5 Ways To Challenge Your Paranormal Team's Psychic/Medium - and they are going to love it!

To each their own is my philosophy. Some teams in the para field are adamant that psychics have no place in the field and some have their own, in-house psychic. Some teams are comprised of psychics entirely. Some have sensitives, some have skeptics. Some have a mixture of all of the above. This article is not about telling you which one is the best combination. As far as I am concerned all that matters is that the team are happy and work well with eachother.

If you work with psychics or may be considering working with them in the future, you will find this article useful. Well, I hope anyway.

Here are five ways to engage them in your paranormal investigations, whether private cases, public investigations or commercial locations.

1            Prepare a kit for them to use prior to the investigation. Include items that relate to the location you're investigating. Include some "easter eggs", items that have nothing to do with the location. It can contain things like old photos, items that were used at that location or relate to activities being carried out at the location, even replicas of items, sound bytes or even paragraphs of stories. Get as creative as you like. This is also a good way to gauge how suggestible your psychic is as well as whether they use cold reading techniques to gather information. Disclose nothing of the location you're investigating but leave your psychic plenty of time to work on items from the kit. They may use all of the items or just some of them. Extra brownie points for those who can point out the easter eggs.

2              Obtain a floor plan to the location you're investigating. If a floor plan is not available, just draw one up yourself. Don't worry about it not being an architectural drawing as long as it represents the rough proportions of the property. Give it to your psychic in advance for them to get a "feel" for it. Ask them to give your information on things like, what type of activity they feel is occurring and where. What each room feels like or looks like. Who does what in each room. As in what the day to day use of a space is. Are there any significant items in any of the spaces that might relate to activity. Again, get creative but also allow them to come up with their own information. If you want to push them just a little bit further, ask them to draw the floor plan themselves based on the psychic information they are getting. Do not disclose any information about the location. Extra brownie points for those who can differentiate between the activity of the living and any supposed spirits that may haunt the place.

3              Many psychics read from photos. If you've researched your location, like a diligent paranormal investigator should, you would more than likely have come across some images from that property's past. Pick one that is not an obvious and popular image and get your psychic to read the image. Ask them to provide information on people that have associations with that property or historic events that might have happened there. For a private case, ask permission from the client to use a photo of people living in the house, including some that have passed. Your psychic should attempt to point out relationships between people in the photos as well as gain insight on whether any particular person has any paranormal activity happening around them and what that activity is. Of course for this, as any private case, you'll have to pay particular attention to the client's privacy. As in all of the previous suggestions, give no information to your psychic. Extra brownie points go to anyone that can give names or initials of persons of interest relating to the photos.

4              Re-enactments can be useful during investigations as era cues have been show to produce some great results by teams. Your psychic can help you with that. Tapping into time lines and events that happened at a location, be it indoors or outdoors, private case or commercial building can assist with determining how or where to focus effort during investigation. Get your psychic to help act out events they pick up, either by taking on the role of one of the perceived spirits during the re-enactment or the role of the director where they instruct members of the team what to do or say, how to act etc. Much like a film director. I suggest recording this part on video as well as a separate audio track (or even several) for the chance to gather any possible EVPs these era-cues may generate. Of course, keeping all details from your psychic in this instance is also imperative. Extra brownie points for those psychics who can come up with some scenes to act out prior to the investigation where the events can be verified by the investigator team.

5              Many investigations involve haunted items. Clients report items disappearing or moving or otherwise being involved in paranormal activity. You may want to get your psychic to concentrate on those particular items. If you have the opportunity to get your hands on an item like this prior to the investigation, let your psychic sit with it for a while to see if they will pick up on anything that might relate to the origin of the activity around that item. If that is not possible, a photo of the item might suffice. Or even during the investigation, let your psychic spend some time with the item. In this case don't tell them beforehand what the item that was reported have phenomena around it is. Challenge them further by, again, using the easter egg technique. Expect information from your psychic that is not outright obvious about an item. Eg, a shaving brush being used by a male. Restricting information for this challenge is as important as for the ones mentioned before. Extra brownie points to the psychic if they can pick out any easter eggs or if they can provide information of the origins of allegedly haunted items.

