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How do psychic mediums know stuff about you

AmyW said:
How am I not learning anything? It takes time to ascertain and embody new beliefs/non beliefs. I have been in the midst of religion for most of my life and am trying desperately to 're learn and unwrap the crap I have been taught.
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Don't pay people's crankiness or suspicions any mind, Amy. We're just a bit jaded here at ISF. You have to understand that it is a common thing for people promoting various styles of woo to come in here pretending to be open to skepticism. Then, once everyone is engaging with the poster and answering their questions, it starts to become obvious that they aren't interested in examining their beliefs at all. They just want to troll skeptics.

It's pretty obvious to me that this probably isn't what you're doing. I recognize the looping thoughts and anxieties associated with OCD in your questions because those kinds of thought-patterns are very familiar to me. I believe your continued requests for reassurance are due to that good ol' compulsive urge to "check" - to release the anxiety pressure valve, if you will. And you shouldn't be afraid to do that. If a few people get grumpy or suspicious with you, let them. It's not you. If you stick around, people will eventually see that you're for real. Don't hold it against us. :)
 
isissxn said:
Don't pay people's crankiness or suspicions any mind, Amy. We're just a bit jaded here at ISF. You have to understand that it is a common thing for people promoting various styles of woo to come in here pretending to be open to skepticism. Then, once everyone is engaging with the poster and answering their questions, it starts to become obvious that they aren't interested in examining their beliefs at all. They just want to troll skeptics.

It's pretty obvious to me that this probably isn't what you're doing. I recognize the looping thoughts and anxieties associated with OCD in your questions because those kinds of thought-patterns are very familiar to me. I believe your continued requests for reassurance are due to that good ol' compulsive urge to "check" - to release the anxiety pressure valve, if you will. And you shouldn't be afraid to do that. If a few people get grumpy or suspicious with you, let them. It's not you. If you stick around, people will eventually see that you're for real. Don't hold it against us. :)
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I'm not sure if I should feel miffed at this offhand dismissal. I'm not cranky nor grumpy and my, and a few others, suspicions were well founded.

It's all very well giving AmyW support but a bit of encouragement to stop, re-read the thread and the material she has purchased on recommendation herein, to take in what has been explained and apply it to her questions before blithely posting "how do they know this?" might benefit AmyW more.
 
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bluesjnr said:
I'm not sure if I should feel miffed at this offhand dismissal. I'm not cranky nor grumpy and my, and a few others, suspicions were well founded.

It's all very well giving AmyW support but a bit of encouragement to stop, re-read the thread and the material she has purchased on recommendation herein, to take in what has been explained and apply it to her questions before blithely posting "how do they know this?" might benefit AmyW more.
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I agree with bluesjnr on this. At some point, when people explain things a few times, with Amy indicating she understood, then, again started the questions, but at another angle.

I consider myself to be of a patient nature, but after awhile . . .
 
bluesjnr said:
I'm not sure if I should feel miffed at this offhand dismissal. I'm not cranky nor grumpy and my, and a few others, suspicions were well founded.

It's all very well giving AmyW support but a bit of encouragement to stop, re-read the thread and the material she has purchased on recommendation herein, to take in what has been explained and apply it to her questions before blithely posting "how do they know this?" might benefit AmyW more.
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I wasn't trying to insult anybody. I thought referring to ourselves as "grumpy old skeptics" and the like was standard fare here.

I understand people's frustrations. I just think it's important to note the presence of the OCD factor in this particular case. Her repetitive questions are a way of performing "checks," which can give temporary relief from strong, ingrained fears. It's not a good long-term strategy, however. Not saying it is. I just don't want to run somebody off that we could potentially help.
 
I agree with you isissxn; moving from a belief in psychics to an understanding that they are all fraudulent is neither a linear nor an easy process.
 
isissxn said:
I wasn't trying to insult anybody. I thought referring to ourselves as "grumpy old skeptics" and the like was standard fare here.

I understand people's frustrations. I just think it's important to note the presence of the OCD factor in this particular case. Her repetitive questions are a way of performing "checks," which can give temporary relief from strong, ingrained fears. It's not a good long-term strategy, however. Not saying it is. I just don't want to run somebody off that we could potentially help.
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It was the "pay no mind" I objected to, to be specific. I think it bad form to encourage people to ignore others at ones behest. One should let the recipient make up their own minds whether to engage or not.

You say we could "potentially" help AmyW, I say there is no potentially about it! We can and we are helping her, in spades, and the unwritten part of the bargain in exchange for the help she requested is that she apply the sound advice and reasoning she has been graciously given over 16 pages and 600+ posts without pulling the "whaddabout this then?" card.

AmyW, the next time you find yourself wavering over something that some medium has told you, simply re-read this thread, reference the books you said you'd bought/were going to buy and apply the logic - that way lies your "relief". There is nothing to be gained by asking what is essentially the same question to have us reiterate the same answer.
 
