Daily I realize how truly grateful I am to have learned how to balance and hone my abilities. As a Spiritual Medium and Life Coach, I am able to guide others with the help of their loved ones on the other side. I'm also blessed with being able to teach people how to learn to connect to their own abilities, to enhance their life as well as balance themselves, so they can achieve everything they want to achieve.

Years ago, I felt the complete opposite of the way I feel now. I woke everyday dreading what was going to happen and despised the nights even more. I felt completely cursed and wanted the madness that was my life to stop! I just wanted to wake up one day and be "normal" (whatever that is), and just have one day where I couldn't see or hear the dead people that no one else could see. I couldn't see any benefits to having these abilities, only that it made my life a living hell. Then synchronicity led me to a woman, who led me to a few classes. I honestly thought I was on the path to learn how to get rid of what I thought was a curse, to "turn it off" and never have to deal with it again. Boy, was I wrong! What it led me to was my realization that not only can I not turn it off, but also that we all have some form of abilities. Some of us just have it turned up louder than others. We can all learn and hone what we have to enhance our whole life!

Slowly after learning different techniques I started to feel a bit more in control of the situation and my life didn't feel as out of control as it had only a few months prior. My abilities were slowly turning from a curse to a curse and blessing mixed. I realize now, looking back, that my process—like many of us—is to learn through doing. My stubbornness and unwillingness to accept my abilities and embrace them, made my journey a complete struggle but without that struggle I wouldn't understand how to truly teach and hone our abilities. Now, years later, I consider them a complete blessing with a side of limitations. I may not be comfortable going to highly populated areas, and I will not go to a bar for the night unless it is to investigate it. But I can guide and teach and truly enhance and balance myself, body, mind, and soul because I have embraced my abilities. I always say to my clients and students that we all have a mini super power inside of us; we just need to learn how it works for us and then start to really utilize it.

I do believe we all have abilities; some of us have gut instincts, others can see and talk to the dead, others just get "feelings," plus many more ways of receiving information. Every one of us can learn to really use it to help us in life. With a few techniques and practice we can learn to listen and trust what we are getting, and then follow that. Imagine: how amazing it would be to know what direction you need to go in, or that you need to wait and be patient? Messages, gut instincts, feelings, symbols...they are all the universe's way of guiding us, the universe's GPS. Yes, we have free will, and trust me, our guides and loved ones on the other side get frustrated with us often because of it. But over the years I have learned to listen and not just hear the messages. I can't tell you how many times my guides would tell me to do something and I'd do the opposite. I really have no excuse when I clearly hear what they are telling me. They could say, "Lisa turn left at the light," and I would turn right only to be stopped in a huge traffic jam. Now, I know better and I trust what I receive. But it took many traffic jams before I finally smartened up and started to listen.

In my book, A Survival Guide For Those Who Have Psychic Abilities and Don't Know What To Do with Them, I give many helpful hints on how to start to connect and balance yourself with your abilities. We can easily get lost in all the information that is out there in the world of spiritual practices, and as humans we love to jump from A to Z in one step. But, we really need to build a strong foundation before we start building the walls. I see so many people who jump into a certain spiritual practice without figuring out how they receive a message, let alone practicing receiving messages. Without those basic, foundational tools, you will get completely frustrated and stuck. Imagine being in grade one and trying to learn physics—you are just not going to get it. As frustrating and slow as it may seem it is extremely important. I see that even today with myself; what spirit told me fifteen years ago is completely different than how or what they tell me now.

How do we build this foundation? That is the million-dollar question, and, although it is somewhat easy, it isn't. It takes patience (I know, I know, I hate that word as well). It also takes commitment and practice. But, trust me, it is fun and the more you practice the more you connect and then it is simply amazing. After years of working with other people and working on my own abilities and balance daily, I would say that there are two major factors in building the foundation. These two things lead us to be able to learn more and balance our abilities. The first is meditation, and the second is energy.

Meditation is something that is vital to connecting to yourself and the energy around you, as well as (of course) to the universe. In meditation we can practice and hone our abilities to receive messages, and we can also balance our body, mind, and spirit. Energy is something that affects us all; it can be positive, but for people that are sensitives (mediums/psychics/empaths) it can be something that can weaken you to the point that it can be hard to function.

