The Psychic and The Skeptic

In this episode, Christy and Kathy explore automatic writing—writing perceived as guided by spirits, the subconscious, or other external forces—and debate paranormal versus psychological explanations like the ideomotor effect, dissociation, cryptomnesia, and altered states. They trace the practice chronologically from ancient Chinese fuji spirit writing and the Oracle of Delphi’s trance traditions through medieval mysticism and occult associations, then to the 19th-century Spiritualist movement (including the Fox sisters) and prominent figures such as Pearl Curran (Patience Worth), Blavatsky, Swedenborg, Andrew Jackson Davis, Hildegard of Bingen, Helene Smith’s alleged Mars communications, and William Stainton Moses. Christy shares her own investigation experience with hand-controlled writing and both discuss potential dangers, spiritual protections, and listener outreach for stories.

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts and stories at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

00:00 Introduction

00:41 What Is Automatic Writing?

05:48 Ancient History & Origins

12:18 The Oracle of Delphi

15:57 Medieval Period & Spiritualism

18:08 The Spiritualist Movement & Fox Sisters

24:38 Psychology & the Unconscious Mind

27:46 Documented Cases

36:25 The Alien Case: Helene Smith

45:39 Christy's Personal Experience

56:01 Dangers of Automatic Writing

01:01:24 Closing Thoughts

In this episode, Christy and Kathy continue their Civil War Ghost series on Antietam National Battlefield in Sharpsburg, Maryland, pairing battle history and eyewitness testimony with modern paranormal reports and skeptical explanations. They outline Antietam (Sept. 17, 1862) as the deadliest single day in American military history—and trace key phases from the Cornfield and Dunker Church to the Sunken Road (“Bloody Lane”) and Burnside Bridge. They discuss intense casualty figures, post-battle uses of Dunker Church, and Gardner’s photographs, then review hauntings like phantom gunfire, gunpowder smells, footsteps, whispers, shadow figures, vanishing soldiers, singing, blue orbs, and marching, weighing residual versus intelligent hauntings and psychological priming. They close with a Memorial Day tribute, invite listener stories and emails, and preview their June 19 one-year anniversary/50th episode with a bonus show and optional listener Q&A reading request.

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts and stories at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

00:00 Episode 50 - Civil War Ghosts - The Battle of Antietam

04:08 The Battle History

10:45 The Cornfield & Dunker Church

16:48 Bloody Lane / Sunken Road

27:34 Burnside Bridge

In this episode, Christy and Kathy open another cryptid file featuring The Slender Man. They contrast the well-known 2009 origin—Eric Knudsen (“Victor Surge”) creating unsettling Photoshop images and captions on the Something Awful forum—with a darker “Watcher in the Woods” concept and the idea that Slender Man “feeds” on attention as modern folklore blurs fiction and plausibility. They outline traits that solidified through collective online storytelling (tall, faceless, suited, tentacle-like limbs, forests, children, “slender sickness”) and cite Marble Hornets as a key expansion. They discuss alleged sightings in California, England, Germany, Arkansas, and Ohio with skeptical explanations, and cover the 2014 Ouachita stabbing case, its insanity verdicts, releases, and later escape attempt. The episode ends with a call for listener story submissions.

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts and stories at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

00:00 Introduction

03:34 Origins of Slenderman

10:16 The Myth Spreads

12:47 Slenderman Enters Reality

13:55 Why Slenderman Endures

15:33 Real-Life Sightings

22:19 The Waukesha Stabbing Case

32:41 Closing Thoughts

In part two of their Yorktown Memorial Hospital case file, Christy and Kathy rejoin Afterlife Paranormal Investigations for an overnight investigation, starting with a basement sit-down in the “Cage Room,” described as a prison-like enclosure once used for at-risk patients. While monitoring with EMF devices, a motion-sensing music box, light-up cat balls, and a laser grid. They review audio captured elsewhere in the building that includes banging and a whisper that sounds like “put it back.” They test alleged blood splatter tied to a rumored basement murder-suicide using a presumptive blood kit. Listen to stories of a small shadow in the laser grid hallway, repeated equipment activation, a loud noise, and equipment that moved on its own. They review more EVPs and Christy shares psychic impressions of several spirits, including an “angry male,” grieving mothers, Dr. Leon Nowerski, and a “lady in blue,”

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts and stories at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

