Something close to the following dialogue took place in my bedroom, in our old house, around 26 years ago, when I was 10 years of age, and really mean to my little brother. It was evening time and for reasons that I no longer remember I just wanted him out of my sight:
Abigail: Go to your bedroom!
Little brother (already with a crying face): Please let me stay.
Abigail: NO! I will take you to your bedroom. Let’s go.
Little brother: No. Pleeease.... There is a woman sitting on my bed. She has no arms and keeps staring at me.
I don’t recall what my exact thoughts were after that, but I seemed to have accepted it as a good enough reason to let him stay and play memory game with me. Also, from then onwards, I became quite wary of my brother’s bedroom as well as more compassionate towards him.
That I’m aware of, this was the first ‘supernatural’ story I ever encountered, but it was far from being the last. From narratives of lost loved ones coming back in the form of black birds, to visions of the fallen angel himself, I seem to have heard it all! I am equally curious and inquisitive about such accounts. However, what interests me the most is how the people who experience these situations make sense of them.
Nonetheless, in this 2 (or 3) part series I am going to discuss how neuropsychology and psychiatry make sense of such experiences. Still, do get ready for a bunch of spooky stories! 👻
When lost loved ones come back to pay a visit
I saw her [the deceased wife] first on the very day of the funeral, an hour after she was buried.
Crime and Punishment, p. 323
It is a pity to think that the phenomenon of *hallucination* has fallen prey to the judgment of the Western world; where many regard it to be purely a consequence of superstitious beliefs, ignorance or even of a mental illness. But, it appears that experiencing hallucinations is something that comes with having a brain (at least a mammal’s one). And in some cases, such as in bereavement, they are regarded as a benign, coping mechanism that helps individuals to deal with the loss of a loved one. In these situations, they normally take place in the visual or auditory forms almost as if they were a remedy for a painful yearning.
The posthumous visits of Mr. Toben
I suppose this explains the months during which Mr. Toben came to visit his widowed wife at night, just before she fell asleep in bed. She told me that every night, after her prayer, he came and sat on the sofa-chair right in front of their former bed, and stayed there with a smile on his face waiting for her to fall asleep. Until the day his second heart attack claimed his life, Mr. Toben and his wife had been married for just over 30 years. His posthumous visits only lasted around 14 months, though. Either that or Mrs. Toben was too sleepy to notice his presence (following the arrival of her third grandchild she practically moved in with her younger daughter to help around).
The brain hallucinates in different ways. Researchers have arrived to these findings through monitoring electrical impulses and metabolic activities through brain imaging while individuals hallucinate. In cases where people hallucinate faces, for example, an abnormal activation is seen in the inferior temporal cortex, in the same way that those who hallucinate voices would have the same sort of activation in the regions involved in processing speech.
In what I consider a rather thoughtful study, Dr. Dewi Rees found, after interviewing 293 widowed individuals, that nearly half of them had experienced hallucinations of their deceased husband or wife for years, some of them up to a decade 1. The same proportion was reported equally by men and women, and higher incidence was noticed in those who had had longer, happier marriages. Also, I hasten to add here that such occurrences have been seen in populations of different religions, ethnicity, social and cultural backgrounds 2.
What I found particularly touching about these studies was the fact that the individuals experiencing the hallucinations did not feel comfortable about sharing the events even with family and close friends. Well, indeed, Mrs. Toben’s children reported worries about her having dementia; this only upset her even more and prevented her from sharing her feelings with them.
My Spontaneous OBE experience
As one abandons worn-out clothes and acquires new ones, so when the body is worn out a new one is acquired by the self, who lives within.
The Bhagavad Gita, [2:22]
To date I have never experienced visual hallucinations. However, I had a couple of rather unpleasant out-of-body experiences (OBEs) in the past. Even though they happened a long time ago, thinking about them still sends a shiver down my spine. The first one was when I was around 18, and it was as frightening as it was brief. I was sleeping, and in the middle of the night I ‘suddenly’ found myself “floating” around my bedroom. I was very aware I wasn’t in my body and desperately wanted to return to it. I have never been a superstitious person; so, back them I just assumed it had been another bad dream. Nowadays, after coming across the literature I have explored, I believe that was an OBE hallucination.
But, look what I said: “I was very aware I wasn’t in my body and desperately wanted to return to it”. Isn’t our sense and certainty of embodiment rather interesting? For example, we are adamant that our self is located in our brain, and that we inhabit our bodies. Our bodies: the vehicle through which we navigate the world! Well, I suppose that body schema is partly responsible for this. Anyways, back to the subject.
While OBEs have been investigated more in-depth in cases of mental (e.g. DID) and brain disorders (e.g schizophrenia), subsequent to a series of interviews and questionnaires Blanke and colleagues concluded that, in the general population, more or less 5% of people have experienced it (some studies suggest a percentage as high as 34%). In addition, they also state that this is something that has been reported in many different cultures across the world, and it can be induced in healthy individuals through robotic devices and VR during laboratory experiments 3.
Not a new thing
Out-of-body accounts have been around for hundreds of years. However, it was only brought to the scientific arena in the 1960s, by the British psychologist Celia Green, who evaluated firsthand stories of over 400 individuals who had experienced it. Subsequent research on spontaneous OBEs suggest that this is a phenomenon resulted from brain hypoxia, low blood supply to the brain, failure of certain cortical structures or mental dissociation. Perhaps, this explains why such experiences are more often reported by those who have been in surgeries, accidents and so forth. In other words, in scenarios that highlight the supernatural element even further. But that really, it seems to be nothing more nothing less than a ‘brain glitch’.
The notion that hallucinatory events are in part responsible for our popular myths, art , and even religious beliefs dates back to the 1840’s, when Boismont dedicated a chapter discussing the complex relationship between hallucinations, psychology, religion and morality in his medical book entitled Hallucinations; or, The Rational History of Apparitions, Visions, Dreams, Ecstasy, Magnetism and Somnambulism.
If you are a big Lewis Carrol fan, for example, you probably know about his visual migraines; and that they occurred before he created his first Alice in Wonderland book. Drawings and writings in his diary entries prior to 1864 provide the evidence for this. Back then, Carroll was formally diagnosed by his eye doctor with ‘disturbances due to eye strain’ 4. But, based on both his and his ophthalmologist’s records it is now accepted that Carrol suffered from Todd’s Syndrome, a neurological disorder now popularly known as Alice in Wonderland Syndrome, which prompts episodes of disorientation and distorted perceptions. So, one can only imagine the role hallucinatory phenomena might have played in the rise of supernatural beliefs.
And another ghost visited my little brother
As for my little brother, he did experience another - less frightening - supernatural event. He saw a gigantic rabbit by his wardrobe. He told me ‘He is your size Abi!’, while gesturing the magnitude of the ghostly image with his two hands. That happened two days after his little rabbit, Dobi, died unexpectedly. In spite of that (or because of it, actually), at a very young age, we arrived to the serious conclusion that his bedroom was definitely haunted.
Reference List:
Brierre de Boismont, A. (1845), Hallucinations; or, The rational history of apparitions, visions, dreams ecstasy, magnetism and somnambulism. Philadelphia, Lindsay and Blakiston.
Blanke, O. et al. (2009), ‘Leaving body and life behind. Out-of-body and near-death experiences.’, in Laureys, Steven, Tononi and Giulio (eds.) The neurology of consciousness, London, Academic Publishers. pp. 303-325.
Dostoevssky, F.M. (1866) Crime and punishement. London, Penguin Classics.
Easwaran, E. (2007) The Bhagavad Gita. California, The blue mountain center of meditation.
Podol, K., Robinson, D. (1999), Lewis Carrols’s migraine experiences, The Lancet, Vol. 353, No. 9161., p.1366.
Rees, W. D. (1971), The hallucinations of widowhood.British Medical Journal, 4:37-41.
Sacks, O. (2012) Hallucinations. New York, Knopf.
Image source Pixabay & Winkimedia: 1 – I created with bannersnack,2,3,4,5
Dear Reader,
I have shared with you some of my spooky stories. Now, I am wondering if you have ever experienced any of the situations discussed here! If so, how did you make sense of it?
I hope this post has demystified some of the events that are often regarded as supernatural 😊
I wish you all the best always ❤
Specially Dedicated To
- First and foremost @zest (my Steemit big brother), who patiently listened to me rambling about this topic in more than one occasion, and kindly shared his views with me from an anthropological perspective.
- Our clever @ruth-girl, who asked me the smartest question about the afterlife someone has ever asked me.
- My dear @mcfarhat, who said “I would love to see you dedicate a post about ghosts too :D”
- And finally, @lemouth, who terrified me when he told me “But ghosts exist!”. However, the lack of a blackboard impeded him from proving this to me through quantum chromodynamics equations. I was secretly pleased about this shortfall, though.
