Something dead strange happened to me once in my life. But ever since, I've believed in spirits, the supernatural, and all sorts of stuff you just can't explain. It happened in 2004. I was on holiday in Thailand with my kid. December 2004 — everyone knows that one now. We were in Phuket, loving the swimming, going on day trips. Everything was great, until we went on an excursion to Khao Sok. I've always been a bit of a thrill-seeker — I especially love swimming way out, feeling at one with the ocean. My family are always having a go at me about it. But splashing around on the beach with a mob of people — that's just not my thing. So on this trip, we rocked up to Cheow Lan Lake. As usual, I wanted to get in the water. Nobody else from the group was keen — they reckoned it might be dodgy. But the guide said it was a man-made lake and it was fine. So I figured there couldn't possibly be any underwater monsters or crocs in there. Off I went. At first I was just enjoying myself. Then I started getting a bit anxious — what if there were snakes? But turning back felt embarrassing at that point, so I kept going until I was halfway across the lake. And that's when things got strange. This absolute terror just washed over me. I felt like I was still on the lake, but like waves were crashing over me. I had this overwhelming fear for my kid, who was back on the shore. At one point I actually went under. Then everything went still. I came back up and saw the calm water again, our group on the bank. I was so shaken and frozen with fear that I couldn't even swim back straight away. That sick feeling of dread stayed with me the entire day. After we got back to the hotel, I thought I'd sleep it off and be right by morning. But that night I saw the exact same thing, only in a dream. Woke up absolutely wrecked — the anxiety was even worse after the nightmare. I jumped online to check if there were any earlier flights home. Turned out there were seats to Melbourne the very next day. I decided to get us home as quick as I could so I could see a doctor and get on some medication. We flew out the next day. Six days later, I saw the tsunami on the news — including Phuket. I couldn't believe my eyes. We were supposed to still be there. What was it that got to me in that lake — what scared me like that? Or did it actually just... warn me? I'd have thought it was some local spirit, but it's a man-made lake. Still can't figure it out.