Editing Sleep paralysis (section)

=== Folklore ===
{{main|Night hag}}
The [[night hag]] is a generic name for a folkloric creature found in cultures around the world, and which is used to explain the phenomenon of sleep paralysis. A common description is that a person feels the presence of a supernatural malevolent being which immobilizes the person as if standing on the chest.<ref>''Folklore: An Encyclopedia of Beliefs, Customs, Tales, Music, and Art'', Volume 1, edited by Thomas A. Green, [https://books.google.com/books?id=S7Wfhws3dFAC&pg=PA588 p. 588] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150519001150/https://books.google.com/books?id=S7Wfhws3dFAC&pg=PA588|date=2015-05-19}}</ref> This phenomenon goes by many names.

==== Albania ====
In [[Albanian folk beliefs]], ''Mokthi'' is believed to be a male spirit with a golden [[Fez (hat)|fez]] hat who appears to women who are usually tired or suffering and stops them from moving. It is believed that if they can take his golden hat, he will grant them a wish, but then he will visit them frequently although he is harmless. There are talismans that can provide protection from Mokthi and one way is to put one's husband's hat near the pillow while sleeping. ''Mokthi'' or ''Makthi'' in [[Albanian language|Albanian]] means "Nightmare".<ref>{{cite book |last=Qazimi |first=Azem |title=Fjalor i Mitologjisë dhe Demonologjisë Shqiptare |publisher=Plejad |year=2008 |isbn=978-99956-706-1-0 |location=Tiranë, Albania |pages=97 |language=sq}}</ref>

==== Bengal ====
In [[Bangladeshi folk literature|Bengali folklore]], sleep paralysis is believed to be caused by a supernatural entity called ''[[Ghosts in Bengali culture|Boba]]'' ({{langx|bn|বোবা|lit=dumb}}). ''Boba'' attacks a person by strangling him when the person sleeps in a [[supine position]]. In [[Bengal]], the phenomenon is called ''Bobay Dhora'' ({{langx|bn|বোবায় ধরা|lit=Struck by ''Boba''}}).<ref>{{Citation|last=health.banglablog24.com|script-title=bn:রাতের বেলায় ‘বোবা ভূত ধরা’ এর প্রতিকার জানুন!|url=http://health.banglablog24.com/রাতের-বেলায়-বোবা-ভূত-ধরা/}}</ref>

==== Cambodia ====
Sleep paralysis among [[Cambodia]]ns is known as "the ghost pushes you down," and entails the belief in dangerous visitations from deceased relatives.<ref name=":3" />

==== Egypt ====
In [[Egypt]], sleep paralysis is conceptualized as a terrifying ''[[jinn]]'' attack''.''<ref name=":2" />

==== Italy ====
In the different regions of [[Italy]], there are many examples of supernatural beings associated with sleep paralysis. In the regions of [[Marche]] and [[Abruzzo]], it is referred to as a ''{{interlanguage link|Pandafeche|it}}'' or ''{{interlanguage link|pantafica|it}}'' attack;<ref name=":1" /> the ''Pandafeche'' usually refers to an evil [[Witchcraft|witch]], sometimes a ghostlike spirit or a terrifying catlike creature, that mounts on the chest of the victim and tries to harm him. The only way to avoid her is to keep a bag of sand or beans close to the bed, so that the witch will stop to count how many beans or sand-grains are inside it. A similar tradition is present in the [[Sardinia]]n folklore, where the ''Ammuntadore'' is known as a creature that mounts on the people's chest during their sleep to give them nightmares, and it can change its shape according to the person's fears. In Northern Italy, specifically in the [[Tyrol]] area, the ''Trud'' is a witch that sits on the people's chest at night, making them unable to breathe; to chase her away, people should make the [[Sign of the cross|sign of the Cross]], something that would need a great struggle in a situation of paralysis.<ref>{{cite book|title=Trentino da leggenda|publisher=Panorama|year=2000|isbn=|location=|pages=125}}</ref> A similar folklore is present in the [[Samnium|Sannio]] area, around the city of [[Benevento]], where the witch is called ''[[Witches of Benevento|Janara]]''.<ref name=":10" /> In Southern Italy, sleep paralysis is usually explained with the presence of a [[Sprite (folklore)|sprite]] standing on the people's chest; if the person manages to catch the sprite (or steal his hat), in exchange for his freedom (or to have his hat back) he can reveal the hiding place of a rich treasure; this sprite has different names in different regions of Italy: Monaciello in [[Campania]], Monachicchio in [[Basilicata]], Laurieddhu or Scazzamurill in [[Apulia]], Mazzmuredd in [[Molise]].<ref name=":10">{{cite book|last=Lazzarato|first=Francesca|title=Le creature del Piccolo Popolo|publisher=Mondadori|year=1995|isbn=88-04-40555-4|location=|pages=23–46}}</ref>

