Artist Statement: 

Sleep paralysis is when the mind is half awake, but the body still thinks it is under the REM cycle resulting in being unable to move. However, since the mind is still operating from the effects from dreaming, it can lead to hallucinations. These hallucinations can be visual, auditory, tactile (feeling of being touched), and olfactory. This scary experience can last from a few seconds up to a few minutes. My most recent bout of sleep paralysis occurred in September 2020. I woke up, unable to move and felt like my arms were being held down by an invisible force. I was forced to lay there paralyzed as I heard loud knocking at my window and footsteps walking towards me. Eventually, I was able to snap out of it.

 

My comic, Paralysis, follows the strife of a human, wood spirit, and demon as well as their interactions with each other. Each character was actually drawn at a different time, but I found myself sketching their interactions with each other. I am transforming my terrifying experiences with sleep paralysis into a semi-fictional comic as a method of gaining perspective. I created the comic with a combination of traditional and digital art.