Which Psychic Do You Need? A Guide by Specialty

Start With Your Question, Not With the Method

Most people pick a reader backwards. They hear a word that sounds impressive — "medium," "runes" — and call that specialty, when the smarter move is the opposite: look hard at what you actually want to know, then pick the method built for that kind of question. A medium is the wrong call for a job dilemma, and a pendulum is the wrong tool when what you really need is to talk a whole situation through.

Below you'll find each specialty we list in our directory, what it does well, and — just as important — when to choose a different one. If you'd rather browse the other way around, our find-a-Spanish-psychic page organizes the same readers by specialty and deck, and the home page shows every reader with her own profile line.

Clairvoyance — when you want a straight answer, nothing in between

A clairvoyant works with no cards and no tools at all. You speak, she listens, and she tells you what she perceives about your situation — directly, sometimes uncomfortably so. Choose clairvoyance when your question is personal and specific: what someone feels, why he went quiet, whether there is someone else. It is also the best fit for a first call, because there is nothing to interpret between you and the answer. In our directory, Alaska, Candela and triana work this way.

Card readings — when you need to see the whole picture

Tarot, the Spanish deck and Lenormand all do the same basic job with different tools: the spread lays your situation out on the table, piece by piece, so you stop circling one corner of it at two in the morning. Choose a card reader when the problem has several moving parts — a relationship and a move, a job offer and a doubt about money — or when you want structure: past, present, where it's heading. Patricia, Gilda, Lola and Mayte read the cards.

Medium — when the question is for someone who has passed

Mediumship is its own discipline, not a stronger grade of clairvoyance. The medium's work is contact: a word from your mother, something left half-said, the need to know someone is at peace. Choose it only for that. An honest medium — and this matters — will never guarantee that contact comes through on a given call, and will tell you so before you spend a minute. Jade is our medium.

Cowrie shells — when the matter is family, home and roots

The cowrie-shell tradition is one of the oldest on this list. The shells are cast on the cloth and read by how they land, open or closed, and readers who work them tend to shine on questions of household and blood: a son who's drifting, tension under one roof, a decision that affects the whole family. If that's the territory of your question, ask for BARBARA.

Runes — when you want few words and clear ones

Runes are almost the opposite of a long card spread. There are only a couple dozen signs, and each one points at something concrete: the road, the delay, the protection, the gain. Choose a rune reading when your question fits in one sentence and you want the answer to fit in one too. Cindy and BARBARA both cast the runes.

Astrology and the pendulum — when the question is "when?" or "yes or no?"

Astrology reads your chart for timing: when to push, when to sit still, which season favors the move you're weighing. Dowsing — the pendulum — strips a question down to yes or no. Together they suit the practical caller: not "tell me everything," but "is March the month?" and "do I sign or not?". Cindy covers both.

A quick match, question by question

• "He stopped writing and I need to know what he feels" — clairvoyance.
• "My life is tangled and I can't tell which thread to pull" — a card reading.
• "I want a word from my father, who passed last year" — the medium.
• "There's a storm inside my family and I don't know where it started" — cowrie shells.
• "One question, one answer, no poetry" — runes, or the pendulum.
• "I know what I'll do — I just don't know when" — astrology.

Still torn between two? That's normal

Specialties overlap, and several of our readers work more than one. If you call and you're still unsure, tell the person who answers what's on your mind — in Spanish, like everything here — and she'll point you to the reader whose way of working fits your question. You can also ask for any reader by name, today or any other day.