Of course keep in mind that experimentation around psychic phenomena has many critics not to even mention the question that is in the most part and for a lot of people is yet to remain solidly unanswered. Is psychic phenomenon real?

I have had many experiences that I can't explain that led me to question and theorise for both for and against the validity of claims of psychic "powers" and mediumship. I never stop questioning and challenging myself in that regard and I look for answers on both ends of the spectrum. Pushing my own limits has become an obsession of sorts and I take great pleasure in guiding others to do the same. 

Top Tips For Psychics Who Want To Get Into The Paranormal Field

It usually creates grumbles in psychic circles when I say that you need some specialised skills to be efficient as a psychic/medium in the paranormal. I wouldn’t say it if it weren't for the years of experience I have working in the field. And by that I mean actual field. I am not someone who does one on one readings or stage mediumship, for good reasons that belong into a whole other blog article. From very early on in my run as a medium, I knew that those things weren't for me. I enjoyed the challenge of investigations too much, the questioning of the investigators, participating in experiments and even designing them. The more something or someone challenges me, the more I like it. I revel in seeing the paranormal field develop and grow year on year, something that really cannot be said for the spiritual field in general.

There are many distinct attributes that set aside a paranormal medium from stage mediums and those attributes will decide whether a medium will be efficient and effective in a paranormal investigation setting or not. I get asked a lot what those attributes are, how people can gain skills as mediums to be useful in the paranormal and what they need to do start working as a useful part of a team.

Here I am sharing some of my top tips regarding how you, as a psychic or medium can gain entry into the paranormal field and become an integral part of a team or even work as an independent medium investigator.

1              Just because you make claims that you're a psychic/medium it doesn't mean that anyone will employ your services as one.

You can write all the emails you want to teams out there. Chances are that if they even work with a medium they already have one. Someone who is tried and tested and with an established rapport with the other team members. Don't be disappointed if you get rejected. Many teams look for someone with some demonstrated experience in the paranormal field. The less training they have to give you on how an investigation works, the more time they can spend on investigating.

2              Make a name for yourself in the field.       

                                  

The paranormal community, anywhere in the world pretty much, is a pretty tight knit community with teams knowing eachother, independent investigators consulting with teams and eachother so when a name pop ups that they don't know, there is a degree of avoidance. Trust is imperative whether you're a solo investigator or a team so the best way to get started is to get involved in the community. If you just insert yourself from nowhere in the community and demand attention, I can tell you, all you will get are cold shoulders. People work extremely hard to establish themselves in this fringe field and they will expect, rightfully so, that newcomers will pay their dues so to speak. Go to events where those people hang out, there are plenty of them and the offerings are growing every year, talk to them, find out what they do, ask them lots of questions and make it known that you're looking at entering the field yourself. Investigators are social people, well most of them anyway, and they will be happy to introduce you to even more people in the field.

3              Learn about psychic research and paranormal research in general.

The paranormal scene has changed a lot in the last 5 years or so and teams are increasingly critical of mediumship and emphasis is now on using electronic devices to gather evidence. A medium's word is no longer taken at face value. And that is how it should be. The more familiar you are with investigative procedures, experimentation and what goes on during an investigation in general, the more useful you are going to be in the field. Forget about TV shows as a benchmark for good investigative practices and look at the work of reputable researchers. The field is diverse and there are plenty of great brains out there publishing about paranormal research. Seek them out and be an informed psychic/medium.

4              Have an impeccable record of integrity and professionalism.

Many a team has been brought down by an unscrupulous medium and their credibility lost due to shady conduct. It takes a long time to recover trust lost, not only with the clients but for the team as well. Same applies if you're a solo medium investigator. How you conduct yourself publicly, and that includes any sort of social media, will impact on your standing in the paranormal field as well as your ability to gain entry to a team.

