When you think of paranormal investigators and the dangers they face one automatically thinks of dangers from a molevolent ghost or posession from a case.In an interview Rodney Whittaker (President), of The Maryland Society of Ghost Hunters explains the dangers extend far beyond that. The president of the group explains a investigator is more likely to get hurt from physical dangers. Investigators are exploring sites unfamiliar to them with only the light from their flashlight.Many old buildings do not conform to modern codes.Many sites have no guardrail on the stairs, most often the stairs will be steep and narrow. There has been cases the stairs has had treads missing or in general rotted and structurally unsound.Even hazards such as holes, rocks, broken tomb stones and such can be found in an unfamiliar field.
Rodney explains his biggest fear is that of visiting a client who is unknowingly sufferingfrom a psychological illness.Many of Maryland State Mental Health hospitals such as Crownsville, Spring Grove, Glendale to mention a few has been closed or severely downsized.This is due to many heath care providers trying to shave cost and treat patients on an outpatient basis.The investigator may visit a home of a person suffering from schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that makes it hard to:
Tell the difference between what is real and not real,think clearly,have normal emotional responses or act normally in social situations. Sometimes such persons not taking can perceive the investigation as something else and a threat. If the unknowing investigator is alone in the house and they have access to a gun or a knife, he can find himself in a life threatening situation.
On the other hand,in modern medicine , if a person goes to the doctor claiming they are experiencing paranormal activity, they are often mis diagnosed as Schizophrenic.When was the last time you heard that a person go to a psychologist and was told they were living in a haunted house? So whether or not you believe in paranormal activity; give thanks to the paranormal investigator who puts his life at risk every time he takes on a new case.
