Pennhurst Asylum
Pennhurst Asylum. A place located in Chester County, PA. A place riddled in history. It was a space that was state-run for the mentally and physically disabled individuals. Like other Asylums, the history is sad, inhumane, and at times dark. It opened its doors in 1908 and closed them in 1987.
I got the pleasure of going to visit the infamous Pennhurst. My intention - to read the energy. I wasn’t invited, asked, or given expressed permission to clear it - so I was more of an observer. Feeling, seeing, hearing, knowing, taking in the resonance of the land and space between all the walls and the energies that filled them. It was fascinating. Sections of certain buildings felt more benign. Other sections felt more heavy, more ominous. As I am not one to be a fear monger-er, I by no means want to paint a story of horror. Just a story of the pains that people suffered, the silence given to the ignored, and the desperation of some patients stuck between those walls wanting freedom. And the energies that would be attracted to a space of such lower vibrational energy.
There are so many in’s and out’s in the reading of energy - also, some differing opinions from person to person. I always say, “if it resonates with you, it’s aligned with where you are at presently”, or I say, “if you choose to subscribe” as I never want to project my beliefs onto others, as it is just what resonates with me and my present awareness of knowing. My mentor taught me to always keep at least a 10% open mind to anything newly presented to me; to allow this new material to sit un-judged and to remove emotional body and attachment from previous ideologies and beliefs I may consciously or sub-consciously carry, and to think about it before shooting something different, outside my comfort zone, and foreign to me down. This is medicine I will carry with me throughout my life and into the next. I cannot tell you how many times her words have allowed me to become a more enlightened version of myself - taking in new information I don’t agree with, for a year later finding myself aligning with what I was once resistant to. But because I allowed the 10% open mind practice to be, I allowed it to sit there for the year, without judgement, without force, just with healthy curiosity - and in some cases, it helped me grow and allowed my perspective to expand. As I always say, “one truth does not negate another truth”.
For me - energy is all a frequency, a vibration you put out and receive in. Living, dead, structure, land, thing, place.. it’s all energy - it all holds a frequency. And like energy attracts like energy. You aren’t fixed to one frequency your entire life - it may ebb and flow. You can cultivate a higher vibration by working on shadow work, perspective, mindfulness, meditation, gratitude, and self-care to name a few (it’s all about finding peace and acceptance and understanding of the world within, so you can both bring it and find it in the world without). Being high vibrational doesn’t mean you don’t connect with or visit lower vibrational people and places. It just means that you are able to maintain your vibration no matter what environment you enter. It is not an ego flex of being more high vibe than another - as that is a mentality and mindset that is actually stemming from a lower vibrational place.
I am of the opinion that we should want to achieve as high of a vibration as possible in this life. This high vibration is the closest thing to unconditional love. This vibration is closer to continued soul growth life to life, if you choose to subscribe. A higher vibration, in short, is just a heightened, elevated consciousness and positive energetic frequency. On a higher vibration it is the emotions of peace, joy, acceptance, love..
Lower vibrational frequencies are more in line with fear, denial, anger, shame, guilt.. not that these are “negative” emotions. These emotions are all tools and guides to help us navigate our own inner world, to help us to continue shaping a larger perspective, and to both find and sit in the observer seat view; the sitting with what is this emotion asking me to look at, what is the root cause of this, when did this behavior or feeling start…and so on. We need to go within, so that we can both bring it and see it outside of ourselves.
There is no such thing as being better or worse than another, as you have to be at one place in order to get to the next. Every frequency has something to teach us, something to be learned from it, and asks us to grow from. It’s all an evolution of Soul and journey of Self and reflection of the whole, of the oneness of everything. The higher the frequency of your vibration - the more you realize you have to meet people where they are at. You can’t ask them to be further along on their healing journey, or ask them to be more than what they currently are, or more than what they are currently capable of being. You innately understand that this is their level of awareness presently - this is the vibration they are currently sitting at. And you may hope that it expands as their life continues, but it’s this knowing that you cannot change or control another person, it’s about loving them unconditionally for where they are now. Love without conditions. That isn’t to say the human part of you can’t be hurt by someone’s actions or words - because of course your human experience matters, as well. So, it’s not about giving someones “bad behavior” a pass - it’s moreso understanding your boundaries and your needs, but also understanding the other from an observer seat perspective, without ego, where you witness their evolution and accept and love them for where they currently stand, and for the energetic frequency they currently hold. It is challenging at times, because it asks you to be the bigger person. The one who extends grace, even if you wish someone would be able to do the same for you. The life of stepping into being an empowered empath.
