Do you believe in Mediums?

[Snowballs138]

Some years ago I went (very sceptically) with a friend to see a well renowned Medium. I had waited almost 2 years to see her. I booked the appointment via telephone on a withheld number. I Gave only my first name which isn't unusual and no other information.
As I say, I was a very sceptical and pretty much a non- beleiver, but just went along with a friend to see what it was all about and a giggle. I had previously lost my husband quite young in a very unusual way. The woman seemed to know a lot about this and even specified that it was abroad, an accident and he was surrounded by water, which he was 🤯 she then went on to say he was with her and was trying to tell her a nickname he used to call me so that I would believe he was there. I was completely confused as I couldn't remember any nicknames that he had for me (non to my knowledge). So this is where I had her, or so I thought! I said no, there has never been a nickname. He never called me anything other than my Christian name. She then said she would give me the first letter of the nickname. I just looked at her blankly and said no. She then shot out the nickname and I was completely and utterly blindsided. It was a ridiculous name. I won't say it on here because it's embarrassing and silly 🤣 but it's something in humour that he used to call me when it was just the two of us (and very unusual/not guessable for her AT ALL). I had totally and utterly forgotten about it. So how could she have known this if even I had forgotten and absolutely nobody else knew? I've never to this day been able to understand how she could know. She also went on to say several other things were that were outstandingly accurate and things that nobody else could possibly have known, for example I was in the middle of a private dental claim which she said was legal (I was) and that I would receive a substantial payout very soon (I did). She told my friend she was pregnant (she was, 6 weeks, but had told nobody bar her DH) This one visit to this Medium changed my entire belief system regarding mediums and the spirit world which I never thought would be possible. Has anyone else had similar experiences?

I didn’t believe but I did see one many years ago who told me about my brother who died. In quite a lot of detail. My brother died in Iraq in 2003. How she knew this I have no idea. I wasn’t on social media at the time of the reading and I have a different surname to my brother.

I didn’t worry about it. Just listened to what was said. Haven’t done it again since.

I do — I think — OP. Although I suspect most of them aren’t genuine.

Let's say OP is telling a genuine, true story, (or if OP is making it up, maybe some comments are real, like the person given details of a 4 person funeral, or workmate message.)

That would tell us that there are some genuine mediums.

BUT

Some things we DO know.
(1) Some so called mediums lie for money or other reasons. e.g. the case with the medium who passed on 'messages from the spirit world' from a kidnapped girl. The girl's mother died in despair. The girl later tuned up alive.

(2) People lie on the internet. Who knows why. Maybe people who have shared their stories are sharing precious, genuine memories. Maybe they are bullshitting for whatever reasons. Maybe the OP is the 'medium'. When people DM for details she gets a whole new harvest of marks.

Questions and observations:
(1) Let's say OP's medium is a real medium. How do we know she is ALWAYS getting real messages? E.g. if her gift only works on the spring equinox for example. But she has to make a living. So on March 20 she does readings all day, from 7am to midnight. Charging £30. She has 12 happy clients spreading the word to their friends, relations and on the internet. Then on the other 364 days of the year she is cold reading and ripping people off.

(2) People underestimate the power of technology in modern times. You get someone trained in cold reading PLUS they are aided by tech.

Let's say you've paid cash with a walk in booking. They run facial recognition on you. The person 'doing the reading' has an earpiece with someone feeding them things from the internet. And that's what they can get with zero notice. One full day to research and they can give an even better performance.

(3) Why don't they claim the prize money offered for genuine readings? Some say they are not allowed to profit from their gift, but OP's was happy to charge.

Why not email the police anonymous tip offs? Would there be a single unsolved murder left? Maybe the spirits can't remember dying.

Conclusion:

Even if OP's medium is real and you book to see them, there's no guarantee you'd get a real reading from them yourself. And even if they were 100% genuine and always gave 'true' readings, how do we know the proportion of real Vs charlatan?
Is it one in 3 real Vs fake. One in a hundred? One in a thousand? How do you guarantee getting that one?

of course they exist. but I have always been large or xl

Or maybe they are not in contact with the dead at all, but are somehow reading your own mind and getting access to your memories.

being inuitive is natural Primeval instinct that protects us from potential predators who want to harm us whether emotionally psychological, sexually ..

even Animals kingdom possess the same instinct to protect themselves from predators,
other wildlife Animals, humans,

it's just in our society this is conditioned out of us,
because its percieved in Christian society or by other faiths as the work of devil 😈 ect.

