To think this woman with ‘psychic abilities’ is a nasty scam artist?

[Vanillapeach]

My DS came home from work yesterday and told me that he was writing out an invoice (car related) for a customer who was sitting at his desk, when she suddenly said to him out of the blue ‘there’s something not right with you, I don’t think you’re very well’ .
DS asked her what she meant by that, and she replied ‘ I sometimes get these visions and feelings when I look at people, and I urge you to see your Doctor because I think somethings wrong with you’.

My DS was obviously taken aback by her sudden outburst, but he just tried to ignore her. The woman (in her 70’s roughly) then continued with her claim that she believes my DS is ill and she also involved his colleagues by saying to them ‘don’t you think he looks pale?’ No one took her on though.
She then pointed to her throat and ran her fingers down to her stomach and added ‘it’s something around this area but I don’t know what’

She then offered my DS her phone number, just so he could let her know whether she was right about him if he saw the Doctor, and her number was stuck on the back of her phone, almost as if she gives it out a lot I think. My DS copied the number, he doesn’t know why.

The woman then left but before she did, she also said to my DS ‘you need to be careful driving too’ . WTF!

Anyway, when he told me, her words had clearly played on his mind all day, but myself and his work colleagues told him that she’s a fraudster.

Now I’ve just received a call from my DS, on his lunch, to say that the woman’s been back in today ( she’s having work done on her car), approached my DS and said ‘oh I know what’s wrong with you’, as she took his palm and added, ‘it’s your white blood cells because you’ve got all these white dots’ … we’ve no idea wtf she’s talking about!

My DS decided to play along with her and ask what she could do for him, to which she replied that she’s a ‘bit of a healer’ and that ‘mediums always contact her asking her to join their groups but she declines’ apparently.
He asked what she charged, to which she replied she doesn’t, she just ‘tells people what she visualises in them because she’s got empathy’

Now I’m fuming on my DS’s behalf. How TF can someone say all this bollocks?
I believe she’s a scam artist, but what does she get out of it if she doesn’t charge?

thoughts please.

ask what she could do for him, to which she replied that she’s a ‘bit of a healer’ and that ‘mediums always contact her asking her to join their groups but she declines’ apparently.

That's the scam. Before long she'll tell your DS that "one of the mediums sensed I had been with you and would like to do a reading as she got a really strong vibe about you"....it plays on peoples ego and natural sense of curiosity. A family member was introduced to a "medium" by someone claiming to be a "healer" who also didn't charge but was "often contacted by "mediums"

@Vanillapeach Where did this daft woman gain her degree in Medicine?

Oh, not got a medical degree?
Thought not!

And yet this silly egocentric woman {Probably mentally not very stable} is upsetting strangers with made up nonsense.

I don't believe in psychics one little bit. All a big fraud. But I can understand why it might rattle both you and your son, maybe subconsciously worrying there might be something wrong whilst not believing a word she says. However, she's not asking him for money and he's under no obligation to take her up on her offer to 'heal' him. If anyone is worried about their health, surely they go to a gp for diagnosis before seeking treatment or 'healing' from anyone, let alone a random customer in his place of work.

@Vanillapeach
Well one thing that daft egotist said is true...{Barnum statement}
''We all need to take care when driving''.

Barnum statements are things that apply to everyone.
I do urge you to look up Derren Brown who does a lot of debunking in this area.

So in that case then, she is suffering from delusions. Because she is most definitely not "psychic".

Interfering bat should be keeping her "gift" to herself and not scaring people for no reason.

That’s what I said too, we all need to be careful driving!

That's exactly my point.

As far as I'm aware, not all dogs can do this.

It's possible that some humans have an ability that most don't

I'm not saying they can or can't - but the later post saying there's a woman that can detect dementia is interesting.

