Bambi Eloriaga-Amago
It’s a phenomenon that crosses cultures and borders. Here in the Philippines, we know it as bangungot (nightmare,) a feeling that someone or something is sitting on your chest while you’re lying asleep at night. The Ilokanos attribute this terrifying experience to the Batibat, a fat old woman who sits on your face or chest, suffocating you as you sleep.
In other countries, like in Hungary, the old woman is a witch trying to choke you in your sleep in a phenomenon they call boszorkany-nyomas (witches’ pressure.) The Indonesians have a term for it too, digeunton or pressed on. In the United States, some people call it “witch riding.”
While in other countries, the demon takes on the form of a dark, shadowy figure who appears at the foot of or by the side of your bed in the middle of the night. In Turkey, the murderous ghost is called the Karabasan, while in Thailand, it is known as the Phi Am. In some European countries, the demon takes on the form of a vampiric creature which sucks out your life force called the Incubus (if the demon is male) or the Succubus (female).
Whatever the form the demon takes on, and in whichever geographic location, there is one constant, similar detail that defines the experiences of those suffering from these ghostly night visitations: the feeling of suffocation or a difficulty in breathing, while something heavy presses down on your chest. Science, though, offers proof that the phenomenon is far from supernatural. Scientists and medical experts attribute the ghostly visions and feelings of extreme pressure on the chest to sleep paralysis.
When people fall into the REM (rapid eye movement) or dream state during normal sleep, the brain releases chemicals that paralyze muscles to ensure that our bodies don’t mimic the actions we experience during sleep. Eventually, these chemicals wear off as we wake. But if a person is on medication, is sleep deprived, or just can’t get into a normal, relaxing state, he wakes up or becomes conscious while in the dream state, but the chemicals render him unable to move.
This experience is called sleep paralysis, and this is when most people report seeing visions of ghosts or demons on or by their beds while they lie helpless and choking. Research state that about 6.2% of the population will experience sleep paralysis at least once in their lives.
It is unclear though why uniformly people only see demons or ghosts during the experience and not, say, elephants or angels or other creatures depending on the individual. What is certain, though, is that it is possible to eliminate these nightly “ghost visitations” with therapy, medication, or by having a healthy pre-sleep routine.