Hi @abigail-dantes
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Thank you :)
There was a period of my life (about 10 years ago) when I was really stressed for a particular matter. I guess all this stress somehow manifested in a series of sleep disorders/problems, starting with auditory hallucinations, then sleep paralysis, lucid dreaming and so many other neat things. One of those times I also had an OBE experience which I found it to be quite... exciting :) At first I decided to "explore" my new found ability but only moments later I chickened out and decided to return back to my body!
The sleep problems and weird experiences continued (on a daily basis!) and at some point I thought I was getting crazy and I was about to ask medical help, since schizo runs in our DNA. But before doing that I decided to do a bit of googling only to find out thousands of other people had the same problems and essentially I had entered a cycle. Everytime I went to bed I was getting anxious that I might have a weird experience, and that anxiety was largely what caused the sleep problems! The peace of mind that I am not crazy just stressed before going to bed was enough to break the cycle. I do get some weird experiences every now and then but nothing serious :)
Wow @trumpman! Yes, you see ... my two OBE experiences took place in a particularly stressful time of my life too. Back then I also had horrendous night terrors. My other OBE was what neuropsychology calls autoscopy. Again, it was in the middle of the night. I woke up and sat up on my bed, facing the end of the bed. Just to see myself there standing staring back at me. That was super surreal! It was also very brief.
Most of the accounts I have seen in the literature start with what you said, people find it exciting at first. But then, get frightened eventually!
I should challenge you to write a post about some of the weird experiences you go through every now and then. What do you think about that? One post! It is a challenge. And don't forget to tag me 😎
What about a series post? :D
I say YES! 😉
Tea with mint - the best soothing before bedtime.
Tea as in caffeine? Before bed?
Yes. Tea based on peppermint acts as a soothing.
Awesome idea for a series. I haven't had any hallucinations/unexplained phenomena, but my Grandfather always swore that an apartment he lived in before I was born was haunted. He was so certain that I've never been able to shake the belief that ghosts exist. Still, I agree that hallucinations account for most ghost/alien/whatever sightings.
Hello @tking77798 :)
Oh! Your grandpa might have had amazing spooky stories to tell then! 😃 I do find that the more skeptical someone is, the least they are likely to experience hallucinations. Or, are they that skeptical exactly because they never experienced such things? 😕
I wish you a great weekend.
Please send a little kiss to that lovely dog of yours ...
😘
Will do!
This sent chills down my spine, I think I remember experiencing some weird hallucinations as a child, but it's been just too long ago to remember details.
One other thing I experienced more recently, which might come under this category is what I believed to have been 2 panic attacks, a feeling of being disconnected from oneself and not a pleasant experience. I haven't experience a repeat for a few years.
Hello @terrylovejoy :)
Oh! Thank you so much for taking the time once again to read my writings. It truly makes me smile!
In my family, that I know of, only my brother a cousin reported these experiences when they were kids.. I do know some individuals are more susceptible to this sort of phenomenon. But, I shall look into these experiences during childhood with more detail.
Panic attacks can be equally frightening, for sure. And depending on how they were experienced they might be categorized as hallucinations, particularly when there is a sense of disconnection from the self. I know that in clinical settings, during cases of extreme anxiety (and sadness), some clients say they see people's faces in distorted shapes.
I wish you a great weekend and all the best always! :)
Nicely written as always. I am not sure I've had any OBEs or hallucination before, though I use to be extremely scared whenever someone I know passed-on but not anymore.
More recently, I lost someone quite close to me and I had a series of dreams afterward; one of such dream, the deceased showed me the cause of her death which actually confirmed the suspicion that I have been harbouring that the doctor lied about the cause of death as spelled out in the death certificate. I am all against tampering with dead bodies in the name of autopsies by the way.
Where and when is the boundary between hallucination and dream drawn? I am really interested to know.
Thank you
Hello @gentleshaid :)
This is a complex question! But, in short, this has highly to do with the functional networks involved in each situation. During REM sleep, the activities of pre-frontal areas and its linked circuits are suspended. Whereas during hallucinations one is still responding to external sensory signals because some areas are still active (e.g planum temporale). I suppose that grossly speaking I could say this is down to the level of consciousness in each case; during sleep is considerably less than in hallucinations.
Thank you for your kind words & for taking the time to stop by ❤
Very interesting and well-written post! I hope your brother doesn't get haunted anymore.
I had a 'spontaneous OBE' years ago when I was 19. I couldn't sleep one night. I had heard that counting sheep helps, but that seemed silly. As I had just read the book 'Jonathan Livingston Seagull', I decided to count seagulls instead. After some time, my attention focused on one particlar seagull. In my mind, I moved closer and closer to him, until I could smell the sea, see his feathers move in the wind, and hear his seagull cries. I was intensely focused at this point.
Suddenly, an electric current pulsed through my body, like a switch had been turned on. I literally felt electric. Then my 'electric body' moved out from my physical body in the direction of past my head and out. I was flying... my awareness was outside my body...and I was scared as hell.
I had never heard or read about OBEs. I thought I was being 'possessed' or something haha. My panic, and my desire to be back in my body caused me to return back into it. After I 'clicked' back into the body, the electric switch flipped off.
I was baffled to say the least, always wondered about it.
Great post and topic, hope to see more.
Hello @mmo-mmo :)
What an incredibly beautiful OBE experience you have shared here with us. Well at least until you got scared! The way you mentioned how you focused on that singular thing (the seagull), just makes me think that you reached your OBE though meditation! But, I couldn't say that for sure because it also sound like you were falling asleep. This is a very common stage people report these experiences.
I do hope this post has clarified this topic a little bit for you :)
All the best & thank you for this amazing comment! Beautiful :D
Thank you for your kind reply. I had an even more strange experience in the Sahara desert, if you make it to my page one day. Looking ahead to your new posts!
:)
Hello, Abi. That is a good one. I don't know to what I should attribute my inability to remember dreams, have hallucinations or out of body experience. I choose to believe I'm probably too heavy to manage leaving my body anyway.
But I do have a ghost story that was bequeathed to me by my mother. She was about ten years old at the time. It was a cold harmattan morning in Enugu, a city in South Eastern Nigeria. My mom was sweeping the space in front of the house when her favourite aunt appeared from a distance, walking towards the house, dressed in her favourite flowery dress which my mother liked. With her was someone else my mother could not recognise. The most sensible thing for her to have done was run to her aunt. She didn't. Instead, she ran into the living room to tell her parents that her aunt came visiting from Lagos. Her father was just getting off the phone when she entered the room and her mother was crying: her aunt was in an accident and died instantly. That could not be! She ran outside to find that both women had changed direction and were heading towards an alley that led behind their house. But they were close enough for her to hear the older woman tell her aunt, "I told you that we should not have come here. Now, you can hear her crying!" To this, my mother's aunt replied, "I just wanted to see my little niece one last time."
My mother gave a chase but they had turned the corner before she could get to them and of course, they were gone :)
Say all you want about ghosts. I have never seen one, not even that of my beloved mother. I haven't even had a dream about her since she died. But her stories are gospel to me so if she says she saw her aunt, she must have seen her :) I don't know how to make any other sense of this one. What do you think?
Thank you, Abi. Only you make me tell these stories and I have missed reading from you.
Oh my dear @churchboy it is always so wonderful to hear from you. But let's address one important thing first! You have to promise me you are not going to be checking your phone while you're driving ever again :)
Also, this made me laugh ...
Now, I have to ask, how is that Coca-cola drinking of yours going? 🙃 I hope you are drinking it less and less and heading to a complete halt!
You have written this comment so beautifully it most felt like a short story. I just wanted it to continue! It is SO emotional (and spooky too!). This part had me placing my hand on my mouth and opening my eyes widely!
😯
But then, when I thought it could not get more emotional, you described the following:
Oh ... 😟
What do I think? I don't have the definite answer to whether ghosts exist or not. But one thing is for sure, no one can deny the fact these situations are very real indeed, for whoever goes through them 😊
Life over here is (thankfully) getting back to normal. It looks like I can start on weekly Friday posts again 😉
I missed you too! I wish you a week filled with accomplishments and peace!
❤
Oh, thank you so very much. I never really text while driving. That's why I look at the phone one last time before I go. I am glad you liked the story. My mom used to tell me lots of story and the above was the only ghost story she ever told me. I have never seen a ghost before and I have often wondered the meaning of these things.
