Bangungot (based on true to life encounter)

This happened when I was in my first year of college. It was the time when my mom's work schedule shifted to the night shift, meaning I would be sleeping alone at home at night. Because I was afraid to sleep alone, my mom decided to bring me along to her work. The reason I was afraid was because the area where our house is constructed is known for paranormal apparitions. I, too, had experienced strange occurrences. Our house was just a few minutes away from my mom's workplace.

My mom's boss was kind enough to allow me to sleep in the sleeping quarters where the stay-in employees rested. My mom was in charge of the night operation of a 24-hour restaurant. On my first night in the employee's sleeping quarters, I had an eerie encounter with an invisible presence; my bed shook without anyone touching it. It was followed by a terrible dream of an old woman glaring at me as if I had wronged her. Because of that experience, I woke up late. Afterward, I asked my mom if I could sleep on the couch in the extension area where souvenir items were displayed and sold, using the excuse that I didn't want to be late for school again, as it was located two towns away from home. I didn't tell my mom about the scary sleeping quarters.

The first few weeks of sleeping on the couch were a relief to me, until one time while studying for my accounting quiz, I fell asleep on the couch with my book on my chest. I was awakened past midnight by the cold; I realized I didn't have a blanket. I felt too lazy to reach for it, so I tried to ignore the cold. Then, to my astonishment, I saw the hand of an old person on my chest. I was certain it was an old person's hand because of its wrinkled skin. I felt as if someone was whispering in my ear, but I couldn't understand what was being said. I tried to move, but my body was stiff, and I couldn't even speak. I panicked and tried to call for help, but my voice wouldn't come out. I prayed silently to my guardian angel, and slowly, the air warmed, and I regained control of my body. It was 3 am when I finally woke up.

Ate Glenda, the sales attendant, found me sweaty and brought me a glass of water. I told her about the old woman, and she took me to my mom, who was busy with paperwork. My mom, worried, decided to let me sleep in her office where she could keep an eye on me.

The following night, my mom investigated and discovered that the old woman was a ghost, a customer who had died after being hit by a truck. My mom and her boss offered a mass for the woman's soul at the nearby parish church. We also learned that I wasn't the only one to have experienced eerie encounters; there was also an inspector who died in his sleep, reportedly from Bangungot (nightmare).

The lesson I learned from that experience was to pray before sleeping and to include the souls in purgatory in our prayers, as they cannot pray for themselves but can intercede for us.