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Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Do you charge for your investigation services?
A: Of course not. All of our services are free. If you come across a group charging you for the investigation, be very weary. Some groups (with current economic conditions) may ask for donations for fuel costs or for room and board if they have traveled a lengthy distance to reach you. This is not that uncommon of a practice, though we currently do not. Q: What do I have to do to become a team member of TN Paranormal? More specifically, one of the field investigators?
A: Please understand that we receive a huge number of team member requests, especially since the topic has become such a hot topic on television. We personally recommend that you fill out as much information on our application form as possible. All applications are saved. As positions open within our team or should we decide to expand across the state later (additional chapters), the applications are re-reviewed. Q: Do you allow others to shadow you and your team on the investigations you conduct?
A: Yes, we have at times allowed additional people to come and shadow/observe us. When we do, it depends on a few factors: - If the homeowner is willing or agreeable to someone not from our organization attending
- The size of the location and the amount of investigators we have present on the investigation
- The details surrounding the investigation itself (we have dealt with cases of suspected incubus, succubus and child abuse)
Q: Why are you not more involved in the media?
A: Our focus is not heavy amounts of media attention. While some media attention can be beneficial, it can also be hazardous. We are in this for the investigative end of the paranormal... not television. We have had a few news channel requests and the director has had a couple of articles focusing on him in the newspapers, but that about sums it up. We are open to all media inquiries and will attempt to be as helpful as possible when requested. There are many groups popping up out there hoping to get direct media and television exposure and unfortunately they are doing it for the wrong reasons. Please note though that there are some very reputable groups out there that have had established their credibility and are in the media regularly. That is an entirely different scenario. Q: How long has the TN Paranormal investigation team been in existence and functioning?
A: The organization was established by Stephen Wren towards the end of 2005, with regular investigations occurring early in 2006 and we have been going (and growing) strong ever since. Q: Are the other groups out there in Tennessee with TN Paranormal in their name part of your organization?
A: Absolutely not. We have seen this happening and besides a reputable organization in the eastern portion of Tennessee, the others have mostly came about after we were established. We get occasional requests from other media outlets, groups, and members about investigations. etc these other groups (with TN Paranormal in some part of their name) have conducted. We have no affiliation with them, nor are we aware of their current practices. We are a sole entity. And the groups we affiliate with or recommend are at the bottom of our homepage. This does not mean we don't think the other groups are reputable, we just don't know them personally or we haven't been affiliated with them in any way. We are sure there are some great groups besides the ones we have listed in the TN area that may assist you. Just do your homework first. Q: What should I do to rid my home of a suspected 'entity'?
A: You can attempt burning sage or dowsing/blessing your home with Holy water; however, if you are not comfortable with this it may be better to contact your local priest/parish or a reputable investigation group to assist you or document that it truly is a 'haunting' (before attempting a cleansing). A cleansing is no definite guarantee your home will be rid of the problem afterwards. Sometimes repeated cleansings/blessings are required to be successful. And sometimes the problem will continue to reoccur... every case is, of course, different. Q: Is there anything I can do to protect myself and my family since we think our house is haunted?
A: There are a number of things you can do. The first we recommend is prayer and envisioning your family encompassed in a white light. Also, as ridiculous as it may seem, simply tell what is there to please leave and that they are unwelcome (again... sometimes this works, many times it does not). If simple actions such as the above do not seem to help, contact your local church (or depending on your religious belief, other interventions may be felt necessary from you) or a reputable investigation group for further assistance. Q: What do you expect from us before you bring your team to our location for an investigation?
A: Firstly, as much documentation from you as possible. It's helpful to every investigation group if you have a log or diary of the events and the dates and times in which they occurred... sometimes this may be quite relevant. If you have any history on the property, location, or prior owners, that too is extremely helpful. Our organization will ask that if any small children are living in the home to please find another location for them to stay while we conduct the session. This may be quite frightful to them, though investigations are typically quiet and uneventful. The equipment alone can be 'eye-opening' to them. We have kids too! Also, we ask if you have any weapons in the home for them to be removed and if there is any way possible, indoor dogs and cats to be relocated for the time the investigation is conducted. Though animals can sense things we cannot (and some investigators use them as tools!), our current practice is that they be removed... if possible. Animal noises can taint audio and delay the lengthy review process of hours worth of audio and video from all the different cameras and recording devices.
Q: Does your group perform cleansings?
A: We do not at the moment. If we document confirmed activity in your location, we will refer your case (with your permission) to a reputable party that deals with this end of things. We have done this on several occasions at the client's request for further involvement. Q: What are your thoughts on Ouija boards?
