I polled my Instagram audience to choose the topic for this episode and the choices were either energy, or my trip to Chillingham Castle. Obviously, Chillingham Castle won! I decided to begin with the audio from a TikTok by @historyhit that gives some historical context before I share my experience. I spent years as a documenter for a paranormal investigators group in Vancouver, so visiting the castle was on my bucket list!
In addition to the eerie encounters, I also talked about my evolving beliefs around ghosts and earthbound spirits. As I’ve said on the podcast before, it’s important to remain flexible in our beliefs so that we can meet new experiences with curiosity. Grasping firmly to beliefs can also invalidate the lived experiences of others, and I think there is divinity in having differing perspectives.
I would love to hear your experiences with haunted places over in the free Spirit School community!
@historyhit TikTok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@historyhit
Spirit School Links
The Initiation Summer 2023 Waitlist: https://view.flodesk.com/pages/63d3191cde520bd60dc33d63
The Initiation 2.0 Summer 2023 Waitlist: https://view.flodesk.com/pages/641a55f4dc3789176b6944ea
Spirit School Collective: https://www.squamishmedium.com/spiritschoolcollective
Join us on the FREE Spirit School platform: https://myspiritschoolcollective.com/plans/
Trauma Informed Lightworker Waitlist: https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6398f03888aca7e15696b1fa
Visit Spirit School at https://www.squamishmedium.com/ for all courses and upcoming programs
View full transcripts of podcast episodes at https://www.squamishmedium.com/blog
History of Chillingham Castle (@historyhit):
Chillingham Castle was a monastery in the 12th Century- Edward the first, the hammer of the Scots, led his Scottish campaigns from this location
- The first recorded accounts of the ghosts were penned by Lady Leonora Tankerville
- There was an increase in occult spiritualism during Edwardian and Victorian times
- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle commended Lady Tankerville on her reports of the Chillingham ghosts
- The current owner is from the original Gray family owners and has overseen renovations
- Guests still report seeing flashes of blue similar to ghosts sightings of the past
- A priest who traveled to get rid of ghosts said there were too many there
My Experience of Chillingham Castle:
- I went when I was 19 years old in 2002, right out of high school and obsessed with Most Haunted
- Putting this show together was fun because it brought up so much nostalgia
- Paranormal things and ghosts tend to be our entry into the spiritual space
- At that time, I was immersed in books and TV shows with Sylvia Brown and John Edwards
- I joined a paranormal investigation group when the first Most Haunted episode came out
- I was so excited at that time and didn’t know that I was a medium yet
- I validated what the mediums got and went through photos and audio recordings of our outings
- I caught some EVPs from those recordings and overnight ones from my bedside
- My ex husband was from England and we traveled once a year
- We stayed in the tower at Chillingham Castle in the off season and I was so excited
- My memories of this time are piecemeal because it was not a healthy relationship
- Scotland has my heart and I still want to visit there again
- I couldn’t believe how much I missed the mountains when traveling
- My ex-husband and I were the only people there other than the caretaker
- We stayed in the tower, which was used for Scottish prisoners of war
- I was in awe of how much history was there compared to somewhere like Vancouver
- Going to the bathroom in the middle of the night was terrifying in the castle
- The strangest thing that happened was not being able to see the castle on the only road
- The keeper gave us a midnight tour of the torture chamber that scared me
- One paranormal thing that happened was light coming in and a loud popping noise that woke me
- I have heard a voice yelling my name in my ear a couple of times
- A friend’s mom came to me and I saw the Almost Famous poster and her name was Penny
- My friend wasn’t initially receptive and that is part of why I don’t do drive-by readings
- I am still unsure of my belief in earthbound spirits or if they have passed on and choose to visit
- Part of the reason I am undecided is that some teachers I respect believe in them
- We never caught anything definitive in my paranormal investigation years
- Beautiful music or framing it as an angel experience could change your perspective
- Our beliefs are our choices and we have free will
- The more spiritually aware we become, the more we realize we don’t know
- Because of Mavis’ beliefs, I firmly believed earthbound spirits didn’t exist a couple years ago
- I think there are reasons for mysteries, including the opportunity to expand our beliefs
- Some Spirit School Collective members share their experiences with haunted places
- Being stuck on specific beliefs limits our potential for spiritual growth and expansion
- I saw a full apparition of a little boy by my husband’s side of the bed when I was pregnant
- I lost that pregnancy and learned through a medium that it was my child that I saw
- Before my trauma informed training I would negate people’s lived experiences
- I like to straddle both sides of the conversation without imposing my beliefs
- Each of us having our own truth does not make it the capital T truth
- I believe there is a divine reason for us to be divided in spiritual beliefs
