PM 051: Championship Mediumship with Steven Trolland

#051 – Steven Trolland CSNU(t), Psychic Medium & Championship Snowboarder, was with me in the studio this week.  Steve discusses his absolute passion for skiing and snowboarding, and he talks of the many difficulties he experienced following the sport he loved, his travels across Europe and what it felt like, despite great adversity, to go on to take 6 podiums and finally to win the British Championship title.  

After his brother sadly passed away, Steve found himself grieving in many different ways. Through his emotional turmoil, he sought comfort and healing in his beloved mountains   and it was here, in the natural world, that mediumship first began to touch his soul.

My name is Ann Théato, and the mission of the Psychic Matters Podcast, is to teach you proven techniques for spiritual and psychic development from the comfort of your own home. I investigate the teachings of experts across the globe, to bring you their wisdom, their advice and their spiritual wealth.

DEAF FRIENDLY: If you'd like to get the links & show notes, including a complete transcription, head to www.anntheato.com

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Transcript

Hello everybody! My name is Ann Theato and welcome to the Psychic Matters Podcast – episode number 51!

My Guest today is a Champion in so many different ways! Just before I share his interview, let me tell you about the generosity and sheer kindness of this man. Steven Trolland is with us today, he is an incredibly talented Medium, dedicated to his work with the spirit world.  And Steven contacted me out of the blue and said, “I’d like to run a fundraising Mediumship event to support the Psychic Matters podcast.  Steven has organised a Special Evening of Soul which will be held on Thursday 10th February 2022 at 7.30 pm UK time zone online so everyone can join from across the world.  Tickets for this event are donation only – so you pay what you can.  If you have a £1, that is fine.  If you have £50 that is fine – whatever you can afford but please can I ask you, to buy a ticket to support the Psychic Matters podcast?  There will be three mediums on the platform for this very special evening, and Steven will be joined by Louise Minhas, Fredrik Haglund – all of whom have volunteered to help support the Psychic Matters podcast.  We are incredibly lucky to have their joint support and please can I ask you, dear listener, to purchase a ticket, to show how much you care about the work we are doing here, to share our knowledge with the world?  To get your ticket please go to https://www.simplyspiritconnections.com/events

Thank you so much.  Meanwhile, settle back and prepare to hear the most amazing stories of dedication, determination and sheer passion, that made Steven Trolland a Master of Snowboarding and a British Champion.

Ann 

I have a very exciting guest for you in the studio today. We are joined by Stephen Trolland.   He is an ex British snowboarding champion. He's taken six podiums and two British titles. And you're probably thinking, why are you interviewing a snowboarding champion, Ann? What's going on? Well, he is a psychic medium, Steve Trolland, CSNUT,  welcome to psychic matters.

Steven 

Thank you. It's a privilege to be here.

Ann

Or it's great to have you here, Steve. Let's begin with a snowboarding because I want to hear about it. I know that I've heard you know, I've heard you. You're this wonderful snowboarding champion. You've got these lovely trophies and titles and things and this really exciting snowboarding career, but I don't know anything about it. So, tell us everything.

Steven

Where do I start? Because it's been such a long journey, emotional journey, of really, in some ways, finding out who I am, as well.  First of all, I live in the beautiful highlands of Scotland, right next to a ski resort, which is just nine miles up the road from me. So, I kind of worked up there for a good few years working at the tors and stuff. But skiing was a passion for me until I put on the snowboard. And then I started getting more compliments on the snowboard than I did on the skis. So, from there, just one year, the Scottish championships came to Cairngorms.  I never, I didn't even think about competition before. So, I thought I’d enter just, just for the fun of it. Never, there is a skill of going around the gates and say, like a slalom or giant slalom and I just tried it. So, the first run, I got to the bottom and I came third, then over all on the first one. And the second run, I blew out of the course.  So, there's a lot of pressure built up on the board, which kind of like, just spat me out of the course. But luckily, there was the Boardercross  and then in the Boardercross , there's six people that go down at a time, all racing for the same line, going over jumps and bumps and round worms and things like that. Where I managed to come second, overall, in that. And for the rest of the season, there was a few more competitions like Memorial Events, and Instructor Races and so on, and so I won all of them. So that was, that was the start of the catalyst to feel like, it just give me more thirst, to just want to do well, to find my passion in life, you know.

Ann

So how did you start then? Did you learn how to ski from a tiny child? Or how did you begin?

Steven

Well, living in the Highlands, in primary school at the time, we managed to get the option to go skiing with the school. And that was once every two weeks. That was weather dependent as well. And got skiing. It was brilliant. I just loved it, I had an instructor there, I think that was the only lessons that I ever had way back then. I remember I used to be able to get on the workers bus, which, because I had friends that worked up there and I managed to get onto the workers bus so get up really early and get a free ticket and the night before I would always, always phone my cousin Billy, because I was quite young then you know, I would phone my cousin Billy, because my mum would always say, you're only going if Billy's going.  So, I'd phone up Billy. And the thing is, I didn't phone Billy at all. I just pressed the numbers and I pretended I was on the phone to Billy and he says okay, I'll see you tomorrow. So, I sneaked up the hill up to the Cairngorms, if you can look at it like that.

