What is EMF?
EMF stands for Electromagnetic Field, Electric fields are formed by differences in voltage: The higher the voltage the stronger the electric field becomes. Magnetic fields are formed by the movement of the current, the stronger the current, the more powerful the magnetic field. An electric field is constant it exists even when there is no movement of current.
Natural sources of electromagnetic fields:
Electromagnetic fields exist all around us; the natural electric field is created by a buildup of electrical charges in the atmosphere associated with lightning storms.
It is the earth’s magnetic field that causes a compass to respond by pointing in a North-South direction.
Human-made sources of electromagnetic fields:
Electrical power generated by human built power plants, like all the outlets in our homes generate a low frequency electromagnetic field created by the movement of current throughout our homes, offices, or anyplace power is supplied. Remember when you are taking a baseline reading be aware of power lines outside of your location they are generating EMF.
How does the EMF apply to Paranormal Investigation?
The theory is that paranormal entities draw energy from around them to manifest, they can draw the energy from electronic devices, batteries, the air around them (causing “cold spots”) even the investigators themselves, and the EMF meter detects the fluctuations that occur in the field while this is taking place.
At the beginning of our investigation, we take a baseline reading in every room in the building. This will familiarize the investigator with the area and rule out spikes from man-made sources such as wiring, and appliances. Normally a base line reading is between .0 and .4.
A spike from an entity manifesting does not last very long, normally only a few seconds.
If a spike is detected, the investigator should stop and check their surroundings, floors, ceiling, and walls, in an attempt to find the source and make a determination whether or not it was caused by a man made source.
It should be noted that people who are sensitive to high electromagnetic fields can experience symptoms such as, but are not limited to, nausea, skin irritations, paranoia, headache, and the feeling you are being watched.
This is why, as part of our report we include any high EMF readings and where the readings were located.
Very often when a client shows us a room and states "I don't like coming into this room I feel like something is watching me". An EMF sweep of the room reveals a "FEAR CAGE" The “Fear Cage” is created when there is an abnormally high EMF field in a room or section of a house or building.
(see "the fear cage effect" below for more information)
EVP:
EVP stands for Electronic Voice Phenomena, these are voices or sounds we pick up on digital voice recorders, tape recorders, wireless audio, and or video recordings. While recordings of voices or unidentifiable sounds are very impressive, it is not why we at OMPI use digital recorders and wireless audio. Our goal is to capture intelligent responses on audio, meaning direct responses to direct questions. This is why we not only ask questions during an EVP session but will actually attempt a conversational interview, meaning we do not want to fire one question after another and make the spirit, or whatever it is, feel as though it is being interrogated, rather try to make it more of a conversation. Residual sounds and voices are pretty cool, but it is not what we are after.
Understand, just because we record something that sounds like a voice or other sound anomaly does not mean the location is haunted, we have recorded many sounds and what we initially thought were voices, were later, after many hours of analysis determined to be non-paranormal in nature. Digital, tape, and recordings from our cameras are sensitive and something as simple as the investigator moving or some other type of background noise can be easily confused as a voice.
Disembodied Voice:
The disembodied voice is a voice or voices we hear with our ears from no known source and without the aid of voice recorders. They are not necessarily speaking to us, they could be speaking to each other, assuming there are others present, or they could be a residual type of occurrence. However unless we can also capture these voices on a recorder they are nothing more than a personal experience and although they are noted, they cannot be considered as evidence.
The Fun House Effect:
The “Fun House Effect” is a phenomenon that occurs due to an uneven floor, stairs, or an oddly shaped room.
When the lights are turned off and the room is dark, that’s when these factors cause dizziness, and disorientation, other symptoms include paranoia, nausea and a general uneasy feeling. This has often been confused with paranormal activity to someone who is not aware of the imperfections of the area. During an investigation it is very important to take any and all possibilities into account, and the “Fun House Effect” is no exception. As a paranormal investigator you must always be aware of your surroundings, not only for safety reasons but purposes of giving an accurate report to the client.
