She did. He discovered that beliefs and reports of the paranormal, such as ghosts, omens, Will-o’-the-Wisp, ghost ships death omens and others were common and found in many cultures. The rarest are people who have frequent chronic attacks for long periods of time. Hufford found theoretical causes of Old Hag. Sleep paralysis is a condition characterized by temporary paralysis of the body shortly after waking up (known as hypnopompic paralysis) or, less often, shortly before falling asleep (known as hypnagogic paralysis). All images are taken from my personal Thinkstock Photography account unless stated otherwise. It is estimated that as many as ten times more Hmong died during the Vietnam war than American soldiers [3]. Jean and John were dating steadily, but Robert was trying to date her. â Follow me on Twitter or connect on LinkedIn to keep up with my latest posts. genetics, cultural beliefs, PTSD, and the acute stress of being a new immigrant. The haunting and death of Pamela and the haunting of Tara's only daughter, pushes Annette to fight this creature before more lives are lost. The Old Hag was terrifying but harmless; whatever happened in the night to the Hmong killed them. It is almost like the brain is stuck midway between dreaming and being awake. These cannot explain all attacks. After a number of paranormal encounters, some resulting in mysterious deaths, Annette becomes convinced that the Old Hag Syndrome is supernatural rather than psychological threat. Shadow people is another name given to the being often associated with attacks of … She could not urinate. They have heard footsteps before the attack, seeing monstrous shapes, hearing rasping breathing and/or smelling repulsive odors. Some victims report auditory and visual phenomena. These are some that are common to these attacks. It is likely that it was caused by a combination of factors e.g. Old Hag syndrome is usually explained away as an evolutionary hiccup, a terrifying but harmless side effect of a mechanism that evolved to protect you. Each theory offers its own evidence and beliefs. He wrote about this in the second century. I wanted to go to school, but I had no money. I kept waking up, because I was thinking so much about my problems. dietary deficiency) which resolved as the immigrants spent more time in the US. This forced them to flee under risk of death (or worse if they were imprisoned in re-education camps). He could not speak, just grunt. It is also of interest that the cases peaked in the early eighties â perhaps the belief in the Dub Tsog died out and hence removed one of the principal components which caused the syndrome. One of the common experiences is of being attacked or suffocated by an evil entity â often referred to as the âOld Hagâ in Western countries. Old Hag Syndrome book. While this sounds like a run-of-the-mill urban legend, the curious thing about the “Old Hag Syndrome” is that it is a highly reported phenomenon. 2014. âFreddy Lives: An Oral History of A Nightmare on Elm Street.â Vulture. The old myth is that a traveling spirit in the shape of the old hag will pass through your house on some given night and sit on your chest and keep you from moving or breathing. He looked up to see an old lady perched on his chest just smiling at him. Commonly called the old hag syndrome, and other names depending on the various parts of the world. It is also possible that modern cardiology is able to detect and treat more subtle heart abnormalities in childhood (potentially eliminating cardiac factors that may have been contributory). A doctor who had treated people in the community for over twenty years was consulted. See Also. The problem, unknown in other ethnic groups, has now claimed more than 104 men, averaging 33 years of age, and one woman, according to Dr. Gib Parrish, a CDC medical epidemiologist. After a number of paranormal encounters, some resulting in mysterious deaths, Annette becomes convinced that the Old Hag Syndrome is supernatural rather than psychological threat. Sleep paralysis is a state, during waking up or falling asleep, in which a person is aware but unable to move or speak. This likely resulted in sleep deprivation, a known factor that increases the risk of sleep paralysis, enhances the release of stress hormones and generally puts more strain on the body (including the heart). http://www.vulture.com/2014/10/nightmare-on-elm-street-oral-history.html, http://articles.latimes.com/1988-04-24/local/me-2575_1_southeast-asian-refugees, Celebrating âSocial Justiceâ Without Compromising on Integrity, Letâs Talk About #FreeBritney and Misogyny