Why premonitions are annoying and useless…

[rbnyc]

Who’s seen The Mothman Prophecies? (Spoiler ahead.) I’m referring to the film because I haven’t read the book or investigated the events upon which it is based. I really like this film and one of the things I like about it is how tormented the main character is by having access to this information that is really so hard to interpret. He gets it wrong over and over again. I guess, in the end it does all click and he saves the girl. But mostly, it’s just impossible to correctly process and act on this kind of information. I really relate to that.

I’ve spoken about this before. For example, before my wedding I had a premonition that I would not walk down the aisle because I would be in a car accident. Terrific. What was I supposed to do, stay out of cars for six weeks until I was married? Well, no. And so I was rolled into the Orthopedic Gym in a hospital bed at Stony Brook University Medical Center to be married.

Here’s the most recent example – not nearly as life-impacting for me or anyone I know. I actually had my first premonition about a celebrity. I was repulsed when I had this premonition for many reasons. First, I just don’t know why I have to have these – I don’t know what to call them – little revelations. But about a celebrity – that just felt so cliché and cheap.

I almost wrote about it here – there was a thread asking if anyone had any premonitions for the new year and I almost chimed in, “Yes. Dolly Parton is going to die.”

Dolly Parton?

See – either we can’t do anything about our premonitions, we don’t understand them, or both.

As soon as I heard Whitney Houston died, I was like “Oh, of course! ‘I will always love you…’”

So this is how it goes. I get a sudden infiltration of knowledge – like an attack. It feels a lot different from just getting an idea. I know it’s a premonition. I am annoyed because I know I either don’t really understand it, can’t do anything about it or both. It nags at me in the back of my mind until the event comes to pass, and then I think, “OK, that was it.” And then I hope it never happens again.

Would anyone like to share similar experiences? Do you have any coping strategies? Has anyone either successfully shut it down or successful become more proficient? Is there a good use for this? I don’t really see what it adds to the world to have foreknowledge of celebrity deaths. (Or car accidents or natural disasters or anything.)

Thoughts?

[Lionessa]

1. My foresight is individually based.

What I mean is that I don't have dreams. I meet people and sometimes in the course of talking to them I'll just know something either that I'm not supposed, wasn't told about a past or situation, or about their future. I actually do usually understand, and I've attributed to somehow listening better or hearing more or noticing more while I'm interacting with that person. I don't think it's so much mysticism with me, just hyper-detail oriented, both above and below my own awareness.

At any rate, I think I do respond similarly to you nowadays, as over the years, even if I tried to give a head's up or involve myself in somehow deterring something, I was never really certain I had made the right choice. Some bad things happen for good reason and the future after is much better, and the converse is also true. So who am I to determine what's best or if any interference is the best idea, and just informing the person is a form of interference.

I've come to the conclusion, that this is my little gift for me. For me to be able to better evaluate others regardless of what they choose to show me. It isn't for me to utilize, just to be aware of.

[The Blue Flower]

2. I agree

It seems to just be something to be aware of, rather than to act on. And I've found that dreams are more about symbolism than reality. If information is in a dream, you have to ask yourself what does that thing mean to ME, not how does it apply in my outer reality.

[rbnyc]

4. I like that.

Just awareness vs. utilization - that's helpful. Thanks.

[agent46]

3. I try

Usually, I try to do something creative with my premonitions and intuitive flashes rather than feel I need to do something about them. I'm a writer so I write poetry and short stories and my notebooks are full of random seeming images and perceptions that I use in my writing. A good number of them have represented events that unfolded, all from the very major to the very trivial.

I figure premonitions are from senses akin to peeking over the wall into the cubicle next to you. You see what you happen to see. It's not so much a warning necessarily, or anything with intent behind it, because it's basically coming from you. Of course if my intuition tells me to act on a premonition then I will and the result is part of the choice.

[rbnyc]

5. That's a great idea.

And a great analogy.

[BlueIris]

6. I used to have the same frustrations you do about the role of intuitive hits.

What is the point of having them if we can't interpret their significance before it emerges in our lives?

Well, one thing I've accepted is that sometimes we won't understand their "point" or purpose "in time." That is no one's fault. It doesn't mean we "failed" or failed to protect ourselves. Sometimes, a lot of the time, it won't be possible to figure out what our intuition is telling us before that event takes place.

I do understand where you are coming from, though. I had a strong intuitive hit about car accidents right before I was in my only car accident in 2003. To this day, I still sometimes regret not trying to pay more attention to it, figure out what it meant, etc. Even though one reason I couldn't do that then is because I was still about 100% skeptical about "psychic activity."

Also, over time, I had to accept that sometimes intuitive flashes just...happen. It can't be controlled, it happened because I was sensitive that day. And it gives one unwanted information. You got a premonition about Dolly Parton. This has happened to me more times than I can count. It's unnerving. Michael Jackson would be the most uncomfortable example. I didn't like him, but I didn't want to know he was about to pass, either. Also--I sometimes get hits about celebrities' energy problems (and other problems) while watching t.v. or film work they have done. This has wrecked a couple of fanships for me. (David Duchovny has horrifying energy, and after picking up on it in 2007, I was unable to watch anymore reruns of The X-Files.)

I can't really offer any advice except that over time I have just learned to go with the flow. Every once in a while, paying attention to my intuition helps me avoid something bad. Or helps me attain something positive. Most of the time it doesn't. Accepting this is just part of the challenge of living with sensitivity.

[Ricochet21]

8. That's been my experience too, exactly

good luck

[Tsiyu]

7. Maybe the usefulness is in preparing you for the moment

If you find that the actual occurence feels like the insight did.

It's frustrating to be so far off the mark, but maybe we get prepared a small bit at a time. Maybe some of us can't handle the whole enchilada.

Something I've thought about too - interesting thread.