u/monaco7prix

I’ve had TikTok downloaded for the past 7–8 years. In the beginning, the app was pretty tame and mostly consisted of dancing and lip-syncing videos. Today, the app has become much more diverse, with all kinds of niche content and communities.

I don’t use TikTok as much as I used to, but I occasionally scroll for 5–10 minutes when I’m bored. Today, I came across a video that immediately caught my attention. It showed a man wearing some sort of skull mask diving headfirst into a muddy bog surrounded by forest. His account name is The_Real_Bog_Ghoul.

He jumped into the bog without hesitation and completely disappeared beneath the mud. The video went silent for several seconds. Then, a few bubbles surfaced. After another few seconds, the masked figure suddenly emerged from the mud and slowly swam back toward the shore.

At first, I assumed it was just some kind of bizarre dare or stunt. The internet is certainly no stranger to people doing crazy things for views. But I decided to check out his account.

This is where things got strange.

The account has a surprisingly large following and millions of likes, yet nearly all of his videos seem to follow the exact same formula: diving into different bogs while wearing a skull mask, disappearing beneath the surface, and eventually resurfacing. Additionally, I couldn’t find any surface-level accounts with the same content.

Does anyone know who this guy is or what the purpose of these videos is? Is this some sort of sport or established activity, or is there something more to the account?

When I was younger (early elementary school), my family would frequently go to visit my aunt who lived more in the country. They had a lot of land nearby with woods, ponds with ducks, farmland, etc.

They also had two dogs. One was a dachshund and the other was a mutt who just showed up at their house one day. The mutt was pretty wild and energetic, but sweet regardless.

One fall day I decided to follow it into the woods nearby the house. While walking, I must have tripped on a rock and fell to the ground. After regaining myself, I noticed a loud buzzing sound in all directions. I was a little disoriented but just that sound was enough to send me into a frenzy. Just a few seconds later, my entire face felt like it was on fire. I had fallen into an open nest of ground hornets.

I somehow sprinted back to the house, navigating through all the trees while blindly swatting in every direction out of desperation. I finally made it to the house and pulled the door to only find out it was locked. Great. So instead I resorted to banging on the glass of the door until my parents came and noticed what was happening.

The minutes after that were a blur (not sure if I was just in shock or what). However, I awoke on the couch stripped covered in toothpaste. My parents explained to me they spent the last few minutes digging hornets and stingers out of my hair.

Didn’t go to school for a week after and it looked like I had an allergic reaction on my face that never went away. Great time.

So first, just some background: I have never had sleep paralysis before, nor have I ever heard of it happening to any of my family members or friends. I read stories about it as a child and was absolutely terrified of it happening to me. I also do not get frequent nightmares and usually don't have any trouble going to bed, even though I typically stay up pretty late.

About two months ago, my family and I were on vacation, and I was up late watching TV before bed. It was mid-summer, so there was no need for me to get up early in the morning or worry about work. I fell asleep while watching my show and "woke up" a few hours later (maybe around 3:00 or 4:00 AM) lying on my back, facing the ceiling. I was in a weird trance and quickly realized that I couldn't move any part of my body. All I could do was look around. Even though I was "awake," part of it still feels like a dream because I cannot recall the details exactly. However, in my paralyzed state, I was somehow able to piece together that I was experiencing sleep paralysis.

Typically, you hear stories about people seeing uncanny figures in the room with them or sometimes even sitting on top of them, making it difficult to breathe. However, I didn't see anything "paranormal" when I first opened my eyes. That changed when I remembered all of the unnerving stories I had heard as a child. Just then, I experienced what I can only describe as an eerie presence in the room. I can't say for sure that I saw a figure, but I can certainly claim that I felt I was not alone.

I began to panic internally because, literally, what could I even do in that situation? I made futile attempts to squirm, turn my body, and move my hands. I even tried talking out loud, but nothing came out of my mouth except a slight, suppressed groaning noise. At some point, I noticed that I had managed to slightly move my right leg toward the edge of the bed. I somehow came up with the idea that if I managed to sweep it fully off the bed, I could gain control of my body again.

This is where things get hazy. After a few seconds of using every bit of strength I had to move my leg just a few centimeters, I lost all memory of the trance. The next thing I knew, I was fully awake and completely shocked by what had happened. I told my family, but I am pretty sure they thought I was making it up.

For a while, I wondered why this would happen out of nowhere, considering it had never occurred before. Before doing any research, one thing I noticed was that I had fallen asleep on my back, whereas I usually sleep on my stomach or my side. I was curious if stress or strange sleep patterns could also contribute, so I looked it up. Sure enough, some of the top listed causes were bad sleeping habits and stress. Additionally, sleeping on your back does apparently increase the chances of experiencing an episode. Since then, I have made sure not to sleep on my back anymore, and I haven't experienced sleep paralysis since. It was an interesting experience, but I don't recommend it.

TL;DR: Pretty sure I got sleep paralysis for the first time on vacation because of bad sleeping habits and falling asleep on my back. I haven't slept on my back since.

So first, just some background: I have never had sleep paralysis before, nor have I ever heard of it happening to any of my family members or friends. I read stories about it as a child and was absolutely terrified of it happening to me. I also do not get frequent nightmares and usually don't have any trouble going to bed, even though I typically stay up pretty late.

About two months ago, my family and I were on vacation, and I was up late watching TV before bed. It was mid-summer, so there was no need for me to get up early in the morning or worry about work. I fell asleep while watching my show and "woke up" a few hours later (maybe around 3:00 or 4:00 AM) lying on my back, facing the ceiling. I was in a weird trance and quickly realized that I couldn't move any part of my body. All I could do was look around. Even though I was "awake," part of it still feels like a dream because I cannot recall the details exactly. However, in my paralyzed state, I was somehow able to piece together that I was experiencing sleep paralysis.

Typically, you hear stories about people seeing uncanny figures in the room with them or sometimes even sitting on top of them, making it difficult to breathe. However, I didn't see anything "paranormal" when I first opened my eyes. That changed when I remembered all of the unnerving stories I had heard as a child. Just then, I experienced what I can only describe as an eerie presence in the room. I can't say for sure that I saw a figure, but I can certainly claim that I felt I was not alone.

I began to panic internally because, literally, what could I even do in that situation? I made futile attempts to squirm, turn my body, and move my hands. I even tried talking out loud, but nothing came out of my mouth except a slight, suppressed groaning noise. At some point, I noticed that I had managed to slightly move my right leg toward the edge of the bed. I somehow came up with the idea that if I managed to sweep it fully off the bed, I could gain control of my body again.

This is where things get hazy. After a few seconds of using every bit of strength I had to move my leg just a few centimeters, I lost all memory of the trance. The next thing I knew, I was fully awake and completely shocked by what had happened. I told my family, but I am pretty sure they thought I was making it up.

For a while, I wondered why this would happen out of nowhere, considering it had never occurred before. Before doing any research, one thing I noticed was that I had fallen asleep on my back, whereas I usually sleep on my stomach or my side. I was curious if stress or strange sleep patterns could also contribute, so I looked it up. Sure enough, some of the top listed causes were bad sleeping habits and stress. Additionally, sleeping on your back does apparently increase the chances of experiencing an episode. Since then, I have made sure not to sleep on my back anymore, and I haven't experienced sleep paralysis since. It was an interesting experience, but I don't recommend it.

TL;DR: Pretty sure I got sleep paralysis for the first time on vacation because of bad sleeping habits and falling asleep on my back. I haven't slept on my back since.