In the winter of 1984, a European woman living in England was sitting at home reading. She suddenly heard a distinct voice inside her head:

“Please don’t be afraid. I know it must be shocking for you to hear me speaking to you like this, but this is the easiest way I could think of. My friend and I used to work at the Children’s Hospital, Great Ormond Street, and we would like to help you.”

Referred to in medical reports only as A.B., she said the voices provided facts she could not have known, so that she could verify the experience was real and that she could trust them.

After trying to ignore the voices, they became insistent, guiding her to a specific brain-scanning wing of a nearby hospital. They told her she had a tumour on her brain stem.

Despite having no other symptoms, A.B. was in such distress that doctors agreed to perform the scan.

Incredibly, a tumour was found.

A.B. opted to have immediate surgery, a decision which she says the voices were in agreement with. The procedure was successful – as she came round from the surgery, she heard the voices one final time:

“We are pleased to have helped you. Goodbye.”

Got goosebumps?

Sources

• A difficult case: Diagnosis made by hallucinatory voices, British Medical Journal (1997)
• Listening to voices Dr. Romeo Vitelli.
• The Witch in the Waiting Room: A Physician Examines Paranormal Phenomena in Medicine Robert S. Bobrow (2006)
• Public domain photo from Wikimedia Commons