Afterlife Specialist

I've never really liked the title ghost hunter.

I don't feel like I'm hunting ghosts.

I'm trying to understand them.

I'm trying to communicate with them.

Everyone gets into afterlife research for different reasons, but I think, more often than not, it starts with a personal experience. Once something happens that you can't explain, you naturally start asking questions.

Who?

Why?

How is any of this even possible?

That's exactly what happened to me.

I started asking those questions at a young age after a pretty significant experience, and I haven't really looked back since.

The older I've gotten, the more I've realized that it isn't just about ghosts.

It's about perspective.

I look at life differently now.

I don't spend much time worrying about reality television, celebrity gossip, or who's dating who.

That's all just noise to me.

Life is about so much more than that.

The mystery of what happens after we die has always been at the forefront of my mind, and I don't think I'll ever stop wondering about it.

I've found that when you shut out some of the constant media noise, you start noticing things you never noticed before.

You pay attention.

You observe.

You ask questions.

To me, ghost hunting suggests that ghosts are something you have to chase.

I've never believed that.

If the paranormal exists, I suspect it's already all around us.

The real question is whether we're paying enough attention to notice it. 

Can You Really Tell a Ghost to Leave?

This is something that's been driving me crazy lately.

Every time someone talks about a paranormal experience, there's always that one person who confidently says, "Just tell the spirit to leave."

As if it's that simple.

I have to admit, I've never bought into that.

Do people think their voice is some kind of ghost repellent? That a spirit is just going to hear, "Please leave," shrug, and quietly head for the nearest exit?

I've never believed it works that way.

If spirits exist, why would they suddenly obey us just because we asked them to? Why would they care what we want? It seems much more likely that if something is truly there, it will leave when it's ready...or if it's even capable of doing so.

I've heard people tell terrifying stories about something they believed was haunting their home, only to end with, "Then I told it to leave, and I never had another problem."

Well...

I doubt it.

But I think there are a few possibilities.

Sometimes people genuinely convince themselves that their house is haunted. Every creak becomes footsteps. Every shadow becomes a figure. Every unexplained noise becomes proof that something supernatural is happening. Our minds are good at filling in blanks, especially when we're already scared.

In those situations, telling the "ghost" to leave might actually help, but not because a spirit packed its bags, but because the person's fear finally faded. Once they believe they've solved the problem, they stop interpreting every ordinary event as something paranormal.

That doesn't mean every haunting is imaginary. Far from it.

It just means I don't think saying a few words is some universal solution.

If simply telling an entity to leave always worked, why would so many frightened people eventually call paranormal investigators? Why would they seek help after weeks, months, or even years of unexplained experiences?

I would imagine that asking it to leave is one of the very first things most people try.

I know I did.

When I was little, I remember asking whatever was frightening me to leave me alone.

It didn't.

I've also spoken with people over the years who tried the same thing with no success. During one investigation involving activity in my family's home, my mom repeatedly asked whatever was bothering her to let her sleep.

If anything, the activity seemed to become more noticeable.

Does that prove anything? No.

But it did make me question the idea that telling a spirit to leave is some kind of guaranteed fix.

Personally, I think paranormal experiences are probably more complicated than that.

So whenever I hear someone confidently say, "Just tell it to leave," I can't help but roll my eyes a little.

If it were that easy, would we really hear about hauntings?

Ectoplasm...Sort Of.

I hope you're sitting down, because I'm about to burst your ectoplasmic bubble.

Is "ectoplasmic" even a word?

Let's just pretend I didn't make that up for the sake of this article.

First, a little history.

Ectoplasm first became popular in the late 1800s when mediums claimed they could produce a mysterious substance during séances. It was said to emerge from the nose or mouth and was supposedly too "light sensitive" to exist outside complete darkness.

Convenient, right?

As it turned out, many of those famous demonstrations were exactly what skeptics suspected. Once the lights came on, the "ectoplasm" often turned out to be tissue paper, cheesecloth, or some wonderfully appetizing mixture of gelatin, soap, and egg whites.

Some mediums even swallowed the material beforehand so they could dramatically regurgitate it during the séance.

I don't know about you, but I think I'd rather meet an actual ghost.

So...

Is traditional "ectoplasm" real?

Probably not.

Sorry, Ghostbusters.

With that said, I do believe that ghosts can sometimes leave behind traces of themselves within and on us. 

I like to call it "energy ectoplasm". 

I believe this energy can leave behind an electrical slime, which sticks to our energy like paranormal glue. Once touched by a spirit, you know it absolutely. 

There's no mistaking the strange feeling you have after a brush with an entity that resides on the other side. It's almost as if the touched part of your body was transported to the dead realm. You feel as if you were electrocuted with a vibrating aftershock. 

That vibration can last for what feels like eons and lasts until you shed the energy that has made your body it's temporary home.

Do I think it's actual ectoplasm?

No.

What I do know is that the history of ectoplasm, hoaxes included, is fascinating.

Sometimes the fake stories are almost as interesting as the ghost stories themselves

Have We Forgotten How to Ghost Hunt?

I have a love-hate relationship with technology.

I love that I can find information in seconds or catch up with family and friends from my phone. But I also think technology has a way of clouding our minds if we let it.

Ghost hunting has come a long way over the years, but I'm not entirely convinced it's been for the better.

Don't get me wrong. I love new ghost hunting gadgets as much as the next investigator. Some of them are incredibly interesting. But somewhere along the way, I think we started relying on electronic beeps and flashing lights to tell us what our own senses used to.

Years ago, if someone thought they were in the presence of something paranormal, they paid attention to how they felt. The hair on the back of their neck stood up. Their ears rang. Something just felt...different.

Now we tend to stare at a screen waiting for it to tell us whether there's a ghost in the room.

Sometimes I wonder if we've become so focused on the equipment that we've stopped paying attention to ourselves.

Let's be honest. We walk into locations looking like Ghostbusters, carrying bags full of gadgets we think we need.

I know because I've done it too.

Some of those tools are useful.

A camera.

A video camera.

A digital recorder.

A flashlight.

Beyond that, I think a lot of ghost hunting equipment falls into the "nice to have" category rather than the "need to have" category.

Is it fun to play with?

Absolutely.

I own a few unnecessary gadgets myself.

But that's never been why I ghost hunt.

I got into ghost hunting because I wanted to understand what I saw as a child. I wanted to explore one of the biggest questions we'll ever ask ourselves.

What happens when we die?

I was never trying to prove ghosts exist.

People are going to believe what they want to believe, regardless of what evidence you put in front of them.

Lately, I've found myself wanting to get back to the way I used to investigate.

To rely a little less on technology and a little more on my own instincts.

I'm just as guilty as anyone else when it comes to overdoing it with gadgets, but I think it's time to find a better balance.

Maybe the best ghost hunting equipment isn't something you can buy.

Maybe it's something we were all born with.