To former 'staunch' non-believers...what changed your mind?

Although I do believe that paranormal/supernatural 'things' do happen, I could easily be a scoffing skeptic - because I've never experienced anything that didn't have a perfectly good explanation and as well, have never personally known anyone who experienced anything 'woo'...

...Anyway, I guess it is the fact that I could be a skeptic but am not, that makes stories of 'former' skeptics enjoyable to me.

So, I would like to hear from those of you (say age 30 and older) who 'were' longtime, absolute non-believers but then had an experience of such truly 'high strangeness' that there is now no way you can deny that 'there is more to reality than meets the eye'...

Getting chased around your house by a big glowing green light orb would probably change your mind
It's not a pleasant way to spend a night...

When i was 8 or 9 years old we lived in a cul de sac of about 25 houses. It was a straight cul de sac, no bends in the road. There was a group of us kids that played together and we never left the street as it was adjacent to a very busy main road. There was a house up the top right hand side that was abandoned, the front gates chain locked.
A few years previous a family lived there, 3 children. Apparently one evening the husband became possessed by an evil spirit, got a hatchet out and slaughtered the children gruesomely, chasing them around the house hacking at them. He then locked himself and his wife in the upstairs bedroom at chopped her limbs off one by one leaving her to bleed to death. Her screams could be heard all over the street. He was arrested and told police he suddenly got an overpowering urge to kill his whole family.
Many times i heard this story as a kid,true or not, it scared the bejayzus outta me...
So this house was our haunted house. We were all scared to go near it, the rumour being the ghost of the mother could be seen at the upstairs bedroom w1ndow even my mother told us not to go near it.
One day we all decided to go to the gates and call out for the ghost to appear. We were all at the gate including a couple of the older lads, when all of a sudden everybody started getting scared,panicky, freaked out even. They said they could see something at the w1ndow . Not me. Unbelievably, and to this day i can remember this very clearly, i saw a black squiggly line going across the driveway from the house towards the garden. I say squiggle because it moved like a snake does. I looked around at the rest of the lads and they were all looking up at the w1ndow shaking, screaming almost crying. They were definitely seeing something. But the black line was moving quite slowly about 4 feet off the ground. It was about 2 foot across, it stayed the same width the whole time. It was'nt too thick maybe a couple of inches. I remember shouting "look at that look at that" pointing it its direction. But they were all fixed on the w1ndow. The squiggle was moving at a slow walk speed. I didnt feel afraid at all more amazed. After about 15/20 seconds the rest had enough and turned to leave so i did too. I wasnt staying there on my own.
We never went near the house again and i never seen anything like that again. It was so real so yet so unreal..
To this day i can picture it in my head clearly.


Because this happened when i was a child i wasn't exactly a 'non-believer' as you put it.
But it is what has made me believe that we will never understand a lot of things that happen on this planet.

a reply to: lostgirl

Pre-life memories, seeing things in my mind before they happen, experiences with spiritual beings that have permanently changed my being/essence/brain for the better, the list goes on and on

Figured this out as a kid. Only a few times so I know it is not insanity, I was spoken to, clearly and when alone, not conversation, just a sentence with meaning. A lot later but only occasionally. A lot more through life until I thought I had a stabile understanding, boy was I wrong.

Then there was the night my daughter called me in panic, her son was attacked again by an entity and he left home after that as he was living with an abusive alcoholic father, not with her. Well the attack as he put it was mild, this being manifested into the physical in front of him, picked him up at arms length and told him to leave, the boy now feels it was for his own good.

In projecting to his home that night, I was torn from body and had to use my knowledge to gain reality from the blackness.

Since we, or she my wife has seen orbs messing with us at night as well as shadow forms, most leave us exhausted the next morning.....she also had an aunt appear to her and give her a personal message when she was distressed one night. Damn, she came back into the room like she had seen a ghost. This, the physical, material part is not all there is. So much more.

I have been taken out of body several times at the urge of the others, not saying whom they are, friends or foe, but still, I know there are other dimensions.

originally posted by: lostgirl
Although I do believe that paranormal/supernatural 'things' do happen, I could easily be a scoffing skeptic - because I've never experienced anything that didn't have a perfectly good explanation and as well, have never personally known anyone who experienced anything 'woo'...

I have offered this challenge on ATS many times but not one person had the guts to even reply.

I can take you to a place in Southern Colorado that will blow your skepticism away and change the way you view reality for the rest of your life. You won't be able to explain it away no matter how hard you try.

Interested?

I have had numerous high strangeness events in the San Luis valley. I can't even categorize them into any known paranormal genre. Religious time distortion comes close however with a cattle mutilation thrown in for the kicker.

www.unexplained-mysteries.com...

originally posted by: olaru12

originally posted by: lostgirl
Although I do believe that paranormal/supernatural 'things' do happen, I could easily be a scoffing skeptic - because I've never experienced anything that didn't have a perfectly good explanation and as well, have never personally known anyone who experienced anything 'woo'...

