you. In Greece, Mora sits upon your chest and tries to asphyxiate you. In Nepal, Khyaak the ghost resides under the staircase. It may be easier to blame sleep paralysis on evil spirits because what's actually happening in your brain is much harder to explain. Modern scientists believe that sleep paralysis is caused by an abnormal overlap of the REM, rapid eye movement, and waking stages of sleep. During a normal REM cycle, you're experiencing a number of sensory stimuli in the form of a dream, and your brain is unconscious and fully asleep. During your dream, special neurotransmitters are released, which paralyze almost all of your muscles. That's called REM atonia. It's what keeps you from running in your bed when you're being chased in your dreams. During an episode of sleep paralysis, you're experiencing normal components of REM. You're dreaming and your muscles are paralyzed, only your brain is conscious and wide awake. This is what causes you to imagine that you're having an encounter with a menacing presence. So this explains the hallucinations, but what about the feelings of panic, strangling, choking, chest pressure that so many people describe? Well during REM, the function that keeps you from acting out your dreams, REM atonia, also removes voluntary control of your breathing. Your breath becomes more shallow and rapid. You take in more carbon dioxide and experience a small blockage of your airway. During a sleep paralysis episode, a combination of your body's fear response to a perceived attack by an evil creature and your brain being wide awake while your body is in an REM sleep state triggers a response for you to take in more oxygen. That makes you gasp for air, but you can't because REM atonia has removed control of your breath. This struggle for air while your body sleeps creates a perceived sensation of pressure on the chest or suffocation. While a few people experience sleep paralysis regularly and it may be linked to sleep disorders such as narcolepsy, many who experience an episode of sleep paralysis do so infrequently, perhaps only once in a lifetime. So you can rest easy, knowing that an evil entity is not trying to haunt, possess, strangle, or suffocate you. Save that for the horror films!

Frequently Occurring Word Combinations

ngrams of length 2

collocation	frequency
sleep paralysis	7
rem atonia	2
wide awake	2

Important Words

abduction
abnormal
acting
acute
air
airway
alarm
alien
appearance
asleep
asphyxiate
atonia
attack
auditory
awake
awakes
awoken
bed
blame
blockage
body
brain
breath
breathing
bruises
cages
called
carbon
caused
chased
chest
choking
clock
combination
coming
common
completely
components
condition
conscious
consciousness
control
creates
creature
creatures
culture
cycle
damned
dead
demon
describe
dioxide
disorders
distress
dr
dream
dreaming
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easier
easy
el
encounter
engaged
entity
environment
episode
europe
evil
experience
experienced
experiencing
explain
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explanation
eye
eyes
fast
fear
feeling
feelings
fight
floating
form
fraught
fully
function
gasp
ghost
greece
hag
hallucinations
happening
harder
haunt
holds
horror
imagine
immobilized
incapable
incubus
infrequently
instantly
involve
jinn
khyaak
kind
king
knowing
life
lifetime
linked
lying
male
manage
mare
medical
medieval
menacing
mental
mexico
minutes
mistaken
mitchell
modern
mora
mouth
movement
movie
moving
muerto
muscle
muscles
narcolepsy
nepal
neurotransmitters
night
nightmare
nightmares
normal
number
observe
open
overlap
oxygen
panic
paralysis
paralyze
paralyzed
paranormal
patients
people
perceived
person
phenomenon
phi
pinning
population
possess
presence
pressure
professional
rapid
realize
regularly
released
rem
removed
removes
resides
response
responsible
rest
rib
run
running
save
scandinavia
scientists
scream
seconds
sensation
sensory
shallow
silas
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small
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southern
special
spell
spirit
spirits
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stephen
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subirse
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