۞ Psychic, Intuitive, Channel, Medium... What's The Difference? ۞

As we browse the Internet, metaphysical bookstore, and listings for spiritual advisers- we get confronted with many terms explaining spiritual advisory work. Many people lump them all into the same category- and some people who use the terms for themselves aren't really sure what they mean. I think that in connecting to a guide it's important to know what type of work they will be performing for you, what their style is and where they get their information.

Psychic, Intuitive, Empathic, Channel, Medium...

what do they all mean? And how are they different from one another? Let's explore!

۞ PSYCHIC ۞

Psychic work is anything that involves sensitivity to non-physical or supernatural nature. In dictionary terms, it can also be anything that pertains to the human soul or mind as opposed to the physical which is the human body.

Before we can understand what psychic work is- what have to understand what it is not.

The normal means for gathering and processing information relied on our five senses (sight, taste, hearing, touch, smell) and our logical/linear brain. Psychic work is the process of obtaining information not using those methods. In psychic work- extra-sensory ('beyond the senses') methods are used to gain insight to people, events or situations that would otherwise not be available to the normal range of senses. An example of this would be reading the personality of someone who had not yet been met, therefore negating the possibility of logically assessing them through interacting with them using the five senses.

Psychic work is often described by those who are psychic in terms of the extra-sensory way in which they receive insight. Examples include clairvoyance ('seeing' without the physical eyes), clairaudience ('hearing' without the phsycial ears) and clairsentience ('feeling' without the physical body itself). This may seem confusing- but think of it this way...

The physical senses are only physical/material expressions of spiritual senses. Just like electricity precedes the toaster turning on, so too does energetic or spiritual sense precede the physical sense. That means behind the physical eyes there are spiritual eyes. Behind the physical ears there are spiritual ears, and so on. A psychic is able to hone in on the very subtle workings of these spiritual senses and interpret the information gathered by them. Because all life is connected, thoughts have energetic presence and situations follow an energetic 'matrix'- a psychic can perceive those subtleties in the same way we normally perceive the road in front of us, a conversation with a friend or the taste of a fresh strawberry. All people are blessed with the ability to negotiate on the spiritual/psychic level- a psychic is just someone who has fine tuned the art of perceiving incoming information that is normally overlooked.

Psychics differ from other types of spiritual guides in that logic is required to translate the information they receive. Once a psychic gets information on the spiritual/energetic level, they must then process or translate that information so that they can convey it in physical terms (usually words). Many psychics are aware that their own spiritual senses speak in a unique language to them- and that in order to convey information to another person, they must decipher the images, words, feelings, sounds, etc. they receive in a way that makes sense to the person they are guiding. Psychic work involves both extra-sensory and sensory organs in it's serving a seeking client.

Most experienced psychics are very much in control of turning on or off their psychic senses. A great psychic adviser has the ability to connect to a person or circumstance and quiet their normal senses so that the information received by the subtle senses is loud and clear. They can then literally dialogue with a person, place, event, issue, etc. on the psychic platform and receive information in a similar way we might dialogue with another person and get information from them.

۞ INTUITIVE ۞

Psychic work and intuitive work happen on very much the same level- but there is a fundamental difference in these styles. Psychics must 'process' or 'translate' the insight they receive on the psychic plane into real-life meaning because it comes to them on a level beyond what would make sense in normal language, imagery, sensation, etc. Intuitives tend to get a flash of insight that needs no translation at all. Intuitive insight cannot be controlled the same way that psychic insights can, and tends to 'hit' people from out of the blue. Common examples of the intuitive 'flash' can be found in almost every Mother on the planet- what we often call 'Mother's intuition'.

Intuition, in my opinion, is something most people experience all the time. We get ideas, creative inspiration, feelings of apprehension, etc. and hopefully we act on them. Intuition is literally our back-up system, so that when our psychic senses are in a state of atrophy due to disuse, intuition kicks in and sometime kicks our butts!

Often intuition speaks to us in a very familiar voice. It 'feels' and 'sounds' within like our own thoughts- and that's because it is our own. Like psychic work, intuition is us connecting to a more subtle frequency of communication between where we are and the rest of the universe is. With intuition, the only difference is that lack of conscious 'translating'. Intuition is best reserved for personal revelation and insight because it tends to speak only about circumstances that effect our lives, loves and journeys specifically in one way or another. Intuition is a spiritual safety net that grows more and more clear the more it is honored and followed. I always teach that words of gratitude after every intuitive flash will ensure they become more frequent and more clear every time. Think of intuition as a muscle- the more you flex it, massage it and attend to it's needs the bigger and stronger it will grow.