Ann

That’s hilarious that you just you just pretended that you were on the phone!  Because mums always used to say that, didn't they? ‘You can only go if so and so is going and  they will look after you’.

Steven

Yeah. But from there, even the snowboarding I remember I used to work in kitchens, for years I used to work in kitchens, as a Kitchen Porter and they are on a split shift.  I finished at two o'clock, and I would have my bike, my board, and everything ready at the kitchen. So, as soon as I finished work, I’d get all my gear on, carry my board and cycle a  mile to the end of the road and then put my thumb out and hitch it to get up the Cairngorms.  And sometimes I'd only get like two runs, but it's just that feeling of, even just going up the tor just, there was just something where I just felt like me, and that exhilaration of just being so high up in the mountains, and just the board was a part of me. And then there was a couple of times that I was late for work getting back again, because I had to hitch it back down the hill, get my bike and sometimes, I remember one time I had a flat tire, so it was really late. That's, that's how passionate I was about it, or is about it?

Ann

Yes, it was just in your blood for my child. What a lovely thing to have, like as, to be able to go skiing as a as a youngster as part of your school curriculum.

Steven

Yeah, yeah. It was.  There wasn't any exams on or anything like that. It was just part of the school. That was good. And I think they still do it. 

Ann

So fantastic for, for the young people. So how then Steve, did you get to enter a championship competition? How did that happen? So obviously, you've got this passion is, it's just so in your veins and then how did you make that next step?

Steven

I found out through a friend that received a letter saying that I had been nominated, or should say, been selected to be on the Scottish Squad. And I didn't receive any letter, but  my friend gave me the letter. And so from there, I don't know, I didn't even know what I was doing. I didn't even know what a portfolio was. I just had it in me. And I thought, I'm going to phone the newspaper. And they were really interested in getting my story in about it. And they've got some good photos of the snowboard. And I remember, I used to do somersaults and all those silly things. And I'm aching bones now to, because it all.  But from there, I just start creating this portfolio and the whole village got together, Aviemore, and they created fundraising events for me like auctions and fun days, to try and create funding to be able to get me to go over to Europe, which is what we did. But it was quite difficult at times, because they were so good at creating a good amount of money. But see, to get a new snowboard for example, it costs like hundreds of pounds. And even just to get the wax to go on the board, the good wax, that cost hundreds as well. And then you got all the travel, it costs £1000’s.  And still I had to try and find sponsorship, more sponsorship when I was going through difficult times because I spent a lot of the money getting my equipment, and so on. But I didn't have enough money to go away. So, I was spending more money on creating more portfolios, so I could send them out. And eventually, there was a café, called Café Mambos in Aviemore and The Old Blidgeon helped me. But Café Mambos and Smirnoff Ice got together. And they helped me, they gave me £3,000 pounds. That was the second season actually. But that's what I had to go away. And I didn't even know I was driving across there. And I didn't even know how to read a map, because I'm quite dyslexic. And so I managed to get a car for £300 pounds, no, it was £250 pounds, actually, a wee Ford Fiesta and then take off on 1000 mile journey, and not knowing how to read a map. So driving through the night down from the Highlands all the way to Dover, and then from there over to Calais, and into a place called Cerseval. But of course, that still wasn't enough to sustain me for the season. Because then I still had accommodation to pay for and all sorts of things. I remember my first race that I went to, I managed to get a job as a kitchen porter at a hotel there. But I wasn't able to get the time off to train, because I was working most days to be able to train to get to races.  So, I managed to swap it for a night watchman. So I was able to, I had to stay awake all night. And then people who come in from, from the pub or whatever, when it's quite late, and all they’d see is this smoke coming up from behind the reception with me waxing my boards behind the reception.  So I'd stay awake all night, and it was pitch black having to snowboard down from, from 1800 metres down to another village, which is 1300 metres and never been done that run before and I remember, it was so beautiful, the moon was shining down upon the clouds and the clouds was like a sea, all the, all the hilltops like a luminous with the snow, as the moon was shining down on them. But those clouds, I had to snowboard into them. So, when you go into the clouds, I couldn't see my hand in front my face hardly. And then all I could feel underneath my feet is the piste, the run, start to go all really bumpy. And then I heard the sound of the piste machine. So, I was thinking that this piste machine won't see me here. So, I was kind of panicking. And then I saw the rope for the piste machine just above my head. And this is a rope, the piste machine will tie to pole, and it helps pull it up the mountain. So it could do snow going up the way at the same time because there's quite a lot of weight on it. So eventually I just managed to, I was quite a little bit of an advantage, because snowboarding in Scotland, you get quite a lot of mist and the runs are quite icy and bumpy. So, I was quite lucky I had a bit of experience at it. So, I managed to get down to the village. And then I was thinking, I just saw the lights. I was just I didn't even know if I was in the right village, you know. And then eventually I saw the sign, and I was, it was that village.  I waited for about 45 minutes, my friend, a guy, one of my best friends lives here. He was teaching over there, introduced me to this guy called      and I met him there. And he drove me to this race. I think it was a place called Pralou, I think it was. Anyway, I got there and then I was trying to enter the race and I had my FIS licence which is for, to the point series we had to get, to follow to be able to get our points up and go towards the Olympics and so on. And then, I was just thinking this is a race, you know, when I got there, the organisers wouldn't let me enter the race because I had the wrong licence. They said and I didn't ever hear of there was a French one and had their own point series. But my friend argued because there was someone else that got in, but he says that I'll be able to enter but I just won't get any points, which was fair enough. For my first race. I did not bad because there was quite high names there.  It was all over Eurosport and stuff like that. And there was over 100 people in it.  I had my starts quite good but I had an, an horrendous crash at one point. And then I remember getting up, I managed to finish the race. Everyone was cheering at me and here's me thinking that everyone else is in front of me, because it's the first three people that get through at the bottom that would go down for another round so it gets into knockouts. And when I got to the bottom, I realised that they all had a crash above me too. So I actually qualified in that race. But there was two people that got through in front of me, and they says, they were saying to me, God, I heard your head hit the ground so hard, are you alright?  And I'm thinking I'm alright, because I can't even remember hitting my head. So back up I went for the next heat and then when I went to go for my run, I was just falling all over the place. I was just so disorientated and what I had was quite a bad concussion. But anyway, I ended up coming overall at 16th of over 100 people from my first race, so that was not bad. I get some, some good names. And then back at the hotel I was looking forward to it coming on Eurosport and it came on. And then there was my first claim to fame, this was, on TV. There was this guy that was sponsored by they do, they used to do snowboards, and they did safety equipment and stuff like that. But this guy had, he came down the border cross track on a motorbike with studded tyres. And he was a famous guy. And he was talking about all the safety gear that you need. And about all the all the padding and the helmets, and he was going into detail. And then and then Eurosport showed the video of my crash afterwards, saying this is why you need safety equipment! So that was my first claim to fame. But it's an experience anyway.

