The Geranium Case: Unearthing Family Secrets and Releasing Generational Burdens Through Hypnotherapy
Abstract: This case study highlights the potential of Transpersonal and Quantum Integrative Hypnotherapy to address complex psychological issues rooted in personal trauma and intergenerational dynamics. The emergence of apparent ancestral channelling and automatic speech underscores the potential for accessing unconscious material beyond conventional memory recall. The therapeutic approach focused on facilitating dialogue, understanding, and forgiveness at multiple levels – personal, familial, and potentially transpersonal – leading to significant symptom reduction and improved quality of life for the client.
Keywords: Obsession, Ancestral Channelling, Automatic Speech, EMDR.
Client’s Profile.
Geranium, a 46-year-old architect and tourist agent living a solitary life in the shadow of unresolved pain, sought therapy for a constellation of difficulties. Beyond the everyday challenges of his career and finding lasting love as a single, homosexual man, he was haunted by a deep-seated fear of his alcoholic father, a man he remembered as a perverted abuser. Physical ailments – allergies, irritable colon, fibromyalgia – further compounded his distress, alongside a pervasive low self-esteem that belied his hard work. “I could never buy a car, a house, good clothes,” he lamented, despite his efforts.
Diagnosis.
Geranium was diagnosed with recurrent depressive disorder, generalized pathological anxiety, pathological mourning, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Therapeutic Intervention.
An eight-session therapeutic contract was established, utilizing a Transpersonal and Quantum Integrative Hypnotherapy approach, facilitated by his sister. Initial sessions focused on self-hypnosis for symptom management and EMDR for processing post-traumatic stress related to paternal abuse and homophobia.
The initial phase focused on empowering Geranium with self-hypnosis techniques for managing his psychosomatic symptoms and challenging negative thought patterns. EMDR was then employed to process the trauma of his father’s direct violence and experiences of homophobia. However, it was in a later, extended session that the therapy took a remarkable turn, delving into the realm of ancestral influence and unresolved family secrets.
The Tunnel and the Whispers of the Past.
Geranium recounted a recurring obsessive nightmare: the vivid image of an orifice, a dark and foreboding tunnel. Guided by the therapist, he drew this image and then, under hypnotic induction, was invited to journey into its depths. “Look inside this tunnel and go inside, right in the centre… See a circle of purple and yellow with this dark centre … Just as you drew … Go inside this tunnel…”. Almost immediately, Geranium regressed to a memory of himself as a three-year-old boy, alone in the dark punishment room of his grandparents’ house.
In this vulnerable state, an unexpected presence emerged – an old man, a disembodied voice speaking through Geranium in what appeared to be channelling or automatic speech. “He is my grandfather Ulysses … Who already died …” the voice declared. The grandfather’s message was one of rage and betrayal: “She killed me, I was suffocated with the pillowcase, I was strangled by Mira … my own woman!” His anger echoed through Geranium, a visceral manifestation of a long-buried family tragedy. “How much evil! How could she?” he cried out.
With respect, the therapist addressed the channelled presence of Mira, the grandmother. After a brief silence, Mira’s voice, again through Geranium, offered a different perspective, a raw confession of unbearable suffering. “It was a lot of suffering for me … He never reacted, the more I did, nothing. He never answered again after he had the stroke … I could not take it anymore … For me it was an excess … Much beyond my powers … I had already lost a child due to cancer … Old … I could not take it anymore … I had to put an end to that…” Her words were laced with remorse. “I have always been very bad … But if I knew consequences, I would not have done it … I suffered a lot after I continue suffering until now … I need to ask forgiveness of Ulysses for peace …”
Development of therapy
The patient was first taught self-hypnosis techniques to support emotional release and self-forgiveness, as well as relaxation strategies aimed at managing fibromyalgia and other psychosomatic symptoms linked to persistent negative thought patterns.
We then proceeded with EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) to address post-traumatic stress events. Particular focus was given to incidents involving direct physical violence from the patient’s father, a truck driver, and traumatic experiences related to homophobia.
Penultimate session (120 minutes):
In this session, Geranium described a recurring obsessive nightmare involving the persistent visualization of an orifice—something resembling a tunnel. I invited him to draw the image to bring more clarity and symbolic understanding to the experience.
Once the task was fulfilled, I requested the hypnotic induction as follows:
Therapist: “Look inside this tunnel… Go deeper, right to the center. Do you see the circle of purple and yellow, with that dark center—just as you drew it? Step into the tunnel…”
Immediately, Geranium enters a memory regression. He finds himself as a three-year-old child, alone in the dark punishment room at his grandparents’ house. An intense presence emerges—an old man’s disembodied voice, loud and wrathful.
Therapist: “With all due respect… perhaps we can help. Please identify yourself. If you’re willing, tell us your story… your message.”
Geranium: “It’s my grandfather… Ulysses. He passed away.”
Grandfather Ulysses then speaks through channelling/psychophony, using Geranium as the medium:
Ulysses (through Geranium): “She killed me! She smothered me with a pillowcase! Mira… my own wife! I was strangled. How could she? So much evil!”
Therapist: “I respectfully ask for the presence of Mrs. Mira…”
After a moment, Mira, the grandmother, is also channelled by Geranium:
Mira (through Geranium): “I was in unbearable pain… He never reacted—not a word, not a sign, after the stroke. I couldn’t take it anymore. It was too much for me. I had already lost a child to cancer. I was old… broken. I felt I had no choice. But if I had known the consequences… I never would have done it. I’ve suffered endlessly. I still suffer. I need to ask Ulysses for forgiveness… I need peace.”
