We’ve come to a point where ostentatious scare pranks don’t scare us anymore. If there’s anything that can frighten the life out of us, it’s those that comes out from our wild imagination. For instance, innocent things that appear to come straight out of our worst nightmares. We tend to be on the alert all the time so we can perceive and avoid dangers before they could strike. However, being too cautious and sensitive to our surroundings can also put us in an unfavorable position. Due to our intense fight-or-flight reaction, we sometimes perceive even harmless innocent things as threats.
How many times have you sensed that someone is following you when it was actually your shadow that’s stalking you? How many times have you been startled by a ghost gazing through your window when it was actually just a reflection? You probably have your own embarrassing stories to share as well. Indeed, our own eyes can play tricks on us by perceiving innocent things differently in a creepy way. And when panic response starts to kick in, this little misunderstanding can really give us a heart attack.
Perfect coincidences, optical illusions, or just simple misconceptions, our playful imagination can really freak us out sometimes. We’ve compiled a list showing some of the instances where people stumbled upon terrifying scenes that turned out to be just innocent things. And we truly sympathize with these people who captured these spine-chilling moments. Take a look at these shocking photos of ordinary things that almost gave people a heart attack. And don’t let your eyes trick you.
“This Freaked Me Out. Turns Out It’s A Sunset Reflection”
![innocent things scary fire sunset reflection](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-scary-fire-sunset-reflection.jpg)
Had To Look Twice
![innocent things looking scary dog in half](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-dog-in-half.jpg)
“Wife Left The Gloves To Dry, I Almost Had A Heart Attack”
![innocent things looking hands washing machine](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-hands-washing-machine.jpg)
“So Last Night I Was Positive There Was A Ghost Baby In The Bed With My Son”
![innocent things looking baby ghost](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-baby-ghost.jpg)
“Cat Gave Me A Scare This Morning. It’s Paprika”
![innocent things looking scary paprika cat](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-paprika-cat.jpg)
“Whoever Did This Gave Me A Heart Attack”
![innocent things looking scary gollum side mirror](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-gollum-side-mirror.jpg)
“My Dog Is Trying To Scare The Hell Out Of Me”
![innocent things looking scary bone shoe](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-bone-shoe.jpg)
“The Snail In Our Office Fish Tank Freaked Me Out Today”
![innocent things looking scary skull snail eye](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-skull-snail-eye.jpg)
“Housemate Was Drying His Fishing Waders. Almost Had To Add The Pants I Was Wearing To The Laundry Pile I Was Carrying After I Opened The Door”
![innocent things looking scary fishing waders hanging](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-fishing-waders-hanging.jpg)
“Scared The Hell Out Of Me When He Moved”
![innocent things looking scary human mannequin](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-human-mannequin.jpg)
“Gives Me A Heart Attack Every Time, But He Loves To Sleep Like That!”
![innocent things looking scary hamster lying dead](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-hamster-lying-dead.jpg)
“Emergency Light In The Hallway Scared The Hell Out Of Me Earlier. Meet The New Source Of My Nightmares”
![innocent things looking scary emergency light](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-emergency-light.jpg)
“My Grandma Taking A Nap. Scared The Hell Out Of Me At First”
![innocent things looking scary grandma napping](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-grandma-napping.jpg)
“Son Woke Us Up Around 3 AM To Tell Us Some Guy Was On Our Porch With A Stick. Turns Out It Was The Paper Delivery Guy With A Branch, Trying To Retrieve A Mis-Thrown Paper From Our Roof”
![innocent things looking scary guy with a stick](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-guy-with-a-stick.jpg)
“My Aunt Got Her Dog Groomed. The Groomer Only Has Half Of His Right Arm. It Looks Like He’s Elbow Deep Into The Dog, And It Freaked Me Out When I First Saw The Picture”
![innocent things looking scary half arm pet groomer](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-half-arm-pet-groomer.jpg)
These Bacon Slices Look Like An Evil Clown…
![innocent things looking scary bacon evil clown](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-bacon-evil-clown.jpg)
“That Spooked The Hell Out Of Me”
![scary harmless things ceiling cat](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-ceiling-cat.jpg)
“I Bought My Wife (Who’s A Professional Photographer) A Thermos In The Shape Of A Camera Lens. It Always Gives Me A Mini Heart Attack When I See It Like This”
![scary harmless things ceiling cat camera lens thermos](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-ceiling-cat-camera-lens-thermos.jpg)
“My Cousin Woke Up In The Middle Of The Night, Randomly Looked At The Baby Monitor And Saw This. She Said It Scared The Hell Out Of Her”
![scary harmless things girl staring at the monitor](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-girl-staring-at-the-monitor.jpg)
“I Didn’t Realize My Wife Left The Kids’ Presents In The Car Until I Checked The Rear View Mirror”
![scary harmless things stuffed toys](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-stuffed-toys.jpg)
“When You Walk In Your Room And Have A Mild Heart Attack”
![scary harmless things snake belt](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-snake-belt.jpg)
“Someone Spilled Their Smoothie In Class, And Now It Looks Like A Crime Scene”
![scary harmless things spilled smoothie](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-spilled-smoothie.jpg)
“This Ultrasound Photo Scared My Husband”
![scary harmless things ultrasound photo](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-ultrasound-photo.jpg)
“Ancient Whale Bone Over Top Of What Used To Be A Well”
![scary harmless things ancient whale bone](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-ancient-whale-bone.jpg)
“I Put My Son In A Halloween Onesie Without Thinking Much About It And Gave Myself A Heart Attack At 2AM”
![scary harmless things halloween onesie](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-halloween-onesie.jpg)
“My Wife Had A Mini Heart Attack As We Drove Past This House. Nobody Lives There”
![scary harmless things doll in the window](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-doll-in-the-window.jpg)
“I Had A Mini Heart Attack When I Saw This. Spotted In NYC”
![scary harmless things slenderman shopping](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/scary-harmless-things-slenderman-shopping.jpg)
“Scared The Hell Out Of Myself”
![innocent things looking scary jacket nun](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-jacket-nun.jpg)
“Sister Just Freaked Out, She Thought Someone Was In Her Flat. It Was Just Some Clothes Hanging Up In Front Of The Window”
![innocent things looking scary clothes hanging window](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-clothes-hanging-window.jpg)
“Nearly Gave Me A Heart Attack Upon First Glance”
![innocent things looking scary password goodbye](https://www.awesomeinventions.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/innocent-things-looking-scary-password-goodbye.jpg)