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How Much Does A Full Moon Affect Behaviour?

Two full moons in a month seems to be the current usage, but there's another which I prefer -

Sometimes a major volcanic eruption puts huge amounts of dust into the atmosphere; this can literally cause a Blue Moon (as well as spectacular sunsts, etc). Such eruptions are rare - hence 'Once in a Blue Moon'.
 
Blue Moon

ufonerd said:
I thing it is called a blue moon when there is two full moons in one month.?
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This does a pretty good job of explaining what a Blue Moon is.
 
Moon Madness

If you desire ASSURANCES that "moon madness" not only does not exist but cannot possibly exist, talk to almost any astronomer or university physicist.

But if you desire EVIDENCE that it does, talk to almost any practicing psychiatrist, clinical psychologist, psychiatric nurse, emergency ward physician, ambulance driver, firefighter, police officer, private detective, telephone operator, radio DJ, niteclub comedian or taxicab driver.

Once again, pragmatic evidence trumps theoretical.
 
A friend of mine, who is certainly not known for hippyness or New Age beliefs, claims her menstrual cycle is aligned with the moon. She believes this to be quite common, though I have no idea if this is true.
 
The theory is that as a woman's cycle is around about 28 days long, like the moon's, the two correlate. As it is in practise, I've never found my cycle to be very regular, and neither have any of my friends. One of my favourite books (and it's not particularly Fortean so maybe I shouldn't bring it up, but I'm going to anyway) is Cunt - a declaration of Independence by Inga Muscio. In one of the chapters she mentions getting to know the moon and planning around it, but as I say, it's not really very useful to me. I'd like to believe it (I love watching the moon), but meh.
 
I do sometimes find I go a bit "mental" (not really the right word, but can't really describe - when my mind feels a bit different) at the time of the full moon. Also when I get really angry or frustrated it's at this time too.
 
I had a fairly strange experience with the full moon.
My mother always said that exposure to the light of the full moon was bad, that it could give you a stroke and pregnant women should avoid it. Although she claimed to have known a woman who suffered a deforming stroke due to moonlight, I never quite believed her and considered it all "old talk." One full moon night I pulled dark curtains in front my window as usual and went to sleep. I woke up a little after midnight, feeling really sick in a weird way. Sort of nauseous, headachy, sore - a sickness that seemed to originate in my stomach and emanate throughout my body. I lay in bed with my eyes closed wondering why I felt so very strange and wishing I could go back to sleep. Finally I decided to open my eyes, and shining directly into my pupils was the light of the full moon. I could see it glowing brightly through a space where the curtain had shifted away from my window. It's light seemed to beat down on me and somehow I knew that it was making me feel really ill. I lay there for almost five minutes before I was able to move weakly to the window and adjust the curtain to block out the moonlight. As I lay back down I slowly started to feel better until gradually I returned to normal. I didn't even sleep immediately but just lay there wondering how moonlight could seemingly have such an effect on me. I have no idea what happened to me or why but even now I won't allow the moon to shine directly on me as I go to sleep for fear of feeling weird again. I've chalked it up to one of life's mysterious rules that I just have to follow. :?
 
Tides

Down to the 19th century (and possibly later?) many British believed that people tend to be born as the tide comes in and to die as the tide goes out.

Any truth to this belief? British natal, death and meteorological records are accurate enough and complete enough that statistics should be comparatively easy to compile and compare.
 
OldTimeRadio wrote:
Down to the 19th century (and possibly later?) many British believed that people tend to be born as the tide comes in and to die as the tide goes out.

Any truth to this belief? British natal, death and meteorological records are accurate enough and complete enough that statistics should be comparatively easy to compile and compare.
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Thanks for that, OTR!

Can anyone refer me to a website that lists historical tide tables in the UK? I've spent 20 minutes googling without success. I'm thinking there may be certain nautical types on this board who may be privy to such information ;)

I ask because two of my kids were born within a half a mile of the sea, natural onset of labour, natural deliveries, no medical intervention, and I made a note of what time they were born. Checking the tide tables for the relevant days and location could be interesting (or utterly disappointing, depending on how you look at it!)
 
