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You're drifting off to sleep when suddenly you see a shadowy figure at the foot of your bed — or you hear someone whisper your name. Your heart pounds, you sit up — but when you flip on the light, there's nothing there.
Or maybe you wake up in the morning certain that you just felt a bug crawl across your arm — but when you look, there's nothing but your blankets.
These experiences are called sleep hallucinations, and if they've ever happened to you, you know how unsettling they can be. The good news? You're not losing your mind — and you're definitely not alone.
In this guide, we'll break down what sleep hallucinations are, why they happen, who's more likely to experience them, and how you can manage them if they start messing with your sleep (or your sanity).
Sleep hallucinations are vivid sensory experiences — sights, sounds, or feelings — that happen when you're falling asleep (hypnagogic hallucinations) or waking up (hypnopompic hallucinations).
Unlike dreams, which play out inside your head while you're fully asleep, sleep hallucinations feel like they're happening in your bedroom. You might see people or shapes, hear voices, feel like you're being touched — all while technically half-awake.
Dr. Michael Grandner, a sleep expert and professor of neuroscience, explains: "Sleep hallucinations happen when the boundaries between dreaming and wakefulness blur. Your brain is awake enough to be aware of your surroundings, but parts of it are still generating dream-like imagery." In other words, what he means is your brain's "dream machine" leaks into real life for a few seconds.
Sleep hallucinations show up in two main flavors:
Hypnagogic hallucinations happen as you're drifting into sleep. Research shows these are brief hallucinations that occur as you're falling asleep, and they're different from dreams because dreams typically have a storyline, whereas hypnagogic hallucinations are typically brief images or sounds.
Hypnopompic hallucinations happen as you're waking up. Studies indicate these are hallucinations that occur in the morning as you're waking up, and they're relatively common, occurring in over 12% of people.
Both can feel super real. Some people see people standing by the bed, insects on the wall, or hear footsteps. Others feel like someone is touching them or even calling their name. It's no surprise that sleep hallucinations are often confused with ghost stories or paranormal encounters!
Way more common than you might think. A comprehensive study of 2,533 Norwegians found that slightly more than half of them had hallucinations of some type while falling asleep or waking, with 32.2% experiencing motion-related experiences like falling or floating, 12.3% seeing or feeling something that's not there, and 6.8% experiencing auditory hallucinations.
Research indicates that hypnagogic hallucinations occur in up to 37% of people, while hypnopompic hallucinations are less common but still affect over 12% of the population. Sleep-related hallucinations are found in up to 70% of the general population.
They often come and go. For some people, they happen once and never again. For others, they pop up during stressful periods, after poor sleep, or when there's another sleep disorder in the mix.
Everyone's experience is a little different, but common themes include:
Visual Hallucinations: Shadowy figures, bright lights, people in the room, spiders or insects crawling on the bed. Research shows that visual phenomena make up 86% of all hypnagogic experiences and typically consist of kaleidoscopically changing geometric patterns, shapes, light flashes, and images involving animals, people and faces.
Auditory Hallucinations: Voices, knocking, footsteps, someone calling your name. Studies indicate that voices and other sounds occur in 8% to 34% of cases and comprise vivid auditory impressions of words or names, people talking, and environmental or animal sounds.
Tactile Hallucinations: Feeling like something or someone touched you, pressure on the chest, or a crawling sensation on your skin. Research shows that somatic experiences occur in 25% to 44% of cases, including bodily distortions, experiences of floating, flying, and out-of-body experiences.
It's not unusual to feel terrified — even if you know, logically, that nothing is there. Your brain's threat system goes on high alert, which is why people often bolt upright, turn on lights, or even jump out of bed.
Sleep hallucinations happen when your brain gets its wires crossed during the transition between sleep and wake. Several things can make these mix-ups more likely:
Not getting enough sleep messes with your brain's ability to smoothly switch between wakefulness and dreaming. The more tired you are, the more likely dream imagery might "leak" into your waking moments.
One of the most comprehensive studies involving 261,547 adults from 56 countries found that people who were sleep-deprived were more than twice as likely to experience hallucinations, because the transition between sleep and waking states is longer when sleep deprived.
If you're struggling with getting enough rest, our guide on how to get more deep sleep offers science-backed strategies for improving sleep quality.
Big deadlines, emotional turmoil, or just too much on your mind can all fragment your sleep. That makes these weird half-dream states more likely.
If stress is affecting your sleep, our comprehensive guide on conquering sleep anxiety provides expert strategies for managing nighttime worries. For those experiencing physical symptoms of stress at night, our article on fight or flight at night offers practical solutions.
Pulling all-nighters, changing time zones, or working shifts can throw off your sleep-wake transitions. Our article on daylight saving time and sleep explores how schedule disruptions affect sleep quality.
People with narcolepsy, insomnia, sleep apnea, or sleep paralysis are more likely to experience vivid sleep hallucinations. In fact, sleep paralysis and hallucinations often go hand in hand.
