What Are Spirit Guides & 7 Amazing Ways They Communicate
I can’t imagine my life without my spirit guides. Seriously. It’s a 24/7 relationship for me… and I love it.
As a soul coach with 25 years of experience, and the author of The Butterfly Silhouette: 12 Principles for Following Your Soul, winner of the San Francisco Book Festival in both Spirituality and Poetry, I’ve witnessed repeatedly, in my life and the lives of countless others, how the universe is constantly guiding, comforting, and holding us.
I’ve had significant guidance and communication with my own spirit guides for over 17 years now.
My work is committed to helping you recognize and receive the spiritual communication that is active in your life, including regular communication with your spirit guides. This is an amazing resource that is available to all of us.
This is soul-centered spirituality for spiritually hungry souls, and your spirit guides are one of the most direct forms of support available to you on your soul’s path.
In this article, you’ll learn:
- What spirit guides are and how they support your soul’s path
- Whether you have one spirit guide or several
- Whether deceased loved ones can become spirit guides
- 7 ways spirit guides communicate with you
- How to ask for signs and recognize the answers when they arrive
- Practical steps for connecting with your guides
If your spirit guides are something you’d like to know more about, The Sunday Scroll is where I write each week about soul-centered spirituality for spiritually hungry souls. Sign up here.
What are spirit guides?
Spirit guides are light beings outside the physical world who offer comfort, healing, and direction along your soul’s path. They are assigned to you based on what you and they both need to learn.
Invite your spirit guides in and ask for their support directly. Then listen for their guidance through thoughts, feelings, synchronicities, signs or dreams, and practice noticing what shows up over time.
Spirit guides continue to evolve on the other side. So basically, you’re learning together.
For example, I am learning to speak my truth and one of my spirit guides, who was my husband in life, had a similar soul lesson. So, his learning continues on the other side, as I’m working on this here.
Your soul is the eternal part of you that is connected always, and your spirit guides are part of the support system that surrounds your soul throughout this lifetime. They are not separate from you. They are part of how you are supported in this universe.
Do you have more than one spirit guide?
According to Rebecca Rosen in Spirited you have more than one spirit guide. Actually, we have multiple spirit guides, typically about 2 or 3.
Guardian angels are with us from birth until death, but not spirit guides. They are with us for as long as we both need to work together.
Spirit guides are assigned to you based on what both you and they need to learn.
6 Elements for Aligning with Your Soul
This video breaks down what it really means to live in soul alignment, and how to actually connect with your soul and team in spirit.
For a complete guide to spiritual communication including spirit guides, synchronicities, and all the ways Spirit reaches you, read: Spiritual Communication: A Complete Guide to Connecting with Spirit
Can deceased loved ones be spirit guides?
I had never heard the term spirit guide until six months after my husband passed. The entire idea was pleasing to me, but foreign.
From what I understand, deceased loved ones are not typically guides, but they can be. However, they have to do their work on the other side and be properly trained before being a guide.
Here’s how it unfolded for me…
Six months after my husband passed away, he visited me in a dream. Except that it wasn’t a dream… it was a dream visitation. I describe that here in What is a Dream Visitation.
He told me I had more to do with my life. He told me he was fine, happy, and doing work on the other side. This kind of direct communication from the other side is life-changing… to put it mildly.
However, I didn’t realize he was going to be a guide of mine until later.
Two years later, my mother’s childhood friend (she turned out to be psychic… who knew?), reached out to tell me that he was actually one of my spirit guides.
Even the story of how my mom’s friend reached out to me was bizarre! All of these events, and many more like them, have solidified how complex and expansive this universe is.
By the time she told me this information, I had already guessed it… because I felt it. At this point I was reading all kinds of material about the spiritual realm and was becoming very connected. But, she validated my intuition about his new role in my life.
Deceased loved ones are typically not guides, but they can be if properly trained.
Do spirit guides really exist?
Every person has one, two or more spirit guides. They can enter your life for a short or long time, and when your work is done with them, they move on to something new on the other side.
Actually, you have an entire spirit team to help you fulfill your destiny.
Spirit guides may have been on earth before…. but not necessarily. In Journey of Souls, Michael Newton, Ph.D. describes “guides” in great detail. (it reads like he’s using that term to describe spirit guides.) He writes…
“Guides are figures of grace in our existence because they are part of the fulfillment of our destiny.”
How wonderful that we are given this gift.
We can reincarnate with the same guides or guides will be reassigned as we evolve, learn, and grow based on their areas of expertise.
