How to get rid of ghosts: Everything you need to know

You have a constant feeling of being watched. Maybe you saw an apparition in the corner of your eye flickering by. Is it possible to make them leave, or do you have to put up with them?

As a general rule, you get rid of ghosts by asking them to leave or performing cleansing rituals like sage smudging. Religious or spiritual rituals or prayers are other common ways of clearing a space of ghosts.

As all ghosts are individuals, as they were in life, there is no one-fits-all solution to get rid of ghosts. There are common ways to approach the issues with ghosts, though. This article looks at the most common ways you can get rid of intruding spirits.

How to know if your home is haunted

Before you let your imagination get your best, it is a great idea to stop and step back. If you just moved into a new home, you might not yet be familiar with all the house’s sounds and “personality.” Floors might creek from settling, and doors slam due to draft. Mice might play around behind the walls; birds might have built a nest in the attic. The list goes on.

In most cases, strange happenings do have a natural cause. You should only label something paranormal if you have run out of other options. The best way to approach possible haunting is to try to stay calm and search for natural causes of the ghostly activity before trying to capture a ghost.

You can always ask a friend or someone you trust to give you a second opinion. It is easy to miss things when caught up in fear or anxiety.

Common signs your home might be haunted

If you think your home is haunted, there are signs to look out for. Common signs are unexplained temperature drops. If you feel that a room or area of your home is much colder (or warmer) than others without an explanation, it might indicate a presence.

Other signs are electrical glitches that make no sense. It can be that lamps connected to the same line act differently. One light might turn off and on while the others don’t. This can apply to other electrical devices – TVs, kitchen apparatus, home security alarms, fire alarms, and so forth.

It is not uncommon to experience strange smells or odors when a ghost is present. Spirits are thought to manifest through all our senses, even the sixth. So watch out for strange sensations of touching and unexplained sounds as well.

Pets can act strangely around ghosts, so watch out for odd behaviors that can’t be explained. Bear in mind, though, that pets might act on natural things that you can’t hear. Maybe you have mice under your floorboards, birds in the attic, electromagnetic fields from power lines, etc.

One common sign of a ghostly presence is a strange feeling of being watched. You know that feeling you get when someone stares at you across a room, and you turn around to realize someone is watching your every move. I have discovered this from living in an apartment with a view over a busy street. If I look at a person from my window, it is not uncommon for them to raise their heads to meet my “gaze.” I think this is the same feeling we get, but we can’t see the entity staring at us.

It is not uncommon that you might experience a low mood, anxiety, or even depression for no reason when living together with a ghost. Always contact a medical professional before blaming your mood or feelings on a spirit. In most cases, there is a medical reason for your sensations.

The rule of three

It is easy to get carried away when you think a ghost is invading your home. All of a sudden, everything you feel, or notice is caused by something paranormal. This happens as you are so caught up in looking for proof of a haunting. In reality, most if not all experiences have a natural origin.

Because of this, you should always try to find the natural causes of an experience first and not the other way around. It might be paranormal if you can’t find any natural explanation for an occurrence. If you experience three different signs of a haunting that can’t be explained, you might have a ghost present.

You find a list of common signs of a haunting below. If you experience three different signs of experiences, you might be dealing with a ghost. Of course, there can be lesser or more signs as well. But use this as a rule of thumb if you get carried away.

Common signs of a haunting

• Unexplained temperature drops
• Strange electrical glitches
• Strange smells or odors
• Displacement or movement of objects
• Strange sounds such as tapping or footsteps
• Pets behaving strangely or out of character
• Feelings of being watched
• Sensations of being touched
• Sadness, anxiety, or depression

Always trust your gut feeling and intuition when it comes to hauntings. The best “device” for catching ghosts is still the sixth sense. It can be hard to capture evidence, and this is not needed. It is helpful if you have “evidence” if you contact a paranormal investigator, but it is not required. It is tough to capture a ghost on photos, video, audio, and even for an experienced investigator.

Action steps when you think your home is haunted

If you have a ghost in your home, you have two ways you can proceed. The first one is to accept the ghost and coexist, and the other is to try to get rid of the ghost. Most hauntings are harmless, so you don’t have to get rid of a spirit if you don’t want to. I have noticed that a common reaction is to get rid of it because it is scary. We tend to be scared by things we don’t understand. But imagine it is your kind grandma watching out for you or your close friend that passed. Do you want to evict them?

