I don't know if I'm just being paranoid, but lately I have had that errie feeling that something is behind me. I have on more than one occasion seen something move on the right side of me. I have also been drawn to the corner.. now it may just be my reflection on the t.v. but being that the t.v. is on top of a very tall dresser I am not likely seeing my shadow on it. I think I'm losing my mind! Is there any way to really tell if it's not just mind games. I have been a bit sensitive and have noticed myself running to the bed when I shut the lights off.

I know exactly the feeling you are talking about. It can be unsettling. If you are losing your mind then you have company as lots of folks here have had odd experiences, including ones similar to what you described.

It is important to rule out plausible causes first. For example, is there anything else in the room that could create a shadow like that if ambient light hits it (moon, sun, car lights, etc). Or could moonlight coming in from the window be hitting you creating a shadow. Have you had any eye troubles recently, or if you wear glasses could something be reflecting them etc. Do you find it most happens when you feel stressed, or it's after you have been watching shows or a movie related to the paranormal (may still be in the back of your mind). Not saying any of the above is the cause just some examples of what I mean by plausible causes to consider. Just as a lamp that turns on or off could be a loose bulb, faulty wiring etc. Or an odd recurring noise could be the house shifting, animal/bird in the attic, something outside that bangs against the wall when it's windy etc. =)

The recent things you have felt/seen are they the first time you've experienced anything unusual? Does it last for a brief moment, and can you tell what the shape is? Have you purchased any antiques or previously owned items recently?

Sometimes experiences like these can be a spirit visit (loved one checking in on you), or your spirit guide that you are sensing. IMO

You may want to keep note (day/time) when you get that feeling or see something moving next to you, along with what you were doing at the time. If your comfortable with it you can also take several photos when you sense/see things (take 2 in a row from the exact same spot/angle so you have one to compare with), in the room you experience this in as well as other rooms of your home. Or you can try evp. You can let your recorder run in the room(s) you have seen this or ask questions pausing for 30 seonds in between. Be sure to have your tv/radio off, make note of any outside/inside noises (dogs barking, traffic, house sounds etc), so your not mistaking that for voices or odd sounds on playback. I would also try taking photos or doing evp randomly as well.

Try not to worry there may be a natural explanation for what you have experienced, or it may just be a spirit visitor or guide you are sensing checking in on you. Hope that helps a bit. Let us know if anything further happens. Oh and welcome to SK btw, nice to have you join us. =)

Wow great questions I will try and answer them in order.
I don't think it is a reflection of the moon/sun seeing that my window is completely covered with some tinting stuff and then has a heavy drape. I like my room to be pitch black.. something that I've needed since I was little. I hated seeing shadows.

As far as the feeling it isnt the first time. I have seen ghosts before and seen very strange things. I often get short of breath is I go into a certain area that is supposed to be haunted. It may just be a nervous reaction.. but who knows. I don't feel that bad here.

I did try and get in contact with my spirit guide through a cd from Sylvia Browne's book, but I found I couldn't concentrate well enough to totally visualize what I needed to. I did recently lose my grandmother and have wondered why she hasn't come to say hi. Maybe it's my bunny Midnight who passed away a couple of months ago.

As far as watching stuff on t.v or movies I don't really watch t.v. much. I do happen to watch TAPS and that's cuz well its totally fun to watch it.

It happens throughout the day when there are others around.. and when there arent. I'm going to try and take some pics of my house and see what happens.

It's hard to tell what's reflection or not sometimes. I've seen things out of the corner of my eye too and sometimes I think it's just a shadow and I just didn't see what caused it or perhaps an odd reflection- though it does seem like you've pretty much ruled that out. Other times I do think that it's really someone there.

In your first post you sound a good bit freaked out. I think that you probably don't need to be frightened, though I know that can be hard on occasion. You said that you lost your bunny and grandmother recently and I think that it's entirely possible that one or both might be visiting. I still sometime will be doing something and get the feeling that my dog is right there; I turn around and can't see anything but it does feel like I sensed her presence even though she wasn't visible. This could be Grandma's or Midnight's way of looking after you. We often don't get the signs of our loved ones in the way we expect or want, it might not be the right time for them to say hi in a more direct way.