00:00 Part Two Begins

01:20 Basement Cage Room

01:57 Sit Down Method

04:08 Put It Back EVP

06:31 Blood Splatter Tested

08:27 Laser Grid Shadow

10:35 Chapel To Nurses Station

11:22 Audio Baiting Bangs

13:48 Nurse Station EVP

14:29 Psychic Claims Begin

14:41 Angry Male Spirit

16:58 Lost Baby Mother

17:51 Teen Mother Story

20:47 Doctor Leon Revealed

24:35 Crossing Over Debate

28:23 Lady In Blue

29:59 Where To Find Evidence

31:08 Final Thanks

Christy and Kathy open their case file on Yorktown Memorial Hospital in Yorktown, Texas, joining their sister team API for a March 2025 overnight investigation, though they sleep in their cars due to the building’s disrepair, dust, mold, animals, and limited electricity. Kathy reviews the hospital’s history: built in 1950–1951 as a 20-bed facility run by Felician sisters, dedicated to 49 local war dead, with staff quarters upstairs, and physicians including long-serving Dr. Leon Nowierski, Sr.; competition and declining resources led to closure in 1986, later brief rehab use, and decommissioning in 1992. They discuss unverified claims of ~2,000 deaths, malpractice rumors, and reported hauntings including nuns, Dr. Nowierski, a child named “Stacey,” “TJ,” shadow figures (especially in the basement), EVPs, physical attacks, red eyes, and footsteps. During setup, Jill captures an EVP, and Christy’s lobby recorder later catches a loud knock while the team is out to dinner.

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts and stories at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

00:00 Case File Intro

01:02 Road Trip to Yorktown

02:23 Hospital Origins and Memorial

03:28 Nuns and Early Staff

05:18 Doctors and Dr Nowierski

06:28 Decline and Closure

07:09 Death Rate and Rumors

12:27 After Closure and Safety

14:18 Haunting Claims Overview

16:52 Provoking and Vulnerability

21:04 Light Anomalies and Debunks

22:43 Heaviness Without Claims

23:58 Dr Nowierski Sighting

25:14 Stacey Child Spirit

27:04 Strict Nun Enforcers

29:19 TJ Restless Patient

31:45 Basement Shadow Figure

33:14 Voices EVPs And Dolls

36:47 Investigation Setup Walk-through

38:09 Captured EVP

39:57 Dinner Break Loud Knock

40:53 Part One Wrap Up

In this episode, Christy and Kathy open another “Cryptid File” to examine worldwide stories of “little people,” contrasting European fairy/brownie lore with Indigenous North American traditions where they are seen as real watchers, protectors, teachers, or tricksters. They focus on three tribal traditions—Cherokee (Yunwi Tsunsdi), Algonquian/Wampanoag (pukwudgies), and Lakota (Canotila)—and discuss how encounters often occur in forests, mountains, or sacred spaces, with reported patterns like guiding lost children, disorienting adults, whispering voices calling names, and fleeting small figures. They reference the 2003 Homo floresiensis (“hobbit”) find while noting past skeleton hoaxes and skeptical explanations such as stress, dehydration, echoes, and suggestion. Modern anecdotal cases span the Smokies, Appalachians, New England/Bridgewater Triangle, and the Black Hills, ending with a call for listener stories and emphasis on respect for nature and not seeking contact.

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts and stories at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

00:00 Little People Across Cultures

01:49 Oklahoma Investigation Origins

04:44 Evidence and Hobbit Skeleton

08:35 Cherokee Little People Yaka

11:07 Cherokee Rules and Roles

14:48 Modern Cherokee Encounter Cases

21:58 Patterns and Takeaways

22:51 Algonquian Pukwudgie Lore

25:40 Forest Warnings Explained

26:32 Camouflage And Perception

27:46 Colonial Era Accounts

29:24 20th Century Sightings

31:34 Bridgewater Triangle Hotspot

34:46 Recurring Modern Reports

37:20 Lakota Tree Dwellers

39:46 Lakota Encounter Cases

44:44 Comparing The Three

45:38 Folklore Lessons And Wrap

In this episode of Psychic and the Skeptic, Christy and Kathy continue their Civil War Ghost Series with Part 3 on the Battle of Shiloh (April 1862), discussing its heavy casualties and how traumatic battle sites fuel reports of hauntings while separating documented history from psychological, environmental, and cultural interpretations. They thank a growing international listener base, invite emails and cryptid suggestions, and provide battle context (Union victory, surprise Confederate attack, key leaders, and the strategic impact). They then cover four haunted Shiloh locations—Shiloh Church, Hornet’s Nest, Bloody Pond, and Peach Orchard—pairing historical details with modern reports like phantom gunfire, soldiers, cries, mists, and lights, alongside skeptical explanations such as acoustics, wildlife, expectations, heat distortion, and red algae.

00:00 Series Intro and Setup

01:20 Hill House Bang Evidence

02:44 Residual vs Intelligent Hauntings

04:27 Listener Shoutouts Worldwide

06:36 How to Contact the Show

07:16 Battle of Shiloh Overview

09:01 Shiloh Church History

13:57 Ghost Reports and Skeptic View

17:31 Next Stop Hornet’s Nest

17:39 Hornets Nest Stand

19:48 Ghost Sounds Explained

21:03 Bloody Pond Legend

23:51 Why The Water Turns Red

26:13 Peach Orchard Battlefield

28:46 Apparitions And Illusions

30:50 Trauma Mass Graves And Orbs

34:52 Closing Thoughts And Next Episode

In this episode, Christy and Kathy continue with their “Civil War Ghosts” series, covering the history of the Battle of Bull Run/First Manassas (July 21, 1861) and the Second Battle of Bull Run (August 1862) They explain key leaders, such as Stonewall Jackson, and the Confederate victories, casualties, the role of railroads, and how the battle shattered expectations of a quick war. They then explore reported hauntings across Manassas National Battlefield Park, including Henry House Hill (Judith Henry’s death and soldier apparitions, battle sounds, and lights), Stone Bridge (footsteps, wagons, gunpowder smells, cold spots), Matthews Hill (musket fire, smoke, vibrations), Sudley Church (field hospital with cries and apparitions), and Chinn Ridge/Longstreet’s “Killing Ground” (walking wounded, phantom cavalry, lantern-like lights, and intense emotions), while weighing residual vs. intelligent hauntings and skeptical explanations.

