2009-02-19T13:22:00.001-08:00

How to Avoid Encounters With Ghosts and the Paranormal

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Scared of the paranormal? Does the very thought of ghosts freak you out? Do you solemnly wish you'll never be anywhere near anything you cannot explain? Then this guide is for you.

Steps

Learn about the paranormal. If you're easily spooked, you might want to do this during the day, in the company of a friend or relative who's calmer than you. Avoid websites with scary pictures or background music, because those might make you nervous as well. Instead, browse around for sites explaining in loose terms what types of environment are likely to hold paranormal activity of any kind, or which sorts of people and situation often summons paranormal manifestations. Remember: the more you know about it, the better prepared you are.
Don't go into paranoia! Very few people can claim to have truly witnessed a paranormal manifestation. There is usually a reasonable explanation for something that looks like a ghost. This is why it is also useful to learn more about it: the more you know about something, the less scared you'll be.
Avoid locations that carry great psychological or emotional tension. Most experts agree ghosts come back because they have unfinished business, and will haunt the places where they lived and/or died. Old hospitals and sanatoriums, abandoned sites, underground tunnels and prisons, medieval castles and closed-down inns or hotels are usually the scenery for ghost stories because these are often places that may be haunted in real life: they carry great emotional tension, and someone who died there would likely return there.
Ghosts never manifest during daytime. It is widely agreed ghosts only manifest at night.
Be in good company. Your best friend here is the one who can remain calm during crisis, and who is able to soothe you even when he is feeling scared too. Find someone you trust, talk to them about your anxiety, and if you must go to somewhere you think may hold something paranormal, ask them to tag along. You should figure in which way you are better calmed down: this might be a friend who goes along and jokes all the way, lightening up your mood, or someone who just holds your hand and carries a flashlight.
The more people are in a group, the less likely it is for manifestations to occur -and even if they do, the less likely you are to notice them. Most ghost sightings occur on people in pairs or alone.
Forget everything Hollywood taught you about ghosts. All experts on the subject agree no supposed ghost or paranormal manifestation was ever directly responsible for harm on a human being. Movies (especially thrillers) tend to exaggerate to bring up a reaction.
If you are religious, try carrying the symbol of your religion with you. It is said some ghosts avoid these symbols. Plus, if your faith is strong, you will feel more confident going about your everyday life.
Know the proper way to address a ghost, if you ever see or hear one. Most experts in the matter believe in the method of "asking and cursing". If you hear or see something you cannot explain, ask what is it they want. Wait a few seconds. If no reply comes and the manifestation continues, begin to curse heavily and aggressively. Many stories coming from Western European countries feature the cursing as a form of making ghosts withdraw.
Be skeptical and logical. Be skeptical about ghost sightings and stories, and always look for the logical explanation in everything. Sometimes, things are not what at first they seem and the human mind likes to play tricks. You hear a noise? Consider everything that may be producing it instead of a ghost: pipes, mice, bats, insects, the wind, the TV, a radio which wasn't properly turned off and is giving off static, house pets, neighbors. I once thought I heard footsteps in my house, but later found out old wooden houses do tend to make noise as the wood dilates or shrinks according to temperature changes. So don't immediately panic.

Tips

While there are many things out there that can't be explained, there exists no substantial and 100% credible proof ghosts exist.
If you do have an encounter, do not freak out. Turn on the lights, find some company, talk about what happened and try to find logical reasons why it happened. Remember: our eyes tend to play pranks on us. A white haze you can't immediately identify can be a curtain, a towel hanging from a door handle or even an optical illusion. Something on the corner of your eye likely means you are tired and need some sleep.
If you are easily scared by this sort of thing, avoid movies and films about it, even if they are not thrillers. Seeing a movie about ghosts will act as suggestion: after it, you will be hearing strange things and think you're seeing things as well, when in fact it's just your brain recalling what you saw earlier.
Never dismiss the thought someone might be playing a prank on you. If someone knows you don't like these things, they may try to spook you for kicks.
If you hear noise in your house you can't immediately identify, it probably isn't a ghost, but it may be a burglar. Be careful.