in Pop Culture, Good Girls Is the Ultimate Joan Holloway Revenge Fantasy, Sheila Johnson Shares Her Best Advice For Finding Your Purpose, Smashgate: The Only Thing Separating Phoebe and David is 280 Characters, Of Men and Nice Guys in âJuliet, NakedââââThe Notebook in My Pocket. The reason why the “witch” saw the doctor? Interest in neuroscience, behavioural economics and cryptocurrencies. Hufford began his research in the Old Hag Syndrome when he was a member of the faculty in the Folklore Department of Memorial University of Newfoundland in 1971. Further as word spread of such deaths in the community the Hmong men started to do things which may have made the situation worse. OBEs? People around the world have claimed, at one time or another, to have woken up in terror, paralyzed. ISBN: 0-8160-2846-X., Hufford, David J., The Terror that Comes in the Night. In March 2003 I investigated four sinister cases of ‘Old Hag Syndrome’ across Liverpool. Excessive production of stress hormones can in certain cases cause death â most likely by their effect on the heart. I was lying in bed. They were recent arrivals (median time 17 months). Adler studied the Hmong and their relationship to … If you have tsog tsuam, the ancestor spirit is supposed to protect you. He told her to remove the curse she had put on the victim. As the Laotian government fell under communist rule, the Hmong became targets of the regime. There is a paranormal element to them. Want more like this? Quite possibly one of the most terrifying sleep related disorders that affects more people than previously thought. I heard a noise, but when I turned-tried-I could not move. After a number of paranormal encounters, some resulting in mysterious deaths, Annette becomes convinced that the Old Hag Syndrome is supernatural rather than psychological threat. It came to the bed, over my feet, my legs. The next morning he explained what had happened to his roommate, he researched it and came across across ‘old hag syndrome’ i will leave that to you to look up, but to this day he swears he never heard of it in till that night. No obvious abnormalities were found on autopsy. The experiences of Old Hag Syndrome, something that happens during sleep stages, vary. It soon became frighteningly apparent, however, that this notorious evil spirit had made the journey to America as well.â. Hufford is Director of the Doctors Kienle Center for Humanistic Medicine. She was paralyzed and frightened. In 1981, the peak year of these deaths, 26 men, often Hmong refugees from … The list below is from wikipedia. Among these evil spirits assumed to have been left behind was the nocturnal pressing spirit dub tsog (pronounced âda choâ) . I got up and turned all the lights on. Some of those who fled ended up in the United States (many in California). Doctor and Blogger. Old Hag attacks can happen at night and during the day. Victims of "Old Hag Syndrome" awake to find that they cannot move, even though they can see, hear, feel and smell. One person said it was like someone was holding a person down when he was sleeping. Almost all the dead were men â just one woman died. In their native country the Hmong would traditionally make sacrifices to feed and placate such evil spirits (which were also known as tsog tsuam). Here was a youngster having a vision of a horror that everyone older was denying. Entities? In Newfoundland sleep paralysis has been called an attack of “ Old Hag.” In China it has been labeled “ ghost oppression.” A new study reports that in Mexico people may say that sleep paralysis feels like “a dead body climbed on top of me.” Sleep deprivation may trigger an episode of sleep paralysis. The presence of fibrillation (basically an unproductive flailing of the heart) in the victims (as stated in the LA Times article) is consistent with this. October 20. Galen, the Greek physician, believed Old Hag Syndrome was linked with indigestion. The traditional Hmong spiritual beliefs contained a form of spiritual panpsychism â the idea that all things have a consciousness or spirit. The victims awake to find that they cannot move, even though they can see, hear, feel and smell. I tried to yell so someone sleeping very close to me will hear. The treatment did nothing. The Mysterious Case of Black Hope Cemetery, Hobbits Existed: The Real-Life Hobbits From Flores Island, Pareidolia: You Can’t Believe What You See, Vanishing People: Disappearance Of Jerrold I. Potter From a Flying Plane, The Dorothy Marie Harvey Dollhouse Tombstone, Big Nose George Parrott… Who Became a Pair of Shoes, Daily Items Which May Have Magical