'Reality Shifts...' Ever Have One? A Humble Investigation.

Nebulous... WOW! What an experience. As I usually am with your posts, I found myself completely engrossed in your story. I am so sorry to hear that you went through any kind of pain, but I am very glad that you are still 'here' (wherever 'here' is).

It is so interesting that you were able to 'witness' your own shift... when I 'died,' everything went black and in (what felt like) nanoseconds, I awoke in a panic. I was 'conscious' the whole time, but it just happened so quickly I had no time to absorb any of it... I was beyond confused.

Thank you so much for sharing your experience.

Truth is simply much, much stranger than fiction. That's all there is to it.

Whenever anyone asks me (and they do all of the time) why it is I prefer nonfiction books over fiction, that is always my answer.

Man, I love this world - It's fascinating!

Originally Posted by Lulu

Nebulous... WOW! What an experience. As I usually am with your posts, I found myself completely engrossed in your story. I am so sorry to hear that you went through any kind of pain, but I am very glad that you are still 'here' (wherever 'here' is).

It is so interesting that you were able to 'witness' your own shift... when I 'died,' everything went black and in (what felt like) nanoseconds, I awoke in a panic. I was 'conscious' the whole time, but it just happened so quickly I had no time to absorb any of it... I was beyond confused.

Thank you so much for sharing your experience.


Whenever anyone asks me (and they do all of the time) why it is I prefer nonfiction books over fiction, that is always my answer.

Man, I love this world - It's fascinating!

Actually I was really really glad to read your story! I imagine there are probably more people out there who experience this sort of stuff, but I've never come across many of them. Maybe it's just difficult to talk about or quantify. It certainly is for me! I figure most people will think I'm nuts! It's nice to hear someone else talk about it too, makes me feel a little less isolated, you know?

Yeah it is kind of weird, the few times I've heard someone mention these shifts it's always very quick, instantaneous like that... Although for me it's always been very slow, warped, hazy and misty and dream-like. Very rarely is it a quick shift for me, I have NO idea why. It's happened a few times and they were all very very weird and inexplicable.

I don't know what's up with that, lol...my fiance and I call them "jumps", though. I think short of experiencing it, it's just hard for most people to wrap their heads around that sort of thing. So I don't usually talk about it at all.

[002 Cents]

Nebulous - Very interesting. I love pondering these sorts of ideas. That perhaps the fabric of time itself is more like a chemical reaction that only exists under the right parameters and can be altered and distorted easily.

I remember once contemplating along the lines of "what if" looking out onto the street someone could witness rips in the fabric of time. Where through something like a rip or cloud you were viewing a portion of the world as it was a couple hundred years ago or if suddenly radios picked up a broadcast from 40 years ago.

Fun ponderings.

This thread reads like a Steven King, or M Night Shyamalan story idea scrapbook.....

Lots of movie script ideas here.

Originally Posted by Nebulous

Actually I was really really glad to read your story! I imagine there are probably more people out there who experience this sort of stuff, but I've never come across many of them. Maybe it's just difficult to talk about or quantify. It certainly is for me! I figure most people will think I'm nuts! It's nice to hear someone else talk about it too, makes me feel a little less isolated, you know?

Yeah it is kind of weird, the few times I've heard someone mention these shifts it's always very quick, instantaneous like that... Although for me it's always been very slow, warped, hazy and misty and dream-like. Very rarely is it a quick shift for me, I have NO idea why. It's happened a few times and they were all very very weird and inexplicable.

I don't know what's up with that, lol...my fiance and I call them "jumps", though. I think short of experiencing it, it's just hard for most people to wrap their heads around that sort of thing. So I don't usually talk about it at all.

I agree that this topic is a difficult one to talk about - Not just difficult in the sense that by talking about it you are essentially admitting it to yourself, therefore you'll have to eventually 'face' it (not to mention, the gawks you'll get from others for being a little too 'out there'), but because the experience is literally difficult to describe. It's hard to find words to accurately describe what (might have) happened to you. All of the theories I presented (as well as the numerous other ones I wrote in my first draft that didn't make the final cut) - that was beyond simple. I whipped those up in about two minutes. But describing my experience... I mulled over it for quite some time. Those nanoseconds of the 'shift' are so hard to describe... nanoseconds of an event are hard to describe! Crazy, right? It sounds crazy, but I still don't think I did those nanoseconds any justice by putting them into words. I don't think I ever will be able to.

That's why I was so glad to find others that had experienced such a thing. After it happened, I went over it in my head again and again... I kind of-sort of mentioned it to my mom, who, naturally, accused me of having a 'wild imagination.' So, I kept it inside for a while. By sheer luck, I came across a story eerily similar to mine - it was only after that that I felt 'compelled' to push on with it. Like you said, it's good to hear/share experiences such as these - it's good to know that you're not alone in this. That allows for dialogue and maybe, some day, an understanding of the whats, whys, and hows.