The client may be aware of the imperfections of his or her home but unaware of the effects on the mind when negotiating the house in near or total dark conditions.
This is not to say that this phenomenon only affects a person at night it is just more common, the effects can be just as disorientating in the light.
The Fear Cage Effect:
The “Fear Cage” is created when there is an abnormally high EMF field in a room or section of a house or building.
This is usually where a lot of the wiring intersects either coming from or going to a power control panel or fuse box, more common in older structures where there is unshielded ground or poor grounding and in some cases copper pipes creating quite literally a cage of electrical current. This causes a very high EMF field concentrated in an area where suspected paranormal activities have been reported.
The effects of a fear cage can be, but are not limited to, Paranoia, hallucinations, headache, skin irritations, nausea, and the feeling you are being watched. These feelings are more intense to someone who is hypersensitive to the EMF.
This is why the first thing that should be established at the very onset of the investigation is a baseline EMF reading. Establishing a baseline reading will also make it easier to recognize an unexplained spike or fluctuation in the EMF field, which is what you are looking for in paranormal investigation.
It should also be noted that since it has been suspected that in order for a spirit to manifest, it draws energy from its surroundings, thus draining batteries, and creating cold spots. That would make a fear cage ideal. So don’t write off the area because of high EMF readings. But you must consider the “Fear Cage” as a possible cause for the activities.
Remember, we are attempting to find answers, and although gathering evidence of paranormal activity is great; we can only consider the paranormal possibilities once we have ruled out everything else first.
Pareidolia/Matrixing
Visual or auditory form recognition, also known as Pattern Recognition, or Matrixing, is the minds ability to form familiar images from obscure patterns such as seeing shapes in clouds or hearing words in random noise. Remember as a kid laying on the grass looking up into the sky and seeing the clouds make a familiar shape or figure? that is matrixing. Looking at ink blots (left and right) is also known as matrixing. Psychologist use ink blots to determine what the mind sees. Matrixing can be very subjective, what one person sees is not necessarily what another person sees and they both can be looking at the same exact thing. Matrixing can be very deceiving, however, awareness is the key to being objective. What images do you see in the pictures below?
Below is another excellent example of matrixing. Do you see anything unusual about this picture?
Now, if you look in the small mirror to the left of the large mirror you will notice a face.
Odds are, you now see the face because I suggested to you that it was there, so your brain now recognizes it, this is "Matrixing".
This is dust on the surface of the mirror along with other reflections in the room.
Ouija Boards AKA Angel Boards & Séances
The term "Ouija" is derived from the French "oui" (for "yes") and the German "ja" (for "yes"). Ouija became popular during, and after, World War I; when it was marketed (and trademarked) as a means of communicating with dead soldiers.
OMPI STRONGLY recommends that you or anyone in your home never use a Ouija board or conduct séances, and do not be fooled by Ouija Boards marketed under the name “Angel Boards” or "Talking Boards" these are just warm and fuzzy names for the Ouija Board. It has never been proven to be linked to any type of haunting but why run the risk and possibly place your family in harm’s way?
Mediums and Spirit Sensitives?
Let's look at what "Mediums" and "Sensitives" are...
Mediums claim the abilities to listen to and relate conversations with spirit voices; go into a trance and speak without knowledge of what is being said; allow a spirit to enter their body and speak through it; relay messages from the spirits to those who wish to contact them with the help of a physical tool, such as a writing instrument.
A medium is an individual who claims they can connect between the living world and spirit world. Some mediums claim they can communicate verbally with a spirit even relay messages from the dead to the living relatives.
Some Mediums justify charging their customers a fee by claiming they bring closure, and comfort to the relatives by conveying messages from their loved ones who have passed away, however there is no evidence to support these claims.
A spirit sensitive is a person who is gifted with what is known as “spirit sensitive ability” simply put they can sense the presence of spirit activity.
Sometimes the Sensitive can communicate with the spirits and sometimes the Sensitive can only sense the presence of spirits. Unfortunately the spirit sensitive is normally also hyper sensitive to high EMF’s so it is difficult to know if they are feeling paranormal activity or simply reacting to a High Electromagnetic Field.
