Episode 77: The Possession of Doris Bither
Sometimes, our own demons are much more frightening than the ones depicted in our favorite horror films…
Episode Transcript
When speaking in terms of the paranormal, the word demonic has quite the connotation. I mean not only has it been the inspiration behind countless horror stories and Hollywood blockbuster films, the idea of a beast sent to haunt us from the depths of hell is truly the stuff of nightmares.
Now when I was a kid, the concept of demonic possession was one that I found to be of the utmost terror. Yes, even then, at far too young an age, I had a morbid sense of curiosity for the subject. But that doesn’t change the fact that stories of demonic foes quite literally scared the living daylights out of me.
That said, as I got older that fear sort of fell to the wayside. Becoming second to another type of demon—one that’s much more common and a whole lot more nightmarish than some hellacious, though illusive, beast.
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You see, I think we can all admit, even if it’s only from the comfort of your car on the way to work or from the privacy of a microscopic speaker currently resting in your ears, many of us are haunted by the beasts of our own minds.
Let’s face it, in today's modern world, there are far too few who are not grappling with thoughts of self-doubt, anxiety, or depression. Intrusive ideas that we can’t help but pick at until they’ve taken possession of our inner peace. Which just goes to show that sometimes our own demons are much more frightening than the ones depicted in our favorite horror films.
But what happens if those lines were to somehow converge? If our demons decided to vacate the shadows of our minds and latch onto the midway point between our world and the ether?
Would we know then what we know now—that the less we engage with one of these intruders the less likely it is to hold power over us? Or would we still pick at it and let it fester until it takes on a life of its own?
I’m Courtney Hayes and you’re listening to haunts. Stay tuned…
If we’re being honest, the world had never been especially kind to Doris Bither. According to one of my sources at least, she had endured hardship from a very young age.
In fact, she was forced or perhaps fled from her childhood home when she was just a girl. And by the time she was in her teens, she found herself gripped within the confines of an abusive relationship.
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It was a prison of both the body and the mind, one that Doris ultimately escaped. Though not without a certain level of pain and trauma that only a bottle seemed to numb.
Still, as they say, life went on. And by the 1970s Doris was the single mother to four children—a daughter, no more than six years old, along with three sons, ages 10, 13, and 16.
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Suffice it to say, life for Doris Bither was hectic and often turbulent. But what little time she did get to herself she spent developing a keen interest in—you guessed it—the paranormal.
Like many of us, Doris could often be found researching the supernatural. And on more than a few occasions, she actually tried to, well, contact the great beyond. Oh and apparently she had been quite successful in the venture—though not without a great personal cost.
Perhaps it was for that reason that Doris found herself interjecting into a conversation between two strangers. There from the now very crowded aisle of a bookstore, surrounded by the work of countless writers and storytellers, Doris Bither spun a tale that sounded almost too bizarre to be true.
And yet, it was just intriguing enough to captivate the minds of these strangers. Who as it just so happened knew a thing or two about these so-called inner demons and their connection to the other side.
I can imagine there was a touch of doubt, even as they sat there listening to Doris’ story on that hot afternoon in the summer of 1974. I mean, Dr. Barry Taff was well-versed in the paranormal—even that early on in his career. Not to mention that his companion, Kerry Gaynor, was well on the way to being a well-respected professional in the space of hypnotherapy.
In other words, together Taff and Gaynor had let’s call it specialized training that allowed them to separate paranormal phenomena from psychosomatic stressors, which is why they were a bit skeptical of Doris when she approached them in the bookstore that afternoon.
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Still, her story was enough to at least pique their curiosity. I mean, how could it not? Between allegations of spectral attacks targeting several members of the family and claims of supposed poltergeist activity, I think that any one of us would have at least been intrigued.
So even in spite of their inhibitions, Dr. Barry Taff and Kerry Gaynor made arrangements to investigate Doris’ claim further. And on the afternoon of August 22, 1974, they found themselves on the front doorstep of the Bither Residence.