This is so important to understand when reading and sensing energy. This is so important to understand when doing energy work. Whether doing energy work on a person, animal, or clearing energy in a home - it is important to do the work on our own Selves, too. The higher the frequency you can sit in, the more powerful your energy work and energy clearing techniques will be. This isn’t a one and done type deal. Shadow work is life’s work. It is something that we uncover throughout our lives; the never ending journey back to Self, back to wholeness, back to oneness.
One of my favorite things to do is to simply read energy. At Pennhurst, I got to do just that. Energy tells a story. It gives us a window to look through; a window into the past, and allows us to sense what took place. It tells us what needs heart, to be heard, and to be cleared. What loop is still repeating. And what energy has made this place now home that doesn’t belong. Everything is energy.
Us humans aren’t so different. Both are bodies of sorts with a foundation and walls that supports the life held within. Both holding onto emotions, experiences, and heightened moments - for the good, the bad, the beautiful, the ugly, the glorious, the fallen, and all the in-between. Both in need of tender love and care, and both with a need to move the energy in and through. To move the residue that is stuck, stagnant, blocked, heavy… maybe that was never original to us individually to begin with. The human body may be very different than an edifice, but it can house very similar elements. Energy is beautiful. Being able to read it is something that I don’t take for granted and I have a deep reverence for.
I did not clear anything at Pennhurst - as stated before, I just observed and felt and released what wasn’t mine to carry. However, I did send a lot of heart. The best thing to do, in my personally biased opinion, when visiting places like this is to come from a place of respect, peace, and heart center for the trauma endured and the human lives impacted. They may be aspects and fragments of the past - but even still, respect is owed, and love should be in the forefront. Asking the energy to raise in vibration to meet you. This can help shift and alter the energy and restore the balance.
Don’t feed fear. Feed love.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
In starting the story of Pennhurst, I think it is important to start the evening before it began. My sister and I made the long haul to Pennsylvania. It was about a 6 ½ hour drive during rush hour. We played music, told stories, sang, car danced as best we could, and made our way through the never ending traffic. It was late when we arrived at our hotel. My sister scooped up the room key, and off we went - so looking forward to falling asleep after our long trek. We got off the elevator on the third floor and were immediately hit with disconcerting, disorientating energy. Now, me being energy sensitive - I am used to feeling energy all day. Some pockets of energy much stronger than others. None the less - energy. My sister immediately proclaims, “I’m not even energy sensitive and I feel that”. We make our way down the long, straight, narrow hall. Our door was on the right. The energy got stronger and stronger and stronger. Right outside the door was the most uncomfortable place of all. You could feel exactly where the energy was pulling us to.
Nothing is ever a coincidence. Never. Not ever, in my opinion. It wasn’t just “luck would have it,” or “randomly chosen,” that a Psychic Medium and energy sensitive person would be placed in this room. I will never sit here and tell you that I understand how this all works. But energy knows you will be there before you do. Things are purposely positioned in a way where it seems like “we just so happened to be placed in that room”. But this has happened to me SO, SO many times in my life - there is no way that this is some random event. There is no way that this is just some coincidence. Energy placed me here. Energy moved to place me in the position of being a “guest” in this hotel room. I’m supposed to do work here, I’m supposed to connect to something here. Energy was calling me and connecting with me, and asking me to hold space, hold a higher frequency, and clear it.
I often times picture myself with octopus tentacles - just wrapping around things in my environment. And those things, people, and place reaching out with their octopus tentacles and wrapping around me. This is why I am so protective of my energy. This is why becoming an empowered empath and confident intuitive were so important for me and my journey - and I would argue the same for any sensitive individual.