Hot_Cross_Nun: I've had a look but come up with nothing, you need rynner on the case!!

glamour_dust: my mother used to say pretty much the same thing to me and I've also had an experience when I was younger, where I woke up from a nightmare to find the full moon shining on me. At the time I put it down to this too.

I've also got to say that my colleagues would always jokingly say 'It's a full moon!' whenever our unit descended into chaos. I was quite sceptical at first when the older staff would tell me stories and tales although I must admit I remember noticing (and being told by other staff) on numerous occasions that the incidents of self-injury or violence appeared to increase when it was a full moon (I worked with people who had some quite severe challenging behaviours). Whether this is now selective memory on my part or what, I'm really not quite sure :?

However as an aside, but on a similar theme of noticing behaviours etc. quite a few members of staff including myself were convinced that one of the female resident's behaviour became more violent when she was due to begin her period. Whenever she 'kicked off' we would put it down to this. For a number of months we were advised to keep records of her behaviour and her cycle to see if this was indeed the case.

When we checked the records and compared the behaviour to the cycle it appeared that her violence was erratic and spontaneous i.e. there was no correlation and there was no detectable or apparent increase in the week before her period even though I was certain (still am even though I saw the evidence in B&W) as was other staff, that we 'saw' a pattern before!
 
The full-moon makes me feel hot usually. It could be the dead of winter, with no heat running, no sheets or covers on, no PJs, and I'll still feel hot, sweaty even. Usually there are all these images or concepts that pass through my mind and I can't stop them. The moon doesn't even have to be completely full but it's definitely the most intense when the moon is full (like it is tonight!). I used to hate it when I was a kid. I've learned to go sort of with it but it can still be quite draining. It's energizing at night, but I usually feel tired the next day.
 
I love the full moon. My bedroom at my parents house was so aligned that I could watch the moon's journey across the sky most months. When the moon reached it's highest point in the sky, it would shine directly into my window. On those nights, I slept with the curtains open and my head facing the window.

I used to draw down the moon every month in a wicca-ish ceremoney but since moving, I don't get so much access to the moon, due to the windows in the house and I sadly don't have as much time.

My menstrual cycle never has had anything to do with the moon sadly, but I have noticed an increase in my perception - leading to almost psychic revelations.
 
Littlegreylady said:
...leading to almost psychic revelations.
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Go on. I'm curious as to what 'almost-psychic is'.
 
Hot_Cross_Nun said:
OldTimeRadio wrote:
Down to the 19th century (and possibly later?) many British believed that people tend to be born as the tide comes in and to die as the tide goes out.

Any truth to this belief? British natal, death and meteorological records are accurate enough and complete enough that statistics should be comparatively easy to compile and compare.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that, OTR!

Can anyone refer me to a website that lists historical tide tables in the UK? I've spent 20 minutes googling without success. I'm thinking there may be certain nautical types on this board who may be privy to such information ;)

I ask because two of my kids were born within a half a mile of the sea, natural onset of labour, natural deliveries, no medical intervention, and I made a note of what time they were born. Checking the tide tables for the relevant days and location could be interesting (or utterly disappointing, depending on how you look at it!)
Click to expand...
Try here:
http://easytide.ukho.gov.uk/EasyTide/Ea ... index.aspx
Choose any date between 100AD and up to 50 years in the future and access tide predictions for 7 or 14 days at a time. Enhanced predictions also include other useful information such as times of sunrise/sunset, lunar phases and Springs and Neaps data. Prices for enhanced predictions start at £1 (inc. VAT) for a 7 day prediction. Further information about pricing is available.
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Full Moons, Paralysis and Death

In the Spring of 1956, at age 14, I stumbled upon a magazine article maintaining that sleeping in the light of the full moon could cause paralysis or even death. I confess that at that age I swallowed this "information" whole and for several years thereafter felt uncomfortable when the moon shone into my bedroom at night.

I remember one of the examples given in that article was the story of a French army company which bivouacked on the ground in the light of the full moon. In the morning all the soldiers were dead except for a few who'd draped kerchiefs over the faces as they slept.

Does anybody know the root of such stories? The author of that article didn't make up that French army yarn for I've comea across it several times since and in sources dating before 1956.
 
