Premonitions Visitations and Dreams: of the Bereaved: Bereavement and Children

By Erin Linn

Every day, people suffering through grief and bereavement report a variety of "super-natural" events that occur in their lives. Everything from lucid dreams and discussions with the deceased to advance premonitions and even visitations have been documented throughout the world. The healing nature of the thirty-plus stories in this book is not in the explanation of why these phenomena happen, but, rather, in the validation that they do, in fact, happen! We cannot deal with "why something exists" until we first acknowledge that "it does exist." 

• Language: English
• Publisher: The Publishers Mark
• Release date: Jan 18, 2021
• ISBN: 9781735000039

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

par·a·nor·mal (par-e-’nor-mel) adj. Not within the range of normal experience or scientifically explainable phenomena.

The abilities of prophecy, psychokinesis, and telepathy, to name a few, go back to the beginning of recorded history. The ancient world swarmed with seers, soothsayers, diviners, crystal-gazers, astrologers, augurs, and oracles. Throw in a few teenage mutant ninja poltergeists, and we can soar right into the modern age... but with a great deal of skepticism.

The American Journal of Hospice Care states, There appears to be no clear agreement among theorists on the nature and origin of paranormal experiences. What does emerge is that sensory-perceptual experiences can be a normal and expected component of the grief process.

The mind of Western man is shaped predominantly by science and rationalism. There is little room left for events that cannot be proven explicitly through touch, smell, sight, taste, or hearing. We have become pragmatic and scientific almost to the point of ad nauseam.

All the para words used to send shivers down my spine. Paranormal, parapsychology... I didn’t even like the word parachute. And any words ending in esis and ology were definitely suspect.

I must say now, though, that I do accept the fact that many occurrences happen that cannot be explained by any amount of scientific aerobics. I am convinced through my research, personal experiences, and discussions with literally thousands of bereaved people over the last ten years that premonitions, visitations, and dreams relating to those who have died do occur in our society and especially among the bereaved. In study after study, bereaved people report an overwhelming intuitive or sensory presence of a deceased loved one. Bereaved people feel that these contacts, through whatever means, are real... not illusions and not hallucinations.

Many scientists would not hesitate to say that all of these occurrences are pseudoscientific, steeped in illusion and error, or even fraudulent. Some would discount these events as merely sensory-perceptual experiences stimulated by a deep yearning for the loved one.

I firmly believe that the bereaved person is capable of experiencing real contact with the deceased by the different means that are discussed in this book and does experience contact because they are more in tune to their spiritual self. They are not crazy, and they are not in a state of severe shock. They are truly communicating with the spirit of their deceased loved one, and if you have ever had an experience of this nature, you will know exactly what I am talking about.

Because I am a Christian, I believe that there is a life after death, and that our spirit does live on in ways that cannot be comprehended by mere mortals. The Bible has hundreds of references to premonitions, visitations, and dreams for the purpose of providing knowledge and comfort to those who experienced them.

This book is not about the occult. It is not about witchcraft or Ouija boards. It is not about seances or Satan. It is not about calling on or calling up spirits. It is about thousands of similar experiences that happen to bereaved people that are perceived as real by the people they are happening to, and the experiences are scientifically unexplainable.

I know that some bereaved people feel cheated or neglected because they have not had such an experience. Why some bereaved people have these experiences and others do not is a mystery, other than to say that some people are more open to these experiences happening to them. I was so close to death at one point in my life that I was given the Last Rites by a Roman Catholic chaplain, and yet I did not have a near-death experience as so many thousands of others in this situation have reported. I believe in near-death experiences, and I did feel somewhat cheated that it did not happen to me at that time.

If these experiences are going to happen, they will happen, but we cannot force them to happen. On the other hand, an experience of this nature can invade our lives when we least expect it, and even when we do not want it to happen.

These occurrences have been proven to exist in almost all societies and are viewed as valid experiences in most. It has also been proven that bereaved people in cultures that accept premonitions, visitations, and dreams as normal occurrences related to grief fare better and get over their grief sooner. It also follows that their grief process is much healthier.

According to the article Correlates of Sensing the Presence of a Deceased Spouse, Omega, a Gallup poll showed that interview data contradicted several prevalent theories concerning what prompts a contact experience. Although contacts are suspected to occur more often in situations of reduced external stimulation (a darkened room, for example), among the 200 respondents, 44 reported that their contact experiences occurred in full daylight. Although it is thought that contacts occur primarily when the person is drowsy or falling asleep, 30 reported their contacts occurred while they were physically active. Researchers commonly speculate that periods of bereavement are the most common precipitator of contact experiences, although 62% reported they were feeling no grief at the time of the contact.

In an article, "On the Psychic Frontier," by D. Scott Rogo, the results of two National Opinion Research Council polls were reported. These results, collected in 1973 and repeated in 1984, show that close to 50% of the general public believe they have contacted the dead.

This is a topic that our society had been hesitant to talk about but is slowly beginning to accept. These events do happen, and bereaved people need to know that it is alright to have these experiences and that the experiences are valid. You do not have to be a bereaved person to have one of these experiences, but they are most common among the bereaved. To ridicule or make light of the event always impedes and prolongs the grief process for the bereaved person.

Some of these experiences can be frightening, and some, usually those involved with premonitions, can evoke guilt and anger. This will be discussed more in the section on premonitions.

I have compiled over thirty true stories in this book — among them is one of several experiences that happened to me. Whenever possible, these stories are presented in this