My sister and I make our way into the room. Now - I do not have any facts to back up what I picked up as to what created this intense high stakes energy bubble - but I was flooded with sight, feeling, and knowing of what occurred. I will leave that out of this blog post as it doesn’t feel necessarily pertinent to the story. Never-the-less - what is pertinent to the story telling is I was there to help clear the energy. To balance the scales, to level out the heightened, emotionally panicked, disorientated and disconcerted energy.
I am very comfortable and feel very safe with my sister. I can be myself entirely. So I start speaking a Spirit prayer out loud, audible for the room to hear. I provide my intention, my offering, who I am looking to connect with, and what outcome I would like for the highest and greatest good of all harming none - coming from a space of pure love and peace. My intention - to clear this energy, neutralize it, and make it feel lighter and more positive. My offering - sharing my higher frequency energy to bring and restore peace, love, prayer, and clearing to this space to balance the energy. My connection - with my Spirit Team, my Angels, the Angelic Realm, and my Ancestors in light and love. The outcome I wished for - to clear and transmute the energy into peace, joy, love, and a lighthearted space that felt safe. I finished my Spirit Prayer.
My sister who is very used to me continued on with what she was doing. Reading her energy - I could tell she didn’t judge me at all. She was entirely comfortable with me “babbling away” with Spirit, being “Andie”. I could tell she felt a certain sense of safety knowing my team was working on clearing the energy.
She asked me - “so how does this work?” And I said, well sometimes I clear the energy. But in my minds eye I asked if I were to clear it and I was told “No,” I was told the Angels would clear it, that it wasn’t mine to do. She is so used to me - she said “Ok, cool”.
We started getting ready for bed. Washed up, pjs on. My sister crawls into in bed, I was brushing my teeth - she goes “Wow, Andie, I can already feel the energy lightening, it’s not as disorienting as it was". I took my toothbrush out and did the best I could with toothpaste in my mouth to say, “Ya, the Angel’s are still sweeping”.
She giggled and goes, “The Angel’s are sweeping?” I said - “Ya”.
I finish brushing my teeth and was about to hurl myself into bed. My sister says, “What does it mean that the Angel’s are sweeping?” I replied, “In my mind’s eye I see several Angels from the Angelic Realm - and it looks like they’re sweeping the energy. They’re sweeping the floors, walls, ceiling, everything. They’re just going to town sweeping.” She nodded her head, smirked, and let out a happy laugh before audibly thanking them. Before going to bed, I spoke another Spirit Prayer and thanked my Spirit Team, Ancestors, Angels, and the Angelic Realm for helping clear the energy.
In the morning we got ready and headed downstairs for some breakfast. Afterwards, we haul back up to the hotel room. We walk down the long, straight, narrow hallway to our door. She uses the key card and in we go. Fresh energy greets us - she stops in her tracks and goes, “Holy shit, this feels like an entirely different hotel room”. And I said, “Ya the Angels are still sweeping, but the energy is really transmuted considering where it was”. My sister then gets real serious, she states, “You know, I know what you do is real. I’ve seen it, I’ve had several spot on readings, you’ve known things you couldn’t have known, you’ve predicted things you couldn’t have predicted. But this for me, for someone who isn’t as energy sensitive as you - this was my first experience in real time feeling an energy shift. Feeling something so atrocious and upsetting to physically sit in, turn to light energy and comfort. Seeing you from start to finish transform the energy around you. That was so powerful, and just really cool to be a part of your world for a minute”.
The two of us finish getting ready for the day, and embark on our trip to Pennhurst Asylum. This is just the level of cool my sister is. For my birthday weekend, she drove us down several hours for just one day at an old asylum because she knows this type of adventure is my jam. She know’s that for me history, abanonded places, reading energy, experiencing “paranormal” - are all things I revel in. As we made our way on this road trip - if you choose to subscribe - our Mother, who has passed on and is in Spirit, was sitting in the car with us. She was plopped centered right between us atop the center counsel of the car, and the woman who loved Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkein, exclaims to me “We’re going on an adventure!” Of course - all things I am entirely comfortable telling my big sister about. My sister gets this massively huge smile. Our Mom still exclaiming she was going on a road trip with her girls.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paracon was the event running at Pennhurst Asylum that weekend. There were ghost hunting and paranormal enthusiasts of all kinds. Don’t get me wrong - I’m definitely one of them - I’m just slightly removed, further down an adjacent road to some of the others. Even in a sea of people into paranormal investigation, reading energy - I was very aware that this is a world, a “box”, that I don’t quite fit into; never enough of one thing to fit fully into any one group.
