What kind of spirit is haunting your house? There’s more than one kind and depending on what it is will determine how to get rid of it. Maybe you’ve seen things, felt things, or heard things, and you’re wondering if your house is haunted. The first thing you should do is stop doubting if your house is haunted or not. If you’ve had the inclination, it is most likely haunted. HOWEVER, before you proceed with eradication or exorcism of the spirit, make sure there aren’t physical factors producing these seemingly-paranormal results.

Physical and Scientific Explanations Behind Paranormal Activity

Sometimes our experiences are valid but they aren’t exactly a true haunting. Sometimes it’s something more natural or, plainly put, on the physical plane rather than the spiritual, that’s causing your problems at home or business. Some things to check out before going to a paranormal investigations team or medium:

• Carbon Monoxide levels: when there are carbon monoxide leaks in a home or building, the toxic fumes may cause hallucinations among occupants – both visual and auditory hallucinations. In addition, you may have loss of consciousness, trouble breathing, confusion, headaches, etc. Have a professional come out and check for carbon monoxide levels! If left unchecked, it will kill you.
• Faulty electricity: oh my gosh! The lights flickered on and off after we watched that ghost story on TV. Was it a ghost? It could have been, BUT it is probably likely to be faulty electricity instead. Have an electrician come and check the wiring and panels of your home.
• Drafts: you’ll hear paranormal investigators say ghosts turn a location either hot or cold. This may be true. OR you may have a draft in your house coming from leaks in windows, faulty furnaces, poor insulation, etc.
• Power of suggestion: while I’m apt to say, if you’ve checked the other physical boxes above and still believe it’s a haunting. I believe you probably are dealing with something spiritual. However, thinking through your situation logically does help narrow it down. For example, have YOU personally had paranormal experiences or were you just told by someone else that your home/business is haunted? Can your experiences be explained by simple anxiety and physical reasons?

If you’ve crossed out the physical reasons above, the next step is to determine what kind of haunting it is and then determine what to do about it.

How to Use This Article To Your Advantage

Each section below will tell you the signs of each type of haunting, and then go into what you can do about these hauntings. A good rule of thumb is to keep notes and say yes or no to each sign: the section with the most signs will tell you what kind of haunting it is. Keep in mind each haunting is unique. You may have to adjust and adapt.

Signs You’re Being Haunted by a Ghost

You might be thinking your house is haunted by a ghost. Ghosts are the spirits of the human deceased who have gotten trapped between this world and the next or of whom have returned to earth for a specific reason (though the former is most common). Ghosts who are trapped on the earthly plane tend to be the more sad, angry, or vengeful ghosts while ghosts who visit earth for a reason from the other side are usually bringing a message of peace or hope to someone they love.

Here are signs a ghost is haunting your house:

• strange noises at night: footsteps, banging of doors or drawers, knocking, voices, laughs
• scents that seem to come out of nowhere and disappear as fast: grandma’s perfume, cigar smoke, roses, food smells when those foods aren’t around, etc.
• odd sights: wispy translucent images, movement in the corner of your vision, visions of deceased loved ones or strangers
• strange feelings: feelings of not being alone when you are alone in the house, feeling of someone touching your shoulder/back/arm/etc, goosebumps with no explanation
• your pets bark/meow at the air; get scared and hide for no known reason

Here are reasons why a ghost is haunting your house:

• your house is old (usually 40 years or older)
• someone died in your house
• you live near a cemetery or gravesite
• a tragedy occurred in (or possibly near) your house: murder, suicide, chronic illness, fire, a nearby battlefield, hunting accidents, drowning, etc.
• the person who lived in your house before you might have messed around with the occult or magic
• a loved one recently died and might be visiting you

What to Do About a Ghost Haunting

If you can say yes to at least three of these signs and reasons, then your house is most likely haunted by a ghost. Some people have a hard time distinguishing between demons and ghosts, which I plan to clear up for you in this article (read to the next section if you’re not sure).

Here are things you can do for a ghost haunting:

• if they are relatively peaceful ghosts, live alongside of them in peace (particularly if they were in your house before you)
• if they are becoming aggressive: perform a spiritual cleansing and blessing of your house with smudging and holy water/oil
• ask a priest or religious official to perform a cleansing or blessing on your home
• look for evidence that the ghost might be attached to a specific object in your house and remove it (look in the attic, basement, etc. for antiques or other heirlooms left behind)
• If these things don’t work, you might be dealing with something more sinister and more steps will need to be taken to remove the entity from your home and life. See the next section on demons.

Listen to our Podcast All About Hauntings:

Signs You’re Being Haunted by a Demon

If you answered yes to many of the signs above in the ghost section, but you’re having problems of a more violent nature, you might be dealing with a demon. A demon is a spirit that has never incarnated as a human. There are debates as to their origin, which include: fallen angels that work for Satan, ancient gods that have been forgotten over time, guardians of the land, thought forms, and more. Regardless of their origin, when they decide to attach to a family or person, they can be downright terrifying and destroy lives in their wake.

