I briefly noted in “Barred from the Afterlife” (Ep37 of my podcast Obscure Chatter) that I visited a psychic. When a couple of listeners noted that they would indeed like to know more about what happened, I decided to go into some more detail.
Initially, I thought this was going to be a quick little post. After reviewing the transcripts and all that other fun stuff, I’ve decided to break this down into parts. Those parts will consist of various “spirits,” numerology and tarot cards.
While I am a self-professed “Scully” (aka skeptic), there have been things that have happened to me that aren’t easily explained. I cannot say with certainty that there aren’t people with gifts.
There is a difference between a psychic and a medium, though some use those terms interchangeably. While psychics and mediums both deal with the paranormal and spiritual, they actually have different abilities and areas of focus.
A psychic is a person claiming to have ESP (extrasensory perception). Basically, this means they can sense things beyond what normal human senses are capable of detecting. Psychics might use tools like tarot cards, crystals or palm reading to navigate and give insight into someone's past, present or future.
A medium claims to have the ability to communicate with the dead, some referring to the deceased by name and others simply by “Spirit.” Mediums use techniques like clairvoyance, clairaudience or clairsentience to connect with these spirits and pass messages from them to the living.
As I mentioned earlier, there are those that interchange “psychic” and “medium.” Some people claim to have both psychic and mediumistic abilities. The experience that I will be giving details on is with someone that refers to themselves as a “Psychic Medium.”
It is worth noting that there is no scientific evidence to support anyone’s claims.
Many that call themselves “psychics” or “mediums” use techniques to help them in a session or reading.
One technique is called "cold reading." Cold reading is where a psychic/medium makes vague statements that could apply to almost anyone. It is then that they watch how the person they’re “reading” reacts to see if they're on the right track.
It really can be as simple as something like, “I sense that you've had a recent loss or hardship.” That’s a pretty general observation that likely resonates with a lot of people.
Another trick is called "hot reading." Here a psychic/medium does research on a person beforehand. Any info that they’re able to gather can be used to make it seem like they do indeed have psychic abilities.
For example, I’ve been in the entertainment business since I was 14 years old with over 13 years of podcasting and way too many posts on various social media platforms. I talk a lot about my private life and certain struggles. I’m very Google-able.
Then there are just leading questions used to steer the person toward the answer a psychic/medium is looking for. For instance, they might say something like, “Do you know someone with a name that starts with the letter ‘J’?” It’s a common letter and could apply to a plethora of names or even nicknames. Remember what I said about leading questions because, you guessed it, it does come up.
And never underestimate the Power of Observation. A psychic/medium might use observational cues to make educated guesses about a person's personality or situation.
For example, my session took place over Zoom. I always take my video meetings in my home office. This room is a lot like my brain— heavily cluttered and just a bit too much. Without meaning to at all, I gave this person “reading” me a lot by showing rather than telling. Damn you, acting skills. You’ve done it again!
Houdini spent a good amount of time and effort exposing fakers and it’s easy to see why. Grieving people often fall prey to creative scammers. It’s easy to get taken advantage of when in a vulnerable state.
So why do it? Why take the risk of getting scammed?
Some see a reading as a potential way to seek guidance or clarification. A person might be going through a tough time or struggling with a decision or just feeling a little lost. This is where someone truly gifted has the potential to offer insight and/or advice.
Others might visit out of sheer curiosity or for the thrill of it. Many of us did similar things even as children. I mean, I can’t be the only kid that shouted “Bloody Mary” into a mirror a certain number of times or accused a cousin of moving the planchette as it slid across the OUIJA board.
Visiting a medium could also be a way to connect with a loved one who has passed away. Somebody with the ability to communicate with “the other side” could bring comfort to someone who is grieving or simply looking for closure.
I can’t really say what my reasons were.
I’d mentioned that I wouldn’t mind meeting with a psychic to my partner Stephen a few months back in leu of nothing as far as I can recall. I’ve had a couple palm and tarot readings before, but nothing super intense.
Stephen booked the psychic medium we’ll call “Casey.” Casey offered a session that was one part Mediumship and another part Tarot.
When? My birthday.
Funny enough, Stephen used our credit card’s concierge service to find the psychic. The concierge apparently wanted to make it very clear that they could not officially recommend a psychic and just put their trusty Google skills to use.
For the Mediumship portion, Casey stressed that I pray and ask my loved ones to attend our session. Not big on prayer, but I’m trying to be more open-minded. I thought of loved ones that passed that I wouldn’t mind speaking to and told them that if this was legit, they’d find a way to let me know.
The session itself happened while battling a pretty gnarly stomach bug. I didn’t want to cancel absolutely everything because of my being sick. Again, this was my birthday.
So, at our scheduled time, I hit the provided link and.. STAY TUNED!