A: Stay away from them. Please read our article on them on our website. While they can be fun for the non-serious, they can also potentially cause problems. Q: If you are not able to assist us or can reach us in a timely manner, what do you suggest for us to get immediate help?
A: Please refer to one of the suggested groups on our homepage. It simply means we are inundated with emails at the moment and may take a little time getting back to you. Q: If I am a renter, will you ask that I provide approval from the landlord or tenant?
A: Absolutely. For legality reasons, if you are renting a home, apartment, trailer, business, etc. we absolutely must have the actual owner's/landlord's permission before conducting an investigation, no matter what the circumstances are. Please understand that we do this to protect ourselves. Q: In your initial questionnaire prior to an investigation, you ask questions regarding mental health... why?
A: Simply because not all suspected 'hauntings' are truly hauntings. If a client has a history of mental health problems, it will be taken into consideration when reviewing the potential for an actual investigation. Many things come into play here. Someone having mental health issues does not dismiss their case from us- we have done investigations where this was present. Most importantly, we want to ensure all possibilities for the 'suspected activity' are ruled out ahead of time... and to protect our investigators. Q: Do you prefer analog or digital voice recorders for conducting EVP sessions?
A: We have used both. Some of us prefer the digital, while others swear by analog. It's all what you are used to and have had the best results with. The director of TN Paranormal has had the best results with his Olympus VN180PC. Just ensure you use a PATCH CABLE when transferring your files from the recorders to the PC! Q: I want to start my own paranormal group. How do I go about doing this?
A: Firstly, read, read, read... and educate yourself! If you want to go out and experiment on your own, we encourage you to do so. But if you are going into client homes to 'help' them, if you don't know what you are doing you could make their problems worse. If you can shadow another group or seasoned investigator, we strongly encourage you to do that too. As we are, many groups are inundated with these types of requests. It can be difficult sometimes to"get in" that easily. Q: Can you deem a location is haunted from one investigation?
A: Depends on the situation. We have been in locations that were easily identifiable as being "active" after just one visit, but this isn't always the case and may require repeated investigations. You might have the most active location in your town or city, but the day/night an investigation team comes to investigate, it could be absolutely dead (no pun intended). In cases such as this, repeated investigations may be required to help to get to the source of the activity. Q: Will the activity in my home increase if you come and do an investigation?
A: We cannot guarantee you that it won't increase, but the probability is low. If you already have activity, us being there trying to get to the bottom of it will more than likely cause little to no increase. There have been documented cases though (not of ours) where this has been said to happen. We question how the investigation was conducted in these circumstances and if the entities were taunted in any way. We always conduct our investigations respectfully to both the client (and their resident ghost) and never taunt in any way. Not everything is handled the way television portrays it. Q: Do you honestly believe that all the evidence is your evidence galleries is truly genuine paranormal activity?
A: Of course not. Many are false positives (in our opinion), but who's to say? There is much about the paranormal that is not understood, despite how many "experts" are out there claiming they have all the answers. It is possible that some of what we believe to be false-positives are truly genuine, but we post them for the members so that others can look too and provide constructive feedback. Some of what is in the galleries we do believe to be genuine. In the areas of the EVP galleries, to our current knowledge, they are all genuine. We don't post audio we believe to be faked or something explainable. And using Adobe Audition, we review most (if not all) of these to see what the hertz levels of the electronic voice phenomena are before posting. Q: What are the backgrounds of your current investigators?
A: Our investigators come from a variety of backgrounds. Some of them are licensed medical professionals, some have degrees and others work in a variety of job mixes, such as health-related careers and some hold positions within major companies. We're always on the lookout for more with education or technical know-how that can add another level of expertise to our team. Of course though, team-member selection isn't based on this alone. We want people in our organization that are doing it for the research, knowledge, and helping others- that's what it is all about to us. Q: Do your investigators get paid for the cases they attend?
A: They do not. We are a non-profit organization. We purchase our own equipment, we don't ask for donations or funding, we don't charge our clients... and therefore, the investigators do not get paid. They do this as a passion for understanding the unknown and helping others. Q: Have you ever received complaints about your investigations?
A: Not that we're aware of! However, we do occasionally receive a heated email from a member that has inquired on a subject and we did not get back to them in an appropriate amount of time. Please understand, we have a couple of members that answer these incoming emails and sometimes it may take a bit of time to respond. We do try and respond to everything, but if you don't receive an appropriate response in the time you are needing it, please email us again or feel free to contact someone that you feel may be better suited to handle your situation or question. Q: Are all of your investigations documented on your website?
A: No. We try to update, but we're human too and get delayed. Some cases are requested not to be posted and others we try to at least remember to identify on our "investigations" page. This isn't updated as often as it should be... but we hope to get more up! |
