When people think of a psychic, they may think of someone in a dark room with a crystal ball. But for Thea Strøm, that work looks a little different.

Strøm is a psychic medium and animal communicator based in Beaverton, Oregon. She does about 15 to 20 sessions a week, working with humans and their pets.

Being a psychic isn’t a job most people hear about at a career fair. According to Strøm, it was always something she was interested in, but she wasn’t sure if she could pursue it professionally.

“I myself had some personal experiences of connecting to random energies, random spirits that then clued me into that maybe this is something I have a knack for,” Strøm said. “That then pushed me to take classes to develop the skill and hone it.”

In your own words, how would you describe psychic work and mediumship?

“Psychic readings are when I connect to somebody’s energy and the energy of their life,” Strøm said. “Mediumship is about connecting to either people or animals that have passed away.”

When connecting to animals who have passed, Strøm explained that she’ll open up to whatever they want to share first before letting her client ask their questions.

“Sometimes an animal will already have brought up those things themselves because they know what their human is curious about,” Strøm said. “Sometimes I have to explain things from the animal’s point of view to their human and vice versa, explain things to the animal from their human’s point of view.”

What does a typical day in the life of a psychic look like for you?

Strøm typically schedules three or four hour-long sessions a day between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

“Sometimes I do sessions over Zoom, sometimes I do them in people’s homes, sometimes I do them in person in my office,” Strøm said.

When asked whether doing readings over Zoom is any different from doing them in-person, Strøm said she doesn’t need to be in the room with the person — or animal.

“These abilities don’t depend on me having to be in the same room with the person,” Strøm said. “When I’m connecting for someone, I am placing my awareness on that person’s energy, and that can happen no matter what the distance is.”

When you read someone’s energy, what does that look like?

According to Strøm, she gets various impressions in her mind when she reads someone’s energy. She explained that they may come in the form of thoughts, images or feelings, allowing her to form the bigger picture.

During her session with Nala, a one-eyed dog, Strøm said she saw images of her playing with other dogs and felt the joy that comes with that. She’s worked with Nala before and understands her past of being reactive toward other dogs.

“It’s the combination of all the different impressions that I’m getting that I’m putting together to understand what she’s wanting to communicate,” Strøm said.

Nala shared with Strøm and her owner, Caitlin, that she would prefer to spend time with other dogs one-on-one, rather than in large groups. She also expressed that she was experiencing some lower back pain when people pet her in that area, as well as concerns about changes at home.

How would you explain psychic work to someone who might not understand?

“I’m never one to try to convince anybody of anything,” Strøm said. “It can be hard to wrap your mind around it if you have no experience with this kind of thing.”

Strøm added that she’s more than happy to explain it to anyone who is curious about what she does. All the information Strøm provides in her sessions is tied to her client’s life — it’s not just messages that come through, but also specifics about that person.

Caitlin, who asked us to use only her first name to protect her privacy, also had some questions about her own life. Strøm felt a connection to Caitlin’s deceased mother. According to Strøm, Caitlin’s mother was proud of the life Caitlin had built for herself.

How has this work changed how you see your own life?

“It’s given me a lot of trust in myself, trust in my own intuition,” Strøm said. “It also has contributed to me wanting to actually tune in less about my own life just because I like to be surprised. I don’t always like to know everything about everything.”

Strøm said that her work has enriched her life. There’s a new layer of spirituality and energy that, she said, “makes life a lot more fun.”

Are some animals easier to read than others?

Strøm explained that readability is based on the individual animal rather than species. According to Strøm, she’s worked with chickens, cats, dogs, horses and even some wildlife rescues.

“Every animal, including humans, all have different ways of communicating. So, we have our vocal language and then we have our body language, and then we also have our intuitive language,” Strøm said. “I think that animal communication, which is what we call what I do, is often helpful to tune into the things that you can’t really pick up through body language.”

Some animals may have more confusing body language than others. When a pet might not be open to Strøm’s energy, she’ll do her best to show that this reading is for their sake. If all else fails, she said she will let the client know and reschedule for a different time.

How do you manage expectations if or when someone wants specific answers?

“I let people know at the very start of my sessions that I can’t promise that they’ll hear from anybody in particular or that I will be able to bring through anything in particular necessarily,” Strøm said. “I can’t force anything through if it’s not meant to come through.”

Strøm also gives her clients some information at the beginning of every session so they understand her process.

“I think that helps manage expectations,” Strøm said. “Throughout a session I’ll just be honest with the person. I’ll always give it my best shot if there’s something in particular they want me to tune into.”

She said it’s important to be honest throughout a session — if a client is asking about something specific and she can’t answer, they’re usually understanding. If Strøm meets with a client whose energy she can’t connect to, she explained that she will usually give them a refund and suggest they see another psychic.

“The information coming through should generally make sense for you,” Strøm said. “I think it’s absolutely fine to expect that if everything’s off, then [the psychic] wouldn’t charge you for the session.”

How do you decide what to charge for your sessions?

Strøm explained that prices are different for every psychic — there’s no set industry rate.

“I can’t promise anything. Every individual psychic or medium is gonna have different thoughts of what they should or shouldn’t charge,” Strøm said. “I think a lot of it is what I’m charging for my time and energy. And also what financial obligations do I have that I need to meet.”

Strøm also provides classes to anyone interested in psychic work. If someone can’t afford a class, she said she’s happy to offer a sliding scale.

What would you tell someone to look out for if they are interested in finding a psychic to work with for the first time?

“There are definitely frauds out there, as there are in any field,” Strøm said. “I would go to somebody who doesn’t want to know a whole lot of information about me beforehand.”

She added that it’s also a red flag if someone only focuses on the negative in your life. Another is if they tell you that someone has cast a spell on you, especially if they offer to reverse it for an additional fee.

“I would definitely run in the opposite direction if the psychic starts to talk about curses,” Strøm said.

What do you do if a reading may be confusing?

Strøm explained that when a reading may be “murky,” it’s because that specific situation is up in the air for her client.

“There are gonna be sessions that feel less clear or even certain topics that I might go into in a reading that feels a little more vague,” Strøm said. “I don’t think everything is written in stone in terms of the future.”

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/09/20/at-work-with-beaverton-psychic-medium-animal-communicator/