7 Ways Spirit Guides Communicate with You
How can you tell when your spirit guides are communicating with you? Here are common signs that people often share and personally, I’ve experienced all of them many times.
Here’s my Guide to Spiritual Growth to help you with a framework for what spiritual growth looks like from a soulful point of view.
Jump to different ways spirit guides communicate….
- Dream messages
- Random memory
- Clairs or senses
- Physical sensations
- Increased energy
- Synchronicity – video
- Numbers and symbols
- Signs in nature
- Jump to repeating numbers and symbols
1. Dream messages or visitations
Your spirit guides can visit you in your dreams. Your subconscious mind is more receptive then.
As I mention above, six months after my husband passed he came to me in a dream.
In my dream, I was vacuuming a very sterile, but bright, white house and the doorbell rang. It’s my husband and he looks healthy, happy, and so ginormous he couldn’t fit through the door.
Not that such limits matter to souls.
He looked like a Greek God, which was not how I remembered him.
I’m shocked to see him and I say: What are you doing here?
This is all in the dream… So, we had a conversation I won’t get into, but it was real. (I describe my experience with this more in my book The Butterfly Silhouette: 12 Principles for Following Your Soul, winner of the San Francisco Book Festival in both Spirituality and Poetry.)
After this dream visit, I became obsessed with the idea of deceased loved ones visiting us in dreams.
So, I read The Dreamers Book of the Dead:A Soul Travelers Guide to Death, Dying and the Other Side. This book describes dream visitations like they’re a normal occurrence and doesn’t everyone have them?
Your spirit guides can visit you in dreams. Your subconscious mind is more receptive.
2. Giving you a random memory
When my spirit guides want to show me that they’re with me, they show me a random memory that only I would know about.
The memory my guides give me is usually something random, that I haven’t thought about recently. It’ll just pop in out of nowhere.
For example, I’ll be making toast in the morning and suddenly I’ll have a memory of when I was in IBM training in Vermont many years ago. I wonder, why are they showing me this? What is the message here?
I don’t think it’s about toast!
After many years of working with my spirit guides, I will usually know the nature of the “random memory”, whether it’s a specific message or if they’re simply offering me comfort when needed.
3. Uses clairs or senses
Guides use different ‘clairs’ to communicate with you depending on which sense or clair is strongest for hearing soul guidance.
Think of ‘clairs’ as senses. Clair comes from the French meaning, clear.
The four clairs match up with our own senses:
- Clairvoyence – Clear seeing
- Clairaudience – Clear hearing
- Clairsentience – Clear feeling
- Claircognizance – Clear knowing
For example, after asking my spirit guides a specific question about going to Paris in the fall, I may get a feeling (clairsentience) that going to Paris in September is the perfect time.
Or, I might hear someone say something about Paris and I know intuitively it was meant for me to hear.
Or, something will come across my desk, an opportunity or a windfall of money, that makes it very easy for me to go to Paris… and there’s my answer.
The answer isn’t always clear or immediate, but know that your question is heard and your angels and spirit guides will give you what you need.
4. Physical sensations
Some people feel a tingling sensation, warmth, or even pressure in certain parts of their body when their spirit guide is present. This comforting physical presence can be reassuring during times of doubt or fear.
One way I receive guidance is that I feel a warm rush. I’ll feel this whole body warm sensation of peace and safety. This happens a lot when I’m in the flow.
It’s very cool and wonderful. And I KNOW at the time that it’s coming from my guides. I coined this term, warm rush because it describes exactly what I feel.
When I get a warm rush, I see it as validation of what I was thinking or doing.
Ear ringing
Many people also experience right ear ringing, left ear ringing, or overall ear ringing in both ears.
Right ear ringing is associated with receiving external guidance, likely from spirit guides or higher energies.
While left ear ringing is associated with your inner spiritual world and intuition, spirit guides can play an important role in elevating your frequency which some experience as ear ringing.
For more on an overall explanation of ear ringing, here’s my article on the spiritual meaning of ear ringing.
5. Giving you increased energy around a topic
One of the ways that you know that you’re receiving guidance is that you feel a lot of increased energy in a certain direction.
Maybe it’s not as clear as a specific idea or a sign, but you have increased energy around the topic.
For example, I asked my spirit team if I should get a literary agent for the new edition of my book or if I should self-publish again.
A little while after I made my clear question known, I felt all of this positive energy around self-publishing.I felt energized by the idea of it.
All of these great ideas were flooding in about how it would look, how I would alter the title, and how I would market it. I took this influx of positive energy and ideas as a sign that self-publishing might be the way to go.