If the haunting is scary or harmful, it can be a great idea to get a trusted paranormal investigator or a psychic to help out. It is often a friendly specter who is experiencing frustrations or needs to deliver a message from the other side. In some cases, there can be some territorial issues going on. If you deal with the cause of the negative outbursts or manifestations, the haunting might calm down quickly.

If the tone of the haunting is scary or negative it can be a great idea to get a trusted paranormal investigator or a psychic to help out.

Miss claudette

Try to stay as relaxed and keep a diary of all your experiences. It is easier to keep track of the haunting if you jot down everything you encounter. This can be very helpful if you need to contact a paranormal investigator down the line. It is hard to remember details, dates, and frequencies when time passes. When you keep your journal try to fill in the date, what happened and where, and if you have any evidence. Also, make a note of where in the house it happened and if it was connected to something you did or think you did. Finally, make a note of the weather conditions that day.

Notes for the ghost journal

1. Date
2. What happened
3. Where it happened (what room, in the garden…)
4. If you have evidence of proof
5. If someone else experienced it too
6. What you were doing when it happened
7. Weather conditions
8. Your emotional state at the time
9. Other details you think might add value

Territorial ghosts

If the ghost is feeling a bit territorial you can ask it to stop and that you need to share the space. You can also ask them in a polite way that you have noticed that they are frustrated and that you didn’t mean to upset them. Remember, they were humans once too. It is easy to forget this when fear sets in.

Look out for things or spaces in the house that seems like hotspots. Is there an antique there, something you inherited from a loved one or relative? If things start to happen when you move a certain object or start to remodel a room, chances are you have a territorial ghost in your home.

But don’t worry too much. Just tell the ghost that you understand something is stressing them out, but you didn’t mean to. Most ghosts are not evil. It is very rare that you will encounter a demon or like. Treat them as angry or upset people, try to calm them, and sort things out. If this doesn’t help, you might try to clear the home. But first, make sure it isn’t a ghost you want near. It would be terrible to evict a loved one just because they are a little angry with you.

Rituals and methods to get rid of hauntings

There are different methods for cleansing a home. You have to decide what type of cleansing suits you and your belief system. You can go the spiritual or religious route. It is always best to ask a professional to perform the cleansing as it isn’t easy to do correctly if you are new to this. Watching YouTube and trying to DIY can cause you even worse troubles. Trust me on this.

If you want to go the spiritual route you can ask a psychic, shaman, or paranormal expert. Be sure to do a background check and ask for referrals. There are so many shams out there, so please don’t jump on the first you meet on the street. It can make you lose money and even angrier ghost.

If you go the religious route, you can ask your clergy for direction and help. They have the expertise and know who to contact.

Cleansing with incense

Different spiritual or religious schools use different incents or methods. A common one is sage smudging, though. When you sage your home they will burn incents along with ritual prayers to remove the spirit. The incense can be quite intense so if you live in an apartment block, please inform your neighbors about what is going to take place beforehand.

Another incent that is commonly used is frankincense. The scent and smoke are intense with this one too, so be sure to inform neighbors as well. It is not uncommon that the room or apartment to be totally filled with thick smoke from the burning herbs. It will not work with just a tiny little incent stick to evict a territorial spirit, that is for sure.

It can take a few hours for the smoke to clear, so be ready to spend the night at a friend’s house. The rituals might need to be performed several times as well. So have patience and trust in the process. An experienced shaman or clergy will tell you what will happen and what to expect. Sometimes the haunting will get worse during the cleansing process.

One thing to keep in mind is always to show respect for the spirit you will evict. They have often settled in the world in between because of a reason. You are now expelling them from that space, and they can get agitated. We have no idea if they can transcend or if they are stuck. Remember, this can happen to you as well. Or a loved one. You didn’t want someone else to mistreat them.

I often try recommending coexisting with ghosts. In most cases, it is just our lack of knowledge that makes us frightened. This is not the ghost’s fault. It is on us. But of course, if a spirit gets challenging, there might be no other option. But promise me to at least consider the possibility of them staying. A psychic can give you information that you need to feel more at ease with the happenings and who is dwelling in your home.