Read Paranormal State: My Journey into the Unknown for Free Online Page B

“that feeling.”
    Full of energy, Shelly wanted to rush downstairs and confront whatever Adam had seen. I immediately stopped her. She said she wasn’t afraid, but that wasn’t my concern. With that predatory feeling overwhelming me, I worried something wanted to separate us. I’ve had that happen. Out of nowhere, everyone in the team decides to disperse. At times that’s led to near accidents where people could have been badly hurt. So I very much wanted to keep everyone together.
    The activity didn’t stop. Adam heard his name called. I heard a voice, too, soft and male. It may have called out “Adam,” but it was hard to tell. All the more reason to keep together. After a while, nothing further happened.
    Despite the strong personal experiences, our equipment didn’t catch anything. Attempts to record the paranormal can go either way. Sometimes the equipment won’t pick up what we experienced clearly. Other times it’ll pick up things none of us heard or saw at the time.
    Whether the activity was paranormal or not, the family’s suffering was real. Shelly and Bryan felt helpless. They feared that evil influences were hurting their son.
    Some viewers have said that the show has a Catholic or Christian bias. That’s definitely my background and personal belief system, so I do view the world through that prism, but PRS has no religious affiliation and I don’t impose my beliefs on anyone. My relationship to Catholicism, which I discuss in detail later, is complex. Eilfie is pagan. Serg is agnostic. We remain open to all beliefs.
    At the same time, it’s our goal to empower our clients, to ease their sense of helplessness. I believe the best way to do that is by using whatever language they understand, spiritual or scientific. Along the way, when it’s seemed the right thing to do, we’ve used everything from pagan chants to Native American rituals.
    The Seighmans were Christian, so with their assent we performed a Christian cleansing ritual. Adam read from the Bible as we walked from room to room, projecting a protective energy. Upon entering Matthew’s bedroom Adam felt woozy and sensed something trying to stop him. But we soldiered on until the ritual was complete.
    By morning, though we were exhausted, it seemed there was an effect. The house felt lighter. The family, Matthew in particular, seemed relieved.
    As a child, to ward off the things I saw in my bedroom, I’d sprinkle some holy water around. It helped me relax enough to get to sleep. So before we left, I gave Matthew a bottle of holy water.
    There are often cases where I’d like to stay longer and try to do more, but we’d run out of time and exhausted the possibilities. Though the investigation was over, I stayed in touch to see how things were going.
    In follow-up interviews, Shelly told me that before bed Matthew would go up to his doorway and sprinkle a few drops around. It seemed to make his evenings more peaceful.
    Shelly had also always said that Matthew could be outgoing, but it was only during our follow-up visit that he appeared happy and playful to us, smiling in a way Shelly hadn’t seen in years. Matthew even began sleeping in his own bed again.
    Bryan remarked that his son finally felt understood, like he wasn’t abnormal or alone, and that we had given him that. That was especially good to hear, not having been believed myself for so long. While I was pleased to think we’d helped, I was quick to point out that Shelly and Bryan had the real power to protect Matthew, even when it felt like they might not.
    The concluding text of the episode says the Seighmans “continue to adjust” to Matthew’s gifts. That’s true, but as time passed, the family also went through a lot of personal changes. The episode was shot in March 2006. In September 2007, Matthew’s sister, Rachel, after having lived quite a bit longer than doctors expected, passed away. After that, they moved out of the house.
    We were last in touch with Shelly a