Monsters Among Us – S20 Ep7: Banshees, Messages from the Beyond and a Haunted Cabin

Host: Derek Hayes
Date: November 4, 2025
Podcast Description: First-hand paranormal stories told by witnesses, curated by Derek Hayes. This episode presents calls featuring banshees, symbolic afterlife messages, and a chilling haunted cabin experience—many in the callers' own words.

Overview

In this episode, Derek unlocks select bonus content from previous “Beyond” episodes for all listeners. The episode’s central theme is listeners' encounters with the supernatural, focusing particularly on the motif of “the message” from beyond—signs from deceased loved ones, banshees as omens, and haunted locations that leave more than just emotional marks. Listeners share stories about connection, fear, and the lasting impact of their brushes with the unknown.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Messages from the Beyond: The Power of Signs and Numbers

[03:13-08:07] Taylor from Indiana: Synchronicities After a Loss

• Story: Taylor recounts the loss of her son Jack at 22 weeks. Afterward, she experiences repeated occurrences of the number 22 tied to significant events—her son’s birth length and weight, a bloomed flower, and even a restaurant check during a healing trip.
• Signs: Taylor believes these are messages from Jack—especially after a radio station with “Jack” in the name and a truck with his initials appears.
• Quote: “But cool sign that he’s just constantly there and telling me that everything's gonna be okay and that, you know, he loves and misses me because, gosh, do I miss and love him.” (Maddie, 07:49)

Derek’s Reflection:
"If something like that occurred a few times, we could argue it’s simply a coincidence. But to have it happen so many times and to have the radio station share the same name as your son, frankly, it’s pretty incredible." (Derek Hayes, 08:11)

2. Banshees and Family Omens: Visions, Night Terrors, and Irish Lore

[12:12-22:23] Maddie from North Texas: Dream Encounters & the Banshee Connection

• Story: Maddie describes a vivid dream of visiting a giant woman (subsequently resembling a banshee) and her son (a kingly giant in Irish folklore). Shortly after, Maddie suffers her first ever night terror, leading to severe physical symptoms.

• Connection: Listening to an old episode about banshee experiences, Maddie is struck by the parallel description and considers she may have met her family’s banshee in a dream and “become” the banshee after her own screaming episode.

• Premonition: Maddie associates the dream and terror with the approaching anniversary of her grandfather’s death, sensing foreboding about her grandmother.

• Quote: “Maybe in my dream I saw my family banshee. Maybe I talked with her... And maybe I didn’t have to hear that banshee scream...maybe I became the banshee.” (Taylor/Maddie, 20:15-20:53)

• Quote: “I realized I didn’t have to hear the banshee. But then it occurred to me that maybe I became the banshee.” (Taylor/Maddie, 20:37, 20:53)

[23:49-27:52] Dale from Florida: The Shrieking in Ireland

• Story: Dale and his brother visit Ireland, sleeping in a haunted castle. Both hear a shrieking sound at night, followed by witnessing a peculiar fog or ring moving into the room. Weeks later, a family member dies—mirroring the traditional Irish connection between banshee visits and impending death.

• Quote: “I wouldn’t have said wailing, but anyways, kind of shrugged it off. But then in front of me as I turned back was like, almost a ring...just moved into me and a gust of air just moved into me.” (Dale, 25:07)

Derek’s Commentary:
"I admit I know next to nothing about banshees, so I don’t have much input on either of these stories. But I really enjoy when we cover...obscure paranormal characters. And the banshee certainly fits those parameters." (Derek Hayes, 27:52)

3. Haunted Memories: The Oppressive House, Possessed Objects & Disturbed Apartments

[29:30-40:41] Alice from New Hampshire: Haunted Family Home and Disturbed Apartment

• Family Home:

  • Lived in a house built on old farmland, abutting marshland.
  • Father's collection included macabre WWII and racist memorabilia.
  • Persistent feelings of unease, hearing whispers (not hallucinations), and therapist mentions a “spirit of oppression.”
  • Younger sister has dreams of a Bigfoot-like being.

• Podcast Revelation: Reading a museum guard’s account about a haunted KKK uniform triggers Alice to connect her experiences to the haunted artifacts in the family basement.

• Other Apartments:

  • Hated a certain closet in her first apartment—strange rustling, voice telling her to keep eyes shut; never slept with the closet open again.
  • In another apartment, shadow cat sightings, feelings of darkness in a closet with obvious repairs, and persistent unease.
  • Confirmation: A seer friend confirms darkness tied to the closet, leading Alice to suspect a suicide may have occurred there.

• Quote: “My sisters and I would always joke that we had all these old artifacts in the basement, you know, ha ha, possessed. But it was always kind of tongue in cheek...But until that moment, I hadn’t really thought about it. And honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised.” (Alice, 31:57)

• Resolution: No lasting haunting in her new apartment—just an "AC-blown" figurine.