I would love to know why you experienced the time in between the 'shift...' maybe you were meant to see it... a sort of 'all-access pass' to the 'behind the scenes' of these occurrences? I can't say I'd like to experience dying again (especially not in such a horrible, horrible manner), but it would be neat to see what you have seen, for sure!

I'm so glad you found this thread! This thread is actually starting to remind me of that 'other' thread... which I dare not mention... because I can't talk about that stuff right now. You are so much better with words than I am, and you painted a much better picture of the actual experience than I ever could of!

Who knows... maybe some other people out there will, by sheer luck, happen upon this thread and be compelled to share their own experiences. One can hope, right?

Originally Posted by Henri77

This thread reads like a Steven King, or M Night Shyamalan story idea scrapbook.....

Lots of movie script ideas here.

Hahahaha


But, in all seriousness, M. Night Shyamalan has let me down so many times in recent history - He's dead to me now. Just stop, M. Night Shyamalan. Stop.

Originally Posted by Lulu

Hahahaha


But, in all seriousness, M. Night Shyamalan has let me down so many times in recent history - He's dead to me now. Just stop, M. Night Shyamalan. Stop.

I wasn't joking..... this stuff is amazing, and far more unique than most fiction. I'm a movie nut and a sometime writer....

Sorry Hun, I think Shayamalan is an amazing storyteller.
Dude knows how to spin a yarn... even though not all his work has won approval. Critics who blast him should try writing-directing a movie.

I respect his courage to try off center- out there themes.....without selling out to the mass market, with comic book adptations and explosion laden stories..relying on babes & guns.
If some films don't succeed , he still has created some amazing, unique stories, that few others would risk.
What can I say, he's an outsider, with a cute Indian dialect .... and passionate about storytelling.


Anyway.......there's a lot of very interesting ideas tossed about here. And each story, I see as a possible movie scene.

Everyone's a critic.

Shyamalan's done some great things... but he's also done some poop things. He is a talented guy... there's no denying that. The issue most people have with him is his lack of consistency (with a dash of hubris, here and there). I'm rooting for him, though. I want him to engage me again.

But, in the end, art will always remain subjective.

As for the discussions going on in this thread - If I may quote Nebulous again,

Truth is simply much, much stranger than fiction. That's all there is to it.

Maybe someone will write our story some day... but, if they do, I'd better see some royalties... or much pain will be felt

Originally Posted by Lulu

Everyone's a critic.

Shyamalan's done some great things... but he's also done some poop things.

Well I suspect that can be said for all humans, in every endeavor.
Yes?
He is no different from you or I except his "failures" are vastly more public.

I'm not quite a fanboy, but he has enriched us with his imagination,
and often attempted to inject positive spiritual themes that other directors might not have risked.
His stories are nearly always about very human themes, rather than sci-fi hardware, shoot outs, dumb humor... sure fire ideas to fill theater seats.

He IS a risk taker IMO. And his stories always celebrate human spirit,,,for that, I love the guy.

Christopher Nolan, Tom Tykwer, Darren Aronofsky, Night Shamalan
have all created unique imaginative stories that challenged our belief systems
in a positive manner.

Anyway this is off topic, and I apoligize for the digression.
I just watched Inception the 3rd time... as it raised ideas few films have, about creation, time, possibilities.


Thanx for starting this topic, many of us haven't experienced (or remembered) such experiences, and it's bloody enlightening.

Shyamalan's problem is in the execution - sure, he can come up with a really interesting/unique story, but if said story is not executed properly, then the story suffers. What worked well for one movie will not work well for every movie. Whether it was coming solely from him or he was taking some bad advice, I don't know. The guy is great with visuals, as well... he knows how to set up a visually stunning shot... but a movie can't just rely on one thing... great movies (from any genre) are great because they're strong in (nearly) every aspect. It's all in the execution.

He also needs to work on his dialogue scenes - Quentin Tarantino knows how to present a (lengthy) dialogue scene. Whether you like Tarantino's style, or not, you can not deny that he is a master of the dialogue scene. Shyamalan should take note (again, we're talking execution, not content).

In the end, I think he just fell victim to his own hype. He should take note of his criticisms (because they are valid). He chose this job and if he can't handle all that said job entails, he should get out of the game because there are a million others out there (with just as much talent) waiting for their turn. But, like I said, I am rooting for the guy.

As for Darren Afronsky, what can you say? The guy is great. Pi and Requiem for a Dream... now those are fantastic movies.

But you're right, we're kind of derailing here... we can take this over to the films section (for further debate), if you'd like

Back on topic,
No problem! I was hesitant to post this thread at first because the topic is just so 'out there.' I'm going to keep running with it (in the direction I presented in my OP), but I hope there are others out there who run with it in different direction... different insights/theories will only 'help the cause,' if you will. I am forever changed by what I experienced and it is always great to hear other people's experiences - even if they are not as 'dramatic' as dying in a car accident, and so on. Any perceived 'shift,' no matter how big or small, is relevant.