Sleep paralysis demons have become a key figure in meme culture, but they aren't so funny for those who experience them.

Maybe you’ve seen the meme: “This is my sleep paralysis demon: [insert photo].” The viral idea builds on a very real condition in which a person is conscious but unable to move. In some ...

Unfortunately for me, I had my very own sleep paralysis demon. The only problem (well, besides the bone-chilling looming presence in my bedroom)? I had no idea what it was until seven years later.

The hallucinations experienced during sleep paralysis are either hypnagogic hallucinations, which occur when a person is falling asleep, or hypnopompic hallucinations, which happen when waking up.

Graham Falk speaks to sufferers of the terrifying phenomenon known as sleep paralysis, the disorder which can leave sufferers seeing nightmarish demonic figures in their bedroom.

For an entire summer, Serena, 23, would wake up to a demon with red eyes watching her from the corner of her bedroom. She wasn't dreaming — at least, not exactly. She suffers from sleep paralysis.

The sleep demon is actually a hallucination linked to sleep paralysis, which occurs when a person is jolted awake in the middle of the rapid eye movement (REM) phase of sleep associated with dreaming.

What if rather than giving in to the demon, you decided to throw it a curveball by attempting to make it your friend instead?