 I first heard of these quote-unquote nightmare creatures sometime after 9-11, my first year of college. That's when I discovered Art Bell, late night radio baby. On certain nights, people would call in to discuss their encounters with shadow figures, strange nebulous beings lurking in the shadows of night. These creatures had multiple names, shadow people, the old hag, humanoids, nightcrawlers, etc. I settled on nightmare creatures, that's what they really are, and they have one purpose, to feed in what better prey than a sleeping human. As college came and went, I inevitably grew out of my late night radio phase as I was entering the real world, you know, becoming a quote-unquote responsible adult. There was little time for these ghost stories. And then I saw one. I saw it with my very own eyes, its scowling hooded figure hovering over me as I lay in bed, helpless and scared half to death. Picture the hag, a primeval woman-like creature with translucent gray skin and black beady eyes, except more vampirian, with horns on its head and jagged teeth lurking under its grim reaper-like cloak. The worst part was how it seemed to be grinning at me, the most vile, despicable, toothy grin conceivable. The thing was exhuming pure evil, worse, it was feeding on me, stealing my life force as I battled an endless cycle of nightmares. When I snapped away, I made eye contact with this revolting figure, it scared me half to death. I turned over in my bed and I pretended to sleep, but sleep never returned that night. I mean, how could it? I saw the malevolent creature looming over me a week later. I'd been hoping my previous encounter was merely my overactive imagination. Although deep down, I knew this wasn't the case, I could feel the thing sucking my soul slowly and methodically, while my helpless body lay in twisted bedsheets. It was nauseating, to say the least. It was in the same spot as before, at the foot of my bed, with a ghastly grin stretched across its shimmering, non-human face. Has this been happening my entire life? Am I only now just learning of it? I didn't know. It happened again a few nights later. By now, I was exasperated. My sleep was non-existent and my personal life in shambles. I grew tired of this, literally, so I did some research. I hadn't thought of these creatures in almost 20 years. By this point in my life, I was more skeptical. However, the more research I did, the more the similarities became impossible to ignore. These shadow beings are real. Real is rain. That's why I'm telling you this, in case you see one. Let's get one thing clear, shall we? These things exist. They're not your overly exerted imagination, and no, you're not sleeping. I was fully awake when I saw them. This is not a sleeping story. These aren't dreams, although, as stated, they do cause nightmares. But that's a side effect, as they ingurgitate your soul as you sleep. Hence the term, nightmare creatures. They're the true source of our night terrors, our sleepless nights, always waking up tired. They feed. That's what they do. That's their mission in life. We're their food. And we're completely unaware. Easy prey, right? Nightmare creatures are multi-dimension beings from the lower realms. And consequently, they hate humans. They despise and resent us. People need to know this. Although they mostly appear as the hag or shadow people, they do change shapes and sizes. But only when they choose to do so. Just one time when I awoke, I was being chowed upon by what I can only describe as a floating bulldog. It was gray and mean-spirited. It even had a spiky collar. Only this time, while it was munching away on me, I remembered what it was. And I got angry. With that bulldog creature gnawing on my face for God knows how long, I fought back, kicking and biting, punching and thrashing about. I caught it totally by surprise. The thing looked terrified. Its face twisted in utter shock and then contempt before its lonesome and pathetic whimper got lost in the in-between as it returned to whatever hell it came from. This opens up a whole other can of worms. If they're afraid of us, does that mean we can harm them? Kill them, perhaps? Maybe we can capture one? If so, I'm sure someone has done this by now. Surely, I can't be the first person to have thought of this. Well, after fighting off that nightmare creature, my life drastically improved and I became a happier, more productive person. My sleeping improved as did my social life and best of all, no more nightmare creatures. Life was good. But they've returned and as every bit is terrifying as I remembered, vile, repugnant demons stealing the life from my lowly breath while I'm asleep, completely oblivious. I thought I'd seen the last of these nightmare monsters, these shadow people. I must have let my guard down, lowered my defenses, which is why they're feeding from me again. Needless to say, my mental health has since been obliterated. Let's face it, people have been discussing these things for eons, the boogie man under the bed, the ghost in the closet, the something or other in the attic, children see them, parents don't believe. Everything it would seem makes them real. This is a false view. It doesn't matter if you believe in them or not, they're real and they won't stop. Although I wish they would. So then, what's the solution? Now that I've got you all worked up, where do we go from here? What's the answer? How do we stop these deplorable creatures of the night? First of all, if you see one fight back, that is extremely important, do not let your mind rationalize that the shape creature standing over you with its long and crooked nose and stay where you are smile cloaked under its dark and dreary cape, salivating as it feeds from your very essence is a nightmare creature. It thinks you can't see it. It thinks you're too stupid and ignorant to believe, even if you do see it. But if you fight back, it'll scare off pretty easily. Another suggestion, go to bed with a peaceful mind, meditate, think of your loved ones, anything, put on your favorite jam, whatever you want, but just stay positive, be an ocean of nectar, a fountain of happy human energy. They don't like that. They appear when you're at your most vulnerable, when you're depressed or upset. That's what attracts them, negative energy. Just remember, your eyes don't deceive you, your mind does. That's its job, to protect you from the truth. But I'm here to warn you. These nightmare creatures are out there. Whether you believe they are or not, it doesn't matter. They exist. They walk among us, but only while we're sleeping. That way, whenever you see one, you won't believe your eyes. But you should.