I usually listen to Coast to Coast late at night before turning in. An occasional caller or two will often call in with an 'old hag' story. The 'old hag' story is usually connected with sleep paralysis. I am sure many of our members have expirenced SP, I know I have, and it sure can be scarey! One such event occured as follows:

I turned in for bed one night (laying on my back)... no more than a few minutes had passed by when I opened my eyes and realized I couldn't move. The light in my room was still on. I scanned the room, still unable to move. Then I saw it, right above me, a shape, ...clear, wavering, moving like water,...floating directly above me. It had an evil presence to it. Somehow I knew it, somehow my body felt it, and the innate feeling to 'fight' it overcame me. This shape reminded me of the villian in the movie Predator. It started to come closer toward me. The closer it got the more horrifying it became. I was scared out of my mind! Old forgotten prayers often enter ones head in times of terror and I was no different. I started praying. It rushed at me as if to let me me know it didn't like what I was doing. It growled and hissed? It let me know it didn't like the word of God and proceeded to terrify me some more. I continued praying. It seemed to back off in pain and then lunge at me once again, repeatedly with every prayer...until finally it backed off and receeded until it was gone. I got up, scared, tired, ....and to the sound of a knock on my door.

The story doesn't end there, it only begins, but it's far different from the old hag story and not related to sleep paralysis.

I still can't forget that night.

Robbert

Sleep paralysis is nasty, nasty stuff. I know the research has said these are just hallucinations of an overly tired mind, but I've never bought that explanation 100%.

A few years back, my husband showed me some statistics that really got me thinking -- it showed the percentage of people who had taken this survey and how particular "hallucinations" were more common in certain areas. For example, one portion of the world saw an "old hag" when they experienced sleep paralysis, in another part, they experienced seeing a creature with leathery skin, another area predominantly saw shadowy forms, etc...I believe they said the "old hag" was the most common. What if these are not hallucinations -- what if these things have "territories"? What an awful thought!!

If I can ever find that article again I will post it. With my own experience from sleep paralysis, I was hallucinating a corpse of what appeared to be a drowning victim next to me and a very evil presence in back of me that was just a shapeless dark form. I tried for days to see if anyone meeting the description of what I saw had drowned in our area and never had any luck. It was a terrible experience and one I hope I never repeat.

Robert, what you are describing is something I've experienced before with a few exceptions. I have seen something waterlike floating over my bed but, it didn't rush at me. It formed from a small black dot into a large cloud. I felt a negative energy from it but, was not terrified of it because when it would hover over me, I felt as though it was more curious than anything. I have always thought of it more of a shadow ghost until I read your post.

Very interesting story.

I read a very interesting book called Vampires: The Occult Truth by Konstantinos that explained the kinds of experiences described here as psychic vampire attacks. As a person who has had these "waking dream attacks," as I call them, I'm not sure I buy this. There is another interesting book on the Old Hag subject called The Terror That Comes in the Night: An Experience-Centered Study of Supernatural Assault Traditions by David J. Hufford, in case anyone is interested.

Yipes Robbert that was one horrible experience you had. I too have read different explanations to the cause of SP of which some I don't quite buy into. Carrie I'm with you, the over tired mind explanation is one I don't agree with completely. I'm sure fatigue etc does play a part at times but don't believe it's the sole cause for SP or even that it explains it. Not every experience I've read on SP has come with an Old Hag or Creature hovering, often it's been the feeling of being paralyzed and sensing or feeling someone else there etc. I've had those types. Maybe there is a type of SP that is stress/tired related and one that is PN related? OBE's have also been associated with SP.

It's weird that so many ppl have experienced seeing an 'Old Hag' or creature that hovers. I also find it interesting that ppl have found when they starting praying and asking God to help them that the Hag, creatures, blobs etc go away, like you experienced Robbert. Actually I've often read ppl found prayer helped no matter what type of SP they were having.

I don't know if the 'Old Hag' exists or not but whatever it/she is there seems to be a lot of ppl out there that have stories to tell. Maybe she is a Tulpa? Would fit considering so many have believed in her existence. Carrie that may explain why certain "hallucinations" are common in certain areas? Depending on what most ppl in that area have believed (or seen) is the tulpa that is created?

The tulpa theory sounds logical to me. That would fit it with certain cultural beliefs in various areas.

James had problems with sleep paralysis when he was in college. According to him, his would sometimes alternate between a leathery skinned reptilian/human creature sitting on him to a formless, black blob.

Oddly enough, years later, I met a young woman who had lived in the same apartment complex a few years after James had lived there. She had a really terrifying experience, and felt that "something malevolent" had tried to take over her body and caused her to be unable to move. According to her, when the experience ended and she felt that whatever it was had left, she heard an audible popping sound. Having a strong religeous background, the girl immediately called her minister and spent the night with him and his wife. She moved out of the apartment soon after that.

Both experiences being in the same building make me think that there may be more to this stuff than just an overly tired mind. I agree with Cat, I think there may be different forms of sleep paralysis, some which are fatigue related and some that may be paranormal.

Rarely is anything explainable completely by one thing.
Personally, I can't remember ever having SP. Just about everything else I've experienced but I can't remember on case of SP.
The mind can do funny things. And just about anything you can think of.
You know some must be caused by the brain not coming fully awake and you can't get your nervous system to respond properly. This could cause intense fear. You could project that something is attacking you or holding your down.
And I know for a fact that nasty spirits exist who do attack you.
So I too believe that cases vary and reasons vary.
And I hope I never have a case of SP.
Now watch. Sometime tonight ..........