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Now I won’t lie, from the moment they set foot inside, Taff and Gaynor were surrounded by the aftermath of Doris’ ongoing hardships. The home was in a state of cluttered disarray, and as the interview went on it was obvious that Doris had a strained relationship with her children.
To make matters worse, Taff got the distinct impression that the woman was withholding information from the investigators. He didn’t think she was outright lying, at least not yet, but at the same time, the minor details of Doris’ story just weren’t adding up. Which of course was cause for concern as well as skepticism.
So when he pressed her for more information, he wasn’t surprised that her story changed. Although he was caught off guard when her accounts took on a whole new light—one that was so unbelievably vile that it stretched beyond even the most nefarious of nightmares.
The more Doris opened up to Taff and Gaynor, the more obvious it became that she hadn’t been 100% honest with them that afternoon in the bookstore. Sure, it was true that she and her children were being tormented by something. But that torment wasn’t isolated to poltergeist activity or even a series of spectral attacks for that matter.
Instead, the claims Doris made throughout the course of the interview were disturbing and more than a bit graphic. So if you’d like to skip ahead a bit now’s the time.
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So Doris claimed she was being haunted by not one, not two, but three entities. The likes of which had evidently assaulted her sexually—leaving her body blackened and bruised on multiple occasions.
Now I know that claim might be a bold one to make, which is exactly why Taff and Gaynor remain skeptical throughout the course of the interview. But it’s worth mentioning that Doris hadn’t been the only one to bear witness to these attacks.
In fact, Doris’ neighbors later testified that they had seen three apparitions lurking about the exterior of the Bither residence. Not to mention that, at least on one occasion, Doris’ son had attempted to defend his mother from these supernatural assailants only to be thrown clear across the room by an unseen force.
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Okay saying that last part out loud, I can see where their doubt may have been coming from. I mean this was far beyond the work of your regular run-of-the-mill ghost. Which meant that Doris Bither was being haunted by something inhuman. Or perhaps it was just the opposite, maybe this so-called demon had been purely of the mind sent to torment Doris from somewhere within herself.
Now, at least in Taff's opinion, that only made sense. After years of hardship and an ongoing history of domestic violence, it seemed to him that Doris' inner demons would take a similar shape--continuing to torment her in a manner that almost seemed otherworldly.
Still, it was hard to say for certain one way or the other. But with that theory in mind, Taff and Gaynor felt a certain level of responsibility to take action against whatever Doris had been experiencing. So they called in reinforcements, set up an array of equipment around home, and somehow against all odds and doubts, the investigators managed to capture her ghostly attackers in the act.
By now you guys know that I’m a sucker for a case with a bit of nuance, that I like many of you am fascinated by wild if even unbelievable claims of the paranormal accompanied by evidence that makes me doubt my own skepticism.
Which is more or exactly why I was drawn to the story of Doris Bither in the first place. Sure, her accounts were almost too disturbing to believe. Almost but not entirely unbelievable—especially considering the evidence that Taff and Gaynor collected before all was said and done.
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Let me set this scene for you. At some point in the weeks following that initial interview. Taff and Gaynor returned to the Bither residence with a team of roughly thirty investigators.
Now keep in mind this was a small house, becoming even more cramped as the investigation team filed inside—no doubt filling the place with an influx of nervous energy. But even as chaotic as things were, the team did their best to document the activity as it began to unfold.
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At one point in the investigation, for instance, Doris began to cry out in terror claiming that a specter was standing mere inches from her face taunting her. Of course, no one in the room aside from Doris could see this apparition, but that didn’t stop investigators from snapping a few pictures in an effort to document the event. And what they found when those images were developed was actually quite bizarre.
You see many of the photographs were entirely oversaturated, as if the shudder was exposed to a bright flash of light at the precise moment the photo was taken. Which was odd but generally speaking could likely be attributed to some sort of camera malfunction.
That said, there was one photo that when developed documented another anomaly. The likes of which are a bit more difficult to explain away.
The image in question depicts Doris sitting alone on her bed with the investigation team circled around her. Then up above, sort of arching over Doris is a band of white light.