You are too kind, Abi. Thank you for taking the time to read and respond to my comment. I am glad things are getting back to normal over there. Thank you and I hope to read your post again soon. Much love from me to you :)
Oh, and I have dealt with my coke addiction to a reasonable extent. My weight now has more to do with fitness than fatness. I have lost most of the fat but I am not addicted to lifting heavy weights. I wonder what it is with us that makes us trade one addiction with another!
hello dear @abigail-dantes I missed you, I'm glad to re-read your publications. Something similar happened to my brother many years ago but it was not with a relative but with a friend who lived near the house, who died drowned and the next day. that dead friend appeared to him in the room closing the door without letting him out, when asking him that if he was dreaming he did not know how to respond because for him it was like a reality not like a dream. For me, that is something terrifying others that are things of the beyond and for you what will it be?. thanks And regards
Hello @catire383 :)
Thank you for stopping by my dear! Well, I sustain that it might have been a visual hallucination. Particularly if your brother was emotional about the passing away of your friend. But, please note, I don't want to claim that the explanations I am presenting here are the ultimate true! As I said this is how neuropsychology explains such occurrences :)
All the best to you my dear.
Have a good evening.
@catire383. Has recibido el voto de MYTHOLOGYUPVOTE.
Gracias por confiar en nosotros.
My aunt just passed away last week & we attended her burial just this weekend. It was very heartbreaking for us that she left so soon,leaving behind my uncle and her three young children. I know that science can explain everything including different psychological phenomena but in these trying times,emotions and & feelings really matter and thats how our family will survive after this difficult time. Minutes after my aunt died a black moth appeared at the door of her hospital door & according to them they actually felt her presence even after she was announced dead. Her daughter even claimed that her mom always visits her in her dreams telling her that she's okey. My uncle often hallucinates about her telling his family that sometimes he can see her around the house in brief moments. When one passes away the people left behind may create coping mechanisms just to accept the sudden death of their loved one.
Oh @sakura1012 !
I am so sorry! When I read the first sentence of your comment my heart sank :( You are an enlightened, patient human being my dear; who knows that eventually the better times will come. Right now, I have no words that could possibly alleviate the pain your family is going through. But, I send you all my love and the best thoughts I have in hopes that you can accept this tragic event, rather than battle against it. It is a beautiful thing that your cousin has beautiful dreams of her assuring you all she is fine! Only after I understood my dad was no longer in suffering (after his death), I could move on and recover from the pain.
You take care of yourself my dear. Find that strength that lives within you to make your way towards the better days that will soon come.
May you all find peace.
Lots of love to you.
This is a very very interesting series Abi! :D
OBE sounds terrifying! I have never experienced anything like this, but I have spooky stories my grandma has told me and dreams that proved to be premonitions, especially one that terrified me and made me really worried of going to bed.
Allow me to explain in short: Almost a year after my grandfather's sudden death (pulmonary oedema and heart failure) I have a dream of him dressed in his suit and standing outside his sister's house (her two children lived next door on a two-storey building, her son on the ground floor and her daughter on the first floor). It all happens at night time. So my grandpa is standing outside, his nephew (his sister's son) is sitting on the balcony (on the ground floor) and a big wardrobe-box thing is blocking the window on the first floor, but there is a bright light beaming around the crack that marked that wardrobe's outline. I then hear a phone ringing, I find myself on the balcony where my grandpa's nephew was sitting and the moment the nephew stands up to go answer the phone I wake up because it was actually our phone ringing in the middle of the night. That was the wife of my grandpa's nephew informing us that her husband had just died of a heart attack. For a few months I was afraid to dream because of that (I was about 13-14 at the time). I still experience such dreams, they don't make sense, but they leave me with a weird feeling that something upsetting will happen on that day. I try not to worry about things I cannot control, but they do disturb me sometimes and I am in a bad mood for the rest of the day, which I think sounds reasonable.
I don't know how I came to dream of that, I think I had heard my mother say that my (now late) uncle had been in hospital for a check-up, because he had high blood pressure, but I cannot be 100% sure after so many years.
Other than this spooky story of mine, I have some of my grandmother's weird stories: Once my grandpa was hospitalized (prostate cancer, very very severe case with few chances of him surviving). My grandmother would stay in hospital with him day and night, worried, stressed and tired. At some point she was desperate, sitting outside his room in the hallway. Then she sees a woman (I can't remember if she was dressed in black or white), the woman touches grandma and tells her: "Don't worry, he will be allright" and then she goes away. My grandfather did get over his cancer, despite the odds being against him, he lived 18 more years after that, but my grandma never knew who that woman was.
Now, what can you call this? Hallucination? Oracle? Wishful thinking that made her see that woman? And was it out of pure luck that my grandpa was cured? I don't know, I am just thankful he made it and I got to know him for my first 13 years of my life.
And one last dream incident my mother has recently had (I'm not sure I should share this, but it was a strong and unexplained experience): She dreamed of her mother-in-law (my father's mother), who passed away in 2015 (cancer). She saw my late grandmother holding a baby girl, calling her with a name (which I will not share out of respect) and telling the baby how much she missed her and how happy she was that she could hold her again. When my mom woke up on that day she asked my father whether he ever had a sister and he replied that he did have a sister with the name my mum heard in her dream, who passed away when she was a baby. My mother never knew about it until that day.
This one could be explained if you consider scattered words in the family or rumors she might have heard and the fact that my mum could have guessed the baby's name because she knew my father's family tree and in Greece it is natural to name a baby after the grandparents.
I hope I did not bore you with all this "spookiness" from my family. And I will admit I am not sure I'd want to see spooky being totally demystified and explained in terms of chemistry and biology. Sometimes mysteries should remain mysteries, they allow us to believe, hope and wander.
I am looking forward to the next parts!! 😘💖
😳 And this is when I run out of material to support any scientific explanations for situations within this realm of experiences! I never had any premonitory experience, but I do understand why you would be upset about certain dreams and concerned for the day! It turns out premonition accounts are more common than I had initially imagined. This is the third one I have read on this feed! Very interesting ....
Now, this one gave goosbumps!
If I had to answer this question - under my limited knowledge - yes, I would say it was a visual hallucination. As a consequence of grandma's emotional state. How to explain granddad getting better? Well, I am afraid to say I don't have a better answer than coincidence :/
Oh! As sad as the dream of your mum holding the baby is; it is also a very touching story! 💖
You never bore me Ruth! And, as always, of course, you never fail to deliver your beautiful insights. This is both profound and poetic:
... and a notion that I respect very much!
Thank you for participating in our discussion with these most incredible and spooky family stories :)
Lots of love to you always!
Of course medicine has always found a way to counter everything that seem out of the ordinary, of course hyrexia? I believe medicine or natural phenomenon cannot explain OBE, when one really understands how supernatural concepts works they won't attributes everything again to being ordinary.
When you were 18 and experienced it, what do you think? did you feel like you were going crazy? Hahahaha well I've walked through a door in a trance before, a place I've never been before only to realise it really do exist, how can medicine explain that?
Amazing read, I enjoyed this, I'm your distant fan, I'm @Josediccus
Hello @josediccus :) Good to see you here!
Wen I experienced my OBE I thought it was a dream, as I mentioned in the post. Your experience sounds a fascinating one! Were you afraid? I believe neuropsychology would put it down to either an OBE or autoscopy :D
Thank you so much for your comment and also, for sharing your experience with me. This is a topic I am surely fascinated by. I have always been really :)
All the best to you!
Buen día mi estimada Abigail, como siempre sorprendiendo con temas de calidad..
Me ha llamado curiosamente la atención como su hermanito le pedía quedarse con usted porque podía ver una mujer sin brazos en su cuarto.
Por una razón u otra accediste a su petición, no se que edad tendría el en ese momento pero como creyente de la palabra se que puede existir el bien y el mal, es decir, es muy posible poder ver o escuchar cosas espeluznantes. Pero considero que cuando se es niño todo erradica a través de las cosas que los adultos nos permiten ver o escuchar.
Muy ciertamente cuando el cerebro adquiere algún tipo de información ya sea buena o mala, triste o alegre queda allí como un sello, haciendo este que en su momento se convierta en algo positivo o negativo para nuestras vidas.
Por ejemplo: Mi hijo mayor ya tiene 8 años, nunca hemos permitido que se le digan cosas que genere miedo en el, ha sido un niño muy seguro de si mismo y me atrevería a decir que no le teme a nada ni he tenido la experiencia de que me manifieste alguna cosa rara, ahora bien, el menor tiene 3 años pero en su caso si ha tenido que escuchar ya sea por una razón u otra historias de miedo por ej. la cucaracha que se come a los niños, ya el a su edad a manifestado verla y puede hasta describirla es allí donde erradica que tanto podemos manipular un cerebro infantil trayendo esto como consecuencia temores e inseguridades.
En el caso de mi madre, con la perdida de mi hermano.. Ella ha podido verlo y escucharlo de muchas maneras. Asumo en mi ignorancia que la misma perdida ha provocado tanto la ansiedad de quererlo tener nuevamente aquí presente que su cerebro ha hecho que tenga ese tipo de vivencias, aun así sabiendo biblicamente que cuando se muere ya no eres parte de nada de lo que pasa en la tierra, en pocas palabras solo queda el recuerdo de sus memorias...
Un fuerte abrazo mi estimada, este es mi humilde punto de vista con respecto a este tipo de alucinaciones...