Here are the signs of a demonic haunting:

• the hauntings began randomly in a house where you’ve lived for a while
• they seem to center around one particular person in your household (often a teenager or even a child)
• the person of whom the activity is centered around has become withdrawn or lashes out, acts like a different person
• if it’s a child, they may mention having an imaginary friend but this imaginary friend encourages them to do bad things
• you may see shadows in your peripheral vision that move without an explanation, you may even see shadows directly
• you may hear voices at night that sound evil, whisper awful things, curse, scream or cry. Sometimes these voices mimic the voice of a child.
• things are moved, tossed, thrown, destroyed without an explanation
• heirlooms, photo frames, and precious personal items are destroyed without an explanation
• nightmares, night terrors, sleep paralysis (waking up and not being able to move) that continues regularly and comes out of nowhere
• strange, offensive smells: sulfur, smoke, rotten meat, etc.
• violent attacks on you or other people in your house by an invisible force: smacks, kicks, choking, pushed.
• inexplicably bruises, cuts, marks on bodies after waking up in the morning
• If you have these signs, please read on to find out some options to end this cycle.

What to Do About a Demon Attachment/Possession

If your type of haunting is demonic in nature, often it is more than just a “haunting” where the spirit is living in your house. Often it is what is known as a demonic attachment which can lead (in rare situations) to a possession. It is a terrifying thought, but these things have been documented and occur whether you are a religious person or not. Don’t believe me? Do the research yourself.

Here are things you can do to sever a demonic attachment:

• the victim should stop all bad habits that weakens them: alcohol abuse, drug abuse, addiction of any kind, negative thinking, self harm, etc.
• the person being tormented could be dealing with depression and anxiety, both of these illnesses need to be addressed with counseling immediately
• someone in your house could be dabbling in black magic (magic that deals with dark and negative energies such as necromancy and curses). Also be aware of any ouija board use as ouija boards are known to be wide channels for spirits to come through, most often attracting low level spirits and demons. Get rid of any ouija boards or dark magic items.
• you’ll need to do a full cleansing of your house on your own or by a religious official. If you feel like you will be too scared or weak to do it on your own, contact your religious official such as a priest, pastor, mambo, shaman, medium, witch, etc. If you decide to do the spiritual cleansing on your own, use sage to smudge your house (always open the windows to let the entity out otherwise you’ll piss it off more). Also bless your windows and doorways and the person’s room with holy water or olive oil (draw a protective religious symbol using the oil or water).
• leave some lights on at night (demons thrive in darkness)
• leave some fans running (demons thrive in stagnant air)
• teach your family members not to fear or thrive on negative thoughts as this feeds the entity
• hang religious or protective symbols around your home
• be firm in your beliefs and don’t take no for an answer if there are those who are unwilling to help you

Signs An Elemental is Haunting Your House or Property

There’s a third kind of spirit that could be haunting your house or property that most people are unaware exists. This is an Elemental. Elementals are the spirits of the land and could also be guardians of sacred natural sights: waterfalls, rivers, forests, lakes, mountains, caves, old trees and groves. They are also what are called fairies, the wee folk, the sidhe, dwarves, trolls, etc. They aren’t just mythological creatures, they are spirits of the land. When these beings haunt a house, it’s because they feel their territory is being infringed upon in some way. And, unfortunately, these beings will be harder to “get rid of”. They are extraordinarily strong and willful beings and often act much different than a ghost or demon will.

Here are the signs an elemental is haunting your house or property:

• you recently moved into a brand new house or new construction of some kind
• had a large tree or trees cut down
• you made some kind of major change to the landscape near your house
• you added on to the structure of your house
• jewelry, sparkly things, keys, and other smaller items are moved or lost then returned later
• poltergeist activity such as things being broken, moved violently, doors slammed, things thrown in plain sight
• strange sounds during twilight hours (dusk and dawn): instruments playing, giggles, singing, bells ringing, voices speaking another language
• aggression shown towards you outside of your home: pushed, hit, hair pulled
• if you have animals, their hair being braided or cut without an explanation
• animals acting strangely – being spooked or playing with something unseen

What to Do About an Elemental Haunting

The reason an Elemental could be haunting your house or property is because they feel their territory has been invaded. Because of this, and unfortunately, it’s going to be more difficult for you to deal with this kind of haunting. Until the spirit feels safe or until its territory is left alone, you might deal with its anger for some time.

Here are things to try with an elemental haunting:

• contact local medicine man or shaman
• hang wind chimes and bells around the outside of your house
• hang iron horseshoes above your doors (elementals are historically known to despise or be driven off by iron)
• leave offerings for them outside of your house: elementals are thought to like sweet desserts, milk, cream, mead, ale, wine, bread, etc. (Never leave an offering inside of your house as it’s like saying they are welcome in your home)
• smudge your house using white sage (google how to smudge your house), make sure to open the windows to let the spirit escape
• erect a sanctuary outside for the elemental to show you want peace: a garden, bird bath and bird houses, plant a tree(s) (this works especially if you recently cut down a tree which might have been the elemental’s home)
• if all else fails, deal with the haunting or move

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Read More About Ghosts and Demons:

• 15 Signs a Deceased Loved One is Trying to Contact You
• Why The Full Moon Increases Paranormal Activity (A Pagan’s Perspective)
• Things that Attract Demons and Signs of a Demonic Haunting