For me, it was the worst as a child. Then it started over at around age 12, but I quickly I learned how to chase them away.
It's funny you mention Grey aliens. I call them Roswell Grays. I believe the entire Roswell story is a hoax, but certain types of entities appear in the form of the famous drawings of Roswell Grays - yuou know, short with bulbous heads, big black eyes, gray skin. They seem almost mechanical like robots. The first paintings I know of that depict this type of Astral fauna were done in the late 1800s, so neither the people behind Roswell nor Whitley Steiber invented them.
Did you see this form?
Also, I also believe anybody could learn to do what is called mediumship, but most are not interested or they are more interested in their ordinary lives.
On Guardian or Helper spirits, other than a familiar, a creature who is half feline and half winged monkey who likes to perch on my shoulder, I have none that I know of.
As a kid, I was of course unaware of 'mediumship' or any 'spirit world', just had to get on with it! My parents, though not religious, found my tales extremely disturbing, and sought to 'protect me' by dismissing it all as nonsense, imagination and (wisely) warning me to keep quiet about such things! I did follow that last piece of advice, which no doubt spared me the ham fisted attention of psychologists, doctors, and (worst of all IMO!) psychiatrists.
I did have a Guardian, who I also drew, and who came to my aid in dreams to deal with the Woowas - he was called Sauce, a friendly, Alsation type dog, who walked on his back legs and IIRC wore dungarees - very 'kids TV' I suppose, but familiar, and utterly non-threatening, which guardian spirits seem able to 'project themselves' as. It was only recently I thought of him again, and suddenly wondered if I had been mis-spelling 'Sauce', it could have had a far more 'magical' and spiritual interpretation?
As for 'Greys', I also suspect that Roswell was actually no more than a baloon crash, and all the obsessive, absurd legend which has followed it has been carefully and quietly stoked and fuelled by agencies who find it - or rather, found it - very useful as a smokescreen to cover far more sinister, disturbing and worrying secrets. It has everything I suppose - the ridicule of nutcases who desperately want to 'believe', the doubt cast on the reliability of Air Force and Government press releases and reports, and the generation of great suspicion and mistrust amongst the public when it comes to 'conspiracy theories'!
I believe that these so-called Greys do exist, but are not physical phenomena by way of visitors from another planet. I think they come from another, paralell dimension or world, which, like the Spirit world (or maybe it IS that world?), who have been 'living with us' for a very long time. In the old days they were known as elves, sprites, goblins and a host of other names, depending on where, when, and the religious/superstitious beliefs of the societies who experienced them. I've found that almost wherever you choose in history, or wherever, there are 'little people' who vaguely match the descriptions. For instance, the Saxons, some 1500 years ago in Europe were genuinely terrified of 'Elf shot' when in remote places - little snipers, who terrorised and abducted innocent travellers - yet almost always stayed hidden. In ancient Egypt, cemetaries were places of dread, haunted by 'ghouls', little people who seemed to survive on the carrion nearby - very seldom seen, but actually dreaded to this day.