Hello my dear @jayoxaju :) How wonderful to see your insightful comments here on my feed! Yes, until nowadays my little brother comes to me when he needs comfort! I think it stems from the fact our parents weren't around that much when we were small. So, we learnt to rely on each other 😅
Well, I did suspect your children might have been very confident and have a great sense of security! As for your youngest one. I am sure he will develop enough self-confidence to deal with his "fears" I guess this is what did not happen to my little brother back then.
Thank you for sharing here your mother's experience. It is very much in line with the research and studies I have explored over the years and I agree 100% with your opinion about it. Also, I believe in this very much:
.Thank you once again for your invaluable support. I wish you and your family all the best always 😊
Hola mi querida Abigail, segura estoy que cuando los padres fomentan ese amor constante entre sus hijos como hermanos este es el resultado. Creo fielmente que mejor no lo pudo decir.
En cuanto:
Se que si la desarrollara, a pesar de su corta edad tiene una personalidad increíble y un carácter como para el solo jajaja.
Y en lo personal he encontrado gente maravillosa en esta plataforma, pero quiero decirle que usted provoca en mi una sensación de seguridad a través de sus escritos ayudándome a ver mis realidades desde otro punto de vista y si es posible como hacer para solucionar lo que de pronto me este generando un problema.
Gracias doy a Dios por tener la dicha de conocerla, ha sido de bendición para nuestras vidas en todos los aspectos tanto para mi como para toda mi familia..
Oh ... you have so much kindness in your heart @jayoxaju ! And you always seem to have a little of that kindness reserved for me, to make me smile! Thank you so much my dear :)
Have a wonderful weekend!
Besos mi estimada...
Wow! This is a spine-chilling topic, I must admit. From my time of conscious scientific understanding, I have always had the notion that, indeed, the supernatural, abstract, unnatural (for lack of another suited adjective) does exist.
I've been unable to interpret ghostly experiences and encounter in time past, but this article sure gives me a new perspective as to the role of brain-glitches and hallucinations in what we visually perceive and interpret as extra-terrestrial, ghosts, OBE's and supernatural occurrences.
However, from a religious logic, it is generally accepted that the world is immersed in a blend between the natural and supernatural.
About ghosts and spine chilling encounters, I have had my fair share too @abigail-dantes. My mother died last year after struggling with health issues....and some weeks, running into months after her burial, I started sensing or hearing her voice. But like your paragraph below eloquently put it, it must have been harmless hallucinations on the part of my grieving brain.
But then, the truth still remains that science and psychology still has a long way to go in completely convincing all and sundry, most especially scientific novices that what they assume to be supernatural, ghostly or otherwise, are merely hallucinations activated by brain-glitches or a starved and stuttering brain.
Very interesting piece here @abgail-dantes. Meanwhile, you seem to be intent on making us resigned to expecting your posts in intervals of one month, yes? 😜😜
Thanks for telling me how young you are. Glad to have you back (I'm guessing its momentarily though). Trust the family is doing great........Lots of love, Abi.
My dearest @rickie 😍
You have no idea how these following words made me happy! It just made the time I spent putting this piece of work together worthwhile! Thank you so much for your constant kindness :)
I am sorry to hear about your mum! When my dad passed away years ago, for a couple of times I heard his laughter. It was SO real! It was as if he were there next to me.
This is a very interesting observation Rickie. From a psychological perspective, for example, I don't think it is our job to convince people about the neurobiological nature of their grieving-hallucinations. In the case of someone like Mrs. Toben, for example - which reflects so many others - she was happy and comforted by her late husband's visits. There would be no good out of saying, "it is just a neural glitch mrs. Toben". At the same time it is not a helpful thing to encourage it!
I will do my best to post the sequel for this series next Friday! Lots of love to you too my dear :)
I totally agree with you @abigail-dantes. It would be needless being a form of kill-joy, for those who derive some form of relief from what they see and assume...by simply telling them, hey "its just your neural organ that is misbehaving".
Good to know there'd be a sequel. Waiting for Friday then. I'm guessing you are close to being fully back, yes?
Hey @rickie :)
From June to August I will be back on posting my Friday posts! For sure :) Until June, I will see what I can do. But, I sure miss writing for Steemit on a weekly basis and interacting with you guys, from whom I always learn SO much! ❤
When I was a child I was terrified to look at the window of my room at night because it seemed that I saw figures standing behind it. I thought that they were products of my imagination.
Some years ago my parents died with little time of difference and I began to have reiterative dreams with them in which I always hugged them and told them how much I loved them. After a while, I never had those dreams again.
Will it be related to what you wrote about a mechanism that helps us alleviate our loss?
I am sorry to hear about your parents @ufv I had the same too. I never had any visual hallucination about my dad, but I often dreamed of him. I still do nowadays, but very occasionally. The way grief works varies from person to person, those who are more susceptible to hallucinate will experience grieving-hallucinations. Those who aren't might dream of their lost loved ones, instead.
Thank you for your comment and sharing your experience with us :)
Hey, my baby sis!!!!
Thank you so so much for the personal dedication!!!!
As you have noted we have discussed this topic in-depth personally from both perspectives. I am personally intrigued by the comments you have received and will continue to receive during this series of posts.
One experience I personally can relate to is the OBE.... I went through the exact experience that you had.
Brilliant and intriguing post as always!!!!
SO glad you liked the post @zest! We have some incredible accounts here. I am fascinated by each one of them 😍
Lots of love to you always my big bro! ❤
Do these hallucinations and OBEs occur mainly at night time and in a bedroom like settings? If so that makes me wonder why? Is it because the brain is in most relaxed, perhaps most vulnerable state?
Great educational article as usual.
Hey @geekgirl :) Great to see you here!
This is the case for OBEs - when the brain is mostly only partially aware; but, for grieving-hallucinations they also take place during the day (when individuals are fully awake and conscious). Neurologically speaking this is the main difference between them and dreams, a state in which all consciousness is practically inactive as a result of parts of the brain (e.g frontal lobe) and its connected regions being 'shut-down'.
Thank you for taking the time to comment :)
Our brain does a mighty job of hiding the truth from us. We feel as though we are a solid, singular entity, with our mind and body combined and secure in their rightful places, a monolith in the cosmos. OBEs unravel this sense of self, proving that we are little more than a skillful neurological illusion after all.
Hello @addempsea :)
Your comment is absolutely stunning! Thank you for sharing your most incredible (and poetic) insight here. I truly appreciate it.
All the best to you :)
A lady w no arms?! Spooky... what your brother saw. I have only had one instance where I could have experienced an hallucination. To this day, it's debatable. When I was really young, playing in the street, I swear I saw a Easter bunny go up to our house and peek in our front window. 🐰I told my mom about it and she said I imagined it. At the time, I still believed in the Easter bunny so I really believe I saw it. Looking back as an adult, it could have been an overactive imagination or it could very well have been a peeping Tom dressed in a bunny suit because it did look like someone dressed as a bunny. It was around Easter too, so maybe a neighbor was hiding eggs. Thus, the debate. Weird, huh?! As far as the science of it, I wonder if it's more common for kids to "see" things. Hmmm! 🤔 Btw, so good to see you back!! 😍
I like scary movies. How are you, Karen?
@karencarrens ❤ Oh! You are SO amazing, you never fail to stop by! THANK YOU. I know I have been absent on the platform; but, am I correct to say you haven't been around much lately?
It looks like you and my brother would have some interesting ghost-bunny stories to share 😅 I don't have any evidence to support his claim, but I do think kids are more susceptible to hallucinations and illusions :)
Thank you for your warm welcome back. From now on, I will try to post on a weekly basis again 😍
I wish you a week filled with good-health and accomplishments.
:*
No matter how it is, we need to be afraid of the living, not the dead.
You raise very interesting topics in your publications. It is unfortunate that you rarely write.
Oh! My dear grandmother used to say the same thing @nsbachurin :) "It is the livings ones that are scary".
Thank you for your constant support and kind words. I have a little more free time at the moment. So, I will make an effort to post on a weekly basis now :)
All the best to you.
Reading this late at night was a bad idea....
Goodnight, sleep. Welcome, ghosts. 😨
When I was quite young, maybe 10, I was having OBEs in my dreams relatively often. I don't know if they were OBEs or just dreams. But they were very intense. I was "awake" in my dreams - in which I was exploring the worlds of other planets - and when I wanted to wake up I just dug a hole in the ground (a couple shovels would open a huge well) and jumped in it. I remember one bad dream, where shadowy black riders on horses located me, I was in their world illegally, and they chased me, and I frantically run jumping from rooftop to rooftop etc. .. Anyway, whenever I jumped into the hole, I saw my body from afar, approached it, it was growing bigger, and when I fell into it I suddenly awoke, usually with heart beating and sweat. That lasted for some period, the dreams were similar and formed a kind of episode series almost, and for many years I couldn't share these experiences without shaking and crying. And another weird part, is many years later I read, online, about the experiences of another person, and they also included riders on black horses finding him unwelcome and chasing him away from their planet. I made a note of the source somewhere in my diaries.