Ann

Oh, my goodness. So, in that second run then, when you had concussion, you weren't able to do that second race because you were falling all over the place?

Steven

Yeah. I didn't qualify because I was, I think I was the sixth person though. So, it was the first three that would go through again to qualify. 

Ann

And so how did you go on then to take the British Championship title?

Steven

Oh, it's a, it's a quite a long story. Because that was a good few years that I was competing and really the politics in snowboarding at the time, with the Federation, Snow Sports GB, Snow Sports Scotland, I mean I was supposed to be part of the squad, I got selected for the British Team, but we had to pay for the coach and so on which, which was £1000’s.  And then pay for travel on top of that, and they hire vans for the season and there was just loads, and accommodation going around everywhere. There was just a phenomenal amount of money. But again, I was lucky enough to get sponsors and things but I was always on a shoelace and one time, with my car at the end of the season, my car was in the garage. And the garage was just about to close in a couple of days. So he could go and, so he could have his holidays, because he's been busy all season, you know, I didn't have any money to get my car out, or even get home, because a sponsor that was supposed to be sponsoring me didn't put anything in.  They kept saying they did but they didn't, he was a bit of a chancer, really.  I ended up managing to sell my boards that I had, then I got enough money to get my car out of the garage and drive home back to Scotland again. So it was always on a shoestring, always. But I just had so much love and support from my home village.  Then so the British Champs was, that was just the title of the British Championships. So, there wasn't any points in it, which I wanted to argue, because say like in skiing, they've got FIS points in it. And what they can do then is invite someone of a different country into the race, someone that's got lots of points, so all those points that that person's got, means that it's a higher point, a race that’s got higher points in it, when there's a rider there that's got loads of points, and then that points will get divided out through the rankings in the race. So, if they couldn't, if they can do it with skiing and I thought, why can't they do with snowboarding, because Britain would have such a higher ranking as well. And it would enable people to be able to move into the World Cup circuit as well. And I just, that was just one of the things that I thought for Britain could improve in some way. I had Members of Parliament help me as well, press, press releases, as well, I was on the news and all sorts of things because one time as well. And this is when I had the British Championship. So I'm going all around the houses here but I’ll get back to it. This is when I had the, the British title is I had the British title but had no money or anything to get back to France to get back in the team to compete, and so on. And the love and the support of the village had an anonymous, I'll keep this person anonymous because they asked to be like that. He's the, he said, if you're, if you're raised so much, we would give you the other half kind of thing. And this, this guy is, is a quite a famous guy. And he's got a motto of, if you're going to help someone, don't give them a fish give him a fishing rod, you see. So this is why he says if you go out and find that, I'll give you the other half. So that was on a press release back home as well. And one of my sponsors, a guy called Alan Monroe, and David Cameron, Upland Developments it was, they give me the other half, which enabled me to go back out to France and go around Europe, but also, I mean it was a difficult road all the time, because even then I was trying to support the team that I was in, and the team needed sponsorship too. So I was always trying to support the coach, too, and his role. But eventually, I decided that I was better off without the team. And I wish I did that a lot sooner, because all that was, was overcharged bills, and so on and unorganised. Myself and a lot of other athletes could have got a lot further if it wasn't for the hard times. But the coach, of course, the British team was still going. And I was turning up at the races and I was I was beating the rest of the team, apart from one person. So, the coach, it didn't look very good on the coach, did it?  So he started to make it hard for me to enter races because he was saying that I had to go through him, saying I want to enter this race. And then they he put it forward to the Federation to organise and enter me into the race, kind of thing. So here I was, driving 14 hours across Europe and turning up at the races only to find that the coach hadn’t entered me at all.  I remember one of them, in one of the races. It was a race two races, one on each day, quite close to me, it was just over the valley from me. And there was another race on. So I asked him, I says, can I enter this race? The one that was close to me? And he says no, because this race is full of team riders and because you're not part of the team, kind of thing, that the team get priority on it. So, I got helped to write an email to the organiser of the race and saying, no doubt my coach has kindly asked you to enter me into the race, kind of thing, but I’m just asking again, just so so I know, because my sponsors and people like that, that are following me, want to know as well. And then organiser came back saying yes, there's loads of space, they couldn't see why I wasn't able to enter through the coach, kind of thing. But this was all added in emails. So, so the courts emailed to me, he had copied in the Chief Executives of Snow Sports, Scotland and so on. So we emailed him back, the Chief Executive of the Snow Sports Scotland, but also the Members of Parliament, and the people that were helping me, and also a newspaper as well, saying that I was able to enter the race kind of thing, you know, so. And it wasn't long after that, that he left, which I mean, I don't hold too many hard feelings in some way, but at the same time, there was, it wasn't just my every day passion, six, six days a week, I was training so hard. My home village, has for years, and so many people got behind me, just for one person to kind of mess it up a little bit, you know. So that was kind of disheartening as well.

