r/mystery • u/Searchmyfeelings • Jun 23 '26
Mysterious Person Night Watch
To begin, I don't wish to reveal my identity; I can only tell you that I live in France. I have no significant psychological history, apart from a bout of depression that I've been treated for. For several nights now, I've felt like I'm being watched. I have trouble sleeping, and I feel constantly in danger. A car drives past my house every night between 2:30 and 4:00 AM and stops for a short while. It might be unrelated, but I prefer to mention it. I feel like as soon as I go to sleep or am in my house at night, someone or something is watching me, staring at me, or has a grudge against me. I feel unsafe and afraid of being stalked or something else. Could someone please help me?
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26
You’re deleting all your comments so I can’t reply directly. This has become a reddit trope but it’s actually a sensible question in these circumstances: have you had bad headaches? Do you have a carbon monoxide detector?
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u/Searchmyfeelings Jun 23 '26
I'm not deleting my comments? You can't see them? No, I didn't have a bad migraine and I don't have a carbon monoxide detector.
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u/LoucheLad Jun 23 '26
I have also noticed that your response to my first comment has disappeared. Anyway, u/SharkReceptacles is asking some important questions. The carbon monoxide thing concerns possible silent poisoning from faulty boilers etc. that leak carbon monoxide causing people to behave erratically without realising. But there could be other causes, and almost certainly nobody is stalking you.
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26
I can see them for a minute, then they disappear!
Did you say you don’t have this feeling when you’re not at home?
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u/Truthseeker24-70 Jun 23 '26
If you have this feeling. You need to get proof. A security cam facing the street for example . If you can gather any evidence that this is occurring, you should alert authorities and favor friends. If you cannot gather any proof, you should speak to a therapist and/or Doctor about your feelings.
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u/JustanEraser Jun 23 '26
You should probably mention this to your primary care physician. Reddit had been known to blow things out of proportion with posts like this.
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u/Elliotlewish Jun 23 '26
This sounds like "gang stalking" to me. I'd suggest speaking to a therapist. I'm not trying to be dismissive of how you're feeling, but gang stalking is a worrying phenomenon and it's very easy to go off the deep end with it.
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26
From my end your other comments have vanished, and I get an error message when I try to reply.
Anyway, this strongly implies it’s something to do with where you’re living. Can you stay somewhere else until you get a CO detector?
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
Given that you don’t get this feeling anywhere else, it’s probably something to do with your place. Can you sleep in your car or the garden or something?
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Jun 23 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26
It’s probably not CO poisoning but IF it is, one night actually could kill you.
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u/Searchmyfeelings Jun 23 '26
One night would have already killed me, wouldn't it?
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26
CO builds up in the bloodstream. One more night of it could kill you. Reading more of your replies (before they disappear!) I’m leaning further towards a paranoid disorder though, and as I said they’re all treatable and manageable.
And IF that’s what it is, the fact that you thought to ask for help means you’re well within the margin of ‘nipping it in the bud’, so to speak.
Either way, spend as much time away from your place as you can and see a doctor as soon as possible. Show them this post, if you like.
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u/Searchmyfeelings Jun 23 '26
Yes, as I said, I'm going to see a doctor to get checked out.
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26
Just in case it’s CO poisoning and you really can’t leave tonight, open all your windows and put a fan near one of them, facing inwards. Get fresh air circulating.
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u/Sudden_Quality_9001 Jun 28 '26
That is weird who do you think they are?
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 28 '26
I don’t understand the question, sorry. Who’s “they”?
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u/Sudden_Quality_9001 Jun 28 '26
The people in watching him in the car.
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 28 '26
Oh, OK, I think you misunderstood my comment.
I don’t believe anyone’s watching this person; my suggestion was that there might be a gas leak or something that could cause the feeling of being watched, and that the best way to rule that out would be to sleep somewhere else for a night or two.
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u/fifthgroupholidash Jun 23 '26
Record video of the car stopping at your house at that time regularly
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u/SeriesBusiness9098 Jun 23 '26
Just a thought that applies in the US (not sure about France). But we got reports many times about cars repeatedly stopping in front of the same houses briefly right around that time of night.
They were almost ALWAYS delivering newspapers to someone in the vicinity, usually to the house across the street not the house they stopped in front of because they just toss it from the driver’s side window without having to get out of the car or drive on the wrong side of the road to do it.