Hahahahahahaha I KNOW! Imagine me ... I have been reading about spooky stuff for days now 😅
I have had a few dreams in which I felt I was "awake" in them. Although, I never experienced the sense of having control of myself. Like you said "and when I wanted to wake up I just dug a hole in the ground". This must be SO awesome! :) My bad dreams also were emotionally unsettling for me for quite a while. The other OBE experience I had was similar to yours in the way I saw own body from afar, neuropsychologists have a name for this "subtype" of OBE: autoscopy
Now, to the spooky part of your comment:
WHAT? 😲
Thank you for stopping by! ❤
Hola mi estimada @abigail-dantes, besos y abrazos!
Bueno como es común en mi no puedo desligar lo terrenal con lo espiritual, pero tengo que resaltar, que cuando sufro un ataque epiléptico tengo alucinaciones, me desprendo de la realidad y hablo con con personas que ya fallecieron o que no están cerca de mi en ese momento (esto me lo cuentan mis familiares porque nunca lo recuerdo).
Ahora bien, podría decir que esos episodios "que le pone los pelos de punta a mis seres queridos" suceden porque efectivamente todo mi cerebro esta conmocionado por el ataque epiléptico, la cuestión es que pasa cuando me he tomado el tratamiento y puedo experimentar ciertos fenómenos paranormales?
Bueno ya expresado lo científico, me atrevo hacer mención a lo que la ciencia aún no puede explicar.
Aquí vemos un relato en el aspecto espiritual, de lo que sucede en esa dimensión que para el ojo es imperceptible en muchas ocasiones, pero que no podemos ignorar que verdaderamente existe, note como el rico pide que envíen a alguien entre los muertos para que le avisen a sus hermanos y no lleguen a ese lugar de sufrimiento, en lo personal es una evidencia para mi de que los muertos o apariciones son reales.
En conclusión:
Puedo afirmar que el cerebro si puede ocasionar alucinaciones, también otros trastornos como la paranoia, otros casos como los que usted ha hablado de los tipos de demencia. Pero también existen los fenómenos paranormales, que en otra oportunidad le contare mi vivencia con eso casos!
Hasta la próxima amiga mía.
Hello my dearest @javisem 😍
I cannot thank you enough for always taking the time to educate me about the Bible. I am truly interested in it, but have limited knowledge about it. So, your comments always come to me as a lesson :) a very welcome one indeed.
Oh, allow me to take this opportunity to let you know I find your drawings absolutely beautiful! It looks like art runs through your family's veins :) You are truly blessed people.
Thank you once again for everything. I wish you all a wonderful weekend ❤
Agradecidos estamos con usted con el elogio y el apoyo a nuestro arte, como siempre muy galante y refinada a la hora de expresar sus contenidos, en lo personal me encanta, verdaderamente mi familia esta bendecida con personas como usted, Dios me la bendiga mucho y le da larga vida sobre la tierra.
I found this article quite short and I am really glad that it is just a part I, because I definitely need more. As usual, your content provides a lot of food for the thought (at least for me it does).
Sadly, I have never experienced OBE, but now when I go back in time, in my early childhood I do remember experiencing something like your little brother did. Up until this day I cannot differ if it was real or not. I most certainly experienced it as real, but I know that it was not.
Looking forward for the parts to follow, and I really hope you'd find the time to post them soon !
Best wishes to you, as always !
@dysfunctional
Hello @dysfunctional :D
Funny you say "sadly" for not having experienced an OBE! Mine were rather scary. But, I read many accounts of people saying they punctually enjoyed them. I love your observation :
And I think it is this sort of understanding/empathy that lacks in general towards people who go through this situations, particularly those who are bereaving.
All the best to you my dear & thank you for stopping by! :)
Yes, I am saying "sadly" because it would be very interesting to experience it, even if it's not pleasant.
Exactly. If you haven't experienced it, you cannot fully understand it !
The fact that nearly half of widowed individuals, even more among those who had long and happy marriages, is an amazing and touching observation indeed.
I am going to share with you one quite personal, very embarrassing, but hopefully funny, OBE / sleepwalking experience from when I was very young, maybe 10 years old.
I woke up – or not – in the middle of the night, stood up from my bed, and watched myself from above as I was going to take a pee. Here comes the (very) embarrassing part: I did pee, but not in the bathroom, I did it in the kitchen, and I woke up / came back inside my body / woke up and came back inside my body once I realized that I’m not managing to pull the flush rope. 😱
On the bright side, I didn’t make a habit out of this.
Oooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhh 😳 😂
My Gosh ... ahahaha ... actually @lifenbeauty, there is a name for the sort of OBE in which one sees oneself : autoscopy My other OBE experience was one of those. In the one I described here I did not see my own body, I just was "aware" that I was not in it (now, this is proper crazy talk!). In the other experience, it was also in the middle of the night, I sat up on the bed facing the end of the bed. Then, I saw myself standing there, staring back at me! Not very pleasant!!
Glad to hear peeing in the kitchen didn't turn out to be a habit! 😛
I wish you a wonderful week ahead! :*
In fact, funnily enough, I have learned a lot from this post, in particular for what concerns the part on the neuropsychological studies on the spooky phenomena. I was sure those were existing, but I have never investigating what they were in details. I am however convinced there is a plausible explanation behind any supernatural phenomenon and many may be connected to that.
In addition, I didn't know OBEs were a thing! It is something pretty hard to conceive for someone (i.e. me) who never experience it. I cannot really imagine it. Hmm in fact I don't want to imagine it ;p
As I said, I really learned a lot from this post :) I am looking forward to read more stories! ^^
PS: thanks for the quantum ghost reference ;)
PS2: what about UFOs? Guess what? We also have them in particle physics ;)
Well, there are some drugs you can use to induce this mental state on purpose...^^
@egotheist, for real? I saw a movie Flatliners suggesting that. But I just took it at face value; seeing as it was just a sci-fi movie. I wonder why such drugs are being produced and why someone would even want to intentional take them.
Flatliners? Those believing in Earth being a flat line? :D
Lolz....No @lemouth ...Its a movie about five medical students who attempt to conduct experiments that produce near-death experiences or OBE's.
You get tickled by the whole "flat-earth" thingy, eh? Lolz.....😁
I was triggered by the word 'flat'
No thanks. I prefer to keep drugs far from me (except if really needed... I won't let me die for the fun of it if relevant) :)
Oh ... I am very humbled by your comment @lemouth. I am so pleased to hear you have got something out of my spooky post! 😌
UFOs?? Oh ... I have read material that explain the visions of faces in the skies, but of UFOs? I am intrigued now. Maybe under illusions 👽 I will find such accounts.
Thank you for taking the time to take part in this discussion Lemouth. I wish you a great weekend! :)
UFOs in physics exit :)
I can be you won't read any of those articles, but just to let you know that they are papers. Of course, we have there UFOs, UFOs and UFOs and they are actually 3 different things ;)
ooo, this is an interesting topic @abigail-dantes :)
I only wish you'd have accepted the situation and see where it took you! This sounds like a lucid dream of sorts, and acceptance (although fear is the common first emotion) could be the start of a great journey.
I've had both my mother, late father, and grandmother speak of visits by their elders in the past, and on listening to the stories of visuals and feeling of touch, I've always remembered their responses to my questions around 'we're you scared' to being the opposite - like they were calmed by the event.
There is nothing I can recall personally that I would call a ghost story, but I have had a 'higher presence' usher some words to me which turned out to be correct.
The subject of cosmic consciousness, spirits, OOBEs, Lucid dreams are super interesting to read about for sure.
Have a nice weekend!
Asher
Oh it looks like someone (Asher) should write a post about Lucid dreams and share here with us! :D Thank you for sharing your personal and family's accounts here with us. Actually Mrs. Toben told me in a couple of situations that she had felt her late's husband touch too, and his weight pushing the mattress down when he sat on the bed. Oohh ...
Right! So, you had a premonitory experience then?! Very, very curious!
PS: I noticed your message, on steem.chat, I will address it as soon as I have a minute :)
Have a wonderful day @abh12345 😊
Good day!
I keep saying to myself that I need to branch out into other subject areas, the ones mentioned above are on the list - yet to be actioned!
I describe the premonitory experience as the 'cosmic consciousness' speaking to me. The voice I heard was so bold and clear, that I stopped me in my tracks for minutes. I looked at the bedroom door, starred at it like someone should have been standing there stating those words.
I text my girlfriend at the time, 'my cosmic consciousness' just told me you were being unfaithful' haha smiley face etc.
After we parted a month or two later, she conceded with guilt and amazement, that she'd read that message whilst in bed with someone else.
I'll never forget the clarity of the voice, it's of equal and if not more amazing to me, that what was said was actually true.