Ann

So let me ask you, then, Steve. So you've had your entire village who got behind you, that must have been an incredible feeling. Then you had the MPs, the press that were behind you, you had your incredible support from your anonymous financial supporter there, and, and then you went on, and you won the British Championship. Tell us what that felt like.

Steven

I actually, once I got down in the gondola, and got out of where I was just by myself, I just burst out crying. Because it was something that meant so much, I'm starting to feel a little emotional here, just thinking about it, of how I was able to… it's like a reward to everyone that ever helped me as well. And then that just was, just, just an amazing feeling. What came along with it was, I’d be turning up at kids sports days, and like starting the races, and things like that, you know, there was such a joy in it.  Lots more press, dealing with lots more press as well, newspapers and so on. It was just, it was, it was amazing to be in a space where I could inspire more people. And there was lots of people that were trying to snowboard, as they were trying to move forwards in their career and their passion in snowboarding, they were coming to me and asking me questions of how do you do this? And how do you do that. And it was just such a privilege to be able to, like send them a copy of my portfolio, for example. And if they needed any more advice to try and help them or contact this person, that person might be able to help you, you know, and then see them achieve as well. There was, it's just, I find it hard to get words to explain the feeling of it.

Ann

We can sense it from your voice, though, how much that meant to you, and to the people of Aviemore and everyone who supported you. 

Steve

Thank you. 

Ann

Six podiums, tell me or tell me what you stood on the podiums for six times?

Steven

Oh, the Scottish Championships twice. And then the British Championships, and one was actually on skis, too. So, I did the Boardercross the first day. And this is when I come like second or third. So I did the Boardercross the day before. And then I thought, I would just because I skied before, I’d just try it on skis, because I did a lot of training, you know, I was a strong guy. So I hired a set of skis from the shop at the bottom and got some boots and whatnot. And then I put all the good wax on them. And I ended up coming third in the British Championships on skis as well.

Ann

Amazing. Steve, congratulations, retrospectively for  all of those wonderful achievements. It's so interesting listening to your story. It's just fascinating, isn't it? We should really have dinner sometime, I’ll have to come and have dinner with you and your beautiful wife, Tricia, and you can tell me all abouit it.

Steven

Brilliant. I love that.

Ann

So from that career that you had, and obviously you know with injuries and goodness knows what possibly might have happened to you since then, you had to close a chapter on that part of your life. So what opened up the new chapter of psychic, mediumship, spirituality.

