Signs After Death: Communication From Loved Ones

It has been one year and seven months since my husband Phil made the transition across the veil. In that time, I’ve experienced many forms of connection—through butterflies and flowers, repeating phrases or memes on social media that echo a thought he had just sent when I was struggling, and through two dreams that feel more like visitations than imagination.

Over time, I came to understand that this is how our loved ones most often communicate with us—not through dramatic signs, but through subtle, familiar channels that meet us where we already are. Our loved ones are with us, but at a different frequency. Because they no longer communicate through spoken words, connection often happens through telepathy.

Most of the time this communication is subtle and familiar, which is why learning to trust it takes time.

How loved ones communicate:

• Through our thoughts

At first, this was the hardest for me to trust because the thoughts sounded like my own. Over time, I learned that many skilled mediums experience communication this same way. Spirit does not usually interrupt the mind; it blends gently into it. The distinction isn’t volume, but quality—the timing, tone, and loving intelligence behind the thought.

• Through signs and synchronicities

Repeating symbols, meaningful coincidences, or specific phrases appearing at just the right moment. These experiences often carry reassurance or a quiet sense of being seen.

• Through dreams

Dreams allow the thinking mind to soften, making communication easier. These dreams often feel vivid, emotionally real, and leave a lingering sense of presence.

• Through felt sense and inner knowing

A sudden calm, warmth, or clarity that arises without logical cause—communication felt through the heart and body rather than the intellect.

• Through memory activated by love

A remembered phrase or presence that arrives with freshness, not nostalgia. These moments feel alive, not past-based.

While most communication happens in subtle ways, there are rare moments when the connection feels unmistakably physical or visual.

About two months after Phil passed on July 29, 2024, I was napping in the living room when I opened my eyes and saw him standing in front of our backyard door. He had a solid, fully formed body and was wearing his usual jeans, blue polo, and sneakers. He looked healthy and much younger—about mid-30s. He was 69 when he transitioned.

He clapped his hands three times and then disappeared within seconds. I feel deeply grateful for this experience, especially knowing how much I was grieving at the time and later learning that it took a great deal of energy for him to materialize.

A year later, after I sold our house and moved into my current apartment, I was standing in the kitchen when I felt the back of my hair being pulled twice. My first thought was that it might be a spider 😅—but then I realized it was Phil getting my attention.

Experiences like these are not a measure of love, worthiness, or connection. Many people never see or feel physical signs, yet remain deeply connected to those they love. Communication takes the form that best supports each person’s nervous system, grief process, and capacity to receive.

Whether through a quiet thought, a dream, a sign, or a rare moment of unmistakable presence, love finds a way to remain in relationship.

Link to my post: Imagination as a Bridge: Where Love Still Meets