I’ve had this happen to me from time to time. The most recent episode was last week.
The worst part about it, for me, is the fact that I can’t speak while it is happening. I will try to scream so my husband can wake me up but I can’t make a sound. I’m screaming in my HEAD but not out loud.
It’s absolutely terrifying.
I’ve heard of the “sleep hag” but I have never, ever heard of the “wild animals tearing at your legs” phenomenon. I think if that ever happened to me, I’d be up for at least a week. shudder
This occasionally happens to me. Usually it’s because I’m trying to wake myself up out of a dream and I don’t quite succeed. My eyelids feel extremely heavy, and I can’t move my limbs at all. This lasts for probably about 30 seconds before I am able to wake up completely. When I am in this half-awake/half-asleep phase, I am under the impression that I am completely conscious, but when I really do wake up, I realize that I was still partly asleep. It is certainly creepy, but it has never lasted more than half a minute for me (actually, probably even less) and I know that I will eventually wake up.