My sister was driving and I was lost in my own world. Energy tends to meet me before I arrive. It’s always been this way. It’s like the energy knows I’ll be there before I do. I say out loud, “Oh I am feeling this in my chest. Deep in my chest and it is radiating into my gut, on loop, back and forth”. The left side of my chest began to hurt with a horrible deep burning pain. It wasn’t a comfy feeling, that’s for sure. But man - am I glad that I get to connect with energy like this. I can’t imagine not being able to do this. I look down at the GPS, and we were eight minutes away from Pennhurst. I joke, “ok, that tracks, we’re close”. My nervous system was responding before I consciously knew.
This is also how I knew that nothing was in need to speak with me at Pennhurst; there was no energy reaching out in desperation, no lower vibrational energy visiting me prior to my arrival. Because this is what usually happens to me - whether I am looking to do an apartment tour for where I will live, visiting a house I’ve never been to before, starting the first day at a new job, headed to and air b-n-b for vacation, whatever it is… if the place has something that is reaching for me, as energy isn’t held to time and space the way we are, the energy reaches out and visits me - sometimes for days prior my arrival. It’s always been this way. It doesn’t always have to be a negative, or darker energy, it can also be a lighter energy desperately wanting to talk to me. This is why I knew the energy at Pennhurst wasn’t going to be off the charts crazy - I would already have been greeted.
What I can say - there are some real vibes in the buildings. The land doesn’t seem to hold onto much; it felt peaceful in parts, contented. However, two of the buildings I was allowed into for sure left a memory. In Devon Hall, I physically saw an apparition. It presented as a shadow person, however I knew it had had a human life at Pennhurst. I didn’t engage with this energy. I just continued on our self guided tour. As an empowered empath - one of the things I do is I ask myself, “Is this mine to do today?” And if it isn’t, I carry on. So I did just that, I carried on.
Some of the rooms definitely gave off an energy of someone having spent their entire life in that one room. You could feel how that would have felt; heavy, sad, contained, no freedom. Other sections of the building felt entirely normal, balanced, like the scales had already been set back.
Really, the noteworthy building for me was the Mayflower building. Now, I have a working theory that part of the reason this building is so active is because they have made it a museum of sorts, a place of attraction of all the memorabilia that was left and found from Pennhurst’s past. And energy can stay connected to things, just as much as it can with place and people.
The Mayflower building was innocent enough on the outside during the day. As we entered we immediately took to the first floor. There was a stairwell to the right that went down to the basement - and immediately you could feel it. This heavy, oppressive, lower vibrational energy that emanated up the stairwell making itself not just known, but felt. It was a powerful energy to project itself so far. An energy that was hiding in the shadows of the basement that had no lights.
My sister and I passed the stairwell entry to the basement and continued on to the first floor. Everything else in comparison to the basement energy felt like nothing to write home about. We decided to brave the basement, and by we - I mean me, my sister reluctantly chose to come along for the ride. Even she could feel the radiating presence. As I entered the basement in my minds eye I see three Angels swoop in front of me to act as protectors. I am a very open channel - and have to protect myself. I am certain my Angels did not want me in that basement. Right as I see these Angels swoop down, I see in a room off to my left a physical shadow move. Simultaneously my sister goes, “Absolute no,” and hauled back up the stairs full force. I immediately turn around myself and the energy I physically saw, in my minds eye I now hear it laughing. I calmly walk up the stairs to the first floor. We finished exploring the building exceptionally quiet. When we made it outside, I told her what I experienced.
