[This is the second of a series of posts based on the talk I gave at Witchfest Wales 08 on June 21st.]

Well, we've looked at the signs of a psychic attack. The next thing - and you move to this stage only when you're certain that it is a psychic attack - is to find out what sort of attack it is. In my own experience there are four main types.

Group 1. This is the unintentional attack, usually due to people who simply can’t let go of things. They lie awake at night seething; they talk and think about slights and injuries that often are really pretty trivial. The trouble with these attacks is that you can get caught in the crossfire. They're the most common type of attack and you can’t always be sure that you were the original intended target. This sometimes makes it difficult to identify your attacker.

Group 2. This is the intentional attack from a person who really does wish you harm. It’s more focussed and has a better chance of hitting the intended victim. It’s also more likely to harm you than the other groups. The amount of damage depends on the skill of the hexer. But be warned - it can be considerable.

The methods used can vary - a popular one is conveyed by constant criticism. It may not start out as a psychic attack, but it can certainly end up as one. Remember the old saying, ‘Sticks and stones may hurt my bones but words will never hurt me?’ Rubbish.

Words do a great deal of harm – they force someone else’s negativity onto us. They can drain our energy to the point where we no longer have the will or strength to fight back. And then we’re really vulnerable.

Another method is using some sort of object to convey the hex. Something that appears to be a ‘gift’ may in fact be a means of control to enforce a psychic connection. The object can be almost anything, metal or crystal… think of the curse on the Hope Diamond … Speaking from my own experience, the most powerful attacks come with leather, fur, wood – basically anything that has once had life. Because if it once had life you can reanimate it.

One of my first encounters with a psychic attack (I was about sixteen) involved one of these. We had a sudden outbreak of very nasty psychic activity in the house. An occultist friend of my father’s advised searching the house for anything made of leather or fur because these seem to ‘hold’ hexes well.

We eventually discovered the culprit had left a rather pretty tribal art picture made of hide, fur and grasses, hidden between books on a shelf! It would have remained unnoticed for a long time if I hadn’t been told to look for something just like it.

If you do find anything of this nature it should be ritually destroyed preferably at the dark of the moon. But no matter what the moonphase, it’s better to ritually destroy it than wait.

Well, that's the first two groups dealt with. I'll consider the other two in my next post on the subject. Meanwhile, the sun is calling and the garden (not to mention the laundry) awaits!