Have you ever felt like you were accompanied, even alone? There is a scientific explanation for this phenomenon

Have you ever had the feeling that someone is in the same room as you, even when you are alone? This feeling is called “invisible presences” and many people have reported having a similar experience.

In the book “South” (1919), explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton commented that, during his expedition through Antarctica, he had the feeling that a fourth man was accompanying the group of just three people.

“During that long and torturous march of thirty-six hours over the nameless mountains and glaciers of South Georgia, it often seemed to me that there were four of us, not three.”

For him, the new member completed the final journey with the team, and his experience was recognized by other people who had already experienced similar situations.

These experiences with an invisible presence are also known as the “third man factor” or “sense of presence” in psychology.

In most cases, the phenomenon causes someone to “be” in the same space as you, even if your senses have not fully captured this presence.

(Image: reproduction/internet)

The human mind and the inexplicable sensation of “invisible presences”

Because of these curious experiences, Ben Alderson-Day, professor of psychology from the University of Durham, in the United Kingdom, studied the phenomenon and published a book entitled “Presence: The Strange Science and True Stories of the Unseen Other” (“Presence: The Strange Science and True Stories of the Unseen Other”, in the literal translation of BBC).

The main finding of the research was that this situation does not only happen to people in extreme situations.

It can happen to anyone, but some groups have a greater number of reports, such as people in mourning or those who suffer from sleep paralysis. Likewise, 25% of people with Parkinson's experience the situation.

For Alderson-Day, this phenomenon is complex, as “it is too vague to be a hallucination, but too tangible to be an illusion”.

In the case of people who go on expeditions in unusual places, the professor points out that the experience can be influenced by the lack of oxygen in the brain, or it may be a trick of the mind to maintain alertness Survival on.

For example, explorer Luke Robertson says that he had a curious and inexplicable experience when he decided to go on an expedition to the South Pole alone.

After two weeks of walking the 40-day route, he began to clearly recognize familiar sights, like his family's farm in Scotland.

Likewise, he heard the music from the animated film The Flintstones over and over in his head, even with just the noises of the winds and walking on the ice. The journey continued to be strange, as he heard voices shouting his name or talking to him, encouraging him to follow the route.

Robertson believes that the brain was responsible for these inexplicable events. For him, his body was creating a mechanism for him to complete the solitary journey.

For Alderson-Day, the brain also plays an important role in the process, however, the experience is caused by a combination of physical and psychological aspects. Therefore, more studies on the body and mind are still needed to be able to understand this intense and common experience.