WHO YA GONNA CALL? - Ghost Hunting 101

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So you have watched every episode of every paranormal reality TV show out there, and you believe that you now have all you need to know to set up your own group and hunt ghosts...STOP!!!!

Yes, you heard me, stop. You may have watched how Zak and Co. do it, yes you have listened to Jason from TAPS call out asking, "Is there anyone here with us? Can you make a sound?" and you have probably watched the young guy from the Tennessee Wraith Chasers build some wild contraption to catch this week's ghost, but that does not mean that you have learned all you need to know to set up your own team.

These shows may be great, they may be fun to watch, but they are (in their own words - the small print disclaimer on the credits) for entertainment purposes ONLY. For the best part, some of these investigators have been doing this for YEARS before appearing on your TV each week.

There are things you need to do before taking such a massive leap from armchair investigator to field investigator and researcher:

1. GET INSURANCE -- You will need this regardless if you plan to investigate alone (which I do not recommend) or with another person or team. You need insurance should anything happen to you or your team while you are out in the field (at this early stage I would recommend you DO NOT investigate a private home. You do not have the experience and could end up adding to the problems the homeowners are already experiencing.) Insurance will also cover your equipment. Some of this stuff is quite expensive and should you knock it or lose it you will need to have it replaced which can come at a hefty cost.

2. DO YOUR HOMEWORK -- You will need to know all you can about the place you are going to investigate. Not just what it was used for (stately home, warehouse, factory, shop, etc...) or who was in it, who died there and when they died. Their personal history. When it was built, who built it, why it was built, was there any drama about it? You will also need to research what was there BEFORE it was built. Was it built on what used to be a graveyard? An ancient burial ground? This type of digging can take time, you may be able to do some of it online, but for some records, you will have to visit public record office to go through old newspaper articles or public records. This takes time and will benefit you in the long run when it comes time to do your investigation. To be well informed is to be well-armed.

3. KNOW YOUR EQUIPMENT -- It's all well and good having 'The Tech Guy' and 'The Researcher' in a group but what will you do should there be a group fall out and one leaves (it happens more than you think)? Or someone is off sick or on holiday? Are you gonna put all on hold until that spot can be filled or they come back? NO, you shouldn't. Many have learned the hard way from this sort of thinking and now teach all members what each piece of equipment is for, how it works, what the readings mean, and how to fix it if it goes a bit wonky. 

4. GET PERMISSION -- No matter where you plan to investigate ONLY do so if you have the written permission of the owner of the property. This will legally cover you should you need to make a claim on your insurance or the owners should they need to. TRESPASSING is against the law no matter where in the world you live, and in some places, you won't be getting away with a verbal warning, the ramifications can range from prosecution to LOSS OF LIFE. 

5. ALCOHOL IS A BIG NO -- If you know you are going out to investigate under no circumstances should you drink anything with alcohol in it on the day or the evening of the investigation. This would make you look foolish and unprofessional and possibly stop you from being given entrance ever again to the premises and put others in your team at risk. You may find that to be caught drinking due to an accident would not only void your insurance but put you at risk of a lawsuit for negligence. There is too much at stake for such stupidity. I bet some of you reading this think I am stating the obvious? Nope, you would be surprised how many people I have met while out investigating or with group tours who drink before going out. It can put others at risk and cause a hazard. Just do not do it. If you need a drink to steady your nerves before going on investigation then maybe this is not the 'hobby' you should be doing. 

6. USE YOUR COMMON SENSE -- This is the most important tool in your investigator toolbox. Even though the term states 'Common Sense' you would be surprised to know that it is actually NOT that common. If for one moment you have reason to think that there could be an issue on your investigation that could cause harm to yourself, a team member or to the property then use your common sense and make a judgement call. Address the situation and assess it.

I have researched the paranormal since I was in my teens. Back then, I was would now days be considered an Armchair Researcher, and that was ok with me. I didn't feel ready to take that step and walk into the unknown. I wanted to garner what I could from books and from papers others had written on what they believed a ghost to be and how they thought they manifested. It is not a bad thing to be mentally prepared for what you are going to be walking into. What you potentially could be opening yourself up to, and not just you, but others you live with and share a life with. 

It wasn't until I was in my late twenties that I began to dig a little deeper into just what an entity could be, what it could be connected to and the various types of haunting. Then it was while in my thirties that I took that giant leap from an armchair researcher into field researcher. I joined teams, learned from them and honed an investigative technique of what worked and what didn't before starting a group myself alongside my friend, and my brother. 

Now, in my mid-forties, I have learned a great deal, and I am not afraid to admit that there is still a great deal more to learn. I no longer belong to a group (life takes over, and we have to make the decision to spend time with the living as there will be time enough to converse with the dead when we too are pushing up the daisies). I find myself once again back to spending my time digging through reading material and researching my new revised ideas of what a GHOST is and the connections to other supernatural realities that people experience including the links to Alien Abductions as well as Sleep Paralysis.

My current belief? There is a connection...that is the direction my research over the years has taken me.

BE PREPARED is not just a Boy Scout motto, it is a life motto, and one that makes perfect sense in the investigation and research of all things paranormal.