I have offered this challenge on ATS many times but not one person had the guts to even reply.

I can take you to a place in Southern Colorado that will blow your skepticism away and change the way you view reality for the rest of your life. You won't be able to explain it away no matter how hard you try.

Interested?

I have had numerous high strangeness events in the San Luis valley. I can't even categorize them into any known paranormal genre.

www.unexplained-mysteries.com...

Ah, the San Luis Valley. I'm familiar with Christopher O'Brien's books and they have the ring of truth. Can you describe your high strangeness experiences there?

I was a person who did not believe in anything special and very materialistic view even if I had fantasies about being something more than normal human.

I got very annoyed and depressed and wanted to leave this place since I clearly did not fit in. I created a extreme need within and went thru the painful direct path, that most souls avoid and should avoid if they are wise. Had a "unknown" crazy person come to me who told me that I would get a gift from above to handle this place.

3 days later I broke thru the veil and had crown and third eye energized. Since I have proof of the energy flowing thru my body every day I know spirit/light/chi/kundalini exists. I just do not buy Christian faith knowing more than the other religions. In fact I believe Jesus, Buddha, Nanak and Rumi experienced the same things as I and more.

There is a lot of soul here now that know spirit without the need of faith having experienced Gnosis.

Prayer of St Francis of Assisi:

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy Peace;
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, Pardon;
Where there is doubt, Faith;
Where there is despair, Hope;
Where there is darkness, Light;
Where there is sadness, Joy.

Namaste (I bow to the divine in you)

originally posted by: Tangerine

originally posted by: olaru12

originally posted by: lostgirl
Although I do believe that paranormal/supernatural 'things' do happen, I could easily be a scoffing skeptic - because I've never experienced anything that didn't have a perfectly good explanation and as well, have never personally known anyone who experienced anything 'woo'...

I have offered this challenge on ATS many times but not one person had the guts to even reply.

I can take you to a place in Southern Colorado that will blow your skepticism away and change the way you view reality for the rest of your life. You won't be able to explain it away no matter how hard you try.

Interested?

I have had numerous high strangeness events in the San Luis valley. I can't even categorize them into any known paranormal genre.

www.unexplained-mysteries.com...

Ah, the San Luis Valley. I'm familiar with Christopher O'Brien's books and they have the ring of truth. Can you describe your high strangeness experiences there?

Here's one...
I'm a parttime Fly fishing guide/outfitter in the 4 corners region and once in the small town of Saguache Co. I encountered a Hispanic family at a 7-11 that knew some of the most intimate details of my life. I had never seen these people before and after that encounter I drove to my destination of Del Norte on the Rio Grande, a distance of 36 mi in 10 min. driving the speed limit the whole way. That's a physical impossibility. Time distortion...was a common factor in almost all my HS experiences.

a reply to: olaru12

Actually, it is because I am 'not' a skeptic, but 'am', in fact, a bit of a coward that I must turn down your offer...

Sometimes I suspect that the reason I've never experienced anything of 'high strangeness' is that it would freak me out too much, so there's a bit of 'kind' strangeness keeping me 'safe' from the spooky stuff, lol...

originally posted by: lostgirl
a reply to: olaru12

Actually, it is because I am 'not' a skeptic, but 'am', in fact, a bit of a coward that I must turn down your offer...

Sometimes I suspect that the reason I've never experienced anything of 'high strangeness' is that it would freak me out too much, so there's a bit of 'kind' strangeness keeping me 'safe' from the spooky stuff, lol...

. If you are doing fine and enjoying the ride and following the golden rule, then you do not need to rock the boat if you do not want to. Have fun.

Namaste.

originally posted by: lostgirl
a reply to: olaru12

Actually, it is because I am 'not' a skeptic, but 'am', in fact, a bit of a coward that I must turn down your offer...

)

I totally understand! The trip down the rabbit hole is filled with insanity, loneliness, fear and self doubt.

Catholic studies, confirmation classes ect.. To many questions to the weird stories. Refusal to answer by those that were supposed to have answers to magical stories ( priests, teachers, ect.). To many things do not add up to make it factual. Sure maybe Jesus existed. But that does not make anything else true. David Koeresh existed too. How many before Jesus talked to god or were god or son of god? How many after him? Are they all true too? Why can you dispute them and not this charlatan.

Okay...apparently, I have named and explained the thread badly -

- What I was hoping for was personal stories from people who were life long 'disbelievers' in the paranormal/supernatural until 'something' so strange happened to them that they had to admit that such things exist...

