Any Ghost Hunters in the Room?

NateSean

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For a year, I worked with a paranormal group called Vermont Spirit Detective Agency or VSDA. I've been on three investigations. On two of those, the claims were easy to debunk or they had a down to Earth explanation. On the third try, there was quite a bit of activity as well as local history in an unoccupied house in North Hero, Vermont. The family who owns the house are sort of honorary members of the group and have their own recording equipment for performing their own investigations.

The main thing to remember is that you're mostly trying to debunk claims of paranormal activity. You keep an open mind, certainly, but the goal is to find legitimate evidence of spirit activity. The best way to do that is to eliminate all of the probable explanations before you decide that what you are experiencing is paranormal.
 
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folkchick

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I haven't gone on any hunts, but I've thought about it. I watch Ghost Hunters and TheHauntingof and have always thought it would be extremely interesting to do something like that for real. My only problem, beyond being scared out of my mind, is that I don't want something negative to attach itself to me. I've already had that experience and it's no fun.
 

firedrake

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I've done one --- in a cottage reputed to belong to Blackbeard's mistress. It's now a museum

It was a long, hot, humid and event-free night. But it was fun nonetheless. I'm sure if there'd been any activity, I would've run screaming into the street.
 

Lady MacBeth

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I've never been on one, but it sounds like fun. There used to be a TV show called Most Haunted. They sent teams to the most interesting places.
 
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NateSean

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My only problem, beyond being scared out of my mind, is that I don't want something negative to attach itself to me.

The main thing is to keep a clear head. Sometimes a shadow is just a shadow and other times, it isn't. It helps if you keep in mind that in most cases, the paranormal entity was once a living breathing human being like you.

When we go into a house, we're always polite and respectful. In the case of an active spirit with an alleged history of aggression or violence, we never provoke, especially in someone's home, because the entity might not react to our provocation but instead might choose to take it out on the residents. So being respectful is always recommended.

In the instances of something negative, you could always protect yourself with a little prayer, or a blessing.
 

folkchick

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Do you ever watch Ghost Adventures on the Travel Channel? Zach, I think his name is, is always agitating the spirits. I know he's trying to make things happen, but it's a little annoying to watch at times. He used a ouija board once, which I thought was incredibly stupid. If there aren't any ghosts in a house, why bring in other negative spirits just to catch something?

One thing I noticed as well, is how on Ghost Hunters they capture and then show the evidence, but do nothing to help the person. "Yep, you got a ghost. See ya." : ) They also frequently and annoyingly say every single episode, "What's that? What is that?" Uh, a ghost?

Thanks for the advice on using thought protection. I have a little angel pendant that I wear, so that might help if I ever get to do a hunt. It would be really exciting. I've always loved old houses and buildings.
 

NateSean

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Do you ever watch Ghost Adventures on the Travel Channel?

I saw one episode and I really didn't like it. Half the time the guy is screaming and I want to say, "They're dead, not deaf" followed by, "Cut back on the Red Bull".

One thing I noticed as well, is how on Ghost Hunters they capture and then show the evidence, but do nothing to help the person.

One of the main things to remember is that half of the people who contact TAPS, especially these days, only want the fifteen minutes of fame. Business owners, museum curators, etc. use the "As Seen on" aspect of the show to boost their profit margins.

In cases like when a homeowner doesn't feel safe in their home, the TAPS crew will do everything in their power to help but there's only so much they can do. They have ordained ministers on the team that can do an exorcism, for example. But an exorcism will really only work on a harmful entity and then only if the homeowner is serious about getting rid of said entity.

A lot of the times the homeowner is just looking for confirmation and they're not afraid, which is why in those instances you will only ever see the "Reveal" but not Jason, Grant, or Steve giving any advice.
 