Qualities, The Eerie Tale Of Ghost Ship Lady Lovibond and Goodwin Sands, In Japan, Allowed To Grow Hybrids Of Humans And Animals, New Theory Suggests That We Travel To Parallel Universes When We Dream, Pyramids Discovered In Russia Twice As Old As Egyptian, Mummified Captain Found In Ghost Ship Drifting At Sea, Loveland Castle: One Of The Most Haunted Sites In Ohio. The Old Hag syndrome has similarities to characteristics of Poltergeists and also has associations with reported cases of … Episodes generally last less than a couple of minutes. They all died or at least become seriously unwell during sleep. Some professionals call it sleep paralysis, and perhaps it is. The original version of this post was made on my Steemit blog here (Steemit is a new way to monetise your content find out more here). When he finally fell asleep, his parents thought this crisis was over. That became the central line of Nightmare on Elm Street.â. He was told to put a board over his chest and hold an open pocket knife. Daily updated website dedicated to unexplained mysteries. Folk theories of cause and treatment are outlined based on 13 months of field research in a community on the northeast coast of Newfoundland. Ultimately it is likely that the combination of news of the deaths with the Hmong spiritual beliefs created a compelling and frightening narrative which resulted in behaviours which may have made the situation worse. More information can be provided on request. On leaving their homeland the Hmong felt that they had been cut off from their ancestral spirits, who would previously be able to protect them from attack from evil spirits: âIn interviews with refugees, it became clear that many Hmong feared that the ancestor spirits who protected them from harm in Laos would be unable to travel across the ocean to the United States and thus could not shield them from spiritual dangers. The mystery of SUNDS in the Hmong population during the 1970s-1980s is a fascinating one. The night hag or old hag is the name given to a supernatural creature, commonly associated with the phenomenon of sleep paralysis.It is a phenomenon during which a person feels a presence of a supernatural malevolent being which immobilizes the person as if … An Old Hag is a nocturnal phenomenon involving suffocation, paralysis, and supernatural Smells, sounds and apparitions, blamed on night terror, Demons or witches. An older Annette, desperate to be closer to her mentally unstable mother, becomes an intern at the psychiatric hospital where her mother resides. 1988. âDeaths of Asians in Sleep Still a Mystery,â April 24. My chest was frozen-like I was drowning, I had no air. Had it not been for the board, he would have been killed. Perhaps the Hmong have a particular predisposition towards something like Tako-Tsubo or some form of heart conduction abnormality which can be triggered by extreme stress. In 1981, the peak year of these deaths, 26 men, often Hmong refugees from the highlands of northern Laos, died in their sleep. The interesting thing is that sleep paralysis is very common and other than the fear it induces it does not (normally) cause any harm. Folk theories of cause and treatment are outlined based on 13 months of field research in a community on the northeast coast of Newfoundland. By the time they got to him, he was dead. There was the elderly woman who woke up every night for a month. Things were fine, and then suddenly the young son was having very disturbing nightmares. Another case is the hagging of a woman. Some of the greatest stories are often inspired by real life events. Shelley Adler [3] presents some interesting cultural context which may help to explain (at least partly) why the Hmong may have had a more extreme response to sleep paralysis type phenomenon. This practice stopped when they moved to America as one Hmong immigrant told Adler: âAt least once a year those evil spirits must be fed. The Hmong were people of Laotian origin who had fought for the Americans (via CIA funding) during the Vietnam war. For example Tako-Tsubo syndrome (which I wrote about here) is a type of stress induced cardiomyopathy that can cause sudden death. In one case, those night terrors may have led to a series of deaths. This paper describes a syndrome of psychological and physical symptoms involving body paralysis and hallucinations traditionally interpreted in Newfoundland as an attack of ‘Old Hag’. He discovered that beliefs and reports of the paranormal, such as ghosts, omens, Will-o’-the-Wisp, ghost ships death omens and others were common and found in many cultures. Both of the