3 questions for a real-life exorcist, who says this Halloween is particularly vulnerable for the spirit world

Exorcist Rachel Stavis has faced down the malevolent entities of the spirit world more times than she can count.

Now, ahead of Halloween, the real-life demon catcher offers a chilling premonition: "This year, expect a few more doors slamming, weird noises and visitations from the deceased."

Stavis is far from the Hollywood depictions seen in films like The Exorcist or The Conjuring series. The only known female and nondenominational exorcist in the world, she's worked with rock icons, Oscar winners and over 10,000 others in her career — giving her the reputation of "Hollywood's best kept secret."

You're sure to see more of Stavis in the coming months now that her best-selling memoir Sister of Darkness: The Chronicles of a Modern Exorcist is in development for a scripted series adaptation at FX, with Pamela Adlon as co-writer and Emma Roberts attached as executive producer.

But first, she's answering some of our questions about demonic possession, like: Has she ever seen someone's head turn all the way around their body while spitting up pea soup?

"Not yet!” she says. "Throw up? Yes. Talk back? Yes. Move their bodies in many other ways? Yes. But not that one!"

Here's more of what Stavis had to say about her process and the various misconceptions she's faced about exorcists over the years. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

1. When did you first feel called to exorcism, and what are some of the misconceptions people have about your work?

As far back as I remember, I could see entities (or demons) with my eyes. I tried hard to push out this "gift," but eventually as I reached adulthood, I couldn't suppress it any longer. At that point, instead of trying to close myself off from it, I decided to allow myself to open up further spiritually. It was then that I began the journey of working on people. I wanted to be able to help everyone, so I work with Spirit directly, which is not tied to any one religion. And of course, I'm not a priest, so being a woman in this field is unusual and not always accepted.

I think one of the big things people don’t know is that not everyone carries what I call "movie-style demons." You know the ones — super dangerous, highly intelligent. [But] most people carry smaller lower-scale entities that they may not even know they have. In my practice, I've helped many of those people, and the result is not what you might think! It's helping people with addictions, with past traumas and even helping people conceive by removing those negative energies and traumas.

2. Are there signs, symptoms or clues you look for before deciding that an exorcism is necessary? Has there been an experience that left a profound impact on you?

It is long believed that mental illness and possession are mutually exclusive, but the truth is, they're not. Because entities attach to people via trauma and low frequency, those who are suffering from mental illness may also have entity attachment, which can make a host of things — including physical illness — much worse. Since I can see entities with my eyes, it's easy for me to decide who needs an exorcism, regardless of what else they may be suffering from.

As far as an experience that left an impact, I can't share what it was exactly, because often when I exorcise significant spaces and landmarks, I have to sign NDAs. But I will say there was one space in particular where the entity within could actually hurt me. It had never happened before and hasn't happened since, but I still have the scars from that night. I am now working on bringing that story to life on the big screen, while still protecting the location.

3. Does Halloween welcome more "active" or heightened paranormal happenings in your experience? We need to know!

Halloween itself isn't necessarily the thinnest veil between worlds every year, but this year in particular, it is very thin. Maybe the thinnest in years. This runs from roughly the end of September until mid-November. So yes, this year expect a few more doors slamming, weird noises and visitations from the deceased.