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I always said I would love to live in a haunted house...until my family and I unwittingly moved into one. For the majority of the time we were there, I was able to explain away the weird crap that happened. However, when we decided to move out and started packing, the shit hit the fan! It was not a pleasant entity. We got a few pics of it which really creeped us out. That was 3 years ago and we have just now gotten to where we can talk about it. It was not a pleasant experience!
 

elinor

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Starting from the time I was bottle feeding I had intense nightmares starring ghosts, demons, and demonic possession up until about puberty, on the regular. I had to get rid of stuffed animals because I would dream about them being possessed with glowing red eyes, chasing me through the house. When I was five. So I will always be the last person interested in ghost hunting. If ghosts and such are in fact a real occurrence then my own experiences have been nothing but unpleasant and I cannot fathom why anyone would wish to expose themselves to these things. One of my most fulfilling periods of time working on my degree involved working with NAGPRA repatriating artifacts and skeletons, and even consciously feeling joy and satisfaction at doing something truly good did nothing to combat a lingering and unexplainable unpleasantness which only dissipated when a graduate student who was a Cheyenne shaman-in-training came to do a proper blessing on us.
 
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NateSean

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If ghosts and such are in fact a real occurrence then my own experiences have been nothing but unpleasant and I cannot fathom why anyone would wish to expose themselves to these things.

To understand and to educate, mostly. A lot of the times the paranormal activity people encounter has a down to Earth explanation. I don't want to discount your experiences, but even things like dreams usually have a rational explanation.

I had some freaky dreams growing up as well. Sometimes it was clear where they were coming from and other times it was simply the result of an overactive imagination or exposure to certain stimulus.
 

Jamesaritchie

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Half-heartedly. I've been to dozens of haunted sites, and I've seen things that had no logical explanation on three occasions, but I don't pretend to know what actually caused them.
 

mrsmig

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I've had a couple of strange things happen to me over the years, the oddest of which was working in Ford's Theater in Washington, DC. I was appearing in a production of A Christmas Carol and in one scene, had to enter stage left in darkness and strike a match to start a scene. Things had gone fine with the scene all through rehearsals and tech, but as soon as we were into previews I started to have issues with the darned match. I'd strike it, it would light and then a moment or two later, go out. It didn't gutter or flicker like it was in a draft - it would just go out. This happened a couple of times running and finally the director asked me if we needed to get new matches. I told him the matches were fine (I'd tested them). He looked puzzled for a second, then suddenly his face cleared and he said, "Oh, you're in the Booth spot. Don't come so far downstage when you enter."

Turned out I was striking the match right where John Wilkes Booth was purported to have landed when he leaped from the Presidential box to the stage right after shooting Lincoln.

I altered the staging as instructed and it never happened again, although I always felt uneasy backstage during the run. I didn't work there again until 2011, after the theatre was renovated, and it was as if the renovations had laid whatever ghosts were present - I never felt that uneasiness again.

It's still a really interesting place to work - especially on Assassination Night, when all kinds of oddballs show up in the building's stage door alley, hoping to see who knows what.
 

NateSean

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Wow. How did the TAPS guys miss that one? Well now I have a reason to visit Ford Theater because I have to see that for myself.
 

mrsmig

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Ford's is reputed to be haunted not just because of the Lincoln assassination in 1865, but because of the 1893 partial collapse of the building (then being used as a storage facility and clerk's office for the War Department). 22 people were killed and another 68 injured, so it's had plenty of tragedy within its walls.

If the TAPS guys ever asked to "investigate" Ford's, I'm sure they were turned down. It's a prominent National Historic Site as well as a museum and an operating theatre and administered by the National Park Service.
 

Snowstorm

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For a TV show that actually helps the people is The Dead Files. A retired detective and a medium work the case and the detective talks with the people. The medium walks around the house and sees spirits and can understand their feelings when they died. It can be quite horrific and emotional.

At the reveal, he tells of his investigation of the property and prior owners. She tells what she experienced on her walk-through. At the end, she tells the people what they can do to rid the place of spirits.