Is Your Child's Friend Imaginary or Paranormal?
Oct 10, 2008 Lori L. Board
Determining if a child is normal or gifted is not an easy task, especially given the vivid imaginations of very young children.
Parents report witnessing their young children “talking to Imaginary Friends” and then make claims that these children are talking to unseen “real” people. According to Marjorie Taylor, head of psychology at the University of Oregon and leading researcher on children’s play, "The phenomenon of the imaginary friend is really misunderstood. People thought it was rare -- it's not. People thought it was a red flag -- it's not." According to related research, the healthy development of childhood creativity and language skills can be attributed to having one or more imaginary friends. Children who have had imaginary friends tend to develop better social skills than those who had little interaction with imaginary friends.
There are parents, however, who explain that their child is not only talking to, but also appears to be “seeing” people and claim that the child could quite possibly be talking to and seeing spiritual beings or other such paranormal phenomena. There are a couple of ways to determine if your child is following the rules of normal childhood development or is exhibiting paranormal behavior:
Ask Questions – What is the friend wearing? How old is he/she? What is the name? What job does the friend have? Where does/did the friend live? Gathering as much information as possible about the friend will begin to shed some light on whether the friend is made-up or could have been a living person.
Do Your Homework – Once you have gathered enough information about your child’s imaginary friend, go to your local library or city hall and inquire about the existence of such a person in the town’s past.
What's Next?
Once you have determined if your child’s unseen friend is imaginary or has a verifiable past, there are two things that can be done.
If the friend is, indeed, imaginary don’t discourage your child’s behavior. While unnerving at times, and possibly annoying at others, keep in mind that imaginary play is a vital part of your child’s creative, social and verbal development. Play along. In most cases, the imaginary friend will take a hike by the time your child is about seven years old. If, however, you notice this imaginary friend interfering with the daily routines of your child’s life, such as taking the blame for misbehavior on a consistent basis, or other such extreme instances, it’s time to intervene by contacting a child psychologist for suggestions on how to wean your child away from his or her unseen friend.
On the other hand, if there is supernatural work at hand, it can be easily identified during your research. Names, dates, work history, obituaries can all confirm information given to you by your child. If this is the case, it might be wise to contact a clergy member to assist in getting the unseen friend to move on. It might also be helpful to contact a team of paranormal investigators, who can help put your mind at ease by conducting a thorough, Scientific Investigation with electronic equipment and in-depth research into the friend.
Many times, unseen friends are harmless and tend to leave on their own, but if you notice evidence of more than the innocent chit-chat, such as poltergeist activity, physical wounds, or hearing audible voices, it might be necessary to take more drastic steps up to and including an exorcism.
More than likely, your child’s friend is innocent and harmless. Keep lines of communication open and enjoy your child’s younger years.
Sleep paralysis is a temporary condition where an individual is unable to move or speak while falling asleep or waking up. It can occur during one of the two stages of sleep: the rapid eye movement (REM) stage or the non-rapid eye movement (NREM) stage. During this condition, the individual may be fully conscious, but their body is unable to move or respond.
During sleep, the body goes into a state of paralysis to prevent physical movements from disrupting the sleep cycle. However, during sleep paralysis, this paralysis continues even after the person wakes up, leaving them temporarily immobilized.
Sleep paralysis can be a frightening experience, as some individuals may experience vivid hallucinations or a feeling of pressure on their chest. The hallucinations may take the form of a sense of a presence in the room or even visual or auditory hallucinations of threatening figures or entities. The feeling of pressure on the chest is often described as a sensation of being suffocated or unable to breathe properly.
While sleep paralysis can occur on its own, it is often associated with other sleep disorders such as narcolepsy, sleep apnea, or insomnia. It may also occur due to sleep deprivation, irregular sleep schedules, stress, or other medical conditions.
While sleep paralysis can be unsettling, it is generally not a serious medical condition and can be managed by improving sleep hygiene, reducing stress, and seeking treatment for underlying sleep disorders if present.