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

0:00 Series Intro And Scope

01:42 Listener Shoutouts And Map

03:08 Bull Run Battle History

07:29 Why The Union Lost

08:52 Henry House Hill Tragedy

12:46 Henry House Hauntings

15:42 Skeptic Vs Believer Debate

20:06 Stone Bridge History

21:45 Stone Bridge Paranormal Claims

23:48 Cold Spots Energy Theory

28:02 Panic Feel And Empath Talk

28:43 Silence and Dread

29:20 Empaths and Atmosphere

30:33 Matthews Hill Battle

32:38 Residual Evidence Debate

35:24 Sudley Church Hospital

39:14 Lights Orbs and Skepticism

44:03 Chinn Ridge Killing Ground

51:59 Phantom Cavalry Reports

54:54 Why Bull Run Haunted

55:24 War Legacy and Wrap Up

In this episode, Christy and Kathy launch a multi-part series on Civil War history and alleged hauntings, debating whether “vibes” at historic sites reflect paranormal activity or emotional responses to tragedy. They discuss personal connections to Gettysburg, Oklahoma’s Fort Washita (now owned by the Chickasaw Nation), and a visit to the Andersonville POW camp in Georgia, describing its harsh conditions and solemn atmosphere. They outline key Civil War causes beyond slavery, including territorial expansion, states’ rights, and economic differences, then cover the timeline (1861–1865) and more than 600,000 deaths. Focusing on Fort Sumter as the war’s official start (April 12, 1861), they recount the 100-gun salute accident that killed Private Daniel Hough and review reported ghost claims, while emphasizing how anecdotes, suggestion, and modern paranormal tourism complicate evidence.

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

00:00 Civil War Kickoff

00:39 Personal Connections

01:13 Oklahoma Fort Stories

03:09 Paranormal Vibes Setup

05:49 Gettysburg Souvenirs

07:39 Why History Matters

08:26 Civil War Causes

11:19 Fort Sumter Begins

13:41 First Fatalities Explained

15:14 Andersonville POW Camp

16:52 Respectful Site Reflections

17:52 Andersonville Conditions

18:37 First Ghost Sighting

19:52 Haunting Claims Explained

21:00 Skeptic Health Concerns

21:34 Face on the Flag

23:58 Shadow Figures Reports

24:26 Debunking Smells Photos

27:08 Paranormal Craze Context

29:50 Why Fort Sumter Matters

30:46 Next Episodes Tease

32:22 Follow for Evidence

33:32 Series Wrap Up

Christy and Kathy open one of their best case files on the McInteer Villa Mansion in Atchison, Kansas, sharing reported paranormal claims such as rocking chair movement, slamming doors, footsteps, uneasy feelings, shifting items, cold spots, disembodied voices, shadow figures, perfume/cigarette smells, and so much more! Kathy outlines the town’s history and the mansion’s documented deaths. During their July 20, 2023 two-day investigation, they capture notable audio evidence such as an EVP that says, “It’s not funny,” and “I’m sad” in the former suicide room. Christy also describes sensing spirits connected to the location, while Kathy describes a rare experience that strongly challenges her skepticism.

Content warning: Brief mention of suicide at 22:04

Be sure to follow our podcast for updates, rate us on your favorite platform, and share your thoughts at [email protected].

Disclaimers:

• This podcast is for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional or medical advice. The content is general and accuracy is not guaranteed. Listeners are responsible for how they use the information.
• The hosts are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast.
• This podcast content is protected by copyright and unauthorized use is prohibited.

00:00 Case File Intro

01:20 Why This Location

01:48 Haunting Claims Breakdown

02:53 Debunking Approach

07:23 History Research Matters

10:45 Atchison Town History

14:56 Villa Layout Overview

15:17 Early Owners And Deaths

22:04 Confirmed Suicide Story

25:23 Later Owners And Rocking Chair

30:49 Investigation Arrival And EVP

33:50 Basement Light Mystery

35:12 Second Floor Push Encounter

36:33 Attic Booms Captured

38:15 Basement Joke EVP

39:53 Solo Hallway Footsteps

43:46 Library "Shush" EVP

46:56 Cigarette Smell And Knocks

54:11 Night Two "I'm Sad" EVP

56:00 Psychic Reads Three Spirits

01:05:49 Wrap Up And Where To Learn More