Seuralaisilmiö

Seuralaisilmiö (literally “companion phenomenon”) is a Finnish term used in discussions of perceptual anomalies to describe the subjective experience of a companion or observer present in the surrounding environment. Individuals report feeling a presence that seems to accompany them, often described as a guardian, a relative, or a stranger, without a physical form. The phenomenon can occur during sleep-related states such as sleep paralysis, hypnagogic or hypnopompic imagery, as well as during dissociative experiences, near-death experiences, or times of acute stress. It may be accompanied by other sensory phenomena, such as a sense of pressure, tingling, or visual or auditory impressions, though it can also occur in isolation.

Explanations are primarily neurophysiological and psychological. They include misattribution of internally generated imagery to an external source, disturbances in bodily self-consciousness, REM sleep processes intruding into wakefulness, and predictive coding mechanisms. Cultural and personal expectations influence the content of the experienced presence, leading to a variety of interpretations—from protective beings to malevolent figures.

In research, seuralaisilmiö is not a single diagnostic category but a descriptive term for the broader class of “felt presence” phenomena. It overlaps with concepts such as presence hallucination and other sleep-related experiences studied in cognitive neuroscience and psychiatry. In Finland, the term is used in clinical discussions as well as in parapsychology contexts to summarize similar reported experiences.

See also: presence hallucination, sleep paralysis, hypnagogia, near-death experience.