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Falling slowly
Why you feel like you're falling in your sleep
Don’t be scared by the hypnic jerk.
WHAT ON EARTH is a hypnic jerk and why does it frighten the crap out of us?
That’s the name for the sensation of feeling like you are falling off a cliff as you drift off to sleep.
There are a number of theories for why this happens, and this video explores some of them. (We like the evolutionary theory, but mostly because we would love to sleep in a hammock.)
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