Michelle Gordon realised she wasn’t like other children when she started having out-of-body experiences aged three.

‘At night I would see myself flying over my garden,’ says Michelle, now 34. ‘I know it wasn’t a dream because the garden was always exactly as it was in real life. If it was spring, there would be buds on the trees and if it was autumn, leaves on the ground.

‘I vividly remember running down the stairs in the morning wondering why I couldn’t fly any more.’

Of course, many children go through a phase of thinking they have magical powers. They’ve usually grown out of it, however, by the time they stop believing in Father Christmas and the Tooth Fairy.

Yet Michelle’s sense that she was somehow different to those around her only intensified as she grew older. She’s been incredibly sensitive to other people’s emotions since childhood. And she’s become convinced that she has a purpose — a special mission to do good in the world.

Michelle Gordon, 34, (pictured) is one of thousands of women who believe they are angels sent from heaven to make the world a better place

Yet it wasn’t until a decade ago, she says, that it all finally made sense. Michelle has come to believe she is an ‘Earth Angel’, one of thousands of British women convinced that the only explanation for their uncanny powers of spiritual intuition is that they are actually angels, sent from heaven to make the earthly world a better place.

For Michelle, who lives in the Forest of Dean, it was a huge relief to discover she was not alone. She says she was horribly bullied at school because she was ‘different’, and her extraordinary ability to empathise is still both a gift and a burden.

‘It can be very painful,’ she says. ‘I pick up instantly on moods. Being in a crowded place such as a supermarket can be terribly upsetting as I absorb other people’s negative emotions.’

Those who claim to be Earth Angels share many traits: they say they have always felt different from their peers; feel other people’s pain acutely; are driven to help others; have experiences they feel can only be explained by the existence of a spiritual world; and often have a strong sense of having lived previous lives on earth.

Like other Earth Angels, Michelle devotes much of her time to carrying out small acts of kindness.

She volunteers making clothes for Cherished Gowns, a charity that donates clothes for stillborn babies to be buried in, and buys food and warming drinks for homeless people. ‘Most of all I’m convinced that my job is to educate the world,’ she says. She adds that Earth Angels have a heavenly form that is often different from their earthly bodies. ‘The real, heavenly me is taller, slimmer with long grey hair and called Velvet.’

Michelle, currently single, says she is terrified of having children — which she attributes to her memories of past lives on earth.

‘I’m convinced that in one of my many previous lives, I died in childbirth,’ she explains.

To many, the idea of Earth Angels will sound nothing less than bonkers, but scan the internet and there are rafts of websites, books and videos devoted to the concept.

Meanwhile, many Earth Angels have had a deep-rooted sense of themselves as an angel from childhood, long before they could read about it on the web.

Sarah Rebecca Vine, 40, (pictured) realised she was an Earth Angel ten years ago. She says she sees a white feather from heaven whenever she is feeling low

Kelly Draper was just five years old when she squatted down in the school playground, gazed up at the clouds, squeezed her eyes tight shut and prayed as hard as she could: ‘Please angels, let me come home.’

‘I desperately wanted to go back to heaven,’ recalls Kelly, 39.

Today, her conviction that she has a special connection with heaven is stronger than ever, though she acknowledges others will think the idea eccentric at the very least.

‘I know it may sound bizarre, and that there are people who will mock me, but I am convinced I am an angel,’ says Kelly, a support worker who lives in Derby with her husband Carl, 39, a learning disability support worker, and their children Thomas, four and Frances, two.

‘I can’t think of any other way to explain the deep sense I’ve had since childhood that I’ve got a heavenly mission to fulfil.

Like other Earth Angels, though, I now believe I am on earth for a reason - Kelly

‘As a child I was hugely sensitive and never felt like I fitted in. I would regularly come home in tears because the teacher had got cross with a classmate and I had felt her pain.

‘I believed that I had been an angel in heaven in a previous life and I longed to go back.

‘Like other Earth Angels, though, I now believe I am on earth for a reason. The world is such a cruel, scary place. Our job as angels is to make people feel a little happier — and help to open their hearts.’ Kelly adds: ‘I’m still particularly attuned to people in need. I can’t walk past a beggar without giving them a sandwich or a cup of coffee.

‘If I see an ambulance, I say a silent prayer for the patient inside and visualise it speeding safely to hospital on angel wings.’

It wasn’t until four years ago, during a time of emotional turmoil, that Kelly decided to fully embrace her Earth Angel role. Previously it had been a side of herself she had kept private.

Having tried for a baby with husband Carl for ten years, she finally conceived. But not long afterwards she learned her mother, Joy, a nurse, was dying of lung cancer.

Ruth Bradshaw, 41, (pictured) believes she has lived past lives on earth and has had an affinity with animals for as long as she can remember

‘I was 19 weeks pregnant with Thomas when Mum was told she was terminally ill,’ she recalls. ‘Within weeks I went from utter bliss to devastation.’

Joy clung to life until Thomas was six months old.

In the depths of despair, Kelly suddenly decided she had to use her pain — and angelic calling — to help people.