Have a great day, and thank you for checking into steem.chat!
Oh no Asher,
I hope this post/comment hasn't triggered memories that are still painful. That sounds like a truly tough one to have gone through! So sorry :/
Don't worry!
It's actually in some ways a fond memory, such was the uniqueness of the event. I needed to be told, and someone or something did just that!
First off, I am humbled by the dedication, Thank you :) :) !
Second and more importantly, I loved your perspective, especially on the OBE part.
Such stories and thoughts do make one wonder about who we really are, what is existence? ... Kinda like the "West World" thing :)
And btw, part 2 of WW started and we're on episode 4 now :D part one was nicer but hey still addictive and the messages are amazing !
Have a great weekend Abbyy :)
Ohh!! I am so glad to hear you liked the ideas and notions I shared here with you all @mcfarhat! You are SO right, I have been on a quest to find certain answers for quite a while now 😅
So, part 2 not as good? I suppose you got me on "the messages are amazing". Now I feel I need to give it a go.
You take care my dear.
Bye bye for now ❤
A very interesting post indeed about the supernatural, pertaining to visits from the departed. I do have dreams of near and dear ones who are no more, in which they "speak" to me, but I would love to have a "visit" from one of them. I wish it was possible!
Whenever I am alone in a room or building, I always feel that there is someone else in the room! The feeling goes away when I feel really sleepy or when I go off to sleep, finally.
I have never had any hallucinations either, even though I always thought that I had a brain, or at least half of it. :-)
A book called Hallucinations by Oliver Sacks caught my eye when I was browsing the Kindle store and I planned to read it. Your post has given so much useful info in this regard.
I do have OBE's once in a while, and strangely it happens when I am half asleep. When I come back, I get the feeling of a slight jerk and then I am fully awake.
I think this post came after a long time, hence keenly awaited! Hope to see more such posts, with a higher frequency. :-)
AHAHAHAHA AHAHAHAHAHAH 😅 But do notice Max, that OBE's are regarded as a form of hallunciation!
Oh, these sense of a presence is a truly comonly reported one! Just as you described here I thought of that scene from The 6th Sense, when the little boy is in the bathroom and this ghost walks by the door! Ahhh SO spooky!! And this is why I have some serious respect when someone is not frightened by these experiences.
I also often dream of my dear grandmother and my dad. But, as much as I loved them, just to think of a "visit" from them gives me goose bumps! 😳
Dr. Oliver Sacks' book is one of the sources I used to write this post. It is amazing! All his books are, really. I recommend it :)
My life is getting back in order now. This means I will be posting more frequently! Thank you so much for your constant support @maxabit.
Have a great day!
Many people in my country believe so much in the spirits of the dead. They are regarded as the "ancestors." Usually, during festivities, there are libations poured in their honour. Some attribute the out of body experiences as something to do with the supernatural and may find it a tough pill to swallow to hear it is just their brains playing tricks on them.
Same in my country Green. Although, over there, rather than "ancestors" they are regarded as "guides". There is a beautiful ritual that takes places every New Year's eve, when just as the clock strikes midnight, people place all kinds of gifts in the sea, for Yemanjá, a water deity. I myself have done it many times. I used to gift her white flowers :)
Also, as skeptical as I might be, I never thought it was for me to persuade people against their faith. Particularly when it brings them comfort, meaning and purpose 😊 Plus, what do I know anyway?
Have a wonderful week Green!
Yeah, I agree no one should take away whatever makes anyone happy. My weekend is just hours to be over. I wish it's still Friday's evening.
😅
Hey abigail-dantes!! I've just logged onto Steemit for the sole purpose that I may by chance see your post and here we are. How are you? I've been absent for awhile as I'm working on a project, not sure when I'll be back posting on Steemit, but I'll come on intermittently to check out your posts.
Again, another thought-provoking post, one that actually interests me from a spiritual perspective. I remember when I was about 23yrs old, my close friend had spent the night and had slept in my bed, I'd slowly rose to see a young boy standing in front of my bedroom mirror fixing his tie, he was wearing his school uniform. I wasn't frightened, I think I was stunned. Still fixated on his image in front the mirror, under the blankets I nudged my friend awake and said to her "what's that boy doing in my room.." She said, "what boy?", I looked at her and said "can't you see him?" She said "no.." I turned towards her to see if she was joking, she wasn't. She said "there's no one in your room". I looked back to where the young boy was standing, as I did so, he turned around and looked at me and walked out the room. The funny thing is I saw him a few days later walking down the high street in that same school uniform. True story.
Since then, I've had numerous supernatural experiences that I no longer talk about, and I'm sure scientists would have a field day trying to make sense of it all. But trying to make sense of something that 'is' cannot be explained. OBE on the other hand I've heard of many stories where people have had these experiences which are well documented, and I do not doubt these experiences. I guess my point is as a spiritual Being the dimensions of reality, in my view, far surpasses scientific theory or Human discovery. Peace.
Oh @fiercewarrior you are always so kind to me. Thank you so much for your constant loving words! They truly make me smile. I am fine. My life is slowly getting back to normal, and it looks like I will be able to post my Friday articles on a weekly basis again from now on :)
Ooohhhh .... the story of the young boy in your bedroom gave me goosebumps! Even more so when you saw him again on the street a few days later!! WHAT?? 😳 I am always impressed by the people who go through such experiences and like you say "I wasn't frightened". I never had such visual experiences like this, but I am sure I would react as calmly! I think I would first freeze; than, run for my life 😅
I have had many, many people coming to me telling me about their supernatural stories. There is a bunch of those I, admittedly, don't even know where to turn to in search of scientific evidence, much less explain what they are! Here in this comment feed there are a dozen of them, yours included :D
I wish you all the best with your project and hope that the outcome of it is what you have been working towards. You take good care of yourself! Lots of love to you always ❤
Hello @abigail-dantes! Hope you're having a great day!
I don't know if that's an OBE, but I frequently find myself absolutely paralyzed and even unable to breath just minutes before I wake up. It only lasts a few seconds though every time, however it's a very scary situation, I can't even speak. It's like I have no control over my body at all. When it first occured I got terrified but as it happened agan and again I realized it never lasts long, and therefore now I can control my emotions when it happens and avoid panic mode.
I would be absolutely terrified if my little brother came to me and made such claims by the way! How is he doing? Are you still living in this house? Why?? Kidding. I've never witnessed any sort of paranormal activity, however I've seen two UFOs and I know I was not hallucinating. I'm not crazy :P
Anyway, it was a pleasure to read this!
Take care! :)
Hello dear @lordneroo 😊
Thank you for taking the time and let me know about a frightening 'supernatural' experience. What you described sounds very much like sleep paralysis. I found really interesting the way you deal with these rather scary situations "now I can control my emotions when it happens and avoid panic mode". Love this insight :)
My little brother is very well, thank you for asking! He is a grown man now. It looks like he left all hallucinatory phenomenon in his childhood days. Nowadays he doesn't even report having had bad dreams! Well, I suppose he has his fair share of frightening experiences, poor thing!
We did move out of that house a long time ago. Because it was haunted ! NO I a joking 😛 You saw two UFOs? Ha! Just today lemouth told me they do exist too! 😳
You take care too :)
It is always a pleasure talking to you! :)
Good to know your brother is now rid of this. I do get the concept behind the giant rabbit, however the lady with no arms? Terrifying! I used to have nightmares as a kid, I would wake up and start speaking languages that wouldn't make sense. I still remember the feeling of unexplainable horror and even though I can recall the emotional stress, I can't seem to be able to recall what it is I was seeing that made me fell so terrified. It's hard to explain this.
Oh yeah I saw them on May 30, 2017. It was 5 am when I thought I saw a shooting star, but after a couple seconds I realized it wasn't a star. Instead of fading, it actually started changing directions, performing impossible maneuvers at an extremely high speed, dancing across the skies and creating a spectacular lightshow. Then another one appeared and started moving chaotically as well. No sound effects at all. It lasted for about a minute, however I stood there speechless trying to wrap my head around what I had just witnessed for at least an hour. It was the most amazing thing I have ever seen with my own eyes. The fact that I can't find a reasonable explanation and that I won't ever get the answers regarding what I saw that day tortures me! But here you go, I shared my story with you!
See you around! <3
Wow! 😲
Beautiful experience though.Thank you for sharing here with me! I truly appreciate it :)
Welcome back @abilgail-dantes. I so appreciate your upvotes knowing how busy you are.
On more than one occasion I have experienced someone that has passed on from my family trying to pass a message on to me. My Grandfather warned me several times about my Mother not feeling well. He was right each time he came to me in my dreams. Now that she too has passed he no longer comes to me, so in my mind he was her Angel. I say this because he loved her very much, he was not her Father but my Dad’s Father.
