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Are There Ghosts? Is It Me? Childhood House Experiences

 

Please note, I am not an expert on the paranormal and have no idea whether my experiences are connected/explainable, etc.

I hardly know where to begin with my experiences. I'll start by saying that just before I was born, my parents added an extension to the house so there were enough rooms for themselves, my brother and I. Contrary to most stories, my issues were formed in the new part of the house as opposed to the old one.

When I was very young, I was Christian (the only person in my family with religious beliefs). Certain family members teased me about it and as I grew up I became interested in science; although I am still a spiritual person, with more Buddhist beliefs than anything. The relevance of that differs depending on how everyone views my story, I am absolutely open to opinions and theories here.

The start of my experiences begins when I was young. After a couple of years, I moved out of the cot in my parents' room (old side) and into my own bedroom, situated on the new side of the house. From here, I always experienced traumatic dreams and since I've been old enough to theorize myself, I've kept a dream journal.

I was gifted a doll at birth which sat on the window ledge above my bed and it always scared me (she seemed to move, smile wider and once even giggle faintly- most probably the imagination of a young child scared of the dark, I am aware).

As well as this, with the new extension, there was the addition of a second bathroom. The downstairs bathroom is in the new side of the house and upstairs is in the old. For as long as I can remember, I have avoided using the downstairs bathroom even if it meant waiting for my mum to get out of the bath upstairs when I was desperate to use the toilet. Even today, I subconsciously choose the upstairs bathroom, preferring baths to showers (the shower being in the downstairs bathroom).

Although now I am older, I try to shrug off the feelings of unease that I always have, it doesn't make it much easier for me. When my brother moved out recently, I moved into his room (situated on the old side of the house) and my nightmares have ceased almost completely after having them nearly every night for years.

I feel that all the above is relevant background information so now for my experiences (chronological order from when I was youngest to now).

The first thing I remember experiencing beside the bad dreams was the doll stuff I mentioned above. At this point in my life, I hadn't ever seen any horror films or heard any creepy doll stories and all the women in my family adored dolls so I had no outside negative influence. However, I remember vividly what I said before. When I told my parents that I didn't like her, they told me to stop being silly etc etc. After a week or so of complaining, they agreed to put her in the loft.

Because of the extension, we have two lofts, the big one in the old part of the house and the smaller one in the new part. She was put in the small loft which was consequently above my bedroom. Be it childish anxiety or something paranormal, I used to hear scuttling above me at night after she was put there. Mouse traps never caught anything and there was no evidence of mouse faeces.

In my childhood bedroom, I was always extremely paranoid that I was being watched whether it was from my window, my wardrobe or other toys and dolls that I had in my room. Even to the point where after a bath I would prefer getting dried and dressed in the bathroom rather than being naked in my bedroom. This is at the ages of 5/6; to me it seems strange that a child this young would be worried about something like that (note: I have no history of abuse or trauma).

When I was seven, my parents split (again, not traumatic, there were no arguments just a mutual agreement) and I moved with my mum to a house not far from home whilst my dad stayed in the original house. In this new house, I was okay, I slept well and I have nothing of import to note whilst I was living here.

Then my mum and I moved up to Suffolk when I was nine, which is about an hour and a half away from our first house. It was an old country house with a massive garden right next to a farm. My bedroom had a little cupboard in it where the boiler was. It was not unusual for me to hear noises but they can be explained by the boiler and the house being so old.

Until I started having vivid dreams set in my bedroom about a man. I knew he wasn't alive and I don't know whether he was just a dream or maybe an entity trying to contact me through my unconscious state? He was not particularly evil or malicious but he did scare me a lot and I started losing sleep again. I still remember that his name was Robert, sometimes Rob and he was always complaining of back pains and cramp in his hands. His fingernails went just past the tips of his fingers and they were very dirty. He sometimes spoke, not directly to me but as if he was talking to himself or a pet. His presence in my dreams sometimes resulted in bed wetting and once (maybe co-incidental) a nose-bleed.

My feeling of paranoia started coming back at this house and I would always keep my curtains shut and I turned my little TV around so it wasn't facing my bed when I slept. Similarly, at night I would turn my free-standing mirror around so it couldn't 'watch' me sleep.

My nanny became ill so we decided to move back our original town where all the family were. Whilst we were finding a place to live, we stayed with my auntie in her large, old bungalow which used to be farmland. My mother, my aunt and I all have 'ghost stories' from that house. Again, they weren't malicious or threatening but still there.

Once, my mother went to sleep without setting an alarm for work but was sharply awoken at seven on the dot by a firm push on the shoulder. She originally thought it was either me or my aunt but we were both still sound asleep. My auntie recalls seeing a man a couple of times, once when she was in the kitchen and once outside in the garden. Both times he was just walking casually as though he himself lived there and was just wandering. I too saw a man, we assume the same one, at the end of the garden by the oak and conifer trees kneeling down. Both my aunt and I said that if we had been out somewhere, we would have assumed he was a normal alive person, he wasn't transparent or hovering or anything ghostly like that. But in her house and garden, he couldn't have been there unless he wasn't alive.

