Unexplained Noises
Q: Dear Jeanette,
I live in a large condo building; my wing has only 4 floors & 20 units. I was asleep when I was awakened by a tremendous sound, like a gun shot. I was terrified. I looked outside and in the halls but could see no disturbance. I couldn't go back to sleep and this 'sound' stayed with me all day. That evening, I found a framed picture had fallen off the wall in my 2nd bedroom on the other side of the living room from my bedroom.
My mother does not believe that the sound I heard could have been the falling of a picture 2 rooms away. She says the sound was 'in' my brain, 'my sleeping mind'. I can't get this incident out of my mind.
Jeanette, what do you think I heard?
M.E.K. from Fairway, KS
A: Hi M.E.K.,
There are quite a few possibilities here. The simplest explanation is that while dreaming, the brain will turn any unexpected sound, no matter how insignificant, into something which fits into the context of the dream (or nightmare, if that is the case). Of course, there is always the possibility of a poltergeist or an earthbound spirit; this could be determined by having the location checked out by someone who can feel or see the psychic energies produced by such entities.
Jeanette (June 2006)