But, I do thank everyone for what has been shared so far - some very interesting posts!

a reply to: lostgirl

The one incident that changed me from a skeptic to a believer was when my GF and I were traveling down a 2 lane road and a cattle truck passed us going the opposite direction, full of cattle. My Gf commented that something was "bad" about that truck.
On our return we saw the cattle truck had missed a curve, turned on its side killing the driver and passenger, many cows, maimed others, live cattle all over the place and the road was blocked for hours.

Precognition...she sensed that accident before it happened. She has "the gift"....

I don't know what age has to do with it.. most adults have limited knowledge of non-physical natures. Kind of a bias and selective demographic your asking for.

Anyways.

Coming up in this world I was a believer that what you see is what you get. Science is the way, sport is.my passion, biology, chemistry and physics.

Never drank, never smoked, lead by my own example and alays had passion of human advancement on Earth.

That all changed one simple Night.

Spontaneous Astral projection. To view your external environment (that which is outside of.the body) from a omnipresent perspective, to navigate "space" freely, and go where heart desired.

I found myself in yhe midst of space of the cosmos. I could see brilliance In light in every direction, as dark matter filled the voids between. I seen planets and stars in the distance.

Then, upon observing and collecting mentally, what was happening what I experienced, I noticed two things:

1 - I was aware I was aware, conscious. Was aware that I was out of my body which was back in that little apartment I left...
2 - I was aware of a much GRANDER presence with me, it was so vast I felt around me inside of me

Then, the strange kicked in. As I was floating or whatever, in empty space, all of a sudden very VIVID and clear images started overlapping my view of the space I was occupying.

Showing me every organism on Earth in terms of scale. From atoms, to cells, to organs, to insects to flowers to trees, to plants to stars to galaxies.

SO OVERWHELMING. The images were very vivid/clear, and I had time to study what was being showed to me.

I won't go on yhe rest to avoid battles of belief or religious telling me Satan is tricking me..

Anyways, woke up for exam studies the next day. Needless to say, my mind was not On the studies but of the experience I had the night before.

Next sleep, same thing happened, but not as vivid and I woke up with blurry memory but still somewhat of the experince I had the next night.

So yea, then later in life after graduation, I started diving into internal natures; mind emotion, spirit all wrapped.in pretty biological vessel.

I have astral Traveled many times since and have had much experince in my Astral form as well as internal energies.

Cool thread

originally posted by: olaru12

originally posted by: Tangerine

originally posted by: olaru12

originally posted by: lostgirl
Although I do believe that paranormal/supernatural 'things' do happen, I could easily be a scoffing skeptic - because I've never experienced anything that didn't have a perfectly good explanation and as well, have never personally known anyone who experienced anything 'woo'...

I have offered this challenge on ATS many times but not one person had the guts to even reply.

I can take you to a place in Southern Colorado that will blow your skepticism away and change the way you view reality for the rest of your life. You won't be able to explain it away no matter how hard you try.

Interested?

I have had numerous high strangeness events in the San Luis valley. I can't even categorize them into any known paranormal genre.

www.unexplained-mysteries.com...

Ah, the San Luis Valley. I'm familiar with Christopher O'Brien's books and they have the ring of truth. Can you describe your high strangeness experiences there?

Here's one...
I'm a parttime Fly fishing guide/outfitter in the 4 corners region and once in the small town of Saguache Co. I encountered a Hispanic family at a 7-11 that knew some of the most intimate details of my life. I had never seen these people before and after that encounter I drove to my destination of Del Norte on the Rio Grande, a distance of 36 mi in 10 min. driving the speed limit the whole way. That's a physical impossibility. Time distortion...was a common factor in almost all my HS experiences.

That was, indeed, a strange experience.

originally posted by: roth1
Catholic studies, confirmation classes ect.. To many questions to the weird stories. Refusal to answer by those that were supposed to have answers to magical stories ( priests, teachers, ect.). To many things do not add up to make it factual. Sure maybe Jesus existed. But that does not make anything else true. David Koeresh existed too. How many before Jesus talked to god or were god or son of god? How many after him? Are they all true too? Why can you dispute them and not this charlatan.

I think you misread the OP.

Yes i did, my bad. a reply to: Tangerine

a reply to: Elementalist
Wow, amazing story - I wonder what caused you to have the very first Astral experience? Do you have any ideas about what might have triggered it?

Oh, and the reason I put the 'age 30 and older' (which I did not intend to be 'set in stone') in the OP, is that I felt like the longer a person had been a total "non-believer", the older they were when their change to 'believer' happened, the more dramatic the story of their experience would be...

Like - if a 15 yr old says, "I never believed in that stuff until I saw a UFO", it's not as monumental a change as would be a 40 yr old, set in his 'paradigm' ways, nuts and bolts materialist who had some big 'paranormal' paradigm shifting experience...