One of the ways you know that you’re receiving guidance is that you feel a lot of increased energy in a certain direction.
6. Synchronicity
You can think of synchronicity as a meaningful coincidence.
According to Rebecca Rosen and other spiritual leaders I follow, there is no such thing as actual coincidence.
Synchronicity is a primary way that my spirit guides communicate with me.
There’s meaning behind the seemingly random events. They’re usually not so random! Often, it’s your spirit guides or some other element of your spirit team guiding you.
There’s deeper meaning behind the scenes much more often than you may realize. We live in a remarkably intelligent world, contrary to the chaos around us. I’m not saying everything makes sense, because clearly it doesn’t. However, there’s a lot of spiritual maneuvering helping us navigate this challenging life.
7. Repeating numbers and symbols
Seeing the same symbols repeatedly—such as feathers or numbers—could indicate a message from your spirit guide. It’s as if they’re saying, “I’m here, and I have something to tell you.”
Anyway, the more spiritual work I do, the more regularly I hear guidance. Here is some symbolism I’ve received recently…
Symbols in nature
- A dragonfly jump onto my path and into my car right when I was asking for guidance.
- Another time, my spirit guides showed me woodpecker spiritual symbolism two weeks in a row. First woodpeckers showed up on a hike in a mysterious way (it’s a long story) and then one literally floated outside my car window staring at me 5 inches from my nose! That doesn’t happen!
- Seeing feathers in unlikely places. You get the immediate thought: What is that feather doing here?
- A rabbit crossing my path can be guides trying to get your attention with messages of abundance and new beginnings.
- Ladybugs landing on me and staying with me for a good amount of time. It’s like they’re holding on for dear life:)
Seeing the same symbols repeatedly is typically your spirit team.
Below are articles on numeric symbols and a couple of other common ways spirit communicates with us, that can show up when you need them.
NOTE: Let me stress this point… it’s not usually guidance if you’re actively looking for the symbol. However, it’s more likely guidance if you were in your heart asking for guidance, and when you’re not thinking about it, you go along your way, and the symbol pops onto your radar.
We can’t manufacture spiritual input. 🙂
Spiritual meaning of ear ringing
Skeptical Views on Spirit Guides
While many people experience spirit guides as a comforting presence, it’s worth considering the skeptical side of things.
Some argue that spirit guides are simply manifestations of our subconscious minds—ways for us to make sense of the unknown. This viewpoint emphasizes the psychological aspect of spirit guides, suggesting that they could be a projection of one’s hopefulness.
I don’t agree with this viewpoint, but I include it to offer another perspective. There is simply too much validation, over and over, to not receive the miracles of spirit guides and your larger spirit team.
Deeper truths about God/Source/spirit/universe/nature, etc. are best experienced with the heart, not the mind.
In addition, while they aren’t guides, earth angels are those brave souls who sign up for challenging lives to help evolve their soul family.
If you’ve read this far, your guides are likely closer than you realize. The next sections give you practical ways to invite them in and recognize the relationship that is already forming.
Practical Steps to Connect With Your Spirit Guides
Connecting with spirit guides requires patience, openness, and intention. Here are some practical ways you can foster a connection…
- Meditate with Intention: Set aside time to meditate and invite your spirit guides to join you. This is about quieting your mind and being receptive to the subtle messages they might send.
- Journaling: After meditating, write down any thoughts, impressions, or images that come to mind. This can help you recognize patterns or messages from your guides.
- Ask for Signs: Be direct and ask your spirit guides to send you a specific sign. This practice helps build trust and validation for your connection. Your spirit guides are looking out for your highest good and greatest healing. Warning: You may NOT get that sign, but you’ll receive something else that resonates with you. Here’s my post, questions for spirit guides for a deeper dive into theexact kinds questions you might ask.
- Dream Work: Before going to sleep, set the intention to meet your spirit guide in your dreams. Keep a journal by your bed and write down anything unusual or significant upon waking.
- Daily Rituals: Incorporate spiritual practices into your daily life, like lighting a candle, reciting a prayer, or spending time in nature. These rituals help strengthen your bond with your guides and show them that you’re committed to building this relationship.
How to ask for signs
As Rebecca Rosen says, Just ask. Kind of like Nike. Just do it! It doesn’t have to be a formal thing or a seance or anything like that.
Just speak from the heart. Ask questions. Show them your sincere desire to understand, to have help, to learn and grow.
Meditation is strongly encouraged as it helps you to quiet your mind and hear guidance.
Each morning, I sit quietly and breathe deeply for about three breaths. Then, I say: I invite my Guardian angel and Spirit guides into the moment with me. Thank you. Would you please help me with….