Re: Full Moons, Paralysis and Death

OldTimeRadio said:
In the Spring of 1956, at age 14, I stumbled upon a magazine article maintaining that sleeping in the light of the full moon could cause paralysis or even death.
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Perhaps some become so en-lightened during their rest in the moon's rays that they get promoted to the next level and leave their earthly bodies behind. Others, less fortunate, simply become confused and overwhelmed to the point of paralysis.
 
theyithian said:
Littlegreylady said:
...leading to almost psychic revelations.
Click to expand...

Go on. I'm curious as to what 'almost-psychic is'.
Click to expand...

Weird things really - I just "know" things.

For example, I can tell if someone is lying to me. (Something I wish I could tell all the time).

I was chatting to a friend and asked her how work had been. She said it was fine, the usual blah blah and she didn't say anything to make me think otherwise, nor did her tone indicate anything (at least not obviously) but I just knew she was lying and she hadn't been to work and it turned out I was right.

Other examples include knowing who is on the phone and why they're calling. It's not knowledge that comes with a flash of insight or anything, it just ... appears in my mind, like someone had told me before. And no, I don't hear voices LOL
 
I have to say, I become "almost psychic" during periods of stress - when i sort of phase out, things pop into my mind just before someone says them. No murderers tracked down, yet. I also find that my periods of stress come periodically, I don't know if they go with the moon though, yet.
 
H_James - I know what you mean about things poping into your head just before someone says them and, as with you, this also happens to me when I'm phased out or at least somewhat detached from what I'm witnessing. In my case, though, it only happens when I'm really calm and at peace. Stress and excitement seem to prevent it from happening. I, too, have never thought to associate this with the phases of the moon. I don't know if there is any correlation.
 
I'd work it out if the data were a little more concrete and I had an organizational bone in my body.
 
I refer back to my post on the previous page in this thread:

OldTimeRadio wrote:
Down to the 19th century (and possibly later?) many British believed that people tend to be born as the tide comes in and to die as the tide goes out.

Any truth to this belief? British natal, death and meteorological records are accurate enough and complete enough that statistics should be comparatively easy to compile and compare.
Click to expand...

..two of my kids were born within a half a mile of the sea, natural onset of labour, natural deliveries, no medical intervention, and I made a note of what time they were born. Checking the tide tables for the relevant days and location could be interesting (or utterly disappointing, depending on how you look at it!)
Click to expand...

Thanks to Rynner for the link to EasyTide tidal predictions.

I called up the relevant tidal information for my kids' dates of birth. The port I chose is about a mile from where they were born.

It appears that both were indeed born when the tide was coming in.

Child #1 - born 13.10. Low tide - 9.05, high tide - 15.32.
19 days before full moon.

Child #2 - born 15.30.. Low tide - 13.29, high tide - 20.02.
14 days before full moon.

Make of it what you will!
 
Full Moon = Violence?

Aye up all,

Just a little something I've noticed and wanted to share just in case others have observed similar behaviour.

For my sins, I work as a police officer for a living. Not something I like to admit on internet forums, but it has some relevance to the story.

Over my last shift of night duties over the weekend just gone, it seemed like the world had gone mad. It was non-stop all weekend Friday night till the wee hours of Monday morning. Attending reports of fight after fight after fight...disorders being reported over the radio literally every 10 minutes, more than the usual quota of stabbings and a few other nasty violent things (that I wont mention out of decency) which occoured more than we usually get.

Now, don't get me wrong. Weekends in a big city are always busy, but this was just ridiculous.

I noticed the last time I was on a weekend of nights which was equally as hectic it was full moon.

This can't be a coincidence can it? Does a full moon really affect peoples behaviour and judgment? Or just the ones who had a little bit too much to drink? ;)
 
I think there's a thread on this somewhere...
 
Bugger...Me and the search button are going though a rocky relationship at the moment.
 
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Interesting,

I knew that people dreamed more when it was a full moon (can't remember where I heard that) prehaps the full moon stimulates a part of the brain that causes certian people to be violent or do somthing slightly odd. After all the full moon is a medieval scapegoat for a number of things, many we all know of.


And on a personal note,


There's no shame in being a police officer, you guys do a job that is very hard and to me nearly impossible, I have full respect for the police services and always will.
 
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