Humboldt got just a little more mystical with the arrival of Regina psychic medium, Robyn Carissa on April 4.
Carissa spent the day doing private readings for interested people and then ended with a two-hour show that night to a crowd of about 20 people.
Carissa said her experience with the supernatural began when she was a toddler, when her parents noticed her talking to her dead grandfather. Though she went to school and graduated with a degree in social work, she soon fell into being a medium as her career, and it’s now a seven day a week job for her – in between caring for her six children.
“I’m a psychic medium,” she said. “I talk to dead people and I can also see what’s coming up for people in their future.”
She did about ten readings on Saturday, all of which she said went well, except for one that she sensed was a bit of a skeptic. And skeptics are something she deals with a lot in her line of work.
“(One of the most difficult parts is) people who challenge me,” she said. “People who don’t believe and just want to be a skeptic … and they don’t understand what it is. Not everybody gets along with my personality, because I’m tell it like it is and no bullshit. I am what I am.”
That wasn’t the reception she got at the show, though. She got many questions, ranging from asking if they had spirits following them, to whether they would have health problems, to questions about their husbands’ futures. Carissa started focusing on a pair of sisters, who had several relatives surrounding them.
She also warned one of them about upcoming health problems.
Several women there shared their own stories – one woman said she would constantly see a young boy beside her sleeping husband while another talked about her troubles with sleep paralysis (a condition where a person wakes up but can’t move, and often sees demon-like figures).
The show was very casual and relaxed – something Carissa said she tries to do with every show. It took awhile for everyone to warm up, but soon the room was full of laughter and storytelling.
Despite the fact that there were a few health questions, Carissa said she never feels unqualified to answer a question. The show also morphed into more of a therapy session at one point, with one woman asked for advice on dealing with a difficult relative. Carissa said her shows “always” turn into a therapy session, and that she is never surprised by questions and has heard it all.
“I love interacting,” she said. “I always try and make sure the shows are fun but serious on the same side. I really like to educate people. It’s not just about me going in and talking to the dead. I like to educate people about what a psychic is.”
Carissa has performed in small towns around the province, Toronto, Vancouver, and in Las Vegas, though she doesn’t just do her own performances. She appears on several radio shows and has a TV show. She also has an annual ghostbusting season from August to October. During that time, she goes into allegedly haunted places and documents events. She also gives tours. She maintains that in the course of ghostbusting, she has had things thrown at her, has broken her ankle, and been thrown down stairs.
“I’ve been in some sketchy situations,” she said.
Carissa continues her busy schedule with upcoming shows in Nipawin, Prince Albert, Saskatoon, and Toronto.