You can ask for help, signs, and information… whatever will serve you along your souls path.
New age and modern mystics
Actually, I am not drawn to modern mystics and most new-age ideas. I’ve not been to a psychic or a tarot card reader and I don’t want my aura read. It’s awesome to do all of these things, I just haven’t.
We all experience our sense of spirit differently and that’s lovely.
But, with spirit guides, now we’re talking about a close and intimate relationship with the spirit world… that feels accessible to me.
Who’s on your spirit team?
Then, there are helpers underneath that can be referred to as a Spirit Team.
As you’re more soul-centered, you get a feel for who’s on your team. For me, this consists of my spirit guides, a guardian angel, ascended masters, archangel Raphael, archangel Michael, akashic beings, and my deceased husband, who is also a guide.
I understand that we have at least one spirit guide and usually two or more assigned to us at different times, based on what we need to learn during that time.
If you’re interested in knowing when your angels and archangels are nearby and helping you, here’s my article: The Spiritual Meaning of 444: Powerful Spiritual Messages You Need to Know
Trusting the Journey
Whether or not you believe in the literal existence of spirit guides, the practice of opening yourself up to spiritual guidance can be incredibly enriching.
It’s about trusting your intuition, being open to signs, and connecting with a higher sense of purpose. Spirit guides provide comfort, guidance, and wisdom and I can’t imagine life without them.
FAQ – Spirit Guides
What is the role of a spirit guide?
A spirit guide helps you stay aligned with your soul’s path. They nudge, whisper, and sometimes push—especially when you’re resisting growth. Their role isn’t to control your life, but to support your evolution. Think of them as wise allies who offer guidance when you’re confused, comfort when you’re afraid, and insight when you’re ready to grow.
How do I know if my spirit guide is trying to communicate with me?
You might feel a strong inner knowing, notice repeating signs, or get a message right when you need it. Spirit guides communicate through intuition, symbols, dreams, and synchronicity. If something keeps showing up and feels meaningful, it’s probably not random. Your guide is trying to get your attention. There are no coincidences.
What are the signs of a spirit guide’s presence?
There are an unlimited number of ways your spirit guides show their presence. Some signs could be repeating numbers, animals appearing in unusual ways, or hearing something at the perfect moment. You might feel a calming presence, a sudden insight, or a shift in perspective. Their energy feels steady, loving, and often shows up when you’re searching for clarity or reassurance. As you know your guides better, you feel their presence.
Can anyone connect with their spirit guides?
Yes. You don’t need special skills—your guides are already with you. The connection begins with your willingness and openness to believe they’re real and invite their support. It’s about tuning into your higher self and trusting what you feel. When you listen with your soul instead of your head, the connection deepens.
What do spirit guides look like?
Spirit guides don’t have a set form. Some appear as humans in dreams or meditation, others as animals, light, or a strong feeling. They’ll show up in ways that make sense to you. It’s less about how they look, more about how you feel when they’re near—steady, safe, and supported.
Do spirit guides choose us or do we choose them?
Your spirit guides are assigned before you’re born. You agree to work together based on the lessons you came here to learn. While guardian angels stay with you your entire life, your spirit guides may change based on where you are in your soul’s evolution. Some deceased loved ones from this life can become a spirit guide to your after proper training. They’re chosen for their ability to support specific parts of your growth—and they always honor your free will.
Can spirit guides help with everyday problems?
Absolutely—but they won’t solve things for you. Spirit guides want you to grow through what you’re facing. They’ll point you toward insight, offer perspective, or nudge you toward the next step. When you’re present and open, they help you find meaning—even in the middle of uncertainty or struggle.
How do I start working with my spirit guides?
Begin by inviting them in. Speak to them like you would a trusted mentor—honestly and from the heart. Then listen. Guidance can come through thoughts, feelings, synchronicities, or dreams. The more you practice noticing and trusting what shows up, the clearer their presence becomes. It’s a relationship that builds over time and with consistency.
Final thoughts
The presence of spirit guides is one of the most amazing gifts of life. You have guides who are part of a larger spirit team, here to walk with you along your soul’s path.
Guides will not step in unless invited, unless it is a life saving situation. You have free will, and they honor it. When you ask, they are there.
Lean on a particular spirit guide if you feel connected to one over another, the way I do with my husband. That closeness deepens over time, and the connection becomes part of how you live.
Spirit guides are here to support your highest good and greatest healing as you grow through your soul lessons. Be true to your soul, this eternal part of you that is connected always, and let your guides walk with you the rest of the way.