Therapist: “To Mira’s soul, I ask: Would you like the opportunity to meet the soul of your husband, whom you suffocated with the pillowcase?”
Mira: “Yes.”
Therapist: “I call upon the ancestral spirits of the Light from both lineages. May the benevolent souls of the families step forward now.”
Appearing among them are Great-grandmother Isabel (paternal), Great-grandfather André (maternal), and other disembodied relatives. In their presence, the soul of Theodomira (Mira) speaks directly to Ulysses, asking for his forgiveness.
At first, Ulysses resists:
Ulysses: “No… It’s very difficult. I can’t…”
Therapist: “Then I call upon the deepest symbol of your belief—the Heart of Jesus.”
Moments later, softened by this invocation:
Ulysses: “If it will bring me peace… I forgive Mira.”
A pause follows. Then, Geranium visibly sees the souls of his grandparents embracing in light—reunited, forgiven, and ascending together to meet their ancestors through a beam of radiant light.
After this pivotal moment, the therapist gently guides the inner child—three-year-old Geranium—out of the punishment room and away from the memory of the murder. Using the Affective Bridge technique, the therapist reparents the child, offering love, safety, and forgiveness. This includes releasing the brutality endured from his father, and restoring a sense of emotional belonging.
In this sacred space of reconciliation and compassion, the therapist invites the patient to connect with the Heart of Jesus, and together they recite the Lord’s Prayer, a prayer of forgiveness.
To address the unresolved grief regarding Geranium’s former partner, the therapist closes with symbolic metaphors—such as “everything passes”—drawing from positive psychology, encouraging emotional presence, and recommending mindfulness practices for ongoing healing.
Automatic speech in trance
Final Session – Psychophonic Channelling with Geranium
(04/16/2013, 8:15 PM – 9:00 PM)
Under the doctor’s guidance, the session began with Geranium entering a trance state. Through him, the spirit of his deceased father manifested and began to speak. Geranium cried softly as the channelling unfolded…
Father (through Geranium):
“I never knew how to speak… I didn’t know how to say ‘I love you’…
How do I even ask for forgiveness?
You… you are the one who most resembles me. Please, keep trying.
I think… I’ve always lacked expression. When someone can’t express their feelings, they can’t even understand what’s inside.
It’s so hard… to free yourself.
I wish things had been different.
But none of us managed to make it different.
Each of us always wanted things to be different.
So many misunderstandings… even now.
So much suffering in our family ties.
Wounds never resolved.
So much was left behind… great spaces… great distances… between us all.
May God help us to forgive—each other and ourselves.
We need a new arrangement… a new way of being with each other.
We need to overcome our pride—with actions of reconciliation.
We must put an end to this cycle.
Illnesses… they’re indicators.
Signals of the commitments we’ve neglected—to our lives, our bodies, our spirits.
Sometimes illness needs to settle in… just to draw our attention back to what we’ve been ignoring.
Whatever the form it takes—it’s a message.
A call to change our ways…
So that real transformation can begin.
So that the soul may rise.
The body is fragile.
But the spirit… the spirit is learning to grow strong.”
Outcomes:
Following eight hours of therapy, Geranium demonstrated significant positive changes:
- Improved mood and acceptance of his HIV-positive status.
- Disclosure of a long-held family secret regarding his grandfather’s death.
- Forgiveness of his father and release from his spiritual presence.
- Liberation from the spiritual presence of his grandfather.
- Improved physical health (allergies and irritable colon).
- Increased self-esteem and a sense of personal agency.
- Increased motivation for personal and professional growth.
- Openness to new relationships.
Conclusions
In Daisy’s subjective experience, the session consolidated her conviction that her husband was responsible. This breakthrough led to a dramatic shift: Geranium’s partner left the household voluntarily, and reconciliation with her daughter followed.
Geranium’s daughter, now feeling validated, left a previous same-sex relationship, entered a new heterosexual relationship, passed a college entrance exam, and is planning to study in the United States.
Geranium also reconnected with her terminally ill father, who praised her transformation before passing. She received an inheritance, refurbished her apartment, and now plans to study haute cuisine in Spain and France.
Her mother, who recovered from hepatitis B and C, is preparing to welcome new grandchildren in the U.S. Meanwhile, Daisy supported her eldest daughter through her first pregnancy, stepping into her new role as a grandmother.
Biography: Dr Ricardo Feix is a Medical Doctor (CREMERS 7918), graduated from UFRGS (1976) and holds a master’s degree in public health from USP (1985). For 35 years, he has been continuously developing a private clinical practice in Hypnosis and Ericksonian Psychotherapy in the city of Porto Alegre. In 2000, Feix was certified by Jeffrey K. Zeig, PhD, to practice and teach Ericksonian Hypnotherapy after his studies at the Milton H. Erickson Foundation (Phoenix/AZ – USA). In the same year, he was authorized to found the Milton H. Erickson Brazil Sul Institute for the teaching of Hypnotherapy. After completing 360 hours of study with Roger Woolger, PhD, Dr Feix developed Deep Traumatic Memory Resignification (DTMR). Deep Traumatic Memory Resignification, that is a New Regression tool, that goes to the past, present, and future. Since then, he has promoted and participated in courses on this subject in Rio Grande do Sul and in nine other Brazilian capitals, as well as in Mexico and the United States, Canada and France.