Skip to main content Skip to navigation
CAS in the Media Arts and Sciences Media Headlines

Vampires, ghosts and demons: the nightmare of sleep paralysis

Brian Sharpless, Director, Psychology Clinic
Brian Sharpless

It’s known as “Ghost Depression” in China, “Kanashibari” in Japan, meaning to be bound or fastened by metal strips, and “Karabasan” or ‘The Dark Presser’ in Turkey. The latter sounds oddly like a 1980s metal band, but these three terms all refer to the same thing – the often terrifying and little understood ordeal of sleep paralysis, which is believed to have left various imprints on our culture throughout the millennia, from tales of ghosts in the night to visits from aliens. » More …

That loud bang that startles you awake: It may be ‘exploding head syndrome’

Brian Sharpless, Director, Psychology Clinic
Brian Sharpless

It happens in an instant just before you fall asleep. You’re startled by a loud noise — the thud of a book slamming to the floor, or worse, the bang of a shotgun nearby. You a jump up and look around, but everything seems normal. Well it is, but you did hear a noise that wasn’t real. It was in your brain. » More …

Is exploding head syndrome the reason you can’t sleep?

Brian Sharpless, Director, Psychology Clinic
Brian Sharpless

Exploding head syndrome may sound like a made-up condition, but it’s a real and frightening medical disorder that’s also surprisingly common, according to a study led by Brian Sharpless, assistant professor of psychology at WSU.

People with exploding head syndrome (EHS) hear loud noises when going to sleep or on waking up. The type of noise can vary from explosions and fireworks to slammed doors, the sound of a gun firing, an enormous roar, shouting, thunder or a crack of lightning. The noises start suddenly and last for a few seconds.

“It can be very frightening and scary for those who do not know what is happening,” Sharpless said. It can lead to sleeping problems and worse: an attack may cause temporary tachycardia.

The study published in the journal Sleep Medicine Reviews suggests that the disorder may affect as many as one in 10 people at some time during their life. The most likely explanation  is that there is some kind of temporary blip in the nerve cells of the brain during the switch from being awake to sleeping, Sharpless said.

Read more at WSU News
Read more in the Daily Mail