Steven

I think a lot of people come into this movement or this awareness because maybe things just start happening to them, and they want to find out more about it. So just naturally, and sometimes what I've found is, a lot of people go through such a hard time, a difficult time. And that was my case. When I was, my brother passed away.  I was in I was in Austria just before that, and I stayed in my camper van actually there. I had a camper van I bought off eBay for £1000 pounds and I travelled around in that but I was sleeping in like minus 20. And so it was quite hard.  I had that for, I actually lived in it for a little while, it was a Ford Transit campervan. Anyway, I’d just come back from, from Austria. And then I was with my fiancée at the time. And I just had this feeling when we were back at chalet. I just had this feeling of, I just didn't feel right. And I just wanted to phone my mum. So I phoned my mum, and there was no answer, I phoned my dad, there was no answer.  I phoned my sister, there was no answer. And then all of a sudden, all I can explained it as, is I felt my brother fill the room, and a felt his emotion that my soul had been, has been touched by him. And, you know, it's in words, it's hard to explain, because the feeling and the experience is so much more, which I'm sure you understand. And then eventually, I got a call back, saying that my brother had been flown in from, from Inverness hospital, to Aberdeen, because he's had a fall and he’s got a brain haemorrhage. So I just came home, I spent my sponsorship money on all that to get a flight home the next day. And then I just sat by his bed for two days, until eventually the life support machines got switched off.  So that's kind of how, that was the catalyst for it. But from there, I ended up watching, it just came on the TV, you know, like John Edward and the incredible Tony Stockwell who we both know, and I just wanted to really find out more.  There was just this, something in me was just saying, I was so interested in it. So, I ordered the CDs. It was John Edward’s ones. Sorry, Tony. That was John Edward’s ones first. And then a time to meditate, because I’d never meditated before. So I went way up this mountain, and it had stunning views, I would say it was quite a big hill, not a mountain. But over you, it overlooks a beautiful loch, and you're looking down upon the trees and the other lochans, that’swhat we call them, other little lakes, it’s just beautiful there. And I just have this CD on. And I just couldn't follow the, it’s like trying to, I mean for anyone that's had an incredible experience, say, like meeting their guides or through meditation, please don't let these words take it away from you, but I just, I just what was working with me, and I know it will resonate with others, the one that I was listening to, you as I was going, I'm just making this little bit up, I can't remember the CD, but it was to meet your guides. And I was going along a river, over a bridge, in the woods and then in this cabin you will meet your guide. And I don’t know how many times I've tried it, and I've never met my guide there at all. Because there's this part of me that wonders because I was so busy visualising and creating, how do I know that I haven't created that person myself? But so then, what I did is, I just sat and took the headphones out. And I just sat, I closed my eyes. And I just listened to the wind, listened to the nature as it blew across all the tips of the trees. And from there I just kind of sat there in such a space where, when we talk about stillness, it is a stillness, but yet the world is moving around me, nature. And I felt as if I was really connecting like with the wind and I opened up my eyes and you could see the wind as it was blowing all the tips of the trees, making amazing patterns all over the hillsides. Beautiful patterns over the hillsides as the wind, gusts of wind, you can just follow, follow them up the mountain. And I just felt so much a part of it. And I thought I was gonna do this again. So, I just kept going back to the same place. And from there, natural healing started to take place because by then, me and my fiancé at the time went our separate ways, my brother had passed. So, I was kind of grieving in many different ways. Before that I didn’t just, didn't know where I was going, what I was doing, I was in such an emotional turmoil.  if I could explain it in the way as it's an emotion, and a heaviness that completely consumes every part of your being. And you are just physically tired, exhausted. And, and just the world just, was just so hard. And I remember going through those times, I tried to continue with my snowboarding, so I went back to France. And at the end of the season, I was doing my Instructors Courses, because I've got my, I've got the highest qualification to teach snowboarding now. But while I was doing that, I just remember looking down the mountain and think, thinking, if I just snowboarded off that cliff, it would all be over. And I'm so glad that I didn't because now I know it wouldn't have been over, that life still lives you see.  The only thing that stopped me doing something silly like that, is that I couldn't put all those that are supported me, my family, my mum, everyone through the same thing as what happened to my brother. I couldn't put them through that again. And I think that's the that's the only thing that saved me. But through sitting in the presence of what was natural, natural healing took place.  That sensitivity started to strengthen. And then, this was before I went to the college the first time, the Arthur Findlay College, I was listening to Tony Stockwell’s CD, this time and it was called Healing The Wounded Soul. I'd actually, just before that I'd listened to Glyn Edwards Sitting In The Power, I'd recommend that to a lot of people because that made me realise what the power was, and what I was actually sitting in before, when natural healing started taking place. But I just had this feeling, this place, I put on Tony,  I think it was track seven, to meet one of your loved ones. And at that time, I just remember Tony's voice just kind of disappeared into the background as if it was just like, it was just faint, it wasn't in my experience in some way. And a felt, my brother come close. And from there, the closeness is, again, I have absolutely no words that would bring about the reality of that experience of being so close, as two souls were one. And the tears that came through me was his tears. It's like we cried together with the emotional bond. And it was so close where a conversation wasn't even needed. Usually when you see someone, you would think, how are you, kind of thing, or want to speak to them in some way. But within that moment, nothing was needed.  Everything within the presence of my own soul. And my own brother, being completely at one, was all that was ever needed at that time. And then he started to withdraw after a certain period of time. And that's when the conversation of minds started to take place. And I saw my nephew, my sister, I saw a rubber duck and then I saw football and I'm thinking what?  I know my sister is quite open to this, so she wasn't wouldn’t think I was mad, you see, so I went and sent her a message. And she said that my nephew had finished playing with his favourite rubber duck in the bath and was now sitting watching football with his dad. So could be the separate minds in a way but many people have commented on that very kindly, and thinking that it's great evidence, but it was absolutely, just a skiffing of, of the moment that I had my brother before that.  That's an imprint upon my soul that I will forever have.

Ann

Steve, that is just the most beautiful story I think I've ever heard. The way that you've just explained that to everybody listening, it certainly moved me to tears, just sitting in the power of listening to that experience that you had. Thank you so much for sharing that with us all. 

Steven

Thank you. 

Ann

I think that will be incredibly healing, for a lot of people.

Steven

I hope so, I hope so.

Ann

So, your beautiful brother in the spirit world has touched your heart, your mind. That's just wonderful. And did that take you forward then, to go and learn about mediumship?

