Unwanted Company At Night

I know sleep paralysis is supposed to be medical/natural phenomena that happens to millions of people. I have experienced these weird experiences 3 times now and every time it nearly scared me to death. I am 31 and sleep on my own. The last time it happened was 2 weeks ago.

I had been to a yoga class and went to bed in a relaxed state. I then woke up in the middle of the night with a loud zooming noise (I thought road works were going on outside but it was approx 3am) and then felt an evil presence looming over my body. At this point I was too scared to open my eyes and my heart was racing. I then experienced an outer body experience. I felt this "thing" sticking its finger in my back (I was shivering and frozen with fear at this point) and I was being dragged out of my body. I thought the grim reaper had come to get me as a friend of mine died suddenly in his sleep at 33 years old.

I must have gone back to sleep and don't remember returning to my physical body. When I opened my eyes the next morning (in day light), I saw a ghostly figure float across my room. It was dark and hooded (no facial expression) and just floated away. I was scared senseless and couldn't stop thinking about it. I have read articles about sleep paralysis and it does make sense now what is happening. I am not a religious person and don't believe in ghosts.

I told my parents and my Dad thought I was going mad. But my Mum said a similar thing happened to her a few years ago when a tall dark figure entered her room and she thought it was going to take her away. She said it looked evil. I then remembered back to Christmas (and I had over-indulged a bit on the booze and food). I dreamt this dark figure was standing beside and trying to pull me out of my body. I thought back to my friend who died and asked this "thing" - if it took him and it replied "yes" in a menacing way. I just put it down to a bad dream but it seemed very realistic.

I then remembered back to a few years ago that I woke one morning feeling I had done it when I have been single and alone in bed. I could see an evil face looking down on me during the deed and was petrified. I thought someone had come in during the night and violated me. I tried to keep these experiences a secret for fear of being sectioned.

A friend of mine who is religious said I should get my house "blessed". I have had an unlucky time of it recently in real life and wonder if I have been cursed along the way... I haven't killed anyone and am a good and kind person so can't understand why. All I want is to lose this fear of falling asleep in case it happens again.