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Now I’ll be honest, Dr. Barry Taff remained resolute in his doubt, even when faced with this photograph. So much so that he researched and theorized a few different explanations that may serve to debunk this photo as well as Doris’ claims.
That said I’d like for you to form your own opinions when it comes to the evidence as well as the story as a whole. So take a moment to pause this episode and go check out the photograph in the show notes section at hauntscast.com. Don’t worry I’ll be here when you get back.
Okay, so this story and the evidence as I’ve presented it to you thus far might feel a bit overwhelming. I mean, it’s terrifying enough to picture anyone as the victim of a spectral assault. But to mix in photo evidence along with Taff’s hefty dose of skepticism, well it all starts to feel a bit… much.
That said, I too have found myself questioning whether a story like this could actually be true. On the one hand, I want to believe Doris Bither’s accounts because honestly after all the hardship she had endured why would she make something like this up?
But on the other hand, I have to admit that Taff presented some sound arguments that appeal to my sense of logic and reason. So as we close out today’s episode I hope you’ll forgive me for casting a bit of doubt into your mind.
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Let’s start with the photograph.
I’m sure by looking at it, you can see why many of the investigators felt that the anomaly was paranormal in nature. With the arching band practically enveloping Doris in light, it’s hard not to see the image is anything other than what it is, eerie.
Well, that is until you’re present with Taff’s theory which claims that this band of light was actually a strand of hair stuck to the camera’s lens. Now that claim might also sound like a bit of a stretch made in a desperate attempt to discredit Doris and her experiences. But it's worth mentioning that Taff did attempt to recreate the anomaly using a strain of hair and I have to admit the photos look undeniably similar.
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Still, that doesn’t exactly debunk this haunting as a whole. I mean if anything Taff only succeeded in discrediting his own evidence right?
Well maybe so, but that doesn’t change the fact that Taff remained skeptical well after the investigation came to a close. Years passed and Doris allegedly continued to experience strange activity while simultaneously battling with substance abuse right up until she passed away from respiratory issues in 1999.
Now it was in Taff and Gaynor’s professional opinion, that Bither’s past hardships, the long history of abuse, mental health struggles, and addiction, were ultimately what conjured the demons that seemed to possess her. Of course, at first, that claim sounds like a cheap shot but bear with me as I put things into perspective.
There is a theory in parapsychology which claims that poltergeist activity actually manifests from the human mind. We touched on this when we discussed the popper poltergeist back in episode 40, which I’ll link down in the show notes. But in case you missed it the gist of the idea is that our own stressors and anxiety can take on a life of their own and present themselves telekinetically—meaning that anyone living in a high-stress environment or with a history of ongoing trauma might just experience a haunting at the hands of a poltergeist.
That of course brings us back to the story of Doris Bither—a young woman haunted by hardship and spectral foes that by all accounts were hellbent on making her life a living hell. So Taff and Gaynor claimed, that Bither’s attackers may have been paranormal if even demonic in nature. But what they couldn’t determine was whether or not those demons had been summoned from the depths of hell or if they were simply festering in the farthest reaches of Doris’ mind.
So as always I’ll turn things over to you and let you answer this question for yourself. When it comes to our inner demons, to this whole concept of demonic possession, are these foes really intruders from the great beyond or could it be that they are lurking somewhere within ourselves?
Domestic violence is an ongoing epidemic in the United States. Every 9 seconds, a woman becomes the victim of an assault at the hands of a stranger while every 24 minutes an incident of domestic or dating violence takes place.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of domestic violence or assault, help is always available. The National Domestic Violence hotline can be contacted by phone at 800-799-7233 or via text at 88788. Please remember you are not alone.
Sources
https://madmonster.com/2020/04/28/a-victim-as-elusive-as-the-entity/
https://www.ghosttheory.com/2009/05/18/the-entity-interview-with-doris-bithers-son
https://skepticalinquirer.org/2021/10/a-closer-look-at-the-entity-photographs/