women were cured. At University of Pennsylvania, he is an adjunct professor of religious studies and a faculty member in the Master in Bioethics Program. Telepathy? He felt pressure on his chest, as if he were being strangled. The struggles and difficulties of fleeing persecution to come to a new country should not be underestimated: âHmong refugees have experienced a host of hardships including language and employment problems, changing generational and gender roles , survivor guilt and trauma-induced emotional and psychological disorders. He told his parents he was afraid that if he slept, the thing chasing him would get him, so he tried to stay awake for days at a time. The old hag has paid you visit. 2016. âSleep Paralysis in Brazilian Folklore and Other Cultures: A Brief Review.â Frontiers in Psychology 7 (September): 1294. Psychiatric? Sá, José F. R. de, and Sérgio A. Mota-Rolim. Debated English Case: Bealings Bell-Ringing Poltergeist, The Underground City Of The Lizard People. Her nightmare becomes a frightening reality where the only hope of survival lies somewhere between death and madness. The Hungarians know it … When I was a child I loved watching horror films and one of the big horror film franchises of the time was the âNightmare on Elm Streetâ Series. His advice was for her to urinate in a bottle, cap it and put it under her bed, which she did. To avoid a Hag, one draws blood or uses the word of God and keeps a light on. The man repeated, “Hag good Hag,” from time to time. In an October 2014 interview with Vulture.com â Wes Craven (the creator of Nightmare on Elm Street) recounted [1]: âIâd read an article in the L.A. Times about a family who had escaped the Killing Fields in Cambodia and managed to get to the U.S. If you feed the ancestors regularly, then whenever you have tsog tsuam, the ancestor spirits will protect youâ. Or combination of two or more? After a long time, it went away it just left. Sudden awakening… Unseen pressure on chest…. Old Hag Syndrome When I was very young, maybe 10 years old, I had this dream that scared me so deeply, it stayed with me for the next 17 years. I was so tired, because I was working very hard then. They occurred amongst East Asian immigrants in the late 1970s/early 1980s (primarily affecting a group known as the Hmong). The haunting and death of Pamela and the haunting of Tara's only daughter, pushes Annette to fight this creature before more lives are lost. The “Old Hag” syndrome. I wasnât able to access the LA Times archives for the original article that Craven read (as it is behind a paywall) but I did find a later article which contained the following summary [2]: âIn 1981, the Centers for Disease Control began tracking a mysterious rash of sudden unexplained nocturnal deaths occurring in apparently healthy, male immigrants from Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. When he woke the next morning, the knife was impaled in the board. "Old Hag Syndrome" The Night Terrors Also See: The haunted Art of Henry Fuseli here! After this happened, the girl said that if she had known he was going to hag her, she would have had a bottle ready because of the belief that a spirit will die if it is swung at with one. - Account from a 33 year old Hmong immigrant (from âRefugee Stress and Folk Belief: Hmong Sudden Deathsâ by Shelley Adler [3]). Paranormal news, articles, real ghost stories, UFO, aliens and everything from A to Z of the unexplained, strange & odd. However, after an evening of ghost stories and games with their friend Tara, what started as innocent fun soon turns into a nightmare. The above incident is a classic example of what has become known as the "old hag" syndrome and is one of many such letters I receive from readers each month. They try to struggle, scream or move, but experience paralysis. Ninety-eight percent of the deaths occurred between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. The belief continued into modern times. Later, Robert learned that according to lore, the way to call a hag is to recite the Lord’s Prayer backwards in the devil’s name. Her father was able to bring her around by repeating her name backwards. That night, she saw the man standing over her bed with a knife. Sleep paralysis is also often referred to as ‘Old Hag Syndrome’ or the ‘Night Hag’ which is one name given to the creature that sufferers of sleep paralysis sometimes feel to have been visited by. It may occur as a single episode or be recurrent. This proves that this issue is a problem worldwide, and it appears the whole world seems to think there is something evil about the experience. Buy now and download a free Kindle book with paperback purchase via Kindle Matchbook! This seems to be one example of a spate of deaths that became known as Sudden Nocturnal Death Syndrome (SUNDS). Her mouth foamed. Usually victims were simply found dead, but when medics arrived quickly, the menâs hearts were fibrillating or contracting wildly, a symptom Parrish said may result from numerous possible causes.