I have been a registered Clinical Psychologist for nearly six years now and I am interested in the difference between psychological disorder and psychic ability. During my psychology studies no-one ever mentioned the possibility of psychic ability, yet across the world there is a whole community of well respected psychics. The energy on Earth or vibrational level of Earth has increased significantly over the last few years and there are more people than ever who are more sensitive and reporting psychic phenomena. There needs to be some discussion between these two groups about where the boundaries really are.

Homosexuality used to be diagnosed as a ‘mental illness’ until only a few decades ago. Psychic ability also needs to be considered as a real phenomenon. Currently anyone who mentions that they are ‘seeing things’ or ‘hearing voices’ would be diagnosed with something and given medication. I personally think this is ridiculous in this day and age when there are so many highly functioning people who have psychic ability. So why are certain people able to ‘listen’ to entities as and when they choose and have conscious control over the process and some are not? Psychic people may also see things that other people are not aware of and this is not a concern for them, yet for ‘mentally disordered’ individuals these sightings may be unpleasant or even frightening. A key difference between these two groups of people appears to be in functionality and knowledge. People who are psychic are aware that what they are experiencing is spiritual phenomena and make sense of the information, whereas people who are ‘mentally unwell’ are not.

To meet a diagnosis and the criteria for a ‘mental illness’ your daily functioning needs to be adversely affected; this may concern your work or socially. The people who are highly functioning and have conscious control over psychic processes receive messages that are very supportive and encouraging. If you examine some of the ‘messages’ that have been transcribed and voiced over the years from higher level entities on the other side, the themes are actually very similar. They all advocate peace across the planet and the evolution of human consciousness and Earth. If the messages were analyzed statistically, the entities have actually spoken of the similar things at the same times without the people receiving the messages being aware.

This appears to be where the difference is. The people who meet the criteria for ‘mental illness’ because they are ‘hearing a voice’ and ‘seeing things’ frequently hear messages that are not supportive and may direct them to hurt other people etc. These individuals are not connecting to the same entities that high functioning psychics are. There are many ‘levels’ beyond the physical Earth, some on different vibrations that others. Individuals who would be labeled as ‘mentally ill’ or who have being influenced adversely by the entities they are connecting to, are being affected by entities that are on ‘lower levels’. These spirits on the other side do not have the person’s best interests at heart. These entities may not have been long out of human bodies and may not be aware they have died. They may also have chosen to ‘hang around’ and harass susceptible humans because they are angry at the way they died or were treated during their life etc. These spirits have been termed many things over the years such as ‘Earth bound’ or ‘lost souls’. There are groups on the planet that are working to move these entities on to higher levels.

People who deliver information in a conscious manner that is supportive and educational are connecting to entities with a much higher level of consciousness. Many of these entities are Ascended Masters and may be considered as spiritual advisers. They have had many incarnations on the planet and are aware that they are on the other side. They are wise and offer useful information and are encouraging people who listen, to work together and move humanity and consciousness forward. If psychics are receiving information there is also agreement on the part of the person to communicate with this entity. Lower level entities are usually interfering in the person’s life on Earth and are like uninvited guests. Psychic people may come across these entities but would pay them no attention.

It’s interesting to consider why someone would choose to connect with an entity on lower levels when there is this information available on higher levels? It could be through lack of knowledge and fear. If people do not believe in anything after the physical death, or have a religious belief system that states hearing voices is negative; if these people ‘hear a voice’ or ‘see something’ they may become fearful. This fear may attract lower levels entities of similar vibration to people who are susceptible. Also, if people utilize illegal drugs this may affect their energy and make them more likely to attract these lower levels entities. It is possible that some of the psychiatric medications may also have this affect on individuals, people who are psychic and know they are psychic do not take these.

Many people discount psychic ability or the possibility of the human body carrying on after this life. However, many books and articles have been documented of near death experiences. These accounts reported were similar independent of culture. There have also been many accounts documented of young children who remembered past life experiences and who were able to name people, objects and places they have never been told about. This is how the Buddhist traditions identify the next incarnation of their spiritual leader, such as the current Dalai Lama. Prior to the current leader’s death, he will identify the location and time of his next rebirth. At the specified date the young child is sought out and then tested by identifying objects they owned in their previous lifetime. There are also children that appear to be born with certain talents such as musical ability in the West and are able to play instruments with no prior teaching. This lends credibility to the theory of reincarnation and beyond life experiences.

Psychic ability needs to be accepted within modern psychiatry and psychology. There are many spiritual people across the planet that accept phenomena treated as mental illness by physicians in the West. In the current Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM IV- TR) there is often an asterisk next to criteria which indicates that you need to check for cultural norms. This means that for example if you are experiencing ‘magical thinking’ and that’s normal within the culture you live, then you do not meet the criteria for that mental illness.

However, if you live outside that culture it needs to be considered indicative of mental illness. Therefore, if you don’t want to meet a diagnosis for a particular mental illness all you need to do is move somewhere where your experiences are considered normal. The DSM is currently a fourth version text revision and I hope that later versions exclude all forms of psychic ability.