I've never made big typed out reddit story before, mainly because nothing interesting happens in my life often, but just now, I had the most terrifying experience of my life. For context, I've been very stressed out recently specifically about getting a job. I recently had an interview at Best Buy and I haven't heard anything back. I also recently quit huffing substances (I know, it's awful, I'm already completely ashamed of myself). Right now my parents are on vacation and I am alone in a large house.
Last night I went to bed around 10:30, but it was very difficult to actually fall asleep despite how tired I was. I decided to put an episode of family guy on my phone to listen to while I slept to distract myself from the torrent of thoughts I typically experience when I'm left alone in silence. I closed my eyes and apparently drifted into sleep. The reason I say it was apparent was because it felt completely real to me at the time. The next thing I experienced was a strange commercial coming on my television. It wasn't strange to me at the time that there was a commercial on the tv even though when I fell asleep I was watching it on disney+ on my phone because I was dreaming which I find sort of odd. Even though I was dreaming, I was just in my room and it felt perfectly like reality.
The commercial was for "Velcro pillow anchors" that I guess where supposed to keep your pillow in one spot on your bed. I had one in the dream and it didn't work at all. I remember getting frustrated by the fact that the pillow anchor didn't work because to my dreaming brain it meant that I couldn't sleep. I tried everything to get comfortable and eventually I ended up getting more pillows (I don't even remember where I got them, I only have one) and surrounding myself with them until I felt enclosed. As a kid I would always do something like this in my blanket fort and for a bit it felt comforting. Then Family Guy came back on the tv and I decided just to watch for a bit.
The scene began with Peter talking to Lois about something (I can't remember exactly what) but after he said it, he said something to the effect of "boy this is worse than the time I fell asleep in a coffin". The scene then cut to peter looking at coffins alone in a funeral home and deciding to lay in on. He was comfortable and let out a sigh. Just then, the coffin lid slammed shut and Peter began to scream. It wasn't peter's normal scream that I'm familiar with, but rather a more real, visceral scream of genuine terror. This went on for an uncomfortably long time and the scream kept getting worse and worse until it was high pitched and felt distorted in my ears.
The only way I can describe the scream is that of a small child screaming for their life directly into both of my ears at the same time. The room began to spin and I started slumping out of my bed almost falling to the floor. I still had no idea this was a dream at all. Then it sounded to me like my mom was pounding on the door to get me to turn off the noise, but I couldn't move or respond. I didn't fear the paralysis as much as I was afraid that the awful noise was bothering everyone around me. This paralysis and banging went on for what felt like 10 minutes before I eventually woke up covered in sweat in my normal sleeping position.
Never in my life have I experienced a nightmare of this intensity and that felt so real to me at the time. I'm writing this now to get it all off my chest and also in hopes that you might find my story interesting. If you have any similar experience to mine I would love to hear it as it would make me feel so much less alone in this awful experience. Thank you for taking the time to read to this point.
TL:DR, I had a dream that I was watching family guy that turned into the worst sleep paralysis of my life with visceral screaming and loud banging on my door, all while I'm actually home alone.