Never have thought much about the idea of dreams being hallucinations. More of a communication with those from a different dimension. The more I read about such events the more I believe we can communicate beyond what is considered our own realm.
Best wishes my friend. Hope you are well, and don’t have your nose buried in psychology books, all of the time. Maybe even having a little fun. ❤️🐓🐓
Oh! Look who is here :D
A sad, but beautiful account you shared here with us! Thank you ...
Dreams are not hallucinations, OBEs and visuals of images of our lost loved ones, or their voices, are. Well, at least from a neuropsychological perspective :)
You are right! The summer is here and I shall spend more time away from my books, notes and the computer too :) having a little fun in the sand, the water ... :*
So looking forward to it! It has been very intense lately!!
Much love to you.
Can’t say I have had a hallucination or have seen a person or Image. Think it would freak me out, just as it did your brother. Love to you my friend. ❤️🐓🐓
Hello, @abigail-dantes,
I am glad you are back and again with a topic that is so close to me. A very interesting and useful article, I will check about this "Alice in Wonderland syndrome" never heard about it.
I have some supernatural situations. The first I remember really clear was when I was kid and looked in the dark behind a cupboard and saw a giant creature of rock, it was a great horror and such a real experience that even after a years ago I wondered if it was real or not. I learned a little later that the characteristics that this monster have looked like the Semitic creature "Golem", but I don't have Semitic roots, so maybe it was just a metaphysical joke for children :D
When I was a student, I had one more serious experience, which I believe today to be the mystery of the meaning of my life. It was rather a call, a feeling, an inner voice, for which I was more deeply involved in the literature and art his characteristic was that it want you to keep silent about it. If you talk about it it will disappear and the depth that it has and the meaning you will not experience. Have you read Hoffman's novels? He has such fantastic stories as the pure love that is not from this world. This type of hallucination for me is a breakthrough in eternity. Thomas de Quincy in his diaries "Confessions of an English Opium-Eater" talks about his experiences of this type, how he spent the entire eternity from the dawn of life of this world to the very end. I'm chaotic, but if I walk in one of the directions, I just have to talk a lot about it... sorry about that :)
Karl Jung, when he dealt with occult affairs and wrote one of his deepest books, "Seven sermons to the dead," experience the supernatural, as ghosts obsessed his house, and it was a real horror, not only for him but for his family too. I try to look for the whole story because I have forgotten a lot of it, but I can't find it - he wrote about this in his autobiographical book if you're curious to read it. :)
PS: One of the paintings you have upload here, remind me a lot of one of my favorite painters and writers Alfred Kubin - "The Best Doctor", a real master of drawing nightmares :)
Oh! @godflesh it is wonderful to see your incredible comment here on my feed. Thank you so much for all the information and suggestions you have brought me here. I have written some of them down! Also, this stunning painting you shared could not describe better the experiences I have come across in various reserach papers and studies! It is both scary and magnificent in the same proportion! THANK YOU :)
I trust you are fine. I wish you all the best always my dear ❤
I was sleeping, and in the middle of the night I ‘suddenly’ found myself “floating” around my bedroom.
Would like to experience this one, unfortunatelly i can't make myself do that :(
Briliant, as usual. :)
@ocupation my dear! It has been a while, right? I know I have been absent on the platform, but you seem to have been busy in your offline life too. I haven't seen your posts lately.
Well, thank you for always stopping by. I am glad to hear you enjoyed this post.
All the best to you always :*
PS: That is not a pleasant experience ocupation! At least for me :P
Real life struggle, what can i say...
i would consider it as a gift :D
Ill keep trying to get there 😂😂
If i succede i'll let you know :p
Right! In this case I send you all my positive thoughts and will keep my fingers crossed for you! :) May all plans come true & the better days come soon. I will be here awaiting your news 😃
Very interesting article. I've always been fascinated with supernatural events like these. I haven't experienced any myself (unless you count lucid dreaming which I believe can be similar to OBE's for some individuals). It makes one wonder if consciousness is truly "stuck" within the brain or if it can actually travel beyond our material body. On the others hand it also makes me wonder if we are experiencing these events in our own minds (i.e. our mind simply re-creates our environment and us inside of it). Regardless, of how these events are created, they are nonetheless "real" for the individual who experiences them.
Your brothers experiences with the woman and the rabbit in his bedroom are very interesting. Often, we hear that such visions are common among children compared to adults. Perhaps children have less preconceived notions of the world and reality so they are able to see beyond what our "normal" perceptions - or maybe they just have more detailed and elaborate imaginations?Its interesting to ponder these things.
Great article. I look forward to the additional parts :)
Hey @leaky 😊
I could not agree more with you about this:
In such events, I do think the whole experience is created by our minds - like you suggested:
Because I believe our consciousness is a result from synaptic activities. If this is true, it wouldn't be able to transcend our physical body. If I may ask, what do you believe in?
I do think this is a fascinating topic too! I remember reading your incredible post on Lucid Dreams, and some of the comments were very sound too :)
I wish you all the best always.
I'm not 100% sure what I believe anymore lol.
I think at this point I also believe that these events are created in the mind. I agree with you that
However, I am open to the idea that consciousness can (in some cases) connect into a higher or collective consciousness. I'm open to that idea. There is some weird and cool quantum mechanics research that "may" suggest that (i.e. entanglement theory...etc). My understanding of that topic is limited though.
Thank you for the info. I shall look into that! :)
Damn. I was planning to write an article on OBEs as well - now I have to give credit to you and can't earn all the fame alone D:
Anyway. In case, you haven't already, I can recommend to read the work of Thomas Metzinger, one of the few German philosophers I respect, who did quite some research regarding OBEs and consciousness in general. He made me many years ago realize, that all this talking about a "soul" and "near death experiences" are just misinterpreted OBEs - which was pretty amazing to see.
I have come across the works of Thomas Metzinger as a secondary source in materials about the self. But now, after your recommendation, I shall look into his work with more depth :)
I am already looking forward to seeing what you are going to write for us about OBEs.
Take care and thank you for stopping by Ego ❤
Hello @abigail-dantes, good morning, its been a while. I just hope you and your hubby are doing fine.. Its not been long since i recovered from an illness, and just yesterday again, I had another accident. I dont just know whats going on in my life but I know it deep in my heart that God is alive..
I just saw your post but I am currently in class. And I have done you before, I like reading your posts with utmost concentrration, since I would get to learn something in the end. So I would come back to read everything in details..
Do have a lovely day ahead.. @abigail-dantes (my steem mum).
Ha! I see ... so as your Steemit mum I ask you please to focus on your class!! We are all fine here, thank you very much for asking! I am sorry to hear about the difficulties you have been through. You indeed are a very strong young man. I admire you for this!!
You take care, ok? Thank you for stopping by & lots of love to you.
Alright ma... You are welcome, and I am happy to hear that you guys are doing good.
Thanks for the admiration and everything you have done and are still doing for me. I really appreciate it ma.
I will take care, pls do same. Lots of love from my side to u too ma.. 😘
:)
Yehhh! Abbey is back again :)
I read in one publication that everyone has experienced some form of hallucination at some point. I don't know how true this is.
Sometimes I do hear my name being called; is it a form of hallucination or sign of healthy mind?
Nice piece Abbey
PS:
I did a little unrelated maths, and I can guess your age :D
Please stop the guess...you are making me feel old.
Lol. Popsy are you not old?
Am transcending son
😂
I do think hearing our names being called is a form of auditory hallucination Sammy :) and I do think the publication you read is pretty accurate. I have come across similar information many, many times!
Right! Now you will have to tell me YOUR age Sammy! 😛
Thanks for the kind reply Abbey. That means I may have hallucinated before :(
It's been a while I heard the voice though; and I hope it doesn't repeat again :)
We're meant to be twins Abbey, ain't we? Or maybe triplets :D
son you are younger, popsy knows so well. no triplets😜
Wow. There is so much here. It is sweet that the brain may be kicking in these visions to help with the grieving process.
I worked at Stanford University at the Sleep Epidemiological Research center for almost a year. I learned a lot about sleep paralysis and the state between wake and sleep that produces these kinds of hallucinatory events. Very interesting.
Vaguely related, this is the difference between hallucinations and psychedelic visuals. So many people call psychedelic drugs "hallucinogenic" and that is not accurate. Which brings me to being perplexed about Lewis Carrol - I thought he was an LSD user and got a lot of his fantastical ideas from LSD. I did not know about his migraines.
Also very sweet you were able to comfort your little brother 💕
Hello @soulsistashakti,
Thank you for commenting my dear :) Yes! It is all very interesting indeed, there are many topics within my field that fascinates me, but this one is among those placed right at the top of the list. Have you written about your experience in Standford here on your blog? I do remember you studied psychology, correct?
Thank you for the information you have added here to our discussion about the accuracy of the use of "hallucinogenic" when referring to psychedelic drugs! :)
Ps: I hope your friend and her mother are ok. I saw your comment on my previous post and haven't sat down to reply to it. I am sorry. But heart and thoughts go to you all!! All the best to you. I wish you a wonderful week ahead.
