Hollywood has done a great job of making us think that hauntings are always obvious and that they are extremely scary and dangerous. The truth is that hauntings are not always obvious and not usually scary or dangerous. In fact, it can often be confusing to tell if a home is haunted. It takes some investigation to figure out if what is happening is in fact paranormal.

The First Step

What leads to you start investigating if your home is haunted is probably things that happened that seem unexplainable. You may feel cold spots or hear odd noises. In some case you may have seen something that seemed paranormal in nature. Whatever happened, something has brought you to the point where you feel you need to look further to see if your location is, indeed, haunted.

One of the first places to start in your investigation is doing some research into the location. You will want to look into the history of the home and the history of the land. Find out what used to be there. Go as far back as possible. You want to find out if something happened here that would trigger a haunting. Usually this would be a traumatic or major event.

Easy Explanations

Sometimes there are obvious explanations for what is happening. With some research and investigation you can uncover reasonable explanations for the things happening in your home. You want to look at each instance that has occurred and try to find an explanation that is not paranormal in nature. Too often people simply label something as paranormal without trying to see if there is another explanation for the event.

A good example of a common misunderstanding deals with cold spots. Most people have heard that spirits or ghosts leave a cold spot where they have been. When someone feels a cold spot they may believe that they have felt a ghost. In reality many cold spots are caused by air leaking through a drafty window or seeping in through an improperly insulated fixture.

Another common misunderstood event is shaky. Hollywood has many people convinced that spirits are very interested in shaking things to scare us, so it is no surprise that anyone who feels something shaking will immediately think it is a ghost. In reality, many instances of unexplained shaking can actually be explained. Airplanes going overhead or even trains can cause shaking and they do not have to be right close to the area to do so.

Checking Out Events

As part of your investigation you should check isolated events. Try to recreate the event exactly as it was. Set up the area in the same way it was when the event occurred. Make sure you account for all people and pets. You want to check for drafts and try to find an explanation for what happened.

When you are suffering a serious case you should completely check your whole home. Look at the electrical set up, the plumbing and check out all insulation. Many times faulty devices or aging fixtures can be to blame to supposed hauntings.

A Final Judgment

If you have went through your own investigation and have not been able to find an explanation outside of the paranormal then you may want to get professional help. You can call upon the assistance of a psychic that can carry out a séance that will connect you with the spirit world and enable you to ask if your home is haunted.

If you want a more practical approach then you can call upon the assistance of local paranormal investigators. They should not charge for their services. It may be a long wait for them to come out, though. They should have equipment to be able to do a good investigation and finally give you an answer as to whether your home is haunted or not.