==== Newfoundland ====
In [[Newfoundland and Labrador|Newfoundland]], which is in eastern Canada, sleep paralysis is referred to as the Old Hag,<ref name=":8" /><ref>{{cite book|title=Hag (noun)|publisher=University of Toronto Press|others=W. J. Kirwin and J.D.A Widdowson|year=1990|editor-last=Story|editor-first=George|location=Toronto}}</ref> and victims of a ''hagging'' are said to be ''hag-ridden'' upon awakening.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Hufford|first=David|date=2005|title=Sleep Paralysis as Spiritual Experience|journal=Transcultural Psychiatry|volume=42|issue=1|pages=11–45|doi=10.1177/1363461505050709|pmid=15881267|s2cid=8400951}}</ref> Victims report being completely conscious, but unable to speak or move, and report a person or an animal which sits upon their chest.<ref name=":9">{{cite journal|last=Ness|first=Robert|date=1978|title=The old hag phenomenon as sleep paralysis: A biocultural interpretation|journal=Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry|volume=2|issue=1|pages=15–39|doi=10.1007/BF00052448|pmid=699620|s2cid=1613137}}</ref> Despite the name, the attacker can be either male or female.<ref>{{cite book|last=Hufford|first=David|title=Out of the Ordinary: Folklore and the Supernatural|publisher=University Press of Colorado|year=1995|editor-last=Walker|editor-first=Barbara|pages=11–45|chapter=Beings Without Bodies: An Experience-Centered Theory of the Belief in Spirits}}</ref> Some suggested cures or preventions for the Old Hag include sleeping with a Bible under the pillow,<ref name=":9" /> calling the sleeper's name backwards<ref>{{cite web|last=Rieti|first=Barbara|date=1989|title=The Black Heart in Newfoundland: The Magic of the Book|url=http://collections.mun.ca/cdm/ref/collection/cult_trad/id/3233|access-date=2020-06-25|website=Culture and Tradition Volume 13}}</ref> or in an extreme example, sleeping with a shingle or board embedded with nails strapped to the chest.<ref>{{cite journal|date=1896|title=Superstitions in Newfoundland|journal=The Journal of American Folklore|volume=9|issue=34|pages=222–223|doi=10.2307/533410|jstor=533410}}</ref> This object was called a Hag Board.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Guy|first=Ray|date=2010|title=That Old Nonsense|url=http://collections.mun.ca/cdm/compoundobject/collection/quarterly/id/40813/rec/65|journal=The Newfoundland Quarterly|volume=103|issue=2|pages=12–13}}</ref> The Old Hag is well-enough known in the province to be a pop culture figure, appearing in films and plays<ref>{{cite news|date=19 March 2018|title=Gordon Pinsent explores depression with short film Martin's Hagge|work=CBC.ca|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/martins-hagge-gordon-pinsent-1.4582725|access-date=27 June 2020}}</ref> as well as in crafted objects.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Jarvis|first=Dale Gilbert|date=October 2018|title=Exploring Folklore Through Craft with Janet Peter|url=https://www.mun.ca/ich/resources/ICH_Case_Study_001__Janet_Peter_WEB2.pdf|journal=Living Heritage Economy Case Study|volume=001}}</ref>

====Nigeria====
[[Nigeria]]<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Olunu|first1=Esther|last2=Kimo|first2=Ruth|last3=Onigbinde|first3=Esther Olufunmbi|last4=Akpanobong|first4=Mary-Amadeus Uduak|last5=Enang|first5=Inyene Ezekiel|last6=Osanakpo|first6=Mariam|last7=Monday|first7=Ifure Tom|last8=Otohinoyi|first8=David Adeiza|last9=Fakoya|first9=Adegbenro Omotuyi John|date=2018|title=Sleep Paralysis, a Medical Condition with a Diverse Cultural Interpretation|journal=International Journal of Applied and Basic Medical Research|volume=8|issue=3|pages=137–142|doi=10.4103/ijabmr.IJABMR_19_18|issn=2229-516X|pmc=6082011|pmid=30123741 |doi-access=free }}</ref> has myriad interpretations of the cause of sleep paralysis, due to numerous cultures and belief systems that exist there.

==== United States ====
Sleep paralysis is sometimes interpreted as space alien abduction in the [[United States]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=McNally|first1=Richard J.|last2=Clancy|first2=Susan A.|date=2005-03-01|title=Sleep Paralysis, Sexual Abuse, and Space Alien Abduction|journal=Transcultural Psychiatry|language=en|volume=42|issue=1|pages=113–122|doi=10.1177/1363461505050715|issn=1363-4615|pmid=15881271|s2cid=9569785}}</ref>