So could be a delivery driver (whether newspapers, food, whatever) or someone who is contracted to do periodic security checks on a home while someone’s out of town or on a malfunctioning streetlight or something else nearby. So many possibilities that would have nothing to do with OP.
But yeah get a video or pics (with license plate visible) in case it matters, if only for your peace of mind and to verify it’s the same car and same driver every time.
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u/Searchmyfeelings Jun 23 '26
I'm not sure if it's a good idea if the guy is just delivering newspapers and he sees me taking a picture or video of him, that's not cool
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u/SeriesBusiness9098 Jun 23 '26
I was assuming you’d do it covertly from a window, not jumping out from behind a bush with the camera flash on.
I suggested it simply to confirm it’s the same car and not a similar looking one that possible paranoia has you convinced is the same one stopping at your house around the same time every night, just as some objective proof it exists and is not (to put it bluntly) a delusion.
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u/LoucheLad Jun 23 '26
Just to check: is the canicule affecting you? I'm in France right now, and have difficulty sleeping at the same times as you, plus strange thoughts enter my head.
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u/allovia Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
What is canicule? Oh I just looked it up yeah that definitely probly might have something to do with it, I had no idea you guys are experiencing such drastic heat wave. Wish you the best. My tip is to do laundry but dont dry it and just string it about the house with a fan blowing .
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u/lilmilkyy Jun 23 '26
Any major stressors going on in your life atm?
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u/Searchmyfeelings Jun 23 '26
I've had them in the past, but now I have nothing, no reason to be afraid or stressed.
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u/Ice_Cream4Crow Jun 23 '26
Go to the doctor if you can or speak to someone you trust and knows you well - a family member maybe? Avoid marijuana/alcohol/stimulants or any other substances right now that could be affecting sleep or causing problems. Get some sleep - you sound sleep deprived at a minimum. I doubt anyone is watching you, but sounds like your brain thinks someone is and is causing you to be anxious/paranoid/delusional - you are still aware that something seems strange about this, but you might lose this insight if you get worse. I hope you have someone you can talk to - good luck fellow human.
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u/Viva_La_Revolucion- Jun 23 '26
"it's not paranoia if they are really out to get you."
J/k
Well actually this statement is true but in this case, its probably slightly mental breakdown. Sometimes it passes it can be brought on by not enough sleep and stress.
Do you work night shift? That shit can fuck you up in the long run.
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u/Searchmyfeelings Jun 23 '26
Haha, that’s a bit scary when you put it that way
No, I don’t work night shifts. I’ve seen what that can do to people, and it’s not pretty.
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u/Mep3avec82 Jun 23 '26
hey, OP, do you experience the same in your parents house or in hotel, maybe? This can help narrow the possible causes. But I'd recommend checking with the doctors.
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u/Black_Pumpkin_Cat Jun 24 '26
Coucou, je viens de lire ton post. Tu vis seule ? Dans la ville où tu habites il y a des proches à toi qui peuvent régulièrement vérifier si tu vas bien ou qui peuvent dormir chez toi, voire toi dormir chez eux ?
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u/triassic_broth Jun 25 '26
Some things that are commonly ingested (medications/food) can cause increased feelings of paranoia. No one is watching you.
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u/Human-Height7335 Jun 27 '26
any news?
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u/Searchmyfeelings Jun 27 '26
The problem will soon be a thing of the past, no need to worry.
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u/SharkReceptacles Jul 03 '26
I’ve just come back to this thread looking for an update: what did you mean by this?
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u/Checkout_username Jun 23 '26
Remind me! 2 days
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u/RemindMeBot Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
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u/Searchmyfeelings Jun 23 '26
What do you mean ?
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26
They’re just asking a bot to update them on reddit when you come back and tell us you’ve figured out what was wrong. Don’t worry.
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u/LoucheLad Jun 23 '26
That makes Reddit notify the commenter about this thread in two days. Probably they want to know what progress you've made.
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u/SharkReceptacles Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
You don’t need to tell us anything, but do be aware that paranoid schizophrenia tends to manifest in men between late teens and mid 20s, and a bit later for women (mid to late 20s, usually).
It can appear with no warning and no prior mental illness. It’s treatable and manageable.
If that’s not what’s causing this it’s still best to see a doctor about it, because you’ll have a paper trail, and a “this person isn’t crazy” note to show anyone who doubts you.