Do you feel like you are spooking yourself or do you feel like someone is trying to spook you? We all spook ourselves once in a while, it's a fairly normal reaction to the unknown. If that's the case then relaxing about it might enable the visitor to be more clear. If it's the other way around then maybe burning sage or whatever ritual your familiar with will help calm the activity around you. In any case it is a good idea to take pics.

Keep us posted. =)

Ok I think I'm weird... lol I was with my mom earlier at the store and when we were driving home we saw some Cardinals cross in front of us. My grandma loved Cardinals and always said they were good luck! So as soon as I saw it cross and land on a fence post I said, Hi grandma! and the bird turned and looked towards me. Maybe its wishful thinking, but maybe its more.

I have taken some pics of the house and I'll upload them too see if I've caught anything. Will keep ya posted!

Hi InfiniteDreams,

Sorry for all the questions lol, some were to get a better feel for what you've experienced, and others were just examples of things to consider if ruling out plausible causes first.

Ok some thoughts based on your response and the additional info you provided. You have ruled out the shadow being created by a light source, or it being a reflection. If you are able to rule out your mind playing tricks on you (imagination after watching a show), which it seems you have, and you don't feel it's anything with the eyes (even those black flecky floater things, we see at times), then I can't think of any other natural cause that could create a shadow moving next to you.

Though you didn't feel you were successful in meditating perhaps a connection of sort may still have been made with your guide. Maybe the shadow and feelings you had of being followed were your guides way of letting you know he/she is there? In noting your Grandmother passed away recently (I'm very sorry to hear that *hugs*), it is also very possible these were spirit visits from her (and not your guide). I believe our loved ones visit us more often then we may realize, and as Renee noted, the signs they may give us are not always as we may expect them to be. So we can miss them, shrug them off as being nothing, imagination, forgetfulness etc, or even mistake them as being ghost activity or something else pn related. The cardinal experience you just had may have been a little sign from her to let you know yep I'm still looking out for you. But yes we also have to be aware when we see things we associate with our loved ones that it's not a case of wishful thinking vs it being an actual sign. Listen to your heart and your intuition you'll know if it was a sign or not.

There is no doubt in my mind that we've had spirit visits here from our loved ones, as well as visits from our beloved pets we have lost.

Not sure this was your bunny? Not saying spirits (including animal spirits) can't manifest in a larger or smaller form than we'd expect, or in different ways (orb, mist, shadow etc) just seems strange that an animal would appear large and in a way that made you wonder if it was your own shadow you were seeing in the tv. IMO anyway. =)

You may be more sesitive than you realize to the paranormal. IMO we are all born with innate abilites (to varied degrees), though for various reasons many folks will lose it (or rather tune out), while others will maintain it and/or even increse their abilities some during life. There seems to be certain ppl who have more pronounced abilities (psychic/mediums), however I suspect most fall more into the sensitive category. Sensing or feeling a presence, seeing and/or hearing things at times, a feeling of knowingness now and then, sensing how another feels (even if they are elsewhere at the time) etc. I've had experiences like that since childhood, as have many others here. =)

Looking forward to seeing how your pics turn out, and do let us know if anything further happens.

I always thought I was a bit sensitive.. but not sensitive enough to feel if its a man/woman, etc. I guess I should post on the other boards and see if anyone has a way of "opening my eyes" a bit more. I'd really like to see if it's my spirit guide, relatives, or something else trying to get in touch. Its just so fustrating not knowning!

As for the pics my camera has been on the fritz. I'm going to change out the batteries and see if that helps. The pics have been coming out blurry, dark, or not at all. The flash is also taking a while to flash or it won't flash at all. So I'll keep ya posted as soon as I get it checked.

Sorry for the longer reply, but two seperate items to comment on. I'm the same way, I can't always tell if the presence I'm feeling is man or woman just know they are there. Unless of course there is a certain smell (that you can associate with male or female) or you faintly hear or see something. =)

There is all sorts of material on the web (and books) that offer advice on ways to open yourself up more. You may have to read through lots before finding something that makes sense to you and/or your comfortable with doing. Recently I've finally let go of that little fear that sat in the back of my mind, and it has made a difference. Meditation can definitely help, though it may take time and practice to do properly. I've come to learn that through reading and discussing same with others. There are different techniques ppl use (something that works for one may not for another) so there may be some trial and error until you find what works best for you. It seems a common mistake (for lack of a better term) is the position one opts to sit/lay in, and not finding a space that is truly w/o distractions and you feel most comfortable in. Quieting the mind is not an easy thing to do when first trying, so that can be an obstacle, as can falling asleep. LOL

