16 Real-Life Disturbing Experiences That Are Hard to Believe

Some stories are so unsettling, they stay with you long after you hear them. Whether it’s a split-second decision that changed everything or an eerie coincidence that defies logic, real life can be far stranger, and more disturbing than fiction. We’ve gathered 16 true accounts of experiences that sound almost impossible to believe, yet they actually happened. Some will chill you, others will shock you, but all of them will make you question just how much we really know about the world around us.

• About 3 weeks ago, I was at a family friend’s house when I suddenly felt very sick. It felt like my blood pressure dropped (I was sweaty, cold, sluggish). Later that night, we were informed that my uncle, the only uncle I was ever close with, had died due to a heart issue. © tworollsonebee / Reddit

• When I was 17 (back before the internet, answering machines, and cell phones), my family went to Canada for vacation, and I stayed home to work my summer job. They were supposed to be gone for 7 days, but on the 7th day, I got a postcard from my mother stating that they decided to visit friends in Vermont and would be back 2 days later than planned.
  When they walked in the door 2 days later, as expected, they were all apologetic that they were gone 2 extra days without telling me. I said, “You did tell me. I got your postcard two days ago.” My mother went pale, she said, “We didn’t send a postcard. We decided to stop on the way home, so even if we sent a postcard, it wouldn’t have arrived yet.”
  “But I’ve got the postcard right here,” I said, reaching for the stack of mail on the counter. Looking through it, I could find no postcard. I must have dreamt that she’d sent it to let me know. © Wiseb***98 / Reddit

• When I was 19, I lived alone in a small apartment. One night, I was expecting a friend and heard a knock on my door. I opened it, but instead of my friend, a nervous stranger stood there. Out of nowhere, he warned, “You need to leave now! Something’s coming,” then ran off. Thinking he was crazy, I ignored it.
  The next morning, my neighbor texted me, “Look outside!” I was shocked to see my entire block flooded—something that had never happened before. Later, I learned a broken water main had suddenly burst during the night, flooding the streets and filling basements while I slept.

• Once, when I was around 15, I was walking around where I used to live, which was deep in the English countryside. I heard a horse approaching me from behind, which is common as there was a polo club nearby. When I felt the horse was close enough, I turned to let it pass.
  There was nothing there. The sound continued to get louder and quieter, as if the horse was passing me, but it was not there. There was nowhere it could’ve been. It creeped me out. © hdawg19 / Reddit

• There was a moment when I experienced sleep paralysis, and suddenly my right ear started ringing. The ringing grew louder and louder until it felt and sounded like someone was screaming directly into my ear. This happened while I was in a state of sleep paralysis. It was the scariest and most paranormal thing I have ever experienced. © Vulcrux / Reddit

• I thought I was going crazy. I turned around in my computer chair to see a man in khakis and a yellow button-up shirt crawl straight out my sliding door from the end of my couch. The next morning, my dad, coming home from his night shift, saw a shadow dart from one apartment door to another. The first thing he said was what he saw, and I was floored that my experience was real.
  © PacmanNemesis / Reddit

• While teaching a class with ten kids, I noticed the lights reflecting on the whiteboard gave me a view of the students. As I was writing on the board, I saw one of the disruptive kids stand up, and I could hear the desk move. Immediately, I called out his name and said, “Sit down.” The students informed me that he hadn’t arrived yet. I turned around, and all the kids were shuffling to sit in the front, avoiding looking at the spot where he usually sits.
  After class, one of the girls told me that whenever they use that classroom to study, they always hear the desk in the back of the class move and see dark shadows around that general vicinity.
  © Unknown author / Reddit

• When I was about 6 my grandmother passed. Afterwards my mother would frequently find me sitting at the foot of my bed at night talking to thin air. I remember a vaguely human shaped glow that I instinctively knew was my grandmother standing in my door way each night but none of the conversations. I have seen this same figure several times since (even though we had moved several times), usually around the time of an important life event. I.e. shortly after each of my siblings were born. © briella819 / Reddit

• One night in the early ’80s, I was home alone when the phone rang. When I picked it up, I heard my mom’s voice telling me to “take care” before the call ended. The thing is, she had passed away 3 months earlier. I held back my tears. I called my family to see if anyone had called by mistake, but no one had. Panicked, I contacted the phone company to check the lines, and they found no technical issues or unusual activity.
  I still don’t know how or why that call happened. I often wonder if I was half asleep or just delusional because I missed her so much.

• I used to have recurring dreams at my sister’s house about a little girl with dark hair and pale skin (which are traits my sister has, by the way) telling me that she was staying there because my sister reminded her of her mother.
  Months later, my niece (only two at the time) stopped in the middle of the steps and plainly said to me, “Her mom died here.” © astro-ponies / Reddit

• One day, I arrived home from school around 4 pm. When I tried to open the door, I felt as though someone was pushing me back. Assuming it was probably my roommate trying to prank me, I told him to stop and let me in.
  Suddenly, the door could be opened, but there was no one behind it. In fact, there was no one home (it’s a small apartment with only one door). At that moment, I thought we might have been robbed, so I checked all the rooms, corners, and everywhere to ensure there was nobody present. I called my roommate, only to find out he was still in lecture. © Aira_ / Reddit

• My brother and I are twins. When I was very little, my father took me to get a haircut and left my brother at home with my mother. Apparently, some time after we left the house, I kept pulling my dad’s hand and said, “Bob hurt” over and over.
  My father thought it was weird, so he called home. Nobody answered, so he got a little suspicious and took me right home. Coming home to an empty house (in the days before cellphones), we just waited. Later, my mother came home with my brother, and we found out that he had fallen down and had to get stitches. © stikkit2em / Reddit

• When I was about 6, my grandmother passed away. Afterward, my mother would frequently find me sitting at the foot of my bed at night, talking to thin air. I remember a vaguely human-shaped glow that I instinctively knew was my grandmother standing in my doorway each night, but none of the conversations.
  I have seen this same figure several times since (even though we had moved several times), usually around the time of an important life event, for example, shortly after each of my siblings were born. © briella819 / Reddit

• I was in maybe 5th grade, around that age. I woke up at 3:20 something. When I rolled over, I saw a small girl standing with her back towards me, facing the door. Then she slowly bent down, disappearing from my view (I had a tallish bed).
  I covered my eyes with my hand. When I peeped through my fingers, I saw a nose, a mouth, and a chin very close to my face. I hid myself under my covers because blankets are like kryptonite for ghosts or whatnot. © sormonsar / Reddit

• When I was four and in daycare, I fell and hit my head pretty bad. I needed stitches. My mom took me to the ER and afterward we went home. There were multiple messages from my grandma in California asking my mom what happened and if I was okay. We live in Texas.
  My mom hadn’t even had a chance to call anyone from when she picked me up until she got home. My mom called her, and my grandma said she had a sudden jolt and a horrible feeling about me. © ann_droid / Reddit

• When my grandad was very unwell my dad was working at a new job and was very stressed. He has never missed a days work in his life for anything other than feeling unwell or scheduled holidays, and always got angry at me if I called in sick because he would never be dishonest like that.
  But anyway, one day he just had this feeling that he should go see his dad at home, he was acting weird and said “I’m calling in sick” and went off 2 hours down the road to see his dad.
  5 minutes after arriving and going up to see his dad laying in bed, my grandfather passed away in my dad’s presence. That has always fascinated me. © -jackery- / Reddit

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