My DM has her number on the back of her phone case, she's never scammed anyone in her life. Didn't realise an old person with their phone number handy so they could remember it screamed Fraudster 🙄

blog.thealzheimerssite.greatergood.com/joy-smell/

It's quite fascinating

Speaking as someone whose intermittent chest pain was diagnosed (correctly) as asthma by someone gazing into the irises of my eyes, I do think that some people can instinctively know when something is amiss, and can often have good idea of what it is.

So I wouldn't dismiss it out of hand.

Imagine going to a doctor and saying your think there’s something wrong with you between your throat and stomach, but no idea what and no symptoms. Doubt they would do anything at all.

I meant it as in she possibly gives her number out a lot to people who she ‘’visualises things with’, I mean, why give a stranger her phone number?

She obviously believes it.

Chances are she is just a weirdo, but I remember seeing a recent news article about a woman who could smell Parkinsons, and there are dogs who can smell or sense cancer. So some people really can sense/smell things that the rest of us can't.

Odds are she is just a weirdo though.

Of course she is either a scammer or a nutter. Everyonwho says they're "psychic" is one or the other!

How could she ‘see a problem’ with my DS’s driving?

I’d assume if your son is relatively young, she’s made a sweeping generalisation about his driving, since statistics show young men have the highest accident rate

Though the vast majority of these people are fakes, THEY believe it's for real. When you think about it, such things would appeal to narcissists and egomaniacs. What narcissist wouldn't want to believe they've got supernatural powers?

She looked in your eyes and diagnosed asthma? 😁

The bollocks people believe.

I believe there are a shed load of con artists out there who pretend they have a gift like that. I also believe that a smaller number are genuinely gifted whether we understand how or why etc.

That smaller number being 0.

In my 20's a friend and I were obsessed about seeing mediums. We went and saw one once and she was just horrible. She had bars up her doors and windows to which leads me to believe she'd told a few people some crap.

She told me that someone who drives a red car was going to have an accident, but that that someone had also driven a silver car. This was me. They were my cars, I drove a red one but had a silver one previous, she couldn't have known that as we had to walk a few miles to get to her. I left that house feeling like shit but went to the car showroom the next day and bought a navy blue car!! Call me silly but I wasn't in the right frame of mind for that shizz.

Another lady told me so many thing that were spot on, stupid stuff that no one could have known except me. She also described my future husband to a tee. That might have been a self fulfilling prophecy but it was weird.

I have seen Derren Brown up close in his spooky show. He did some weird stuff but also showed how it was done, and also how these people can use you to their advantage. These people can be charlatans. One such person was a friend from the school run, she was training to be a medium and she told me that I had an old man looking over me 'like a grandad', no shit Sherlock, I was in my late 40's so it was pretty clear that my grandad would have passed! She never tried it again!

I can understand how you must feel but I agree, if she isn't charging, she isn't scamming, maybe just a lonely old lady who wants the attention.

Keep us updated, I find it fascinating.

I am very skeptical of psychics but I did meet one randomly on a bus who gave me a reading about my future and its been very accurate. Maybe it was all lucky guesses but I think sometimes there are things that can't be explained. If your son is worried he could always get a health check at least it would put his mind at ease. I do agree that in general psychics and healers are not genuine and are usually make predictions based on age and demographics.

I do think it's a little ignorant/arrogant to state that you are 100% convinced that all woo is a pile of crap. I mean to be honest, I don't really believe it myself, but I'm certainly open to the fact that could be more than we currently have the capacity to be aware of.

However I don't think that 'psychics' should be going up to random people and telling them things, especiallythings that could worry them. Any 'reading' should be at the full consent of the person who is getting the information.

You get what you deserve if you go and see a psychic - ie seeds planted that may or may not come true. However your poor son has not asked for this and this awful woman should learn to mind her own business. I’d ask him to get himself checked out as it’s obviously in his head now, but he should tear up her number and refuse to deal with her again. She might be right let’s hope not but really it’s not her business to go around meddling. A proper doctor wouldn’t volunteer a diagnosis if they spotted something as it would be considered stepping over the line. She’s a wrong-un no doubt about that.