A mom-of-one has revealed her extraordinary gift for communicating with the dead – which is so powerful that she sometimes has to wear a hoodie to block out messages from spirits.
Now 43, Sofia Grundqvist, believes that she has possessed paranormal abilities since she was born.
As a child, she recalls hearing and seeing things other people couldn't – but, scared when she couldn't find an explanation for what was happening, she "blocked it out".
Sofia recalls seeing "see through people" in her house as a child (PA Real Life/Collect)
Now though, she has embraced her powers and, on the side of her full-time job in production in a medical plant, helps people who've passed away communicate with their loved ones from the other side.
Sofia, who lives in Norway and has an 18-year-old son, who she doesn't wish to name, said: "When I was younger, I didn't know how to control my gift.
"But now I've learned to turn it off and on. I can pick up spirits every day if I want to, but sometimes it's exhausting. It sounds bizarre, but I've actually found covering my head with a hoodie helps block it out and gives me some rest."
Sofia in her hoodie(PA Real Life/Collect)
Looking back, Sofia said she was born able to communicate with the dead.
As a youngster, she didn't find it especially scary – perhaps because she was "only surrounded by good spirits".
She can recall seeing "see-through people" around the house, though she doesn't remember what they said.
Sofia as a child(PA Real Life/Collect)
She told her mother about what she was experiencing, but she, and the rest of the family, didn't think Sofia was really communicating with the dead.
She said: "My family thought the noises I heard were just the house creaking, or the wind, and that the things I was seeing were bad dreams."
Their doubt made her start to panic because she was unable to find an explanation for the things she was seeing and hearing.
Sofia says most of the messages she receives are from people wanting to let their loved ones still on earth know they are okay(PA Real Life/Collect)
She continued: "It gradually grew more and more intense, so when I had nobody else there to explain it for me, I grew scared.
"That's when I blocked it out, and I don't remember having the ability for quite some years after that."
Then, completely out the blue, Sofia's powers began to return when she was around 25 and she'd sense spirits around her, asking her questions like how they could pass to the afterlife, and how to tell their loved ones they were okay.
"I don't do this as a job, I just help people who want it, so I'm not out to convert anybody."
—Sofia Grundqvist
This time, though, she was ready to embrace them, signing up to a year-long course in Norway to help her learn how to manage her ability.
She continued: "It was fascinating. There was a lot of work on self-development and managing negative thoughts, finding the root of them and letting them go.
"We all met for a weekend five times over the course of the year, leaving it a few months in between to practice the things we had learned."
Deciding to embrace her gift, Sofia went on a course to learn more about it (PA Real Life/Collect)
She continued: "We'd learn how to pick up messages and sense when a spirit was there, how to help them get to the other side and how to block them out when it all got too much.
"A few people in the group mentioned they had premonitions, so we did some work on how to control and manage them, as well as some sessions on healing.
"I found that, if I wanted to block out my abilities, I could imagine myself in a bubble which was protecting me, only choosing to pop it when I was ready."
Sofia when she was little(PA Real Life/Collect)
Now, much more confident with managing her abilities, Sofia told how her powers are so strong that she can even pick up if a person has a spirit present whilst talking to them over Facebook or the phone.
"I do prefer to meet in person, though," she added. "It can help to have a photo of the person who has passed too."
Speaking of how she knows when a ghost is present, Sofia continued: "If someone wants to give me a message, or guide me, I will feel a tension in the air, like someone is standing next to me or watching me."
Sofia does not officially work as a medium, but rather simply extends help to those who want it (PA Real Life/Collect)
She added: "I don't actually physically see them, like you would with a living person. It's more in my mind's eye, like I can very clearly envisage them.
"I then send out a thought that I am here, and I can hear them. That's like sending out a beam of light out the top of your head to spirits, showing them you're listening."
Mostly, Sofia said, spirits will contact her to help get messages to loved ones still on earth from beyond the grave. But, if she does not know who they were in life, this can be difficult.
Sofia said she appreciates that people can be sceptical about the paranormal(PA Real Life/Collect)
"My friends all know about who I am and what I can do, so I don't mind taking them to one side and telling them I have a message," she said. "But I would never walk up to a stranger and start talking about their lost loved one. I can imagine that would be very shocking.
"If that happens, I say to the spirit, 'Tell them to come and talk to me.' That way, I'm not intruding."
Though she is confident in her own abilities, Sofia does appreciate that people can be skeptical around the afterlife, and the possibility of communicating with the dead.
Sofia said she can now control her abilities much better(PA Real Life/Collect)
She said: "I've never had anybody directly say to me that I'm a hoax or imagining things, but I can see they are skeptical by their facial expressions when I talk.
"If that happens, I just change the subject. Of course, everybody wants belief in what they do, but I'm not a full-time medium. I don't do this as a job, I just help people who want it, so I'm not out to convert anybody.
"I'm very relaxed. Nobody has to agree with me, but if they do, and they want help, then I am willing."
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