Do you share this one surprising trait in common with most mediums?
Some surveys have found that as many as 60% of people who have suffered the loss of a loved one have had afterlife contact with them. Meaningful dreams, hearing / seeing them at home, and feeling their presence through strange synchronicities makes up most of the cases.
This raises the question: Are we all mediums?
Arguably, if you have the capability to perceive your own loved ones in spirit form, then you have the capability to perceive other people’s loved ones as well.
My journey as a medium began with the loss of my grandmother. She came to me in a dream shortly after she died and told me things that subsequently came true. Once that initial experience ‘broke the seal’, I found that I could perceive other people’s deceased loved ones as well.
In 2011, Drs Roxburgh and Roe published a study that looked at whether the kinds of people who claim to be mediums have anything in common, and whether a ‘personality profile’ could be created that defined and described the qualities of a medium.
Although I think some aspects of this study could be improved, which I will discuss in a future essay, I think it was a useful question to ask. And I found my own personality mapping onto their findings almost exactly.
One of the conclusions of the study that I found most interesting is that on the big five personality traits scale, mediums consistently scored exceptionally high on trait openness. I took the big five personality test before I knew of this study, and my results said that out of 100 people, there would only be one person higher in trait openness than me (I’d love to meet that person - I imagine it’s probably Willy Wonka or Elon Musk!)
Taking the big five personality traits test here to find out how you score on trait openness (as well as conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism) is the best way to confirm whether you share this unusually high trait with most mediums. There is a small fee to take the test, and this article is not sponsored in any way.
If you can’t take the test right now, you may recognize yourself among the following seven points. If you have these, then you are likely to score high on trait openness, and you may be predisposed to mediumistic experiences.
1. You are exceptionally curious
If you love learning new things, meeting new people, and chewing over new ideas, then you are probably more curious than most. Intellectual curiosity is one of the qualities of trait openness, and one of the highest correlating factors of mediumistic ability.
You may have a litany of hobbies and half-finished projects in your wake (for me – ice skating, horse riding, clothes design, furniture upcycling, novel writing, cooking, learning Italian, and make-up artistry to name but a few!) And you just love finding out obscure facts and hidden knowledge. God help the other team in the local pub quiz if they’re up against you!
2. You can often predict what’s about to happen next
People who are high in trait openness are amazing predictors. They have an ultra-keen sense of patterns, often subconsciously. They know what someone is about to say next, or how a certain decision will turn out, or what the outcome of a particular situation will be. People probably already think you’re spooky. If you do this already in your life, you may also have mediumistic abilities.
3. You are fascinated by people’s stories
Mediums, and people with trait openness, are fascinated by other people’s stories. If your book shelf features every biography from Alexander the Great to ZZ Top, then you may be high in trait openness and have a predisposition for mediumistic abilities. If you love people watching - spending hours just gazing and wondering where people have come from and where they’re going, then you may be high in trait openness.
4. People often say you’re ‘too sensitive’
Are you easily upset? Do you feel that people don’t treat each other kindly enough? Are you deeply disturbed by the news? Do you worry about what you can do to help the world?
With trait openness, you take so much in and can see the biggest of big pictures, but this comes at a cost. Because we are so highly attuned to emotions, feelings, cause and effect, those with trait openness can become deeply affected and overwhelmed by the happenings of the world. We often find the words and actions of others to be coarse, careless, and morally questionable. We bond deeply with people, places, and animals.
Of all the harms the world can throw at us, betrayal hits us the hardest. Harsh criticism, volatility and unkindness exhausts us. Much of the time, because of our sensitivity, we prefer to be on our own than in abrasive company.
5. You have a low tolerance for negative emotion
People with trait openness are curious about others. But as much as you love people, you have a low tolerance for moaning, complaining, victim talk, and any kind of -ism. You probably will not be able to stay in the company of chronically angry or depressed people. You value your sense of wonder and awe, and you love nothing more than to be amazed and delighted by the world. How to respond to difficult relationships will be one of your biggest challenges. If you stay, it will cost you. But leaving people who are in need goes against your top value of seeing the magic in everything and everyone. If this sounds like you, you are probably high in trait openness, and may have mediumistic abilities.
6. You are more resilient to mental illness than average
People who are high in trait openness tend to be philosophical about their experience of life. They understand that they are both important and insignificant, large and small, meaningful and temporary. They find both good and bad experiences equally interesting. People who claim mediumistic abilities have a higher-than-average tolerance for life, and report lower instances of depression, anxiety and other mental illnesses when compared with the general population.
7. You make connections that other people don’t see
Trait openness is characterized by being able to see connections, similarities, and relationships between things that other people don’t see. You have an exceptional ability to grasp difficult and complicated concepts, and if someone needs an easy-to-understand explanation, they should come to you. If this sounds like you, then you may have mediumistic abilities.
Now I’d love to hear from you: How many of these aspects of trait openness could you relate to? Do you know or suspect that you have mediumistic abilities?
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