Agatha said:
I agree with you isissxn; moving from a belief in psychics to an understanding that they are all fraudulent is neither a linear nor an easy process.
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I understand but the journey can be made a lot easier if the person making the journey steps outside the door and walks the path we've cleared for them.
 
bluesjnr said:
It was the "pay no mind" I objected to, to be specific. I think it bad form to encourage people to ignore others at ones behest. One should let the recipient make up their own minds whether to engage or not.
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Okay, you're right. That's probably true. I should have considered my wording more carefully. To be honest, I'd barely considered it at all. I was going for a friendly and supportive tone, and I just sort of tossed in a dismissive platitude, I guess. I didn't think about its wider implications, and I probably should have in a public forum setting. That was dumbassery on my part. I apologize and retract.

You say we could "potentially" help AmyW, I say there is no potentially about it! We can and we are helping her, in spades, and the unwritten part of the bargain in exchange for the help she requested is that she apply the sound advice and reasoning she has been graciously given over 16 pages and 600+ posts without pulling the "whaddabout this then?" card.

AmyW, the next time you find yourself wavering over something that some medium has told you, simply re-read this thread, reference the books you said you'd bought/were going to buy and apply the logic - that way lies your "relief". There is nothing to be gained by asking what is essentially the same question to have us reiterate the same answer.
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:thumbsup:


ETA - I should've said, "Don't let others' skepticism get you down! If you're really here to learn, then you'll understand why people have those kinds of questions soon enough." That would have been way better and somewhat more accurate.
 
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wasapi said:
At some point, when people explain things a few times, with Amy indicating she understood, then, again started the questions, but at another angle.

I consider myself to be of a patient nature, but after awhile . . .
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Agatha said:
moving from a belief in psychics to an understanding that they are all fraudulent is neither a linear nor an easy process.
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The problem is not just questions or a slow pace of progress. It's the act of continuing to go back to the same con artists looking for a way to get conned again.

bluesjnr said:
I understand but the journey can be made a lot easier if the person making the journey steps outside the door and walks the path we've cleared for them.
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Or just doesn't keep going back the opposite way.
 
bluesjnr, et al,

I understand the frustration of reiterating the same message, and having the recipient accept and then reject it repeatedly. (Remember Robin1, who held onto the belief in a stage medium far beyond anyone's ability to help her?)

Please reread my message #630, in light of isisxn's comment about OCD. Also, please consider that AmyW is not in the same situation as Scorpion or Robin1, who assert that spirits exist, whereas AmyW is trying to fight clear of that belief.
 
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isissxn said:
Okay, you're right. That's probably true. I should have considered my wording more carefully. To be honest, I'd barely considered it at all. I was going for a friendly and supportive tone, and I just sort of tossed in a dismissive platitude, I guess. I didn't think about its wider implications, and I probably should have in a public forum setting. That was dumbassery on my part. I apologize and retract.



:thumbsup:


ETA - I should've said, "Don't let others' skepticism get you down! If you're really here to learn, then you'll understand why people have those kinds of questions soon enough." That would have been way better and somewhat more accurate.
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Nope. Do not apologise at all. I lost the faith 35+ years ago, yet still from time to time those ingrained superstitions raise their ugly heads. If it is beaten into you as a child, it is not an easy thing to rid oneself of it. One does not simply decide to be an atheist and that is the end of it. There is accumulated baggage.
 
abaddon said:
Nope. Do not apologise at all. I lost the faith 35+ years ago, yet still from time to time those ingrained superstitions raise their ugly heads. If it is beaten into you as a child, it is not an easy thing to rid oneself of it. One does not simply decide to be an atheist and that is the end of it. There is accumulated baggage.
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This is so true! I experience the same thing sometimes. It will probably never fully go away from the back of my mind, even if I live 100 years, because that religious lens was placed upon my perceptions when I learned about the world itself. Inextricable, on some level.

I just have to break out my logic katana whenever the old superstitions flare up.
 
xterra said:
Apology accepted, with thanks.

For the record, I don't thing AmyW is deliberately behaving dishonestly; I think she is fighting very hard to let go of her previous belief in mediums.

Her return to the old belief is rather like probing at a sore tooth, or for a better analogy, at the socket from which the tooth has been extracted.



ETA, perhaps an even better analogy is the believer who deconverts, no longer believes in the Christian god, but can't shake the fear of hell.
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You have hit the nail on the head! I am trying to release all of the past I had learnt about, I want to learn. I feel empowered being a disbeliever and trust me I am trying to let go, I just have bouts of fear from time to time, yes of god etc etc.
 
I promise when I become afraid and seek reassurance I will 're read the post. Thank you for understanding my OCD, I have recently started taking a higher dose of anti depressants and am feeling less anxious etc. OCD is a disease of the mind, it's like having an enemy in your head arguing against you and trying to install fear. I had an obsession about the supernatural and because I fear god, OCD will then create anything that might prove it exists (to create more fear). I should be starting therapy soon
 
Christianity infuriates me, it has installed a lot of fear in me, the Bible makes me feel dreadful, it goes against my gut feelings etc..... Religion is dangerous and especially to people who suffer from mental health
 
Isis you have spoken such wisdom and really understand OCD thank you
 
I like to live by evidence and logical thinking, it's a much more healthier way to think. Yes I slip up from time to time but my journey to a more sane journey is empowering
 
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