Many of us grapple with the thought of our own mortality. It’s a frightening unknown cloaked in mystery, but it doesn’t have to be.

My son, Erik, took his own life just after his 20th birthday. Since he was 14 years old, he struggled with severe bipolar disease. On top of this, he had odd tics and learning disabilities, and all of this caused him to be target of bullies, even teachers.

Of course my family and I were devastated, and my grief was compounded by the fact that I was raised by atheists so I didn’t even know whether or not there was anything after death. I didn’t know if Erik still existed. That all changed when he visited my staunchly atheist father three days after his death. You can imagine his panic.

In the weeks that followed, we all began to receive visits from Erik, even physical manifestations and phone calls. He also played a number of pranks on us: turning on water faucets, making unplugged appliances work, dropping Airsoft BBs from the ceiling, leaving nasty smell like dirty gym socks and pot, turning deadbolts in front of us, moving objects, like salt and pepper shakers, having things disappear and then reappear in a different place, etc. He even called us on the telephone and appeared before us, physically.

I was so intrigued by all of this that I sought the help of mediums. Before Erik’s death, my image of a medium was a gypsy hunched over a crystal ball, but my opinion changed after one medium, Jamie Butler, was able to give me information about Erik that simply couldn’t be dismissed. My first session with Jamie Butler was particularly convincing. I purposely didn’t tell her that Erik had died, but she said, “You’ve lost a son to suicide.” At first I thought, “Maybe she read his obituary. Let’s go on.” Then she shared facts that were not in his obituary: that he took his life, that he did so by a gunshot wound to the head and that he was sitting at his desk at the time. She even told me the type of gun he used, the description of the clothes was wearing, and the sailor talk that peppered his language.

After that, I continued having sessions with Jamie, and what I learned from her and my own pranks and visits from Erik prompted me to start the blog, Channeling Erik. I knew there were people out there like me who had lost loved ones, so I wanted to give them a place to share their pain. I also wanted a way to vent my grief, and I knew that by helping others I’d be helping myself, setting me on a path to healing.

Eventually, I began to share Erik’s pranks, visits and physical manifestations with the blog members, and then blog members across the world reported different visits from Erik, mostly pranks. The “Erik Phenomenon” was born. Now they adore Erik and his mischief. Some of them get jealous when others get punked and they don’t. More importantly, Erik, in his role as a spirit guide, gives the blog members guidance and support, often nudging them to the book or blog so that they could get the help they needed.

Over the last five years, Erik has shares his insights about death, the life of a spirit, the afterlife, the human experience and more. Having this information gives those who have lost loved one the comfort that they still exist and that they’re in a good place in good hands.

One thing unique about Erik is his style. He’s candid, casual and often blunt. That and the sailor talk make him more approachable unlike other spirits who begin with, “Welcome, my dear one.” As far as the bad language is concerned, Erik explains it this way: “Words are just a string of letters. They get their power from the intent behind them,” and his intent is pure and loving.

Eventually I wrote a book, My Son and The Afterlife: Conversations from the Other Side, to share my journey from skepticism to belief, a journey that was littered with potholes.

Erik suggested authoring his own book so through Jamie, he did. In this new book, entitled My Life After Death: Memoirs from Heaven, he describes his personal journey from his death to the present. In the first several chapters, he shares the details of his death, his goodbyes to us, his visit to his funeral, his crossing over, his life review and the therapy he had to go through to heal from the fact that he committed suicide. He also gives an account of the many things he has to adjust to: his new body and how it moves, the changes in his senses and emotions, how to manifest material objects as well as different realities, how timelessness works in his new realm and how to split himself into an infinite number of “Eriks.”

Then he shares what the afterlife is like, first from his initial impressions and them from his ongoing exploration. For example, there are actual cities in Heaven, but they’re different than those we have on Earth. Some of the buildings are look crystalline. They have spires reaching to the sky—yes, there is a sky—and those buildings are made out of spirits. He shares the wildlife there as well.

Eventually, Erik met God, and he discussed that meeting in great detail: what God is, what God looks like, and what they discussed.

He explains that spirits have “jobs” in Heaven, but they’re more like passions. Many are spirits, like him, guide humans on Earth.

Last, Erik shares his journey as a spirit guide: How he learned to be the best one he could and how he works with humans on Earth, particularly blog members. In the end, Erik has found his footing in this new place and he’s found himself like he never could on Earth. Now, he loves himself for the first time, just like I have always loved him and always will.