Almost everyone has had a nightmare so disturbing that it prevented them from returning to sleep. However, some individuals have encountered genuinely eerie events in their own lives, possibly surpassing the fear induced by bad dreams. While some incidents can be explained logically, others instill doubt about what is truly real. Here, a handful of courageous individuals have shared their unique stories online, guaranteeing to send shivers down your spine.
- When I was 20, I went on a date with a lovely girl with long dark black hair. I was driving my car, and we had gone out to eat and see a movie. We talked in the car for hours when we drove back to her apartment. About two hours into our conversation, the hair on my neck stood up, and I got goosebumps. When I looked over at her, she suddenly looked very old, with grey hair and a wrinkled face. I freaked out and jumped out of the car when she asked me what the matter was. The only thing I could think of to answer was that she suddenly looked old. She began laughing, and she gradually transformed back into her youthful appearance.
She then told me that I saw her grandmother checking up on her to ensure she was safe. © Steve Haltiwanger / Quora
- When I was 6, my mom bought a house. It was a brand-new house in a new subdivision. My mom and grandmother fixed a room for me, and I loved it until I started seeing shadows of people walking outside my window at night, and then they would appear in my room. It was just their heads floating around, laughing and pointing at me. They were dressed in very old-fashioned clothes. After a while, they would disappear. But this went on every night.
One day, while jumping off a chair and playing, something went into my foot. My mother took me to the ER, and after a lot of pain, they pulled out a very old sewing needle. My foot was bandaged so that I couldn’t walk well. That night, I lay in bed waiting for the people, but instead, I looked down, and ghostly green snakes were crawling all over me and my bed. I laid still, trying not to move, but a nerve in my arm jumped, and one of the snakes bit me. The following day, that spot was sore...
I left that house for good and returned to live with my dad. © Tammy Read / Quora
- This happened during my teenage years. We were all sleeping in one room because the fan only worked there. At night, I suddenly woke up and saw someone sitting in a chair in the corner of the room. I thought that I was dreaming and I fell asleep again. Then, the next morning, my brother and I were brushing our teeth, and he told me he dreamt about someone sitting in that chair. I freaked out but didn’t tell him what I saw. I didn’t want to frighten him. © Ryōiki Tenkai / Quora
- A group of friends from my college went on a bike trip to an area full of forests. My friend was sitting behind me while his roommate was driving. Others were ahead, and the only ones on the road were left behind. My friend noticed that one particular tree was following them. It was very unusual because trees usually appear to move in backward direction. But he was sure that this tree was following them. He didn’t want his partner to freak out, so he said nothing. After a while, they saw the rest of their friends waiting for them on the road to join. Later, he told his partner what he saw. His partner froze and stared back at him, saying he had also noticed that tree. Both were terrified. © Amrapali Bhalerao / Quora
- Grandma died. We stayed at her house. I slept alone in my uncle’s old bedroom. I played games on my phone until the sleepiness kicked in. I woke up at 3 am. I go to the bathroom, which is located in a dark corridor that leads to the garage, first having to pass the large family and TV room, past grandpa’s old study room, the dining room and the kitchen. In front of the door to the garage is the old maid’s room, now uninhabited. As I do my business, I hear humming. From the old maid’s room. It sounded familiar, somewhat. I’m creeped out, so I quickly finish my business and head towards my room. But something stopped me dead in my tracks as the humming grew louder. It wasn’t coming from the maid’s room. No, it was coming from the TV room. It was actually... Grandma! She turned to the guest room, and... She’s gone.
I last slept on one bed with my mom when I was eight. That night, I snuck into her bed and stayed awake until morning. © Lim Hikaruzen / Quora
- One night, I had a dream about my Grandpa (who had died almost 20 years prior). We were in his home, and he kept telling me, “We need to clean the house, we need to get the house ready.” When I asked him why, he just said, “She’s coming home.”
My Grandma, his wife of 50 years, died the next day. © dirtbikejess / reddit
- Woke up to a weird feeling and saw an opaque silhouette of a little boy standing on the other side of the apartment facing me. I turned on my light, and it was gone; when I turned it off, I saw it again. I flipped the light back on and went over there to ensure nothing could be causing a weird shadow, etc. Nothing could have created that specific shape; it was standing in the pathway between my couch and the wall so that it couldn’t have been a shadow.
I turned my light off again, and it was there, flipped it back on, and slept with the light on for the rest of the night. Couldn’t sleep without the light on for days lol.
© Ishouldprobbeasleep / reddit
- Once, when I was little, my mom told me a bedside story about a ghost. I asked her, “Mother, what is a ghost?” She answered, “A ghost can take the form of anyone: me, you, or anybody.” Half an hour later, I heard a knock on the door. My mom said, “Will you go and see who it is?” I replied, “Mom, I am afraid, what if it’s a ghost?” My mother smiled and said that’s okay, and went to the door, opened it, and came back." When I asked her who it was, she answered angrily, “Why didn’t you open the door? I’ve been knocking on it for so long, and by the way, who were you talking to inside?”
I was left speechless. © Unknown User / Quora
- Late one night, I was in bed reading. My husband slept peacefully beside me. My open bedroom window was an arm’s length away from my left side. Suddenly, the curtain twitched, but not in the way a breeze would stir them. I lowered my book, then lay still, watching as the curtain pulled aside. A man’s head and shoulders came into view. I jumped out of bed in alarm, asking, “What do you want?” He replied that he was looking for food. I told him to wait there, I would get him some. Like an idiot, I went to the kitchen and got something to eat. Naturally, when I returned, he had fled the scene. Only then did reality set in. He was a burglar looking to gain entry to our home.
My husband slept through it all. © Cindy Ferguson / Quora
- I work as night security for a small office at a sanitation plant. The building had a single entrance, and you had to check in at the security station to get in or out. A worker shows up and checks in, saying he needs to take care of a few things and grab some stuff. So, I check his ID, flip a few lights for him, and go back about my business.
Fast forward a few hours, and my shift is about to end, I still haven’t seen the guy return. So I patrolled the building to find him and couldn’t find him anywhere. He’s not in any of the areas I turned lights on for him, no other lights are on, and he’s not in any other rooms. I stopped by security to see if we just missed each other, and he’s trying to leave, but nobody is there. I did a second patrol, and there were still no signs. At this point, I checked the cameras to see where he went, but he wasn’t on a single camera except the one covering the entrance and security station. He turns down a hallway and never shows up on the next camera down said hall. At this point I logged it as an incident, and left right as the relief shift showed up.
The next day, my boss called me and said that the worker had been on vacation out of state for several days and wouldn’t return for several more. Nobody could offer any explanation for what happened.
© DuneManta / reddit
- I was cleaning up the kitchen, waiting for my kid’s bus. I saw it pull up and saw him get off. He didn’t come in, but he’d started playing around with hiding under the window to jump out at me and say boo, so I thought that’s what he was doing. But I walked out, and he wasn’t there. I called his name and looked around the house, thinking he was hiding from me, but I couldn’t find him. I circled the house, calling for him, and the parent panic set in. It probably only lasted 90 seconds, but it felt a lot longer. Then his bus pulled up, and he got off.