From there, my mum and I lived in a small flat where my only grievance was a painting of a woman at a piano which my mum bought at an auction. Nothing happened in articular but she always made me feel uneasy.

Then we moved into a flat with my grandad. There was nothing untoward there at all, I was perfectly happy. Then my mum moved in with her partner, I lived there for a while but didn't get on with her partner too well -SO- I moved back in with my dad, in the house that I was born in.

I am now 18 and mostly living in this house alone. My dad spends the majority of his time at work, or at his fiance's house about half an hour from us. I don't mind having the house to myself, it gives me some responsibility and also freedom. That doesn't mean that I'm not often spooked though.

The most recent events have been as so.

The downstairs bathroom (in the new part of the house, which is the part that has always creeped me out) has been home to some of my more terrifying experiences. Many times, I have been on the toilet or in the shower when the door has either opened or shut on me (sometimes more than once during my time there) which doesn't sound particularly terrifying but when you're completely alone and know there are no drafts, seeing something move by itself is awful. I have also seen what looks like handprints appear on the mirror, I am aware that they could have been caused by someone touching them beforehand but they are quite small and I (the only person living here with small enough hands) haven't ever touched the mirror completely like that.

More recently, there have been two times when I am home alone that I was almost convinced I was being burgled. I could hear noises downstairs that sounded like the opening of doors/pillows being thrown on the floor/scraping of sorts only to find that nothing had moved or been touched (my house is completely detached so it couldn't have been next door. We have a very bright outdoor sensor that detects people, foxes etc so it couldn't have been that). One of the times, I heard the downstairs bathroom open when I wasn't in there. I was alone in the house (is it any wonder I refrain from using it?).

Even more recently than that, my Grandad passed away and I adopted his cats and moved them into the house. The cats were so attached to him and moped like mad when they first moved in. There are two of them, Benedict (pure white fluffball) and Rammy (pure black fluffball), they're darling and I love them. Ben is medically mute and Rammy is so so shy that he never makes a noise unless ABSOLUTELY necessary. As they started to become more comfortable in the house, Rammy would start 'talking' a little more often and, like my grandad would, I would meow back at him to acknowledge him. It seemed to make him happy so I did, it was nice to have someone to talk to occasionally!

Now one time, I'm home alone as usual and the hall door opens. Rammy immediately runs down the stairs, meowing at the top of his lungs and runs straight through the door that opens. After a few seconds, he walked back out, still meowing a little and jumped up onto the sofa next to me (bear in mind he HATES being stroked so he never sits next to anyone or even really goes near you unless you're feeding him). By this point, Ben has also come downstairs and is sitting on the other sofa looking at the spot next to me with his head cocked inquisitively to one side as if someone was calling him. I stayed where I was and after about five minutes or so, Ben went into another room and Rammy went to the sofa that Ben was on previously looking at the spot next to me still. Rammy meowed and I meowed back at him as usual. Rammy followed me into the kitchen and meowed again. Before I had a chance to respond, I heard a crude 'MEOW' sort of noise, it wasn't Rammy because I was watching him and it couldn't have been Ben because he's mute. I theorize that it was my grandad coming to check on the kitties but I don't really know.

Sorry this has been so long but I thought it would be easier to say everything in one post rather than putting it up all separately. Let me know what you think, is my house haunted? Am I haunted? Is it all really explainable? Could my cats have seen my deceased Grandfather? What about the stuff when I was young? I have so many questions but I don't know enough about the paranormal to even begin answering them myself. Any comments would be greatly appreciated, I hope you can tell my sincerity I really haven't fabricated any of this.

Thank you!

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Comments about this paranormal experience

The following comments are submitted by users of this site and are not official positions by yourghoststories.com. Please read our guidelines and the previous posts before posting. The author, Tallyia-fx, has the following expectation about your feedback: I will participate in the discussion and I need help with what I have experienced.

Tallyia-fx (2 stories) (2 posts)
 
8 years ago (2016-06-17)
Thankyou so much to eveyone who has responded! I was actually unaware that my story had been published until I accidentally clicked on it today and thought... "Hmm... This is familiar"!
I appreciate everyone's advice so much and also the compliments on my writing, I'm truly flattered!
I am about to post an update so if anyone is interested, that should be up soon.
Thanks again ❤
AugustaM (7 stories) (996 posts)
 
8 years ago (2016-05-01)
Golly! With all that going on, I'd be rattled too! Sad as losing your grandfather is, maybe he can help mitigate some of this activity around you now. Perhaps, that afternoon with the kitties (I talk to my cat too) he was not only checking on the cats but trying to let you know he's there in a non-threatening kind of way - certainly he didn't want to scare you. Maybe, the next time it's just you and the kitties in the house, you might have a talk with your grandfather - explain some of what you shared here to him and ask him to help. It may sound silly... But it might work... My grandparents passed when I was still a kid but they've always been just a breath away looking out for me - I talk about those experiences in my story: http://www.yourghoststories.com/real-ghost-story.php?story=23168
But every time I've felt unease over something paranormal, I've asked them for a little help and it's always made a difference. Even hanging their pictures in a space has helped before. Maybe it's just a question of the positive energy brought about by the good memories they evoke making me stronger - who knows:-)

And maybe now that you have the cats, you can use their reactions as something of an indicator - I don't know how clingy they are but mine is never far from me - but see how they behave in the new section of the house and that creepy bathroom in particular... It would be interesting to see how they react when there is activity... If they freak out, I'd lean towards the possibility of the entity there being negative but, if not, maybe it's benign and only unsettling because of its strangeness.