We have a busy house so finding quiet time to focus is a task in itself. Even when I'm home alone with the phone turned off and bedroom door closed to keep the cats out, the little boogers start chirping to be let in or they try and get the door open. They can open our sliding doors doing a paw shimmy, and if a regular door is not firmly closed they shoulder check their way in. I understand once you've accomplished meditation you will be able to block out little distractions (pets, outside noises, wandering thoughts etc).

Not sure what your belief system is, but for me I also find prayer has helped. Asking that I'm able to see and understand what I'm feeling better, and that anything negative not be permitted to make itself known. I also ask for and visualize a white protective light surrounding me and my home. I do this daily actually, most mornings but always before I go to sleep (visualize it around my family, home and property too). I believe when we are dreaming/sleeping we are more open (and vulnerable) to energies (including negative ones) to inject thoughts and/or make dream contact. Picking up on the emotions of others (spirits and the living) can happen more frequently as you open up more (has for me anyway) so that can be a challenge. There have been times where I discovered I was actually picking up on anothers emotions (not readily obvious) and not a presence as I first thought. Even those odd feeling you get can take time to sort out what it means. For example; feeling heaviness in the chest means there's an energy there, feeling anxious or unsettled for a bit usually follows with getting news of some kind, a tingling sensation tells you this, or a buzzing noise means that etc.

Time, patience and doing some research is my best advice. I don't know if we are able to sense/see/hear/understand things more because we are developing what is innate in us all, or if it's we are only given what we are suppose to know/see when we try (or not)? Perhaps it's a little of both. =) A number of other folks here are sensitive to varied degrees, hopefully they have some other tips/advice on what has helped or works for them. Good luck, let us know how your doing.

New batteries may help you solve your camera troubles. I find if I don't use good quality batteries in mine they drain quickly, and even if it shows it has some power left poor batteries never seem to have the same juice as quality ones do when the power level is lower. A few other tips: Blur can be caused by camera or subject movement (in paticular with lower shutter speeds), or poor focus can do it (medium and larger apeture settings can cause blur, usually in the background). Diffraction can give a pic a blurry look too, caused when using a really small aperture. Dark photos can be due to your camera being on the wrong setting for light that is available (even when using a flash a large area of the pic can still be dark when taking pics at night). Or it's an underpowered flash, which can also cause a grainy look. Hopefully that helps some, and that new batteries solve some probs your having. Good luck and keep us posted. =)

Took some pics finally and I tried to take more than one picof the same area. I even took some without the flash, although I noticed when I didn't use the flash the pics came out sort of grainy compaired to the pics with the flash. Is this a common occurence or do I just have a crappy camera? I use a Kodak EasyShare C310 I think it was either 3 or 4 megapixels.

Hi!

I use a Sony digital and my best advice is play with it until you know what is what. I did the same thing. I played with all the buttons, and after (cough) a year I realized I had this backlight opp instead of flash? LOL Hey? I am not a photographer LOL! But seriously after working with it I slowly......oh so slowly learned what was proper for what lighting condtion.
About meditating. I use a couple CD's that just have relaxing sounds. I need to even cover the noise of the fridge, the hot water heater, just the normal sounds a house makes? LOL My house also creaks! I found mine at a book store in the mall, so probably most have them. They were near the audio books. Just the sound of the ocean works for me...........no boats in it LOL! Toot Toot!
Take care and have fun with your new cam!
Peggy

I agree with Peg getting familiar with your camera and how each settings work can help you to get sharper pictures. Graininess often happens in low light situations, as your camera apeture is usually open more. There are programs that can help reduce the grainy look some but depending on the amount it can take a bit of work to do. Also depends how familiar you are with working pic edit programs. Hmm I should have read this first as I think the long instruction reply I did to your pic question in the pic forum may not have been what you were looking for. Best advice, read your mannual, get familiar with settings and how to shoot in different settings and light levels. Lots of photography sites on the web have good info, so you may want to take a bit of time and read there their FAQ's, and tips sections. =)