â. He believed the Hag was the result of a curse. Witchcraft? Although we have a strong idea of the likely contributory factors â this particular mystery has never been conclusively solved. âFirst, I was surprised but right away, I got real scared. Most common are those people who experience attacks once or occasionally with recurrences happening months or years later. After a number of paranormal encounters, some resulting in mysterious deaths, Annette becomes convinced that the Old Hag Syndrome is supernatural rather than psychological threat. Solace was taken, however, in the conviction that the myriad evil spirits who challenged Hmong well-being in Laos would also be prevented from following the Hmong to their new home. Whilst Tako-Tsubo seems to predominantly affect women, there may well be a particular subset that affects men more. He was always lying on his back when this happened and, usually, he was also stressed. Fans of classic horror novels like The Exorcist and The Omen will feel that familiar chill within the pages of Old Hag Syndrome by Tim Dankanich. During an episode, one may hallucinate (hear, feel, or see things that are not there), which often results in fear. Adler, S. R. 1995. âRefugee Stress and Folk Belief: Hmong Sudden Deaths.â Social Science & Medicine 40 (12): 1623â29. Then they heard screams in the middle of the night. There were reports that some of them were using alarm clocks to wake them up regularly during the night so that they would not sleep too deeply, â some were even trying to avoid sleep altogether. The Hag appeared when he was sleeping, but its presence woke him. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. There is sometimes the feeling of a great weight on the chest and the sense that there is a sinister or evil presence in the room. This, combined with the belief that they were no longer under ancestral spiritual protection may have left them more prone to excessive fear and hence an extreme, potentially fatal fear response. Her nightmare becomes a frightening reality where the only hope of survival lies somewhere between death and madness. The haunting and death of Pamela and the haunting of Tara's only daughter, pushes Annette to fight this creature before more lives are lost. Hufford began his research in the Old Hag Syndrome when he was a member of the faculty in the Folklore Department of Memorial University of Newfoundland in 1971. He could hear the footsteps and recognize it. There was paralysis and all he could do was scream. When the man learned about the bottle, the hagging stopped. I think that the most likely explanation, if this is true, is that this was done by an out of body experience, OBE. Having experienced it myself many times I can attest to how terrifying the experience actually is. Marks, Craig, and Rob Tannenbaum. The syndrome has been recognised by psychologists for many years, but no one is sure whether the cause is supernatural or … In Newfoundland, Canada, people traditionally call it “old hag” syndrome because it feels as though a witch-like creature is perched on the chest. Several days later, the reputed witch went to see the doctor to ask him to have the victim undo the bottle. Old Hag Syndrome is a nocturnal phenomena that involves a feeling of immobilization, suffocation, odd smells and feelings and is sometimes accompanied by immense fear. Read reviews from world’s largest community for readers. He thought that maybe the Hag did not return because it thought it had killed him. Ninety-eight percent of the deaths occurred between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. LA Times. Enter your email address below to subscribe to our newsletter. Science has no explanations for the causes of the attacks and why they happen. He found out that the victim believed that an old lady who was known as a witch was witching her. People believed that a person would die if not awakened. I tried to move-using a force that I can-a strength that I can have. Fans of classic horror novels like The Exorcist and The Omen will feel that familiar chill within the pages of Old Hag Syndrome by Tim Dankanich.
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