There are good and not -so- good in all / most proffessions in life society,

it's the same as with "mediums" too.

Spiderey feelings ,gut reactions, feeling ect are describing this Primeval instinct to protect ourselves from potential harmful situations or people in life,

it's helped us since humans and animals since beginning of dawn of time,
it's a survival mechanism,
that's helped us to survive from stone man times to protect us from sabre toothed tiger and other wildlife..

There's is nothing woo about that

Hence the gut being known as the second 🧠 brain etc..

Not to accuse OP but I have a theory these threads are commonly a way of getting people intrigued= making money. A poster above has already asked for a private DM with details of a medium

Just like in this life there are some good people obviously nobody is perfect and there are people who are not good for us too,

we can have the misfortune to come across in this life..

Cold reading

About ten years ago I went to see one of the Petulengro family on Blackpool beach.

I just walked in off the street and paid in cash.

What she told me was absolutely shockingly true, although I didn't actually want to believe her at the time. I live a long way away from Blackpool but I often think of going back there and seeing her again.

I do think she is an absolute outlier though - the vast majority of clairvoyants are scammers.

No, they prey on the vulnerable. It’s all a scam. Don’t be fooled.

Or maybe people who 'can contact the spirit world' are only able to contact one a day, or a week. So they get 365/52 good recommendations and the rest of the time they are scamming. And the rest are scammers full-time.

I would argue quite the opposite

Our understanding of the universe and how it works is fragmentary at best. A truly open minded person would accept that there are things at the moment that seem impossible to explain away rationally. That doesn't mean they don't happen.

Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

Nope , con merchants and charlatans the lot of em

Initials SM by chance? I saw her a couple of weeks ago and she's absolutely appalling. And I say this as a believer. She's got a perfume out too apparently 😏

No. 50% are charlatans, and the other 50% are deluded.

Watch someone like Derren Brown who claims no psychics powers, do a cold reading. It’s incredible- you’d swear he can read minds. He’s very clear it’s just cold reading.

I'm sorry OP, I don't believe you.

I don't believe you because if what happened to you, really happened, you'd have Zero doubt about it. You'd know your husband's spirit was there.

You being on the fence means it either didn't happen or didn't prove the medium was real.

I suspect you've posted for attention or because you want more people to believe in mediums. Perhaps you have a gig soon and trying to get people in the spirit of booking - in case you say again you have no reason to lie.

99.99% of these people are skilled cold readers and researchers. I think the average person doesn't realise how many tells they are giving to people who know how to look for them.

00.01% may have access to the beyond, who knows, but I don't think these are the people who set up shop and do readings day in and day out. I doubt the unknown functions like Google and is accessible all the time.

Christ no

I'm on the fence-i do believe but I don't at the same time

I do believe there is 'more' to us after we die but I don't know if people can talk to the dead

My mother believes-my father didn't

I say didn't as he was a total non believer until a medium mother of an old school friend of mine popped round to see my mother

They where chatting away,my father doing his usual 'hiding behind the newspaper' when she suddenly said 'you have two wedding rings'

My mother was amazed-she does,and only herself my father and a friend knew about it

She turned to my father and told him he would retire but the run up to it wouldn't be smooth-there would be bumps in the road

Dad scoffed-he had no plans to retire at all

A week later,he got the chance to take early retirement-work where moving everything abroad and he was at the stage he could afford it

They kept giving him dates-then moving them back-took 3 years for him to walk out for the last time

She also said a baby would come into their lives-very soon-baby would be a boy,I'd choose a biblical name and his birth wouldn't be 'normal'

His birth would be dramatic

A week later,I gave birth to a baby boy-no idea I was pregnant in the first place (he's now 23 and about to make me a granny)

I called him Joshua and he was born while I was stood up on the landing floor

She also said I'd have another baby,a boy and I'd have two names to choose from

I'd choose the name with 'an American connection but irish'-the other name would be loved but not used-both very different names

Yep-i did choose the one she said but it was a close call right up until I was cuddling him after his birth-my mother had been told not to say anything until I announced his name,and she kept her word

My father was so freaked out,he says there is 'something in it' and we should keep our brains blank round her'!

No.

I believe very few 'mediums' are actually genuine but that they do exist

Nope. I think it's dangerous hokum.

How many readings do mediums do a day/a week/ a month? Statistically speaking they are going to guess some things correctly.