Talk:Sleep paralysis

Pathophysiology Jargon

The pathophysiology section is currently chock-a-block with jargon that is difficult to read by those who don't make a living from being neuroscience nerds. If you edit this page, please remember it is intended to be encyclopedic and able to be read by generally literate members of the general public. It isn't just a textbook for you and your peers. Cryptarch (talk) 10:52, 22 October 2023 (UTC)

Merger proposal

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section. A summary of the conclusions reached follows.

That consolidation of some form is warranted, but to not merge as proposed; no consensus for specific alternative proposals, with stale discussion. Klbrain (talk) 08:45, 2 October 2023 (UTC)

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I propose merging Night hag into Sleep paralysis. I think the content in Night hag can be covered in Sleep_paralysis#Society_and_culture. A merger would not cause any article-size or weighting problems in the latter article. The issue is that most of the content in Night hag is unsourced or poorly sourced. Mooonswimmer 15:06, 20 April 2023 (UTC)

Support merge The Night hag article content has a significant overlap with this article, and it looks like that article would be significantly shorter if all the content about [sleep paralysis but not specifically night hag] was removed. Schazjmd (talk) 15:53, 20 April 2023 (UTC)

Agree that consolidation would be useful, but my feeling is that Night hag has cultural importance best discssed separately from Sleep paralysis. I'd recommend keeping a summary of night hag at Sleep paralysis#Folklore, linking to it as per WP:SUMMARY. Klbrain (talk) 13:34, 27 June 2023 (UTC)

Merge and Redirect to Hag where it is already mostly covered. No need for a separate article. 5Q5|^✉ 12:40, 9 July 2023 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Night hag and Newfoundland

Misleading framing under the Newfoundland section

The current structuring of the "Newfoundland" subsection under Society and Culture implies that the terms "night hag" and "hag-ridden" originated in or are exclusive to Newfoundland. This is historically inaccurate.

"Hag-ridden" and the concept of nocturnal spirit oppression date back to at least the mid-17th century in British folklore. Newfoundland did not invent these terms; rather, British and Irish immigrants brought the pre-existing folklore to the region, where it was uniquely preserved due to geographic isolation.

The text should be clarified to state that Newfoundland is notable for its preservation and extensive documentation of this ancient British tradition (as studied by folklorists like David Hufford), rather than treating it as a localized or originating source for the terms. ~2026-45366-97 (talk) 00:19, 26 September 2026 (UTC)