Research shows that hypnagogic hallucinations are a common symptom of narcolepsy, with the presence of hypnagogic hallucinations considered one of the cardinal signs of narcolepsy, which affects up to one in every 2,000 people. Studies indicate that about one-third of patients with narcolepsy have frequent hypnagogic hallucinations, which are often multimodal, combining visual, auditory, and tactile phenomena.
Dr. Shiyan Yeo, a sleep medicine specialist, explains: "When people experience sleep paralysis, they're awake but unable to move, and it's common for the dreaming part of the brain to stay active. That's why you get intense hallucinations that feel real — your brain's dream mode and wake mode are overlapping." In other words, your body is awake, but your brain hasn't finished shutting down the dream factory.
If you suspect you might have sleep apnea, our guide on signs of sleep apnea can help you identify the symptoms.
Some antidepressants, sleep aids, or recreational drugs can make sleep hallucinations more likely by altering REM sleep patterns. Our guide on sleeping pill side effects provides important information about medication-related sleep disruptions.
In themselves? No — they're harmless illusions. But they can be really distressing. Some people dread going to bed, lose sleep, or develop anxiety about nighttime.
Research confirms that for most people, hypnagogic hallucinations are not associated with a disorder and are considered harmless. However, if you're developing sleep anxiety around these experiences, our article on sleep anxiety can help you understand and manage these feelings.
In rare cases, if hallucinations come with other symptoms — like sudden muscle weakness during the day, severe daytime sleepiness, or frequent sleep paralysis — they might point to a condition like narcolepsy that needs treatment.
Most people don't need fancy tests — a doctor or sleep specialist will usually start with:
Detailed Sleep History: When do hallucinations happen? How often? What else is going on with your sleep?
Sleep Diary: Keeping track of bedtime, wake time, and any stressful life events can help spot patterns.
Sleep Study: Rarely needed, but may be helpful if there's concern about narcolepsy or another sleep disorder.
Dr. Suzanne Gorovoy, a sleep psychologist, says: "Most sleep hallucinations aren't a sign of mental illness — they're just a sign that sleep transitions got messy. Talking about them openly with a sleep specialist can help people feel less alone — and less afraid." In other words, you're not crazy, and you're definitely not the only one.
Understanding the telltale signs of insomnia can help you prepare for conversations with healthcare providers about your sleep patterns.
If your sleep hallucinations are happening more than once in a blue moon, there is plenty you can do. Most fixes focus on smoothing out your sleep cycles so dream content stays inside your dreams — where it belongs.
Sleep deprivation is one of the biggest triggers. Try to stick to 7–9 hours every night, and aim for a consistent sleep schedule. Our guide on perfect sleep duration can help you determine your ideal sleep needs.
Stress management can help reduce fragmented sleep. Try deep breathing, meditation, or gentle yoga to calm your mind before bed. Our guide on how to break the cycle of sleep anxiety offers practical techniques for calming your mind before bed.
Cut back on caffeine, nicotine, or heavy alcohol before bed — they can mess with your sleep cycles. Our detailed analysis of alcohol and sleep explains how drinking affects sleep quality.
Limit bright screens an hour before bed. Blue light can delay melatonin and make your sleep shallower. Our guide on using technology in the bedroom provides dos and don'ts for screen use before bed.
If you snore heavily, have insomnia, or struggle with daytime sleepiness, talk to a doctor. Treating underlying sleep disorders often makes hallucinations vanish. Our comprehensive guide on sleep therapy options can help you explore treatment possibilities.
Sometimes, sleep hallucinations get less scary when you remind yourself that they're harmless. A night light, a partner's reassuring presence, or calming music can help you stay grounded if you wake up seeing or hearing something odd.
Our comprehensive guide on sleep hygiene provides detailed strategies for creating optimal sleep conditions.
Most people don't need to panic over an occasional sleep hallucination. But it's worth seeing a doctor or sleep specialist if:
Consider exploring sleep coaching or CBT for insomnia as part of a comprehensive approach to improving your sleep quality.
Sleep hallucinations can be freaky, but they're more common — and more harmless — than they feel in the moment. They don't mean you're losing your grip on reality. They just mean your brain is blending dream and waking worlds for a few weird seconds.
Dr. Daniel Jin Blum, a clinical psychologist and sleep researcher, sums it up well: "The line between sleep and wake isn't as clear as we think. Sometimes, our brains hold onto dream content a little too long — and that's all a sleep hallucination is."
So the next time you see that shadow at the foot of your bed? Take a deep breath, remind yourself what's happening, and know you're far from alone. Understanding your overall sleep health is crucial for managing these experiences and improving your quality of life.
For those wondering what to do when you can't sleep, our comprehensive guide offers practical solutions for various sleep difficulties that might be contributing to these experiences.
Dr. Shiyan Yeo
Dr. Shiyan Yeo is a medical doctor with over a decade of experience treating patients with chronic conditions. She graduated from the University of Manchester with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery (MBChB UK) and spent several years working at the National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom, several Singapore government hospitals, and private functional medicine hospitals. Dr. Yeo specializes in root cause analysis, addressing hormonal, gut health, and lifestyle factors to treat chronic conditions. Drawing from her own experiences, she is dedicated to empowering others to optimize their health. She loves traveling, exploring nature, and spending quality time with family and friends.
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