Steven

Yeah, I've got a friend here. I didn't even know what a circle was or where the college was or anything. I had a friend that just says she had some somebody coming up from Inverness to come and start a circle. And so I just thought, yeah, I'm open to this and I'll go along. And they were nice experiences there, but it didn't quite fulfil me, but it was fulfilling in some way, you see, it didn't feel, well, it was alright. I don't want to put any experiences down because there was nice experience, I mean, being with such close friends. And we know within the harmony of friendship is the strength within a demonstration, within a private reading. The Spirit World need, the same lady, that took the circle for us, I just decided to go and say hello one time in Inverness. And she said that the Spiritualist church is on tonight. I didn't have a clue what this, the Spiritualist church was, and I went there, I sat, sat down. And then there was a really nice lady next to me, you know, and she is talking away. And I watched the medium work and oh, just the inner yearning that I had of just, I just want to know more. And just, how does this work? I'm just so fascinated. And the lady went to go and speak to the person on the Chair, one of the Chair people, and from there, I got invited into the circle. And then the circle leader from there kind of made me aware of the Arthur Findlay College, I didn't have a clue. I was working at the time, gardening for the Highland Council and of course, I needed time, to get off, time off so I could go to the college. And then where am I going to get the money also? But my credit card came in handy. I didn't have a clue how I was going to get the time off, but I just did it. It just felt right. And then, I wasn't long afterwards, is when all the injuries that I had from snowboarding started to take a little bit a toll on my back and I ended up having to take a little bit of time off work and it ended up being the right time for, that the college was on. And see it that course it was Tony's course it was called Embrace The Spirit. I’ll always remember that first one because being through such an emotional beauty of bringing about the reality of the spirit world within that space, was something that, and then also to the heights of laughter, if you think of the range of emotions that you can go through with such beauty and joy, happiness, laughter, that was that was one.  I remember being and this is when I'm starting to realise more so, is the naturalness within mediumship is what I'm starting to investigate even more so now. Because in the class, you know, at school, I was terrible, trying to listen, because I would always go off in these daydreams. And of course, the tutor was talking at the college. And there was a good few people in the class. And of course, I'm going away off in this daydream again, as I do these daydreams, but within this daydream now, it's like, it's an altered state of consciousness. And within that space, if you think about a dream or a daydream, you can have feelings, emotions, and, and so on. And I was carrying all these feelings and emotions, I can't even remember what it was about because it was just like a passing thought. And then what happened is that all I heard is, Stephen, you could go first. Of course, I didn't have a clue what the exercise was. But I'd stood up and he says, I've just got to share this. And what I shared, was actually the exercise of what she was talking about, although I didn't even hear it. So, it shows there is that other part of us listening. And if we're ever able to listen to that part, you see our journey into mediumship and even just to be fulfilling our soul, is the meeting space, which is of our own spirit, and which is our soul. That sensitivity, where all that is, clear hearing, clear knowing, whatever you want to call it, was the meeting place between us and the spirit world. And that was just, I remember that that one experience there. And of course, there was friends that I met there. And there was a place called Hafan y Coed, I don't know if I’m saying that right, but it’s in Wales, and I went there to meet my friends and so on, again, off in my camper van like I did in my snowboarding, spending the last of my money whatever I had.  And there, I remember having the experience as I sat down in my room. And I just go off in this daydream again. But then I felt a little girl there. And then from there, I didn't consciously, the experience that I know now, I didn't consciously say, how old are you? What colour of hair do you have? All these things.  For some reason I knew. I knew she had blonde hair. I knew she was four years old. I knew she wanted to speak to her father.  Now, looking back at that, the real conversation is happening from Spirit to Spirit, our spirit to their spirit.  Where now I realise also, that the conscious mind is simply the observer of an experience. And then, of course, I wasn't, I didn't feel ready to be on platform at all. But I got selected to go on the platform for a student demonstration. Well, actually, they invited some of the public in as well. So of course, I’m so nervous, but again, that little girl came close. And I felt her when there was a specific song that was playing during the demonstration. And I ended up being with her father, and the feelings and the emotions that came with it, it certainly touched us all, fulfilling my soul at the same time and then it wasn't until afterwards I was speaking to him, and he said, I felt her during that song, which was the same song. So, if you think of that the connection between me, him, and that little girl in the spirit, was already there and all I did is just stand up in that space and give what I got.

Ann  

Again, another beautiful story. And it explains so clearly how mediumship can touch our mind and how we are all connected as soul beings. 

Steven

Yeah. 

Ann

Thank you, Steve. So I know you've gone on to be a Certificate Holder of the Spiritualist’s National Union and you are also a CSNUt, ‘T’ for Teacher, so you've obviously taken your experiences and you've, you know, you're, you're highly qualified in what you're doing, which is just beautiful. And just going back to that wonderful, oh, that beautiful feeling that you explained to all of us about your brother coming so close to you in those moments, I'm sure there may be people listening to this who might think, well, I would love to contact my loved one in the same way. So, can you give those people some sort of method or exercise whereby they may be able to sit in that daydream space and bring their loved ones forward? Or they can't bring their loved ones forward but maybe make a space for them to be …

Steven  

Be the creator of a condition? 

Ann

Yes. 