5              Be prepared to be challenged in your skills and abilities.

This is a growing field and those who can't grow with it will be left behind. Growth happens when you are challenged, pushed to the very boundaries of your abilities and your beliefs. You have to have the strength to get up and keep going, the humility to say that you are wrong or don't know the answer to a question and the ability to recognise that you are not the centre of the universe at the investigation. A willingness to go anywhere you need to go and deal with whatever is at hand at a moment's notice is also a desirable skill that will stand you in good stead with investigators. I have climbed sand dunes and river banks in searing heat as well as spent nights in derelict buildings in the middle of the woods with no running water many a time to support an investigation. If you're not the type of person to do something like that, reconsider whether you really want to get into the field.

If after all the above you feel like you want to take the leap, I suggest you jump in with both feet or not at all. This field requires a high level of personal commitment and the diversity means that you never know what you'll get when you go out investigating so you'll have to think on your feet. If you like being challenged and to push yourself then don't hesitate. The rewards are well worth it!

My Top Tips for Séances

Séances are back in fashion or maybe they have never been out. Social media now makes it so easy to connect with people and communities with similar interests. Whether you are part of an online community or an offline one in the field of paranormal or spiritualism, you may have noticed that séances are starting to come out of the shadows of Penny Dreadful and are being enjoyed once again more widely. This once favourite Victorian past-time activity is enjoying a revival.

If you're not particularly keen on joining a paid event with bunch of people you have never met before  but rather take part in a séance with your friends on a Saturday night, here are some guidelines that will assist you in making the night enjoyable.

Who should I invite?

In my experience the ideal number of people to get around a table for a séance is between four and seven. There really isn't a rule as to minimum or maximum numbers. If you have any friends who have some psychic development under their belt then ask them to come along. It's a great opportunity for them to practice their new skills. If not, then there are plenty of mediums around who will come to your house for a reasonable fee to conduct a séance. Google is your friend in this case but do make sure that you pick someone reputable and experienced in leading séances.

What sort of setting will I need for a séance?

Séances are best conducted in comfortable spaces where all participants can sit around a table (our circle has a round table) and move around as needed. A space that is well ventilated that can be made dark and away from noise is ideal. Pick a time when there will be no other disturbances in the house and there is nowhere to rush off to afterwards. If you're doing this séance in your home, the best time is when all people present in the house during a séance actually participate in it. If that's not possible, ask them to keep noise and movement to a minimum.  Otherwise you and your séance buddies might mistaken their pottering about the house for genuine spirit phenomena.

What other things do I need?

There is no special equipment needed for séances unless you want to get into physical mediumship. If you're just starting out, it's unlikely that you will encounter phenomena that will need special equipment. It's good to have some paper and writing instruments on the table during the séance. We have found in our circle that often information will come through the medium that is worth writing down. The spirit coming through the medium on occasion requested pen and paper to write something down or even draw. Some candles will set the mood with incense though they are not necessary. A low light desk lamp is sufficient. If you're going for candles, use the ones in jars as the chance of spilling is the lowest. If you're using a lamp, try a red bulb, it is easier on the eyes when the room is dark. Some would recommend to put a bowl of water in the middle as a focal point, though I believe that is more tradition than actual necessity. Things like creaky chairs and tables should be avoided for obvious reasons and it's good practice to check for droughts beforehand. When your candle flame moves or you feel a cold breeze across your face, you want to make sure that you are able to discount all natural and obvious explanations.

What if something scary happens?

For séances, the atmosphere builds up over time through repeated sessions in the same place and , ideally, with the same people. It's unlikely that the energies will be very strong if you're only just starting out. If you're more comfortable with someone more seasoned leading the séance then engage a medium.They should have ample experience in dealing with the unexpected. However in the absence of such person, it's good practice to have a plan for any untoward events. Those plans may include things like providing grounding for anyone in need, have access to water to offer to anyone affected, assertively ending the session or saying a prayer if that is deemed to be required. There is one thing you shouldn't do however and that is to upset and disrupt the circle and abruptly leave the room in panic. If you think that you or any of the proposed participants may behave that way, it's best not to attend such an event.