That said, a good cleansing couldn't hurt:)
notadaddysgirl (guest)
 
8 years ago (2016-04-26)
I do not have any advice to add on here but I wanted to say hello to someone else from the UK I don't seem to see many stories on here from us. So nice to read your story and I am sorry for the loss of your Grandad I know only too well the pain that causes especially when you live with them. Take care and I look forward to reading more from you. ❤
RedWolf (31 stories) (1292 posts)
 
8 years ago (2016-04-26)
Tallyia-fix

I don't blame you for not liking that doll. I hate dolls especially those whose eyes open and close and those porcelan types with the ones with the Southern Belle dresses on. They freak me out.

As far as the bathroom ghost I would say "can I have some privacy?". Then again I grew up in a haunted house. There was a spirit in the basement that didn't like females especially me.
Regards
Red
WintersAzazel (2 stories) (27 posts)
 
8 years ago (2016-04-25)
Tallyia-fx-

First off, please don't apologize for the length of you story! The longer the better in my opinion. And I also really have to agree with Tweed, you have such a clear understandable narrative, and it made your story very easy to read and understand 😊

Wow, it sounds like things have been rough, especially in the bathroom. I know that you think that these experiences don't sound as scary as they probably were to you, but I can undestand you fear EXTREMELY well. It's when we're alone that these things are the scariest, no matter how 'small' or 'inconsequential' it may seem later. I think that you are doing pretty well so far! You're most certainly braver than I am, that I can assure you! Your experiences in that bathroom especially bring to mind my brother.

Since my family and I have moved into our new house, my parents had a new bathroom added downstairs. Unlike with your story however, my brothers problem is with the upstairs bathroom, as opposed to the new downstairs bathroom. He constantly complains that he feels watched when using it, and that a mischievous spirit likes to knock down shampoo bottles and his towel at random. He hasn't said that it feels malicious, just annoying. Do you think your pesky spirit is the same? Well, aside from the voice that seems to be your grandfather.

Like Tweed said, it could be a poltergeist, but I myself don't know much about them, as like you I am no expert on the paranormal. My advice is to stay brave, and maybe try to see how the spirit and it's intentions feel to you.

Hope that helps! ❤
PunkysMama (4 stories) (62 posts)
 
8 years ago (2016-04-25)
Hello, 😁

I agree with Tweed's comment. I wish I could write like you! I can 'hear' you talking and I can just about make out your accent too! That's crazy. (Made for a good read 😆)

While some of these things do seem like they could be explained as perhaps NOT on the paranormal spectrum, I do believe that you definitely have had an experience or two.

It is really strange that at such a young age you felt the need to turn your television and mirror around. I wonder why in your head you believed you were being watched... As you said, I don't believe it is normal for children to act in that manner. Generally if no visible person is around then a child would assume they are completely alone and then let the foolishness begin! But it is strange. Maybe something did happen that you can't quite recall because it is buried subconsciously. I am not implying sexual assault or anything like that, but perhaps you saw something looking back at you on occasion and though you didn't process that information of what you were looking at subconsciously you may have!

Very weird and interesting! Thank you for sharing your experience. 😉
Tweed (33 stories) (2475 posts)
+1
8 years ago (2016-04-25)
Tallyia, hello and welcome,

Firstly I love your 'voice' in your writing style. Your sincerity certainly did come through. 😊

Sorry to hear about your Granddad, it's cool how you're taking care of his cats now. I used to meow back to my cat too, glad there are others out there who do this!
Did the extra 'meow' sound anything like your Granddad? I'd like to think that it was him, checking in.

The disturbing noises you heard downstairs, it's possible it was the doing of a ghost or two. I must confess I'm pretty bias as I type this because I've just come out of a family drama which included a ghost who moved furniture. Most odd all of that. What's interesting is a similarity both situations share which is a question mark over living arrangements. I know moving around a lot gets very stressful. Those noises downstairs reminded me of someone looking for something frantically before you become aware of their presence. Also the bathroom door could be someone checking to make sure you're not going to interrupt them.
However, it'd be pretty obvious you're in the bath or shower because no matter if the door is closed or not, anyone outside can hear the bathroom fan running and water. So maybe not so nice intentions for the door opening.

Unfortunately the teen years commonly bring with them a bit of poltergeist activity. So I'll link you to Rook's profile, our resident expert on how to keep home and ghosties calm and nice. It's a cleansing/shielding method and it's a corker. It won't banish any good ghosts (like your Granddad for example) only the not so nice ones.
Http://www.yourghoststories.com/user-profile.php?user=8155

Thanks for sharing, I really enjoyed reading this. I'm sure if you have a click around you'll find many others who've had similar experiences. You can search for topics with the search field top right of screen and of course feel free to ask any questions.

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