Steven

Yes, I mean, everyone's different. Everyone has got their own ways. And yes, it does take a little bit of focus. But it's over time, is what we need, and dedication that comes with it, to sit within the presence of your own spirit, which is your own soul, where all that sensitivity is, which is of the meeting place. And this is why also, it's such a personal journey, a unique journey for each person, because there's no one else in this world that is you, meaning you’re unique. And that's just a small part of what makes you beautiful. Sitting in that beauty of you, is what I would recommend. But to start I would just simply take your awareness to your breath. And it's hard not to try, because the conscious mind always wants to make it happen. But it's something that's been naturally around for hundreds of years, since man touched this earth, so if it’s something that’s natural, it’s natural within you. And if you just give it that time of  sitting, just listening to your breath. Sometimes certain music can help you, help stimulate emotions and move emotions. So, I would say pick a song, or music that suits you. It doesn't always have to be like meditation music.  I’ve had many experiences with my brother and others, just through a song, of feeling the emotion through a song. And through that words in the song, it is like their thoughts, their emotions has touched my soul. So said, learn your art of surrender. And I would say concentrate upon your breath. As the breath is natural. And the breath is something that will naturally relax the physical body. So, the more the physical body is relaxed, the less the brain and the logic mind has an impact upon the screen of the mind. Just a physical thoughts has an impact upon the screen of the mind. And the more relaxed you are, the more opportunity your soul has to touch you. Sometimes when you come round afterwards, it's just a feeling of peace. Sometimes you don't know how far you've actually gone, how should I say, how deep you've gone until you come round, so try not to try. And I would say also, I would recommend for everyone to find or create a home circle, even if it's just two people, but to sit for the altered states.  Not for the purpose of trance speaking or physical mediumship or anything like that. But just for the purpose of allowing your soul to take that journey and allowing in those in the spirit world to get to know you. Because when we think of it, in this life, we think maybe who is my guide, or who are those in the spirit world. We want to go to them. I was contemplating this one time. Get to know your guides I hear heard quite a lot and it's not wrong. But I was contemplating this one time, and this is again unique to me, but it might touch some of you, of when I was contemplating it, I felt, I'll call them friends, I felt my one of my friends come close, inspirer if you like.  And they said, it's not about you getting to know us. It's about you sitting with reverence, and allowing us to get to know you, but within the power, which is of a soul, and within the blending. And as we get to know you, you're become to know us. So it reveals itself in its own way, which is unique to you. And I would say, celebrate that uniqueness of who you are. Because within that uniqueness, there you are.

Ann

Steve, thank you so much listening to your words, it's the aural equivalent of looking at a painting. It's just beautiful sitting, listening to you. 

Steven

Thank you. 

Ann

Thank you so much for coming onto the show and sharing your beautiful stories, your championship stories, your champion brother as well in spirit who has come through and touched you,   so that you can come and touch us. And so we thank him very much for that. And, Steve, we wish you all the very best. 

Steven

Thank you.  You’d better not thank him too much. he’ll be getting a big head there, he always says he's the handsome one, you know?

Ann

Bless his heart. And I know just before you go there are another couple of experiences you wanted to share with us.

Steven

Just experiences when I was snowboarding again and of course it comes with its injuries. The, the first time I went to the British Champs is when I was actually working in that hotel as a night watchman. And there was a few people that were driving to the British Champs, which was in Austria. I didn't even know we had to go through Italy, or wherever to get there, I just sat in the car and went so we can share the costs. And when I was there, it was Austria, it was Mayrhofen the place was, and I didn't even know where I was going to stay. But I was lucky enough that I come from a ski resort where I found friends there and I was able to to crash on the floor and for the time. But anyway, my friend, my good friend, Alan Baxter, who's, he won a medal at the Olympics in skiing, and he was quite famous at the time, I’d been in school with him since primary one. But he came, because he lived quite close by where he was training. And of course, I only had enough money to get my train, train back and I didn't have any more money to pay for accommodation or anything like that. So, he says, well, if you, you stay behind, we can just catch up and I'll help, I'll give you a lift to the train station the next day and then I can help you with your train fare. So I thought that's great. So, so I spent the rest of my money on my night’s accommodation. And guess what happened the next morning?  There was a power cut in the hotel where I was and it was just like a little small hotel. Of course, the alarm was off, I slept in, I missed my  lift. I was stranded in Austria, but I was actually stranded with a broken wrist because I crashed on that Boardercross.  I had a broken wrist and my hip actually felt worse at the time and I had to carry this, this massive, massive bag and it had like three or four different snowboards in it. There's hard boots, which is like ski boots, and I had soft boots, my iron all my wax, my clothes, everything and I had to carry all this with my bad hip and broken wrist. My friend Leslie McKenna, she was able to take us to the train station, her husband, not her husband, her partner at the time, helped me with the train fare and obviously I paid him back, I’ve paid him back now. But anyway, he helped me back, but on that train journey on the way home, I'll be back to France again. I didn't have any money for any food, I didn't have anything to drink or nothing. I couldn't use my phone because I didn't have any credit in it and because I had no money to put any credit in it and I got to Geneva it was, I think it was Geneva, and the train from there to go to a place called, oh I can't remember, it's a little village, to get my next train, St Julien-en-Genevois, I think it was the name of the place. I don't think much of my French, but I try.  Yeah, I ended up getting up from the table from where I was and carrying my bags and I got off the train. And then the length of the train that I had to run down to try and get the next train, because I was at the carriage way at the back, and all I heard was through the loudspeakers saying this train is about to leave. So, I had to try and run all the length of this train with my broken wrist and my hip and 

