What It Means To Be An Experiencer Of UFOs & Aliens
Their experiences can be profoundly life-changing, leading some to become lifelong researchers or advocates for a greater understanding of the paranormal and extraterrestrial. While skeptics may question the validity of these accounts, experiencers believe their encounters are genuine and significant.
Dr John E. Mack, a Harvard psychiatrist who worked with experiencers, gained notoriety and brought attention to the term “experiencer” through his research and advocacy for the legitimacy of encounters. His work gave experiencers a degree of academic attention and credibility.
The concept of an experiencer is tied to the Close Encounters scale, which categorises different types of encounters with extraterrestrial beings, or UFOs. The scale, developed by J. Allen Hynek, ranges from Close Encounters of the First Kind, which are sightings of UFOs, to Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which are seeing and potentially interacting with extraterrestrial beings, and beyond.
The concept of an “experiencer” is similar to the terms “contactee” or “abductee,” which refer to particular types of encounters or experiences. While all contactees are experiencers, not all experiencers are contactees. Similarly, while all abductees are experiencers, not all experiencers are abductees.
A contactee is a specific type of experiencer who claims to have had peaceful, often communicative, interactions with extraterrestrial beings. This differs from experiencers, who may claim not only peaceful contacts but also abductions, sightings, and other unexplained phenomena.
Contactees often describe their encounters as positive, sometimes receiving messages or wisdom from the beings they encounter. This term became popular in the mid-20th century, particularly during the 1950s and 1960s, when many individuals came forward with stories of friendly alien contact.
An abductee is another specific type of experiencer that refers to someone who claims to have been taken by extraterrestrial beings, often against their will. Abductions are typically described as involuntary and can involve various procedures or examinations conducted by extraterrestrial beings. These experiences are often traumatic and can have lasting psychological effects on the individual.
So while an abductee refers to someone who has been taken by aliens and a contactee is someone who has communicated with extraterrestrial beings, an experiencer might see a UFO or have other types of paranormal encounters that do not involve being taken or direct communication. Thus, the term “experiencer” covers a wider spectrum of interactions and is more inclusive of various types of paranormal experiences.
The term is not limited to encounters with extraterrestrial beings or UFOs. It is also used in other paranormal contexts to describe individuals who have had direct interactions with a wide range of unexplained phenomena. For instance, people who have had encounters with ghosts, spirits, or other supernatural entities are often referred to as experiencers. This can include those who have seen apparitions, heard disembodied voices, or felt the presence of a spirit.
Additionally, the term can apply to individuals who have had experiences with cryptids. These are creatures whose existence is suggested but not proven by science, like Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster. Essentially, anyone who has had a firsthand encounter with phenomena that defy conventional explanation can be considered an experiencer.
Several individuals have become well known for their claims of encountering extraterrestrial beings, paranormal entities, or other unexplained phenomena. Perhaps the most notable are Betty and Barney Hill. Their account of being taken aboard a UFO in 1961 is one of the earliest and most well documented cases. The Hills’ story was the first widely publicised alien abduction account and has been the subject of numerous books and films.
Travis Walton’s experience in 1975 is another well-known case. Walton claimed to have been abducted by a UFO while working in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest in Arizona. His account was later turned into a book and the film ‘Fire in the Sky’. Walton’s story remains one of the most discussed and debated abduction cases.
