Podcast Summary: The Drop the Needle Podcast

Episode 52: When Medicine Meets Mediumship | ICU Nurse Turned Psychic Medium with Nick Lodato

Date: February 12, 2026
Host: Jim Allstatt
Guest: Nick Lodato – Nurse Practitioner, Psychic Medium

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Jim Allstatt interviews Nick Lodato—an ICU nurse practitioner who also works as a professional psychic medium, blending medical science with spirit communication. The conversation explores Nick’s unique personal journey, his approach to mediumship, how he bridges rational skepticism with spiritual practice, and the transformative power of both healing and music.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Nick’s Dual Path: Medicine and Mediumship

• Background (04:15):
  • Nick details his journey: a nurse practitioner working in NY ICUs during the COVID crisis, and his parallel awakening to psychic abilities, which first appeared as anxiety in childhood.
  • As a teenager, he trained with renowned medium Pat Longo (mentor to Teresa Caputo and Kim Russo), which helped him recognize and control his psychic gifts.
• Quote:
  “I had one foot in the scientific world and one foot in the spiritual mediumship world. And I feel like that's very important, at least for me personally. It keeps me grounded.” (05:06)

2. Science, Skepticism, and the Woo-Woo Factor

• Integrating Science with Spirituality (07:18):
  • Nick approaches readings scientifically, grounding spiritual experience in quantum physics and energy theory.
  • He intentionally avoids “woo-woo” stereotypes to add credibility, citing his medical career and desire to help skeptics feel more comfortable.
• Quote:
  “I believe we live in the matrix. Quantum physics tells us that we are made up of atoms and particles, that it's in everything. And energy, you know, cannot be created nor destroyed. So as the soul...it’s just energy in a different format.” (07:38)
• Healing the Family (08:53):
  • Nick asserts the spiritual healing is often for survivors, not the departed:
    “It’s the family that’s left behind. That's where I feel and see the pain. Not so much with the soul crossing over.” (08:53)

3. ICU Experiences & Sensing Transition

• What It Feels Like at the Moment of Death (09:29):
  • Nick describes a palpable sense of release or freedom when a patient passes, feeling the contrast between the joy of souls “on the other side” and the pain of grieving families in the physical world.
• Quote:
  “Spirit is usually so, so happy...This heavenly feel to them, this release. Maybe the contrast of how sad we may feel in the 3D as humans, but then...how happy they feel in their heavenly sets.” (10:39)

4. Intuition, Anxiety, and Mediumship

• Early Gifts Misunderstood (32:35):
  • Anxiety and fear in childhood masked precocious mediumistic sensitivities.
  • Hearing voices as a teen prompted concerns about mental illness until meeting Pat Longo clarified his gifts and taught him energetic self-care tools.
• Quote:
  “I was fearing death, but not for myself, for like my family members. Like, it was very intense, dark things...My teenage years were actually more about the voices that I...started hearing my name being called.” (33:12)

5. On “Psychic Therapy” and Spiritual Healing

• Therapeutic Approach (14:40):
  • Nick prefers the term “psychic therapy,” focusing on emotional healing, closure, and self-empowerment through readings.
  • He describes his adjunct work teaching “The Art of Healing” at a university, emphasizing intuition and karmic cycles over fortune-telling clichés.
• Quote:
  “I like to go much deeper than that...I like to talk about life purpose and karmic cycles...it really is like psychic therapy. That's how I like to think of it.” (15:27)
  • On de-stigmatizing readings:
    “I always put it out there. Whoever's meant to find me for reading is meant to...it’ll happen.” (13:17)

6. Toolbox for Mediumship

• Energetic Tools (36:54):
  • Nick outlines his process: Surround, Ground, and Shield—visualizing protective energy bubbles, practicing present-moment grounding, and energetic boundaries.
  • He teaches this to others, noting its simplicity and effectiveness for managing sensitive energy.
• Recommended Book:
  The Gifts Beneath Your Anxiety by Pat Longo, which features Nick’s own story and practical guidance for sensitive individuals.

7. Duality, Darkness, and Light

• Balancing Human and Spiritual Energies (27:03):
  • Nick emphasizes duality as inherent to human and spiritual life.
    “You have to get A paycheck...on the other side is our human connection...how do you balance that?” (27:03)
  • On darkness vs. light:
    “When you engage in dark, you attract dark...But I truly believe we all have God inside us, right? Or a piece of the universe.” (29:29–29:56)

8. On Mentorship and Demystifying Mediumship

• Continuing Pat Longo’s Legacy (54:22):
  • Nick mentors younger mediums and aims to teach others the tools of intuition, hoping to demystify mediumship, foster community, and normalize spiritual practice.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Losing Loved Ones and Guilt (24:00):
  "They always think of, 'Oh, could I have done more? Are they mad at me?' And it’s always the same messages, like, no, no, you were present. You were there. You were sending me love." (24:00)

• On Reading Style and Humor (48:47):

  • Nick recounts a gallery reading where a “Santa Claus”-like spirit humorously haunted his former house:
    "That reading in particular, the spirit was saying that he more or less, like, haunts the house, and then the woman said the people who bought it…moved out right away." (49:19)

• On Educating Skeptics (57:40):

  • “Bring education to it...I talk about like the Matrix and quantum physics and energy, because I really think it actually solidifies in a way where it’s like, we really don’t know what goes on around us.” (57:40)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 03:14 – Nick’s introduction; his background in ICU and as a medium
• 07:18 – Discussing the science behind spirit and bridging skepticism
• 09:29 – Sensing death as a nurse and differentiating spirit experience
• 14:40 – “Psychic therapy” explained and spiritual healing’s true purpose
• 32:35 – Early psychic experiences mistaken for anxiety
• 36:54 – Spiritual toolbox: surround, ground, and shield technique
• 54:22 – Mentoring, teaching, and community-building in mediumship
• 57:40 – Destigmatizing mediumship; the importance of education
• 58:18 – Musical questions: Nick’s formative and favorite songs

Musical Segment: Nick’s Soundtrack to the Soul

• First song loved: "Drops of Jupiter" (Train), "Calling All Angels" (Train) (58:47)
• Family road trip song: "It Wasn’t Me" (Shaggy) (60:11)
• Senior year anthem: "Empire State of Mind" (Jay-Z) (60:55)
• Song for positive energy: "Started from the Bottom" (Drake) (62:02)
• Guilty pleasure: Justin Bieber tracks (63:01)
• Song to change worldview: "Love Yourz" (J. Cole) (64:35)
• Song that stops him in his tracks: "Look What You've Done" (Drake)—dedicated to his mother (66:45)

Closing & Contact

• Nick’s Contact:
  • Email: nickspiritual1 (the number 1) at gmail.com (68:10)

Summary Tone:
Warm, compassionate, slightly irreverent, and welcoming. Nick is humble, earnest, and focused on healing. Jim’s hosting style is inclusive, curious, and conversational, creating an inviting atmosphere for both skeptics and believers.

This episode offers a heartfelt, bridge-building discussion for anyone curious about blending science, spirituality, and the healing power of both intuition and music.