I do not buy the sleep paralysis explaination 100% either. One night during a struggle with the Old Hag, I made her tell me her name..she said, "Desdemona". I did not know at that time that Desdemona is a character in "Othello". Seems this character was suffocated by her husband who thought she had cheated on him, (or something to that effect).
It may be intresting to note that my mother's maiden name is Haggard, which is derived from the term "hag-ridden". I have a theory that includes withcraft, but no way to back it up, so I will stop here with that.
Anyway, I had these experiences on and off for a few years just prior to developing Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. (which was then preceeded by exposure to two types of mono).
However, before the onset of that problem; I chose one paticular night before falling asleep, to hunt this %@#$! down, and I found her hiding in a broom closet of all places. LOL, I quickly got in her face and told her I was no longer afraid of her and that I would destroy her if she ever bothered me again. Just like in the movies, the old hag experiences ended.....it has been almost 7 years since the last attack.
However, the ones I had were absolutely horrendous and I should probably mention my sister had very similar experiences with the old hag.
I hate to agree, but these things may very well have territories to preside over.
I think a good healthy dose of white light and solid self-esteem can go a long way in thwarting these attacks, but this is just my humble opinion.

Ravenheart

I personally have never experienced this, but its sounds very frightening. might i ask what does the old hag look like though, if anyone has heard of it or gone through it?

The old Hag may be experienced as nothing more than a dark shadowy entity, although sometimes she appears as a dark, ugly, unkempt, old grey haired woman, sort of the hollywood stereotype of the wicked witch.
This is speaking strictly from my own experience and what I have heard others say about it. The scariest element to me, is the sense of imminent death one feels as the hag presses on your chest, (as if she is sucking the life force out of you). This is supposed to be a hallucination associated with sleep paralysis, But the term sleep paralysis is relatively new compared to the tales of the old hag as part of the original definition of a nightmare.

I will see if I can dig up anymore information on this and get back to you,

Ravenheart

Ok here are a few links that you may wish to have a look at concerning The Old Hag Syndrome, but first I want to say that I do not believe the scientific reasons that may cause OHS is a complete or only explaination for it.

I personally believe that there are astral entities that are bigger than humans and they do not necessarily have our best interests at heart. In other words, I believe the OHS to be an astral attack. I have had some difficulty sleeping due to stress and pain in the past, but I have gone through sleep studies and I do not have a sleep disorder that would cause this.

Finally, it is only the individual person who decides what is real and what is not, so here we go:

http://paranormal.about.com/library/weekly/aa112000a.htm[/URL]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hag[/URL]

http://whatwasthen.com/old_hag.html[/URL]

If you find you still want more information, I would suggest using a paranormal search engine.

Happy Hunting,
Ravenheart

[ January 17, 2007, 04:07 PM: Message edited by: Ravenheart ]

okay thanks alot ravenheart!

Well, from all the reaserch ive done, it is really hard for me to come up with a conclusion.

I believe in ghosts, however, this seems like it might be SP. It is weird to think everyone is experiencing similair things.

I asked a freind about it, and they said they went through a form of it.

They heard footsteps running up the stairs and into the their kids room, it felt evil, but they couldnt move or get up or do anything.

It happened recently.

Im not sure what to think, the mind is a powerful thing and i do think our minds are capable of conjuring up horrible scenarios. Ofcourse, we never know, it could be the supernatural.

Unfortantly, i think its just another once of thos horrible questions that will never get precise answers!

I can understand your confusion over coming to a conclusion, When reality is mostly perception, isn't a hallucination just as real as the reality we deem to be "normal" reality???

This is what makes me think that perhaps science doesn't thouroughly explain The Old Hag. I do understand about hypnogogic hallucinations but, I believe it has more to be with the "in-between" world of being awake vs being asleep.

Witches have long made use of in-between places and in-between times. It makes me wonder if it so far-fetched for an evil type of witch to use that in-between world as a portal to project themselves, as they do with other in-between times and places. Aren't rips in the space time continuum considered to really exist? (an example of an in-between place is the Magick Circle casting of a witch, which becomes a "Time that is not a time, in a Place that is not a place", and an inbetween time is 12:00 Midnight, because it is not exactly day nor is it exactly night). Again, a possible rip in time and space???

Scientific evidence that a thing is so, does not necessarily rule out the possibilty that an opposing Spiritual thing is not also possible.

I am not trying to argue against science, but I think the science of matter, is the wrong gage for things that are spiritual in nature. There are many things that we know exist that science has never "proven" and therefore.......

I remain your optimistic skeptic,
Ravenheart

[ January 23, 2007, 09:01 AM: Message edited by: Ravenheart ]

I definitly see were you are coming from!

I feel that way, however, my personality always leans towards science before anything else, which makes it hard for me to see it an other way.

That makes sense to me.

Ravenheart

Hate to be a PITA but based on my experiences, the "Old Hag" thing has more reality to it than myth but a myth is easier to deal with, isn't it?

The old hag syndrom has been studied by science for years. Study shows that the mind is in the hypmogogic state. Where the brain is full awake and the body is in complete relaxation. Or better known as realm 5. We recognize realm 6 as the rapid eye movement the deepest part of our sleep pattern. Many people suffer from this sleep paralysis state. Know to make matters even more interesting. Those who suffer form this form of paralysis can wake up and life goes back to normal. But this is the world that true schizophrenics live in 24/7. What causes night terrors or old hag still mistifies the medical world. Good subject