💕
No worries ever! I'm glad you had the time to reply. I was a women's studies/psychology double major in college. I had to drop at the end of my 2nd year due to illness...but it gave me a solid foundation on which to continue my own self-education. When I returned to college many years later it was for music technology which was practically used in my career as a recording and performing artist :)
Abby, nice writeup. But do you believe in supernatural? I did experience such when I was younger, when I lost my mum..I was afraid to sleep in the room close to hers because I kept seeing her at night. It was frightening. I had to pray to God to help me. In some cases, I bet you ghost exist. It's spiritual as some people have given abilities to see them. I have seen them. This drives me to where I will say spiritual beings do exist as humans do. The world is existing in two. The physical and the spiritual. But it arrives to the point where the spiritual takes more control of the physical without the knowledge of human. It's broad explanation can be indepth than we think. However experiences has taught me they exist.
It would be great to read what you have to say about this topic @wisdomdavid. And, perhaps that would guide me to the correct answer to this question 😌
have a wonderful evening Popsy! :*
definitely abby, popsy sees everything from the spiritual aspect. Thank you abby and do have a wonderful weekend😍
Yey! After a month I saw your post again... As usual very interredting, I love horror or paranormal movies, i don't know how to explain those blurry view on my peripheral view of someone I don't know who, esecially when I am alone.... But my little brother always experiencing a spooky experience where he would always dream of an old lady tslmjng to him and then he knew he is already awake but couldn't move ang feels like he has pillow on hisface and couldn't open his eyes andmove his body... I don'tknow how he can manage to open his eyes but after that dream he looks very tired and thirsty... I have goosebumps already....
Thank you ms. Abi for your good heart... Hope you're back on writing here on steemit for good now... 😘😘😘.
And I just realizex now. You are onky 2 years ahead of me.... 😍😍😍
Oh my Gosh ... @avhyaceulip
Your little brother's dreams sound truly scary indeed! His experience sounds very much like a sleep paralysis. They are always very frightening! :)
Thank you for always stopping by and participating in our discussions! The stories you shared here are spooky indeed :). I will try to do my best to post every Friday again! Life is slowly going back to normal over here. Weeeee
Have a great week ahead my dear! :)
Hello Ms. Abi, yeah I think my brother is experiencing sleep paralysis, and it is really scary everytime he tells me about it...
Yey!! Every Friday is great for now, I 'll be looking forward for everyday... 😘😘😘
Have a great day Ms. Abi... 😍😊
I am excited to read these ones, they will be fascinating.
I have often wondered, if we ever came to realize, through quantum levels, how Time is a different animal then how we currently process it, wouldn't it be funny if 'hallucinations' of people were just a part of the brain processing the reality of existence at a quantum level and those 'ghosts' were just occuring in the sumultaneousness of Time but being seen in our instance of it as hallucination?
I know, far fetched, more the stuff of scifi or fantasy novels, but fun to think of. I have had some OBE when younger as well. They were not always pleasant and again one never knows if they are but a dream.
Hello @donnadavisart :)
Fun to think of indeed!! You have a very, very interesting approach to the supernatural 😃
Technically speaking OBEs are not dreams. Many neurological, physiological an perceptual differences have been observed to differentiate the two. For example, the lack of REM in former and the presence in the latter, integration with the physical body and situations experienced in each 😊
Thank you very much for stopping by & kindly taking part in this discussion with your fascinating views!
Best :)
Scientists says out-of-body experience can vary from person to person, but they often involve the sense of floating above one's actual body and looking down. For neuroscientists, the phenomenon is a puzzle and an opportunity: Understanding how the brain goes awry can also illuminate how it is supposed to work. They are not real.
Nice post.
I am glad you liked the post Saho :)
Thank you.
If not that you shared it, I would have ignored it and assumed it was one of those Nigeria nollywood movies. It is not far from what we see in movies, and I can say many people in/from my part of the world that believe in supernatural things can attest to this. However, I wish not to experience this OBE.
Thank you for this post.
Good to read from you again.
Hello @turpsy :)
Well, thank you for taking the time to read and comment. Yes, OBEs are not very pleasant experiences. Even those who at first find them quite amusing, eventually become overwhelmed and frightened by them!
Have a wonderful week my dear :)
It was really interesting reading this post, you did justice to this post. I have also experienced OBEs over the years and really hope it will end someday.
Hello @ugonma :)
Both my night terrors and OBEs happened when I was going through a rather stressful period in life. I have heard many people saying the same too. Better quality sleep is known to reduce their frequency.
All the best to you!
I have never seen a ghost, nor have an out of body experience, nor anything explicitly supernatural like that.
When I was a child I was very fascinated by anything related to the supernatural (and for the most part, it is still a curious subject for me), the same with anything related to extraterrestrials ^^.
Now, I have had other types of supernatural experiences, that I cannot explain, and it is about premonitions.
I had a premonition more than a decade ago, while dreaming I saw a goal that will become true the next day, it was exactly the same goal from the same perspective as the TV image, everything was the same. And the goal was an important one because it was on the final match.
Another premonition I had is when I was very little, so little that I don't even remember it, but I know this because it was my mother who told me. When I was very little my father had a very bad accident on the road (he is ok now btw) and that same night, apparently I woke up all disturbed and crying saying I had seen my dad covered in blood.
So, there are 2 premonitions, and I wish I could explain them, but I can't and I don't believe anyone can, and the only reason why I believe in premonitions is because I have experienced them (with the first one about the goal, since it is the only one I remember)
Hello @dedicatedguy :) Thank you so much for stopping by!
I am glad to hear your dad is fine. Your premonition about his accident might have been very frightening for both you and your mum! Gosh ...
I have heard quite a few accounts about premonitions before. Thus far, I haven't found anything in the literature that explain them. Oh well, this is not the first thing science hasn't found to answer to :)
Will you be writing about extraterrestrial accounts for us in the future? :)
All the best to you.
Interesting piece. You had me glued all through.
I have never experience any hallucination nor OBEs but I've had several scary dreams after the loss of a loved one. I used to believe the dreams are birthed from my thoughts
Hello @ibk-gabriel
Thank you for stopping by. I also used to have lots of nightmares, but I agree with you. I also think that mainly originate from out thoughts :)
I have been a victim of what call sleep paralysis. On one occasion, I had read about this topic a long time ago, but I had not experienced it. And as they say "for everything there is a first time" and it happened.
One night not very pleasant trying to sleep, perhaps part of the stress of the day of work had to do with this event. The sensation of being paralyzed while a part of your senses are awake far outweighs the terror that can touch your pocket and not feel the smartphone.
The senses at that moment receive signals a bit altered from reality, at one point I heard a strange sound that was gradually diminishing, while you are there in the middle of the bed trying to move your body and asking what is going on? And believe me, it's been the worst seconds I've been in bed. Situations like this have occurred as on three occasions and with past experiences has been more bearable but just as scary.
Ahahahaha .... all right! Based on this sentence I am going to diagnose you with Nomophobia 😅
Sleep paralysis are scary indeed! I was interested with the association you made between their occurence and times of stress.
Thank you for sharing your scary story here with us @petvalbra :)
ayay! oh no! i was late for the comment , this was yesterdays post but of course better late than never, oh i miss you posting miss @abigail-dantes , now this spooky experiences 😱
I myself don't have a direct experience on ghosts or anything scary, and i dont wanna experience it, LOL, but yeah , when i was a kid, maybe like 4 or 5 years old , my grandpa , on mother's side, after he was burried , we are all in one house cousins , aunts, uncles, then one of my uncle started to act so weird , then he like giggled , something like that , then after a moment my mama and her siblings heard the voice of my grandpa. so , i wanna believe that spirits are true? maybe.
Then , my husband got this they say , dople ganger? you have sleeping on the room but someone would say they saw him somewhere😱
Then lately, i really wanna believe that there is an spirit here or an element living herenin our new house . because first it wasmt girls who were gerting sick repetitively, then it was my husband and son weeks after , and just yesterday it's me . that's why we started to burn incense like last last week.
oh there miss abi , thanks for your post ,really missed it,sorry i was late , and of course , i wanna thank you always for supporting me , minis and my sister. you are never getting tired. we love you so much!!!
take care always miss Abi , GOD bless you more and more ❤️❤️❤️
Wow @zephalexia! You have a collections of spooky stories too (just like me 😅). We also have something in common: we don't want to experience any "ghost" situations!! I am always amazed by the people who say "Oh, I would love to see a ghost!". I go like: "No, thank you!!".
Yes, I have read scientific articles about about experiences with doppelgangers too. Although, in the papers I read, only the person himself/herself had seen their own bodies!
You are never late my dear! Thank you for your constant support and kind, loving words. All the best to the whole family :) ❤️