A not-so-innocent obsession

The following account of one woman’s obsession with psychics and her downfall and ruin of her personnal life is remarkable. What’s the harm in psychics? Read the story of  Samantha Brick and you will have your answer.

The floaty voice of the designer-clad woman urged me to ‘let my worries go  -  empty your mind and then focus on what you want to ask the cards’. Gingerly, I took the tarot pack she handed to me.

Sitting opposite me was one of Britain’s leading psychics. Everyone I worked with in TV said her predictions were 100 per cent accurate. That was enough for me: I was hooked.

‘Think, Sam,’ I told myself. ‘Think what you really want to know.’ I handed the pack back to the psychic, Angelica, and prepared to listen to her prophecies: my future was in her hands. She stared at the first card, then let out a shriek of surprise.

‘My goodness!’ she declared. ‘You’re going to live and work in Los Angeles.’

My initial reaction was scepticism. I had no plans to move. Neither had I even thought about applying for a new job. I was happy and successful in Britain. The prediction seemed preposterous. But Angelica was insistent.

‘I promise you, you’ll be in LA in six weeks.’ ‘Mmm,’ I said. ‘Anything else?’ Slowly, Angelica turned over another card. Her next ‘revelation’ was earth-shattering. What’s more, it would change the course of my life.

Angelica informed me that my marriage was as good as over. She stared at me unflinchingly and said I had to leave Damian, my husband of a year.

The shock was profound, but I dismissed it. After all, I reasoned, divorcing my husband was about as likely as getting a job in the U.S.

But then something extraordinary happened. Within a week, I was offered the position of running the LA office for the TV company I worked for.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime contract: generous salary, seaside house, the car of my dreams.

Angelica’s prediction about the job had been uncannily accurate. I found myself thinking: could she be right about my marriage, too?

I had to admit there were flaws in our relationship. Damian, who worked as a comedy promoter, and I were at odds over having a baby.

The TV-executive says she began to see her psychics as friends as consulted them for advice on every aspect of her life

At 33, I felt my biological clock was ticking. He was a year younger and said he was not ready for parenthood.

Instead of discussing the issue, I made a snap decision. Angelica, I figured, had been right about LA. She must, I told myself, have some insight into my personal life too.

So, as peremptory as my decision now seems, I packed my bags for the U.S. and hired a divorce lawyer.

Sadly, what then felt like an exciting, if somewhat rash, thing to do was the beginning of my downfall.

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