I have been praying devoutly since I was about 4. The type of praying that is everyday and not just on Sundays. The type of devout ( Catholic) that compelled me to pray in church on sunny summer afternoons in the middle of the week when I was 9. My mother felt compelled to put an end to that, as she found it strange ( I cant really blame her) and I was also having visions. She hoped that forbidding me from church would stop the visions; it did not. I started to also meditate at 14, along with reading the Bhagavad Gita every day. I had not heard of this book prior, nor knew anyone else that read it. Just me, happily reading it everyday. I also would read the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, and of course, Kahlil Gibran. I have found exploring my own consciousness a lifelong and endless fascination.
While in my forties, I was initiated into Shamanism. (un-beckoned by me, but driven by the world of Spirit) My own Soul and health were in such dire straights that I received a dispensation of sorts, from Helpers in the Unseen World. I guess they felt compelled to help put me back together; only I was put together in a new way. (Shamanic types will know what I mean when I say this)
I have far memories of myself in other lifetimes doing similar work, (healing and contemplative) so it makes sense (perceived from a larger scale of my Being) that I would continue to do this work in this lifetime.
The ability of speaking with the disincarnate (Departed), as well as Angels and Interdimensional Beings was a natural process, given my decades worth of contemplative time. I did not pursue or train for this ability.
It came naturally, after attaining a certain degree of awareness.