Dream Catcher

by O-Team (Samuel Hof & Nina Malotta)
(mattress, bedding, down, chains, hooks)

During dreaming, the skeletal muscles are paralyzed to prevent dreamed movements from being carried out in reality. To outsiders, the muscles are not rigid or cramped, but limp. This paralysis disappears immediately on waking and goes unnoticed. Sometimes, however, it is experienced consciously, especially when falling asleep or waking up. The conscious experience of sleep paralysis is not dangerous in itself, but many people find it very unpleasant or even frightening. Some sufferers feel as if they are suffocating because they cannot feel themselves breathing, while others feel pressure on their chest as if something heavy is weighing them down. Around a third of sufferers also experience visual, tactile or auditory hallucinations. Over the centuries, the phenomenon has been explained by a wide range of different cultures and belief systems. The idea that a demon sits on the chest of the sleeping person and thus deprives them of air to breathe was very common. In Japan, sleep paralysis is known as “kanashibari”, which roughly means “still bound”.