carrying all these bags, to catch the next one, and I caught the next one. But when I had to change trains, again, the next train wasn't for another six hours. So, sitting in this train station, pitch black. And you could hear these kind of gangs, a lot of people, groups going around smashing bottles and things like that, I'm thinking I'm not in a good place here. So I managed to speak to a train guard, he leant me his phone. And I tried to phone to try and get a lift back from someone, but I couldn't reach anyone. And he gave me this room to go in. So I locked the door, and switched off all the lights, so I could get the next train on the way back, but I was so happy to see my friends once I got back, so I could scrounge some food off them.

Ann

You poor thing, what hardships you have been through to be a champion, my goodness. 

Steven

And there's more, in the camper van again, this one was in, there was a place just beside St Moritz and I went through Italy and I drove there. And of course, it was a really windy road because you're going up and over a pass, and the pass is over the Alps, but on that race, I was doing quite well, I was doing really well. So I qualified, and I was at that time, there was four people in the races then instead of six because they changed the rules. So there's four people in the race, and I managed to get past two of them. And we're going over big, they are called rollers like big camel humps, and they'll be quite high. But I was hitting them at speed can spit you in the air if you don't lift your knees up to you and suck them up enough. And I was doing well. I was gaining past the two and I was gaining on the guy that was first and I was just about to pass him. And he fell in front of me. And I just kept flying down on top of one of these big humps. And again, I damaged my elbow. It's like my arm. It's not supposed to bend the other way. But that's what it felt like at the time. And there was people running down to me, they were observing the race, asking if I was alright because they thought I’d dislocated my shoulder or something, but I just got up and I managed to, because I had to try and get up a jump here. So, I could carry on so I took my one foot out. So I hopped up there on top of the jump, put my foot back in, finished the race because I didn't want to miss out on any points. So, I finished the race. And I laid down at the other side and I was just in so much pain. And they came with the skidoo and with one of these silver bags that can wrap you up in and none of them spoke English at the time. But ended up I was fine-ish. But I had to drive again from Switzerland through Italy, all the way back to France again. So I had one hand to drive with, my left hand. Because I couldn't even squeeze my hands on my right hand, because there was so much pain. So going round this windy pass again, trying to change the gears and trying to grab the steering wheel and trying to turn it one hand, it was the right job.

Ann

Oh my goodness, it sounds agony.

Steven

I got got up, there's loads of injuries, broken ribs, loads of things. So those I don't miss, but my achievements and the lifestyle of the exhilaration of just, you know, like when it's like in mediumship, you got to be in that moment. And it’s the same that I had with my snowboarding, I felt so free of anything, any thoughts that held me back in this life, they  just didn't exist, apart from the exhilaration of being in that moment on my board. And that's what I lived for. Now, I have got that same passion for my mediumship and I live for that now.

Ann

Thank you so much for sharing all your stories. It's just incredible. And I do think it is that isn't it? It is living in the moment. That's the, we've only ever got the now, haven't we? And we can be fully 100% present in the moment, that’s what life is.

Steven

That's sitting in the power as well isn’t it, just being in that moment.  There was one other thought I would just maybe like to leave those that are starting their journey or even in their journey of their unfoldment of psychic and mediumship, is the purpose already within the power? Or do we add purpose to it? When we stand up on the platform for example? And if we do, can we be taken away from an intelligence that's already at work? And that's a nice thought to ponder over. Because I feel we look really much, look very much into that, we're looking at finding the naturalness there, and that there's already a conversation happening beyond the logic of the conscious mind. But when we take our focus to a certain space, we can become aware of that conversation and be the medium for that, to be the voice for that. Something to ponder over. 

Ann

That's a fantastic thing to ponder over. Steven Trolland, thank you so much for joining us today.

Steven

Thank you. It's been such a privilege and just sharing these stories that just kind of brings it alive in me as well and it is just fulfilling certainly.

Ann

Beautiful, thank you.

Steven

Thank you. 

Ann

Steven Trolland there, everybody, what an incredibly inspiring man. If you would like to get in contact with Steven, or find out a little more about him and the work that he is doing, or perhaps you would like to book a 1:1 private sitting with him or find out about the courses he is teaching, please visit his website https://www.simplyspiritconnections.com.

All the resources for this episode, including a full transcript and are over on my website under podcasts, so do head over there and you can pick everything up on the show notes. www.anntheato.com.  

Don’t forget to book your ticket for a Special Evening of Soul, on February 10th which Steven is organising to supporting the Psychic Matters podcast, along with Louis Minhas and Fredrik Haglund and tickets are available on Steven’s website under events.

Thank you so much to all of you out there who are listening, I really appreciate your listening ears and if you have got a spare few minutes,  I would truly appreciate it if you could leave me written review on Apple Podcasts, that would really make my day!

 …. until next time… my name is Ann and thank you for listening to PSYCHIC MATTERS!