I recently discovered that others have also seen the “hatman“ phenomenon, and I feel a great sense of relief knowing that my experiences as a child with this entity were not just singular and perhaps a figment of my imagination. Back in the early 1990s, when I was between the ages of 10–12, I was asleep on my side with my back to the side of the bed when I felt someone tap my shoulder, causing me to wake up. As I turned to look, I saw a shadowy figure with a top hat standing over my bed. Alarmed and filled with fear, I started screaming at the top of my lungs. I continued to scream while the hatman started smiling and laughing at me with a wide grin, resembling the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland.
Eventually, my mom came into my room and turned on the lights, causing the hatman to disappear. My sister, who was sleeping in the room next to mine, said that my screams were like nothing she had ever heard from me before and thought that I was being murdered; the experience was incredibly intense. Since that night, I have had other strange occurrences, but the hatman has not reappeared, thankfully. At the time, I was unsure what to make of this experience, as the grin seemed cartoonish, and I could not understand why the entity was wearing a top hat. It made me question whether I had really seen it. However, I know that I was fully awake and terrified, and not in any kind of sleep state. I am grateful to know now that others have also seen similar things, including the crazy grin.