In my minds eye, I was shown these lower vibrational, more negative, shadow energy types that were parasitic in nature. Powerful. Not from Pennhurst - but attracted to the like energy that radiates due to Pennhurst’s past, and the people who still seek it and investigate it for that lore to this day. These energies in that basement were looking to target lower vibrational humans who are more susceptible for this type of shadow energy to attach to. I did tell my sister in depth what I picked up here - but for the sake of this blog post, and the nature of what I read, I am going to leave this storyline’s end here. As I don’t believe in fear mongering.
For the paranormal nature Pennhurst is known for by ghost hunters and paranormal enthusiasts - I do believe that there is residual energy here, some lingering Spirit's, aspects and fragments of past Soul’s who inhabited the space, energy that has transformed into something lower vibrational than what it was in life, and energy that has been attracted to the space. For the paranormal investigators - I think it is important not to speak things into existence here. As it is a place that can create what you envision. And if enough people believe in an energy, it can be created. I think some paranormal groups can add to the story of what is happening at Pennhurst. However, I do not believe all paranormal groups do this. I do believe there are paranormal groups out there who investigate for the right reasons; with the purpose to understand, document, and with the overall goal being to help. Groups that come with good nature at the forefront, and not perpetuating fear for click bate and likes. I got to meet one of my favorite paranormal groups - Project Fear. Yes, they do push themselves past their OWN fear, but they are not doing it to perpetuate fear wide scale. They are confronting the effects of the psyche when in direct connection with something that causes fear. The psychology behind fear and the unknown. However, I do feel they always do an amazing job at honoring the land, the buildings, and the story of the people who inhabited the walls. And heart is always at the center of what they do. I wish I could have met more paranormal groups - but the lines were long, and the day was hot.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
This is why it is so important to be aware of your energy state. To do shadow work. To - without harsh judgement, with grace, and with honesty - look at yourself and your mirror. Understand what is yours, what is projection - either your own or others, and what is theirs. Understand how you show up, how someone else shows up, and how people affect you and how you affect people. Self vs others, and others vs self. Energy work is divine work. It brings us in wholeness. Life isn’t about fixing your shadow - it’s about integrating it so you don’t run from it anymore. Energy work brings us closer to Self, closer to the whole. As we are all interconnected, we are all one. That is why people can read energy that is not “theirs”. We are all looking into mirrors of our own Selves, calling them by a different name, registering them with a different story.
Pennhurst further instilled in me that my passion truly lies in reading and connecting with energy. Walking the property, taking in the history, and feeling into every crevasse of the building. I luckily got to go to Pennhurst with my favorite person, my sister. A person I can be entirely myself around, no matter how “out there”, “strange”, or “different” I may be when I truly express myself. I can talk about Angels, and on the other side of the spectrum - I can talk about parasitic energies, and she doesn’t bat an eye. I always tell her, we are safe and divinely protected. I always tell her to have confidence in her conviction when she speaks to energy, and to assert herself if she ever feels she needs to create control and draw boundaries. I always tell her to react from a space of empowered love, and never from fear. For my sister, growing up with me, this world of mine is normal for her. This is a part of what it is like to love me, she says. Getting to see into my world is special she says, and she makes me feel like I am someone who is precious, rare, and easy to love. Having a window into my sight is wild she says, but wild in all the best ways. She always encourages me to let other people see me.
Paracon was an amazing experience. Pennhurst did not disappoint. I hope to be able to explore other abandoned buildings, history, and places where stories want to be told. However - I also hope that in these future scenarios, I am asked and allowed to help shift and clear the energy, as I believe this is part of why people like me are here. We are here to restore the balance, level the heavy, and transmute it into peace, bringing neutrality into space, and leaving a little positive love behind in the process. This world takes all kinds of kinds.
Places like these should never be entered with the intention of perpetuating fear. These places should be entered with love, and with the intention to tell the story as accurately as possible. Investigate what is occurring, why it’s occurring, what is asking to be cleared, and find real answers to help the people who inhabit the property. The energy of love is high vibrational and more powerful than any other energy on Earth. You don’t have to fear if you are empowered and secure in your own energy, abilities, and your Team.
Author:
Andie Hay - Owner & Evidential Physical Psychic Medium of By Breath & Bone