The purpose of the event is to encounter spirit phenomena and that may come in many forms, such as sensation of being touched, voice heard, movements experienced or even channelling. So, don't run away when things start happening. The phenomena are unpredictable and you never know when you shall encounter  them and in what power. You also have to be prepared for not experiencing anything at all.

It's also good practice to document séances either by someone who can act as a scribe, or recording them on voice recorders or even a video camera if that's possible. This is good for several reasons. You may catch a possible EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) on your audio track or if you opted for video, you might record something unusual on the footage that correlates with the audio track or someone's experience during the session. Notes are handy when you have a spirit return to the circle to communicate as you will find that doing repeated and regular session, you will have your regulars and familiars making appearances from The Other Side.

The process of a séance session is a topic for another article as there are many schools of thought and different traditions dictate different rituals.

5 Fluff Free Meditating Tips For The Superbusy

According to Webster Online Dictionary, mediation is continuous and profound contemplation or musing on a subject or series of subjects of a deep or abstruse nature. Yawn! This explanation is likely to put the most devout Buddhists off mediating, let alone a mum who's desperately looking forward the kids to go to bed so she can at least have 5 uninterrupted minutes in the bathroom. Or the busy professional who even works on the train on their way home from work after a 10 hour day.

When you hear the word meditation, what comes into your mind? Incense smoke filled yoga room with dreadlock and drawstring pants wearing people? A stack of never opened CDs you bought ages ago thinking you will have the time and dedication one day to "really get into it"? Or maybe an idyllic picture from your Facebook newsfeed showing a person sitting on a mountain top looking mighty serene and kind of full of inner peace smugness? I hear you!

Don't let all this dissuade you from at least trying it on for size. Bringing meditation into your every day is easier than it might seem. Let me share with you some ideas that I think will grow on you faster than you can say Namaste. These 5 top tips will not only help you get into meditation but will enhance your experience with psychic development.

1              Relaxation and Mindfulness

If you haven't done any meditation before, I suggest you try relaxation first and some mindfulness meditations or visualisations. These types of meditations are guided and on top of the soothing soundtrack of ocean waves, bird sounds and the like and you will have a person's voice taking you through a landscape of some kind usually. Sandy beaches, cool caves, lush forests are all popular choices. To start off with, choose something that is not too long. About 10-15 minutes will do. Choose a time when you won't be disturbed, turn your phone off and find a comfortable place to sit. I prefer a sitting position as it's just too easy to fall asleep during a relaxing meditation. As much as you want to enjoy it, unless it's bedtime, you want to get on with the rest of your day once you're finished.

2              Noise is Good

If guided meditations are not your cup of tea, I found that just a track of plain sounds is very effective. I have tried various background noises such as white noise, wind blowing, the sound of rain, drums, even whale songs. There is plenty of free material available online or inexpensive tracks on iTunes even. This type of meditation will allow you to be in the driver's seat and go wherever you want to go in your head.

3              Your Happy Place

You will be much more inclined to spend time meditating if you have a comfortable, inviting, cozy place to go to in your head if you're not using guided meditation. You can create the space you want in your head, even the path you get there on. Lack of imagination is not an excuse here as you can also go back to physical places in your thoughts where you really enjoyed yourself in the past or felt peace and calmness. I have a temple space I visualise, where I go to in regular meditations.

4              Thoughts Be Gone

I used to think that meditating means to be completely thought free until I met a yoga teacher who taught me something invaluable and I pass it onto everyone I teach. Don't fight your thoughts when they come into your head. It's natural to have those floating through your mind, even when meditating. If you're focused on keeping them out and fighting to push them out of your head once they enter, your focus is not on your meditation but your mental processes. Imagine that those thoughts that come into your head during meditations are like lithe leaves, being blown into your mindscape during meditation and see them float out of your head as effortlessly as they floated in. Acknowledge each thought and let it drift on and the next one and the next one until there aren't any more. Most of all, don't give yourself a hard time if you're not successful right away. Meditation is called a practice for a reason.

