Coming Out of the Psychic Closet, Part 1: Labels

To a lot of us, the word "psychic" conjures up an image of a gypsy woman in a shabby carnival tent. Cross her palm with silver and she'll look into her crystal ball and divine your future. Or maybe we think of unscrupulous TV "mediums," preying on grief-stricken people for their own financial gain.


When I realized that I was meant to be using my intuitive gifts to help other people connect with Source in their own lives, it turned my well-ordered world upside down. Deciding how to label myself seemed like a small concern among so many others, but it turns out to be an important thing.


Getting business cards printed forced me to face this head-on. Would I call myself a psychic? Intuitive? Clairvoyant? Medium? Part of my work is helping people who feel that their homes or workplaces might be haunted ... what catchy phrase could I shoehorn onto the card to cover that?


My teacher and mentor calls himself a "channel." When I met him for the first time, I was afraid he might suddenly morph into a 3,000 year-old warrior or something. Although I know that there are gifted and genuine channels of this kind out there, I'm a bit put off by the theatrics involved in the process for some.


He quickly explained he didn't mean that kind of channel. He sees himself as a conduit for messages from Spirit. This makes perfect sense to me, and it's exactly how I think of myself. So I decided to label myself a "psychic channel" -- meaning that I am someone who is willing to act as a conduit for relaying information received psychically from Spirit.


The "intuitive guide" label came very naturally to me. One of the most important parts of this work for me is to help people who are feeling stuck move forward on their spiritual paths. Together we explore their options, and I use my intuition to see where Source can lead them for their highest and best outcome.


Next time: I've got business cards burning a hole in my pocket, but who can I tell (and will they make fun of me)?