'Ghost Whisperer' consultant speaks out loud

Mary Ann Winkowski says she sees dead people. More specifically, make that "earthbound spirits." The "ghostbuster-for-hire" also claims she can talk with those spirits telepathically ("In my mind"), act as a bridge between them and their survivors ("I find a lot of missing keys to safe- deposit boxes") and assist them to cross over to the other side.

Of course, skeptics find such claims to be disturbing – some even become vehement – but Winkowski isn't bothered by them.

"I'm actually glad to hear people say they don't believe in what I do, because people need to keep their own personal opinions," Winkowski said on the phone while on a nationwide tour for her fourth book, "When Ghosts Speak" (Grand Central Publishing, $24.99, 256 pages). She added: "It's not my job to try to change their minds. It doesn't make any difference to me if they believe it or not."

Winkowski, 57, is married, has two grown daughters and lives in a suburban town in Ohio. She used to be a pet groomer, though she says she has talked with spirits since age 4. She so impressed veteran TV producer John Gray that he was inspired to build a TV series around the concept and hired her as a consultant. "Ghost Whisperer," starring Jennifer Love Hewitt, is in its third season (7 p.m. Fridays on Channel 13). Two other shows with paranormal themes, "Medium" and "Supernatural," also have enjoyed success with the public, whose appetite for ghosts and demons seems insatiable.

Winkowski even maintains a "Whisperer"-connected advice column at www.cbs.com/ghostwhisperer, called "Ask Mary Ann."

"So far this season I've received 10,000 e-mails there," she said, sent by viewers seeking advice or wishing to share their own ghostly encounters.

Her personal Web site, www.maryannghostbuster.com, averages 2 million hits a month, she says.

Q: Have the dead shown you what awaits the living?

A: No, because they don't know, and I am not a medium. I (deal exclusively) with earthbound spirits who I cannot contact after they enter the white light and cross over. I can tell (survivors) only what the spirits tell me. (The ghosts) don't know I can see or talk to them unless I stare at them or start talking to them. Sometimes I'll freak out the ghost because they don't think anybody can see them.

Q: Does your ability have a purpose, such as helping earthbound spirits move on, and comforting those left behind?

A: Absolutely that. I bring a lot of closure to a lot of people. I also have the ability to remove negative energy off a person. It can stick to a person and have a terrible effect.

Q: You've traveled the world solving cases in which you remove ghosts from residences, hospitals, hotels and the like. What's a typical scenario?

A: I don't advertise. It's not like I go out there and drum up business, though I have 800 people right now who I need to call back.

OK, they call me and leave a message and tell me what's going on. From that phone message, I can tell if they have an earthbound spirit in their house or not. A lot of people don't have anything – they just watch too many scary movies.

(For the others) I will call them back and find out exactly what's going on in the house. I give a couple of suggestions for them to try to get rid of whoever is there. If they have a ghost in their house, I can see the inside of their house and tell them the room the ghost is in. I can tell if it's a man or a woman.

If my suggestions don't work, I will go to the house, talk with the ghost, find out who they are and why they are there. I will ask the ghost any question the homeowner wants, and I will tell the answers to the homeowner. Then I will create the bright white light that (the ghost) lost after their funeral – when they made the choice not to go into that light – and watch them walk into it. When I don't see them anymore, they're where they need to be.

Q: How much do you charge?

A: That depends on how far I have to travel, but it starts at $100 for the whole thing.

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