Derek’s Reflection:
"If I didn’t know any better, Alice, I’d say that maybe something is following you around. Perhaps an attachment from your father’s morbid collection...that is where my imagination takes me." (Derek Hayes, 40:50)

4. Ouija Board Messages & Past Lives

[42:44-48:47] Debbie from New York: The Ouija and Anglesey

• Story: Middle-schoolers playing with a Ouija board contact a spirit named Jon who relays knowledge about past lives, including a place called Anglesey (unknown to Debbie at the time—later found to be a real locale in Wales).

• Curiosity: Debbie ponders how Ouija works differently with specific people, especially after the board refused to answer when a certain “believer” was present.

• Quote: “The Ouija board said it wouldn’t speak to us because the believer was there...we all had were very active in our churches, that my soon to be husband had something special about him that the Ouija board could sense and it did not want to participate in reading for us when he was present.” (Debbie, 47:54)

• Reflection: Specificity of Anglesey makes Debbie wonder if it was hidden knowledge or a trick.

5. The Haunted Cabin: Attachment from Vacation

[49:51-64:00] Ann from Texas: “Something Followed Me Home”

• Cabin Stay: Ann and her (then) husband stay in a dated Oregon cabin, immediately feeling off, noticing peculiar locks on inside doors.

• Experience: Ann feels intense fear upstairs, dreams of someone watching through a hole in the ceiling. She flees in panic—a rare reaction for her.

• Aftermath: Back home, objects disappear and reappear, shuffling footsteps, her cat notices the presence, and most disturbingly, recurring nightmares of the cabin culminating with the sense "it’s come through."

• Resolution: Repeats the Lord’s Prayer during a particularly terrifying episode; haunting ceases.

• Quote: “As I was waking up, and in my head, I could hear this voice saying, it's come through, it's come through. Like, screaming at me, it's come through, it's come through...And after that, I never had that dream again. And nothing happened in that apartment again.” (Ann, 62:47)

Derek’s Cautionary Remark:
"I've been saying for years that you have to be careful what you bring back from hotels, motels and Airbnbs. It might be more than just bedbugs and depending on how you look at it, worse than bedbugs." (Derek Hayes, 64:00)

6. Quick Hits

• Shadow Figure in Brooklyn ([65:30-68:37] Hannah):

  • Hannah notices a shadowy, bobbing entity following a black cat; is unnerved by its focused attention, and wonders if these entities notice the watchers as well (joking about “their own podcast” about humans).
  • Quote: "If they notice us noticing them, do you think that we are safe?...Maybe they have their own heckin podcast about us." (Hannah, 67:53)
  • Derek affirms the community’s collaborative efforts in unraveling the paranormal.

• UFO Sighting in Florida ([70:23-72:09] John):

  • John describes a morning “star” that vanishes after being closely observed; wonders if it was a UFO or a trick of the light.
  • Derek explains satellites sometimes disappear when they hit the Earth's shadow.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “Maybe I became the banshee.” (Maddie, 20:53)
• “The Ouija board said it wouldn’t speak to us because the believer was there...” (Debbie, 47:54)
• “It’s come through; like, screaming at me, it’s come through. And after that, I never had that dream again. And nothing happened in that apartment again.” (Ann, 62:47)
• “If I didn’t know any better, Alice, I’d say that maybe something is following you around. Perhaps an attachment from your father’s morbid collection.” (Derek Hayes, 40:50)
• “If they notice us noticing them, do you think that we are safe? You know, because like, maybe they have their own heckin podcast about us.” (Hannah, 67:53)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Timestamp | Caller/Segment | Summary | |--------------|----------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------| | 03:13–08:07 | Taylor from Indiana | Repeated number 22 after loss of son, meaningful signs | | 12:12–22:23 | Maddie from North Texas | Dream visitation by possible banshee, night terror | | 23:49–27:52 | Dale from Florida (in Ireland) | Banshee wailing, death in family, unexplained fog ring | | 29:30–40:41 | Alice from New Hampshire | Haunted family home, disturbed apartments, artifacts | | 42:44–48:47 | Debbie from New York | Ouija board, Anglesey and past lives | | 49:51–64:00 | Ann from Texas | Cabin haunting, followed home, ritual resolution | | 65:30–68:37 | Hannah from Brooklyn | Shadow figure on city street, “do they notice us?” | | 70:23–72:09 | John from Florida | UFO sighting, vanishing light in night sky |

Final Thoughts

This episode weaves a tapestry of American and Celtic folklore, psychological unease, and personal loss, exploring how the supernatural intersects with grief, curiosity, and unexpected places. Derek’s gentle, empathetic commentary lets the stories breathe, while providing context and drawing connections between them. Chilling, heartfelt, and steeped in listener-driven mystery, this episode is a quintessential “Monsters Among Us” listen—spooky, sincere, and deeply atmospheric.

“Keep it spooky, and you have a good night.”
—Derek Hayes (closing)