In almost every case, these creatures/entities almost always remain highly secretive and unseen, and have been variously used by churches and governments for nefarious purposes, to keep secrets, keep places safe, or just scare people into being 'good' and going to church! Not for me however, the ones I 'met' (and I will always be unsure if I saw them in dreams, or really saw them in the coridoor outside my bedroom) had all the traditional properties and abilities of Grey Aliens) - the facility to inflict paralysis, inflict terror - I can honestly say that those encounters were the most terrifying events of my whole life - and a vague, strange feeling they 'wanted something', but, thinking back with hinsight and adult 'eyes', were extremely cautious, secretive, and unsure of themselves. In the end, I fell back on something which has stood me well over the years, I knew I could in no way 'beat them', physically or mentally, and decided to 'join them', or at least try to show friendship and come to terms somehow. Crouching down one day, heart pounding and utterly paralysed, I did my best to send friendly greetings... and only years later, realised my voice wasn't working, I did it mentally. Normally, the Woowas waited in the darkness at the end of the long corridor, figures dressed in black, hooded monks outfits, about four feet tall, with no faces or features showing. There were usaully three or four of them, some were slightly bigger, and they seemed to be discussing things as they watched me, I had that impression. This time they seemed animated, and I had the distinct impression they were encouraging, ordering or maybe forcing the smallest one to step forward and approach me - which it did, to my great alarm but also relief. Before this, I had only ever seen them in deep gloom (only one light, at my end), from several yars away, but this one came closer to the light and me, and I was suddenly able to move. It stopped half way down the hall, and I managed to Half crawl, then walk unsteadily, very reluctantly, to meet it. I am very fortunate in having a photographic memory, and was slightly surprised to find his clothing was not black, but very, very dark brown. Still utterly terrified, we then hesitantly exchanged greetings and assurances we meant no harm. I now realise this was not done by voice, but by telepathy - a meeting of minds, which I had no idea of at the time. It did however mean I had strange, strong impressions from him (and it was a 'him', that was one of them). He was the 'juniour', the youngest, and 'his friends' had sent him to meet me with the idea I would find him less threatening - fat chance! Although we were about the same size, I just knew he was incredibly, impossibly powerful and even though I just wanted them to go away and never come back, there was no possible way to fight them, I was at their mercy. Most peculiar of all, although he was doing his very best to be friendly, encouraging, and put me at my ease, there was a peculiar 'coldness' and complete lack of emotional warmth - we had absoluteoly nothing in common, and whatever he was, he was not some little man in a black cloak, he was not 'human'. Neither good nor evil, and whatever he was there for or wanted, I had no idea - and still don't. I did however feel gradually more confident and at ease, and sensed he was pleased by this... also that he was glad what he was doing was pleasing the other Woowas, who he was greatly in awe of.
At this point he did something, I suspect in rely to the curiousity he sensed in me, or in the hopes that it would put me even more at ease, a gesture of 'trust', which fascinated then absolutely appalled me... I remember no hands, but he pulled his hood aside and showed me his face. At this moment my memory goes blank, his face was so horrifically alarming and ugly, I cannot picture it, only recall a few vague details. The eyes were intensely, frighteningly piercing, not the 'traditional' black insect eyes of a 'Grey', they had pupils and a brilliant iris, too large to be human, but they burned right through me. No lips, but a 'friendly smile', no nose but flaring nostrils, deathly pale skin, with an almost blue tinge. For many, many years, I had a deep seated horror of decomposing corpses and skulls, which were, I suspect, a residue of this sight. He must've sensed my terror, as he quickly hid it again, then 'said' "come and meet my ffriends", and I recall an encouraging, unseen hand grasping my elbow very gently, and encouragingly leading me down the coridoor to his 'colleagues'. I sensed their pleasure with him, and coldly formal welcome to me.... and there it ends. And that is, AFAIK, the last time I ever saw them.
I have often been curious to know more, even though I suspect I won't like it, and did try hypnotic regression. Unfortunately (or is it?), despite several attempts, I just don't seem to respond to hypnosis, even by seasoned professionals. Maybe this is some 'protective device' implanted in my deep mind (I don't of course think I have any of 'those' implants - they'd have been rotted away by coke years ago if ever I had!), which is a rather weird place, as more than one psychiatrist and psychologist has said. Anyway, that's my story of 'alien abduction' and my theories about 'the Greys'. What they want, why they visit us, and where they come from remains a complete mystery I'm afraid. I only sense they are not normally harmful, and seem as curious about us as we are about them? They are certainly NOT human however, and are, I'm pretty sure, much further advanced than us, mentally, spiritually and probably technologically.
One last thing, when a friend turned up one day with Whitley Streiber's book... "you've just got to read this!", with no knowledge of my 'Woowa' experiences (I kept quiet about them for years, all forgotten until this), I read it with dread, and couldn't bear to have the picture on the cover showing when I went to sleep. Found it deeply disturbing. When the film 'Communion' came out, with Christopher Walken, I was somewhat disturbed once again - especially by the ugly little creatures who he ended up dancing with, in their ship. They were Woowas... though not quite as I remember them facially. This might explain my deep seated reluctance to dance... fortunately cured at last by massive doses of MDMA! .