۞ EMPATH ۞

Empathy is best described by also understanding it's counterpart, sympathy.

Sympathy means 'relative/same/with symptoms'- that implies if a friend is sad we also 'become' sad- taking on the symptoms of the person we are helping. The issue with sympathy is that when you are in the middle of the sensation you lose the big picture of what's happening and cannot 'read' it with the same clarity an empath could.

Empathy means 'beside symptoms'- that means we are fully aware of the depth and intensity of any particular emotion, thought or situation but are still not swimming in it ourselves. For example, we may have a friend who is experiencing grief- we are able to literally feel and experience the depth of their sadness but we still keep one foot in our own space so that we do not identify with it or make it our own.

Empathy is a strong healing force because it allows a person to share, in a deep and spiritual way, what they are experiencing with another. Sometimes we don't feel like anyone around us really 'gets' how bad it is- but an empath always does! Empathic guides simultaneously perceive where and how you are while maintaining their own perspective. This allows them to be in the water and on the land at the same time- thus enabling them to help you get to shore in a quick and effective way. Most advanced empaths I know are also very psychic- and are able to use empathy to connect to a client for deep understanding and healing release while using psychic abilities to help the client solve any problems. I believe that all advanced psychics are empathic, but not all empaths are psychic-aware. I have met many people who have not tapped their psychic potential but who still get sick or sad when anyone near them is experiencing those distresses. I always encourage empaths to learn how to control their emapthic abilities, create personal energetic and spiritual protection and learn to unfold empathic abilities in to full blown psychic ones.

۞ CHANNEL & MEDIUM ۞

The difference between channel and medium is often very unclear. I have my own feelings about how they differ and that's what I will offer you here.

A channel is a person who is able to turn down their own rational mind, ego, logical processor and personal belief system to allow spiritual/psychic/intuitive messages to flow through them, just like if they were a telephone wire. These messages usually come from a defined and known source (hopefully!). Channel work can be very difficult for most humans because we all have very strong personal beliefs, ideals, logic and dependence on our rational minds. If any of these things turn up while channeling- the channel loses its purity and becomes filtered by our own paradigm. Think of channeling as a message going from one telephone to another- and the personal paradigm of the channel as static- bad news! Most all channel session I have received and viewed have been at least slightly tainted with the channel's own ego paradigm.

Channels tend to be a conduit for complete forces. That means, they channel the soul, the universe, the Divine, specific vibratory forces like love, healing, etc. Many channels are both channels and mediums by my definition and excel at both when they are well experienced and dedicated to the art.

That takes us to mediums...

Mediums tend to channel complete personalities rather than complete forces. Where a channel may be a conduit for the cosmic flux, a medium might be a channel for your deceased Aunt Suzy, their own spiritual guide, Archangel Micheal, etc. They are aware of the personality they are channeling and are versed in the quirks that may come up in a session.

Some mediums work only with spirits they have a long standing and comfortable relationship with, while others open up to seek out a specific or unique spirit depending on the client they are serving. Archangels and Saints from the Judeo-Christian paths, celebrities and personal spirit guides are the most common personalities I have seen being worked with in mediums.

When considering a medium session- you have twice as much research to due. You must first explore and get to know the medium and ensure you feel comfortable ewith them. Then you must ensure the same about the spirit they act as medium for you. Please keep both aspects of this in mind when selecting a medium guide so that you get the most out of your session! The doors to the spiritual realms are blown wide open in a medium session- and it takes a great guide to know how to make sure everyone stays where they should and influences don't go further than they are welcome to.

I hope that clears up some of the often confusion terms we use in this work- and helps you decide what kind of spiritual adviser would work best for you!

I encourage you to research more on your own and hopefully jump in (if you haven't already!) and experience a live spiritual guidance session for yourself!

The link below will connect you with my favorite source for qualified spiritual advisers of every kind- give it a click and you'll get connected to hundreds of great advisers, be able to browse their listings, see feedback left from other callers and find one that's just right for you!