To build our foundation, we should first learn to meditate. I know meditation seems like a waste of time; I felt the same way when I first start working on honing my abilities. I didn't get it, it frustrated me, and I felt I wasn't getting anything out of it. Now I couldn't live without it! I feel completely off if I don't meditate, and I truly feel that the world would be a different place if everyone meditated.

1. Learn how to quiet the outside world, the hustle and bustle that surrounds us daily, balancing and clearing our chakras (the energy sources in our body), and quiet our minds as best as we can. This alone can make any of us feel clear and fresh to take on the next chore or the day. Some days when I meditate it feels like jumping into a cold swimming pool, waking my senses and my mind. I always suggest finding a good guided meditation to follow as you are learning. Once you have been doing it for a while you will be able to do it without guidance. Remember the "P" word—patience. As you start out you may only make it through a few minutes before you can't handle it and you give up. That is completely ok, just try again and you will find you will be able to stay in the meditation longer each time.
   
   Helpful Hint! If you are struggling to focus and meditate, hold a small item in your hand and focus on it while listening to the guided meditation. I always found that holding a quartz crystal helped. Not only did it give me something to focus on its energy helped calm and ground me.
   
   
2. Once you feel somewhat comfortable with meditation, you can start focusing on receiving messages and how you receive messages. The best way to do this is through the use of billets. A billet is a piece of paper on which you write a question and then hold during meditation. As you meditate you will start to receive messages. Pay attention as soon as you start to meditate. Is the temperature of the paper changing? Are you seeing any symbols? People? Places? Some people see full stories, others hear messages, or they may smell a distinct smell. This will help you figure out how you receive. Some people receive only one way, others like myself have a mix of it all. For me it depends on the spirit I'm with whom I'm communicating and how they can communicate best with me.
   
   Although you can practice this on your own, a group or even with one other person is better, especially at the beginning. It is always good to have someone else write the billet because then you have no idea what is on it and you truly are not putting your thoughts or ideas into the message. You are just receiving what you are receiving no intentions or expectations are added. You can also practice using an item. This is called psychometry, and it can be extremely interesting. By holding an item, you can pick up the energy from the item, and it is like the item is telling you a story of its life. Once you have honed your abilities in receiving messages through meditation you will be able to quickly do it without meditation.
   
   
3. Meditation will also help you with understanding energy. You will be able to feel the energy that is in your aura and around you. If you ask a spirit or one of your guides to come forward you will be able to feel the energy shift, even if you can't see them in your mind's eye.
   
   Another fun way to feel energy is to have another person sit with you. Close your eyes and focus on the energy that is all around you. Then have the person move slowly and quietly to another area of the room. Practice feeling for their energy. Can you find them in the room? Are they standing or sitting? Does their energy feel tall or short? It may take a few times practicing but you will be amazed at how you'll be able to find them by their energy. You can also do this with a few people; the idea is the same, but have them all move once you are ready. See if you can find them and who they are. Can you name them? If not, can you tell if they are female or male by their energy? This exercise will also help you feel spirit and help identify them. Is their energy positive or negative, female or male, etc.
   
   Energy is all around us, and as sensitives we are highly affected by it. It can make our moods shift quickly, it can pull on us making us feel exhausted or hyper. It's something that we can't avoid, so we need to understand it and how it affects us. Once you start to feel the energy around you, you'll be able to protect yourself better and use the energy to enhance you rather than hinder you.
   
   Helpful Hint! If you are sensitive to energy here is a technique you need to know. When you go into a highly populated area, or are going around people you know are negative, you must protect yourself more than you'd normally do. The best way to do this is by sucking in your aura. Picture your aura around you, and with a few deep breaths in visualize your aura tightening around you like a shell or a scuba suit. This will protect your energy as well as stop your aura from brushing up against the other energies around you. You will be amazed how much better you feel when you do this.

By building your foundation with meditation and understanding energy you will then be able to move forward with your psychic development. Learning different practices and techniques to connect and evolve your abilities. It is a process, but it can be extremely exciting with an added bonus of you finding balance and your true authentic self.