‘I realised I have a mission to bring comfort to the sick and dying, and so I am re-training as a Reiki masseuse,’ she says. ‘This form of massage uses touch to encourage the flow of the body’s energies. My dream is to be able to drive round helping people in their homes.’

She also has Carl’s support: ‘I joke that Carl is an angel for putting up with me. He doesn’t choose to explore the spiritual side of life, but he supports my beliefs.’

Ruth Bradshaw is also convinced she was sent from heaven with a mission — in her case, to communicate with animals. Two years ago she quit her successful marketing job and retrained as an ‘animal whisperer’. Now she divides her time between volunteering for the Hopefield Animal Sanctuary, near her home in Brentwood, Essex, and using her abilities to help animals in distress.

In her case, Ruth says she knew she was different at the age of 11, when she started seeing ghosts.

I will spot a white feather — which is well-known as a sign from heaven — just when I need it - Sarah

Ruth, 41, who lives with her husband, IT consultant Chris, 37, says: ‘The first time it happened I was with my best friend. We were playing in her swimming pool when I looked up and saw her mum — who had died — gazing down at us from her bedroom window.

‘I’m convinced her mum was using me as a channel to reassure my friend she was still taking care of her. I wasn’t scared. It seemed completely normal. And when I told my friend, she was very reassured.’

She adds: ‘For as long as I can remember I’ve had an affinity with animals. Wounded animals gravitate to me. It was often distressing because I felt their pain like a physical ache.’

An experience with a rescue cat she rehomed six years ago convinced her she could communicate with animals.

‘The cat started peeing on my bed,’ she says. ‘One day she looked me in the eye and I instantly knew she was saying, “Stop leaving me at home alone”. She’d been wetting my bed in protest.

‘Now I explain every time I leave how long I’ll be gone for. For example I say: “I’ll be back in two sunsets”. And there has not been a problem since. I realise there will be people who are sceptical and think it sounds mad, but it’s true.’

Kelly Draper, 39, (pictured) believes she has been sent to earth to comfort those who are sick or dying

She adds: ‘Like many Earth Angels, endless coincidences happen to me.

‘I will be thinking of a friend at the very moment they ring me. I once changed a flight on a whim and found myself sitting next to a total stranger who has since become one of my best friends.’

Like Michelle, Ruth is convinced she has lived past lives on earth. ‘It’s a standing joke with my husband that I know intimate details of places I’ve never visited before,’ she says.

‘He is a very logical man. But even he can’t explain the weird things that happen to me — such as seeing ghosts — and my special powers with animals, apart from by acknowledging that I’m an Earth Angel.’

Although the responsibility of this role may weigh heavy, Sarah Rebecca Vine, 40, says there are massive compensations. ‘I haven’t come to earth to fit in. I’m here purely and simply to help people,’ she says. ‘I get huge joy from knowing I have the power to bring happiness. ‘People often tell me that I’m an angel for helping them. I always smile — little do they know.’

After years in more earthly professions — Sarah’s worked as an estate agent and mortgage adviser — she now runs a service offering support for others who feel they are Earth Angels.

However people may mock or refuse to believe, I am certain that I’m an Earth Angel - Sarah

She lives in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, with her children Angel, seven (no prizes for guessing where her name came from), and Evan, five, and is single since splitting with their father, a 40-year-old plumber, last year.

‘He didn’t understand why I had to spend so long on the internet, responding to strangers who’ve asked for my advice, although it’s my role as an Earth Angel to help people.

‘I could see we were on different paths. I loved him enough to let him go, so we could both be more fulfilled,’ she explains.

She admits her family have been very sceptical. ‘When I first realised I was an Earth Angel ten years ago, it was terribly hard because no-one had even heard of them and thought I was bonkers,’ she says. ‘My parents are very down-to-earth people — Dad’s a retired engineer and Mum’s a retired dental nurse. I know they thought I was crazy.

‘They didn’t understand why I couldn’t settle to a conventional job. But those jobs seemed pointless to me. I wanted to help people and make them feel loved and cared for.

‘I remember one man coming to me for a mortgage — and I spent the entire session counselling him on his relationship. He was grateful but my boss was fuming.

‘Although being an Earth Angel can be hard, whenever I’m feeling low I always find a sign that I’m on track. I will spot a white feather — which is well-known as a sign from heaven — just when I need it.

‘When my Nana, whom I adored, died eight years ago, I spotted a white feather on the carpet. It came from nowhere and I felt reassured that she was home with the angels.

‘However people may mock or refuse to believe, I am certain that I’m an Earth Angel.’

Sarah is further convinced that the world is full of Earth Angels — many of whom are yet to wake up to their role.

‘I am convinced that with all the wars, poverty and environmental devastation, the world has never needed us more.’

Even if you don’t believe they are heaven-sent, it’s hard to deny that Earth Angels are a force for good.

Michelle Gordon’s books about Earth Angels are available through her website, michellegordon.co.uk.

For more information about Earth Angels, visit Sarah Rebecca Vine’s website earthangelsanctuary.com.