5              Keep It Simple If You Go Off Track

One of my issues during meditation used to be that I often "came out of it" really suddenly and was unable to go back into that relaxed state. Or during guided meditations I would drift away and completely off the path that the guidance was, especially during psychic development classes. I would find it difficult to re-focus once that happened and I would spend the rest of meditation time either with my eyes closed, fully aware and trying not to fall asleep in front of everyone in the circle or beating myself up in my thoughts for not keeping on task. Another technique I learnt from my yoga teacher helped me overcome that issue as well. Whenever I felt myself drifting or coming out of meditation, I would re-focus my thoughts on my breath. As I was inhaling and exhaling, very deliberately, I would feel the rise and fall of my chest and continue with that practice until I was back on track. Some people in my circles found that focusing on their heartbeat works better for them and that is perfectly fine. This is also helpful at the beginning of a meditation session as it helps centring and balancing the mind, priming it for a great meditation.

5 Things Your Psychic Development Teacher Hasn't Taught You About Trance Mediumship - Part 1/5

 

When I made a more serious commitment to my psychic development back in 2006, sitting in a circle of beginners week after week, I started from the same level as everyone else. It wasn't long before it became obvious to me that my development was to be somewhat off the beaten track. I soon began to experience physical changes in my body during the meditation that introduced each session. While my circle peers have come out of meditation with recounts of meeting guides, angels and loved ones who have passed and the like, my experiences were mostly of images of people and energies that didn't seem to fit into any of those categories. I often kept those to myself, fearing that I was being left behind in the development or that there was something wrong with me and guides didn't find me worthy of communicating with.

When I mentioned some of what I was going through during those meditations to my teacher at the time, I was told that I needed to ignore what was happening as this was a beginners class and what I was doing  sounded like trance mediumship and that didn't fit the curriculum. I considered the advice reluctantly but decided to listen to my teacher who had a decade of experience with mediumship by that time. Unable to get instruction on how exactly that could be done, I had to find my own way through the experiences I was having, not knowing at the time, that very process will give me the knowhow to assist people going through the same rites of passage in my own circles years later.

It is my view that people who embark on the road to psychic development and mediumship will have as many different paths of getting there as there are reason for them stepping on it. Therefore the way they learn will be different and the utilisation of this skill and ability will be different as well. That is completely OK! People shouldn't feel that they need to fit the mould their teacher picked out for them, especially that this form of development is very deeply personal for many who participate in it.

In this article I write about some of the knowledge that I wished was passed down to me from some of my teachers about trancemediumship. I hope that there are those out there who will read this and will recognise the learning opportunity and will go forward with their individual psychic development without fear of judgement and with the knowledge that what they are experiencing is real. The below are all based on my personal experiences as a student, teacher and practitioner of trancemediumship. We are all individuals however so you might have a different experience and that is perfectly fine.

Physical Effects of Trancing

• Sudden change in heart rate. This has been happening to me since the very beginning. One moment my heart was beating fine, the next it was almost jumping out of my chest. Very scary to experience it if you don’t know what is going on. It used to last for minutes while I was fighting what was happening to my body and used to exhaust me. It took me about a year of practicing to get it under control. The secret for me was to stop fighting within my body and try to slow my heart down by shear will. I realised that it was just a temporary bodily reaction and the more I let it flow through my body, the easier and quicker it passed.
• Unable to move body. The entry into a trance state is via meditation and the brain goes into an altered state. This, as well as the heart rate change is a temporary condition and passes the same way. As scary as this also is in an in between state, while you're still aware of what you are doing and where you are, if you suddenly want to move your arm for example, you may have some difficulty as your brain is busy putting your body in a relaxed state so that you can get on with your meditation. This was also something I had to learn to overcome myself. What works best for me is that imagine that I am inside my body but am very small, in the centre and I am wearing my physical body as a suit. If I move my tiny body inside the suit then I am able to move the corresponding part of my physical body. This takes some practice too.
• The Fall. This is a sensation that I feel directly before trance state sets in and soon after the above two that I mentioned. I call it The Fall as not matter what position I am in, standing, sitting, reclining, I have the sensation of plummeting down in a never ending 3 dimensional space, rotating in all directions. This too was something I was trying to fight at the beginning of my trance mediumship development. Sometimes I would come out of it by jolting myself awake from this state. I would sit in my chair completely stunned and unable to move, with my heart racing, almost as if the jolt would take me back through the stages of trance within seconds and my body felt like it was going to tear apart. It took me awhile to not get freaked out by the physical sensation of falling. What helped me was the affirmation just before it was happening that I was in a safe place and it too just had to pass.

