"The Full Moon Changes Human Behaviour" And 14 Other Things People Know Are Real That Others Don't Seem To Believe

"No one gets it unless they’ve experienced it."

Recently, u/lokeedo asked "what is something you know is real but others don't seem to believe in?" and some of the answers really got me thinking, so I've rounded up the best ones...

1. Concrete boats were a thing

Getty Images

"They're rare, but they do exist. Everyone I tell thinks that I'm winding them up."

– u/steven71

"Yes! As kids my parents used to take us to this beach south of Santa Cruz CA. My mom would always point to this thing in the water and say, 'that’s the cement ship'. I always thought she was kidding me. Turns out it was real."  

– u/vanhagen

2. Narwhals are actual animals and not a fantasy

Coreyford / Getty Images

– u/WitherWithout

"I own a children's education company, one of the topics we cover is Explorers & Polar Regions. On a weekly basis a teacher will tell me at the end of our performance that they had no idea that narwhals are real."

– u/glastonbury13

"They're real, but their tusks are not actually rainbow coloured like a lollipop. Which is disappointing."  

– u/ShillinTheVillain

3. What it's like to have restless leg syndrome

NBC

"People think it's just being a little uncomfortable and not finding a good position to sleep in. It's actually an uncontrollable urge to move your legs that feels almost like muscle spasms and it is absolutely maddening." 

– u/chichitheshadow

4. Prosthetic limbs that can be controlled as though they were flesh and blood

Richard T. Nowitz / Getty Images

"Not that long ago, losing a limb meant being given a cheap, plastic replacement that didn't move." 

– u/EndOg

"It feels like we blinked and suddenly prosthetics were extremely advanced. However, I think the real question is how affordable are they? I still see many people with the old school prosthetics in the US, I've never encountered someone with one of these modern prosthetics in person, only online."  

– u/Nyaanner

5. Having Aphantasia is a real thing

Designer491 / Getty Images

"When I tell people I have Aphantasia (can't picture things in my head), and vice versa when people tell me they CAN picture things in their head."

– u/adrishqwq

"I was gonna post this exact comment. I just thought picturing something was a figure of speech. That everyone could think about things but never see them. Turns out nope, and it’s super weird to me that they CAN." 

– u/Gidgidonihah 

6. The sensation of déjà vu

Columbia Pictures

– u/Independent-Bike8810

"I believe that our best theory regarding deja vu is that it's when an event is miscategorised into our long-term memory as soon as it happens, instead of short-term memory where it belongs. So while thinking about the thing that just happened, we're accessing the part of our brain usually reserved for more distant memories, thus making us feel like it happened before." 

– u/wrongleveeeeeeer

7. The reality of panic attacks

Catherine Mcqueen / Getty Images

"No one gets it unless they’ve experienced it." 

– u/Current-Nothing1803

"I had panic disorder throughout my teenage years, but the amount of people who either didn’t understand or claimed to have experienced it (when in reality describing mild nerves) was always so upsetting for me."  

– u/Chatime101

8. Experiencing sleep paralysis

Klaus Vedfelt / Getty Images

– u/Quick-Section8908

"I told my family about at dinner once and they didn't get it." 

– u/Princess_Onion

9. "Sea monsters" definitely exist

John M Lund Photography Inc / Getty Images

"I'm convinced there are definitely 'sea monsters' out there. The ocean's so big I'm sure there's at least one large, undiscovered, sea creature out there." 

– u/Alert-Bu

"The moment we discover them it gets classified as just another animal. In principal all sea animals can be considered monsters."

– u/zeekoes

10. That nuclear energy is actually the cleanest, most powerful way to power a community

Fox

"With good regulation, safety, standards and upgrades, nuclear power is clean, plentiful, cheap, and efficient. But people get so freaked out by the word 'nuclear' they assume it’s bad and they’ll put oil in the furnace instead." 

– u/Joygernaut

11. The effect the full moon has on human behaviour

Ashley / Getty Images

– u/This-Pirate-1887

"Always the weirdest and dumbest stuff people will do is during a full moon. People think Friday 13th is bad? Nah, it's full moon nights." 

– u/Environmental-Fig58

"Absolutely. The moon affects the tides. Why wouldn’t it affect our bodies made up of 60% water?"  

– u/ResponsibleSwim6528

12. UFOs exist in some shape or form

Fox

– u/wsumner

"They definitely exist. What they actually are is the question."  

– u/Puzzleheaded_Air5814

13. Aliens are real

Fox

–  u/Wonderaar

"I think there’s a big gap between believing in alien life, intelligent alien life, and those intelligent aliens have visited us."  

–  u/tmoeagles96

14. How debilitating pain from menstrual cramps can really be

NBC

"I have endometriosis and it's absolute hell. Nobody takes it seriously. It really, really sucks. I have to save any sick time or time off for those days if they fall during the work week. But everyone is so dismissive about it."

– u/Maxwells_Demona

"I feel this. Family and friends have found me passed out before and wouldn't believe it was my periods fault. They thought I was on drugs. I was like no, but please give me drugs so it will stop hurting!"  

–  u/iseeblood22

15. The benefits of vaccines

D3sign / Getty Images

– u/TheyCMeStrollin

"I was having this debate with a young guy the other day. I said, 'Have you ever met someone with smallpox?' and he replied, 'What's smallpox?' I win." 

– u/mkultra123

"Vaccines are a victim of their success. They've worked so well for so long people forgot how horrible the diseases the prevent were."  

– u/Cheap-Ad2961

H/T to u/lokeedo and AskReddit for having this discussion!

Note: All submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.

Do you have anything you know is real that others tend not to believe? Let me know in the comments below.