WEIRD. This has never happened to me and frankly, it scared me. Somehow I managed to, at some point during the night, get my hand up under my head on my pillow. My arm was bent around my head. I woke up because I had to "go". Memory is a little foggy because I was half asleep but I remember thinking that my hand didn't feel right (I guess it didn't feel at all). I think I must have reached back with my left hand and lifted my right hand up and let it go... my right hand fell, full force, onto my forehead as if it were something alien to my body. Then I began to feel the blood rushing into my arm below my shoulder. All seems OK now but I wonder how long before something like that would cause permanent damage... a friend of a friend did something REALLY stupid. He was into drug abuse and got a fentanyl patch, he used a needle and hit the gel. His dad found him unconscious in his rom after about 10 hours. He had fell in such a way that his leg was in an un-natural position under his body and had had the circulation cut off so long they had to amputate his leg... this worries me. I am not abusing drugs though and I can't imagine that my arm would ever get the circulation cut off for that long but then, I don't know how long is too long either.
It took a couple of minutes before everything felt sort of normal.
Is it normal at all. I wonder because while I've had a foot or hand get circulation cut off and go to "sleep" before, I've never had a whole limb do it and then fall onto my head. I'm glad it didn't hit me in the eye or nose...
So, any ideas? Anything like this ever happen to you?
Thanks.
 
Julien

I get hit by Andy when he's asleep.  Does that count?
 
 
At least he claims he's asleep....

Karyn
I get hit by Andy when he's asleep.  Does that count?
 
 
At least he claims he's asleep....

Thanks for the laugh... . I needed it!
My wife does not hit me but when she lays on her back she always turns her head in my direction and in deep sleep, blows at me. It is OK early in the night. I just smell the wine but in the wee hours... well... but hey! I have to hit myself. At least you have someone to do it for you.
Karyn, it was weird. Like my arm was a corpse arm.... maybe I am turning into a zombie! CARL....
That reminds me of a zombie tee I saw on Teepublic.. it is a cartoon of Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and he's a zombie saying "Coral..." LOL.
 
J

jbow

Karyn
I get hit by Andy when he's asleep.  Does that count?
 
 
At least he claims he's asleep....

Thanks for the laugh... . I needed it!
 
J

You think it's funny?  He's a big guy... 
 
 
 
 

 
 

This never happens when you sleep in a straight jacket. At least, that's why they told me they were putting it on me. 
 
My understanding (yes, that's an oxymoron) is that a person normally wakes up before permanent damage is done. I've heard that doctors have some actual knowledge about health conditions, but I'm not convinced. 
 
Have you considered the possibility that Andy has taken control of your arm?

When I was younger I sometimes used to wake up with a "dead leg." Actually it wasn't dead in as much as it tingled quite unbearably, but I couldn't move it. It would really freak me out, to wake up half paralyzed like that. I'd slowly feel life coming back to it and everything was OK. I have also woken up with dead arms due to sleeping awkwardly on them. I don't think it's anything to worry about to be honest, but as with anything else that worries you it's worth getting a checkup if only for your peace of mind. 

It's happened to me maybe once or twice in my life, but I never took any notice of it. Once I woke up (while the arm was asleep), I just changed positions and all was well.
 
My wife however complains that her bottom end is always falling asleep, and I told her yes dear.......I heard it snoring.    
 
 
 
 
 
 
(I keeeed...I keeed.....I keeed)

Mesh
It's happened to me maybe once or twice in my life, but I never took any notice of it. Once I woke up (while the arm was asleep), I just changed positions and all was well.
 
My wife however complains that her bottom end is always falling asleep, and I told her yes dear.......I heard it snoring.    
 
 
 
 
 
 
(I keeeed...I keeed.....I keeed)

LOL...

Thanks... I feel better knowing it isn't just me. I just hope it doesn't hit me in the head again! Zombie Arm!

This has happened to me all the time and it is indeed quite dangerous. I am really long, lanky and have lowish blood pressure. Wake up and the whole arm is completely dead numb. I can flop it around which I do furiously until the sensation returns (gets the blood flowing back into it) and it is tingly to the point of painful as that happens.
 
It used to happen a lot more when I was drinking heavily (so I would not wake up as easily as I do now). I never thought much of it back then but a guy my buddy knew had his entire arm suffer extreme nerve damage to the point it was essentially paralyzed. The guy supposedly wasn't a drunk or an addict or anything. Just slept weird and woke up with a dead arm. Terrifying prospect for a guitar player.
 
That is kind of what happened to Dave Mustaine. I don't know the full story but supposedly he was sitting in a chair in some weird way that it cut off the circulation to his arm (not sure if he nodded off or what but IDK how you wouldn't notice something like that). It cause severe nerve damage and he had to have surgeries and tons of rehab to be able to play again. Not sure if this was during one of his relapses or if he was sober... but I'm inclined to think if the claim is he was sober he is lying (junkies tend to do that).
 
Anyhoo... when I sleep I have pillows that I bear hug throughout the night (which helps keep my spine aligned) that seems to minimize the eventuality if waking up with dead arm. Probably because instead of my skeleton crushing the arteries it's a pillow so at least some blood can get through. Have to keep a pillow between my legs too otherwise a ton of other nastiness happens.
 
Wrapping my arms around another human while I sleep? Fuggedaboutit.