~End of Part 1/5~

4 Easy and Practical Exercises to Flex Your Psychic Muscles and Tune Your Intition

That little voice in your head that tells you to take a certain route, you know the one you ignore just before you make a decision to ignore it only to get into a traffic jam later. That feeling that tells you to choose a certain colour paint for your room only to be shoved aside while you end up with the completely wrong shade on your wall. And the one that tells you that it's time to check your emails as there might be something important and urgent, the one you dismiss, only to realise days later that you missed out on a certain important message from mum and she was expecting your reply days ago. Yepp, that's your poor, much overlooked intuition aka gut feeling that we disregard and completely overlook when making decisions, only to end up with regret and thoughts of "should have listened to my instincts".

That niggling feeling, that tightening in your stomach, that knowing, just knowing, that faint, yet very distinct signal is within reach to each and every one of you. There is no reason why you shouldn't be able to fine tune it like a delicate instrument of guidance. And it is the one key to aid you in the development of a solid foundation for confident psychic work and mediumship. Here are some simple exercises with minimum or no expenditure that you can use either with some friends or on your own to get you started.

1.       Zener cards are very easy to come by nowadays. Get yourself a pack to do this exercise. Familiarise yourself with the shapes on the cards. Shuffle for a few minutes. Lay the deck on table face down. Pick a card while keeping it face down. Separate it from the deck. Focus on the card, may even out your hand over it if you like. The trick to it is not to attempt to guess what the exact shape on the card is. Go for information such as types of angles, curves, similar shapes in everyday objects etc. Draw if you can or write some notes if that works better for you. Give yourself a time limit with each card. I find that 5 minutes works well. Do a few cards per sitting. Don't be discouraged if you don't get the shape right straight away. This is an exercise where you have the opportunity to learn patience and how to associate objects and shapes with eachother.

2.       A variation on the Zener cards is to work backwards so to speak. Make a spread of the cards with neat rows and columns, face down. This just makes it easier to keep track of this exercise. Pick the shape you want to find. Scan the grid of cards or hold your above the cards as you move from row to row while you keep the image of the wanted shape in focus. When you feel like you have picked the card with your shape on it, just stop and ask yourself, if that's the right card. Pay attention what your gut feeling tells you. Turn over the card you had in mind. With practice you will start pulling out the wanted card or at least come very close in the vicinity. This will teach you how to read yourself and will help you develop your confidence more.

3.       This exercise might be a little more fun for some and can even be practiced while doing something else. In fact, a primary activity is strongly encouraged. Put the radio on while doing housework, in the shower, cooking etc. Have a guess at what band will play next. What the next song will be, what it will be about. Even what the next commercial is. Again, this will help with your confidence while having fun as well as with short term prediction.

4.       Collect pictures of celebrities from magazines and cut them out. Don't worry, this isn't going to turn out to be some creepy stalker fantasy! You will need about 20-25 pictures for this. Put them into sealed and non-transparent envelopes. Make sure you can't see any of the pics through the envelope. Mix up the envelopes and pull one out randomly. Without opening it, keep your mind's focus on the envelope and the picture in it. Pay attention to what images, sounds, feelings come to you. The trick to this one is, again, not to guess who is in the picture but to get deeper information that is not readily represented in the photo. Go for attributes like mood, location, action etc. This can be quite fun as you will try to validate the information you've received by searching in the tabloids for the antics of your favourite celebrities.

Of course the main goal is to have fun while you fine tune your intuition. There is no competition and the more of the above activities you do, the stronger your psychic muscles will become. You don't need to have the desire to read for other people or appear as a stage psychic, but simply just perfect this built in guidance system we all have is a good enough reason to give this a go.