awoke with scratches, page 1

Ward8: do you know ANYone with a camera who could take photos of the marks?

If so, save them somehow and then write down the date and as much as you can remember in a book that you KNOW you will not 'lose' -- maybe you could pin the written details inside your phone directory or some other book (a dictionary for example) that is too large to get lost and which you know you won't be accidentally throwing away. Attach the photos, or tape a 'sleeve' on the inside of the hard cover of the book and put the photos in there.

Then, ask your mother to check your back each morning. You can check the rest of your body yourself.

There could be a perfectly reasonable explanation. Often, we scratch ourselves automatically, while watching tv or computer screen for instance. We're so preoccupied that we don't realise we're scratching.

We're capable of some pretty weird things while we're asleep. In bed, with your body warm and relaxed, it may be possible I suppose to reach areas of your body that would be too difficult to reach during waking hours when the body is more tense.

You don't remember anything untoward happening that particular night. You'd remember it, I'm pretty sure, if you were 'visited' by a version of The Hag.

It may be a one-off: just one of those weird things. But if it happens again, you can add it to your notes from the first instance and if you have photos to add to your notes, you'll at least have evidence.

You say it might be a version of your conscience, causing the scratches?

I guess you already know that it's possible for thoughts to manifest physically? Phantom pregnancy, for example, and stigmata.

Dermatologists claim that 90% of skin problems are 'psychosomatic' ( although I'm not sure I agree with that).

It's worth remembering that people who're hypnotised and told they've been cut or burned will (in some instances at least) develop red marks or blisters. These are temporary, but the fact it occurs demonstrates the relationship between thought/belief and physical manifestion of those thoughts/beliefs.

I read a fascinating article once about a group of people who were badly burned in a fire in a building. One of these was a fireman. One of the doctors on duty realised that the fireman's burns were far more severe than the man realised and would worsen within hours, because burns keep on burning down through the skin. The doctor hypnotised the fireman and told him that his burns were minimal and would heal overnight. The fireman was told he would be 'swelling, pain and blister free' when he awoke. Next day, the fireman's injuries were hugely reduced from what they would have been had the doctor not applied hypnosis. The article was complete with photos of the fireman taken shortly after the fire and also on following days. The fireman looked almost normal -- his burning and swelling were hard to detect and he had very little pain. Since reading the article, I've always been disappointed that firemen and burn-units aren't taught hypnotic techniques to be used as soon as possible on burns victims.

Anyway, the above illustrates the very close link between mind and matter.

Before terrifying yourself with imaginings about aliens and other creatures of the night, it might be a good idea if you reconciled your emotional and/or guilt issues, via meditation or a visit to a priest or psychologist -- or simply by accepting that none of us is perfect and we often fall short of our ideals. That's part of being human. If you accept yourself and determine to lift your personal standards, you could regard that as a clean-page in your life. Put your guilts behind you. You could write them down and then make a little ceremony of burning them. Maybe this is all it would take to put your fears of night-time visitors and 'punishment' behind you.

Hope things work out well for you.