Regression as a Process Precludes “Failure”: Therapeutic Reason and Purpose in the Client Not Regressing – Sydney S. Heflin (Is.18)
Sydney S. Heflin, Ed.D. My clients, who wish to experience past-life regression for the first time, often express the concern that they will not regress or will not access a past life. It has been my experience with clients that, technically, there is no such phenomenon as “failure” to regress; that there is, indeed, therapeutic reason and purpose in the client’s not regressing in what is often considered the traditional manner. Certainly, there are those individuals who do not access a past life in the first, and sometimes subsequent, sessions. However, I do not regard these experiences as “failures.” Rather, I view them as progressive steps on the path of the client to uncovering information that is valuable to the client, as well as to me as the therapist. In my experience, if the therapist and client make the commitment, before beginning the initial regression session, to work through whatever
When is a Failure to Regress a Real Failure? Traditional NLP may help. – Robert T. James (Is.18)
Robert T. James, J.D. I feel certain that most therapists who use Past-Life Therapy in helping clients have had the experience, probably numerous times, of a client in hypnosis, who can’t or won’t regress. They all have probably developed methodologies for dealing with the problem, but I suggest using Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) principles for short-term results shouldn’t be overlooked. I am a researcher in the past-life phenomena, not a therapist. Participants with whom I have worked were volunteers, knowing that they would be placed in hypnosis, and that an effort would be made to regress them back before their birth in their present lives. They not only volunteered to participate, but as a condition to participating in my research, they were required to complete a 32 question long Questionnaire. I tried to eliminate those who now, or in the recent past, were in therapy, including those who had gone
Some May Be Failure, Some May Be Wisdom – Janet Cunningham (Is.18)
Janet Cunningham, Ph.D. How refreshing – to write an article, as part of a cluster, on the subject of “regressions that didn’t work.” Most of us would have loved to have read something on this topic when we began our work in regression therapy. Our success stories are outstanding and often quite amazing. They are motivating and prove the effectiveness of our work. Nevertheless, there are some clients who are not able to reach a past-life memory. When I think back to a few clients who were not able to reach a past life, it seems that at times it was a “failure,” and at other times a “wisdom” from their deeper mind. In order to increase the possibility of success, during the intake session I always explain the process carefully, answering any questions or concerns that the client might have. Even if she[1] has had a regression previously, sometimes
Cosmogenesis And Past-Life Phenomena – David P. Armentrout (Is.18)
by David P. Armentrout Abstract Phenomena associated with past-life and spirit world reports have often met criticism of lacking a logical basis, of lack of congruence with known scientific observations, and absence of a coherent theory by which the wide range of reports can be assembled into a single coherent whole. This very brief philosophical overview uses the methods of astronomical cosmology and combinatory logic to provide a single highly generalized background model. Selected astronomical and physical supporting evidence is cited. Past-life phenomena have been known for millennia. Various references to the inter-life and yogic experiences of the Light can be found in the Vedas, originating 5000 years ago. Efforts to make philosophical sense out of these experiences have followed. Although many yogis have been successful in communicating this information to their more advanced followers the details in terms of everyday experience have waited until the advent of quantum mechanics
Results Achieved With Two Groups of Subjects Who Underwent Treatment by Regression Therapy: 1998 – Herminia Prado Godoy, N. S. Carmalho, Lucia T. Maeda (Is.18)
by Herminia Prado Godoy, N. S. Carmalho, Lucia T. Maeda Abstract This work presents the results achieved by Regression Therapy treatment on two groups of subjects. The same procedures were applied on the two groups. Treatment consisted in performing eight psychotherapeutic sessions. Anamnesis was conducted during the first session, with a listing of problems; the second session was set aside for the establishment of the therapy’s contract and listing of grievances: emotional, physical, mental and thoughts, related to the problem chosen for therapy. From session three to seven, sessions were held using those regressive techniques adequate to the problem accessed. The closing of the case was made in the eighth session. Most of the subjects were female, holders of a university degree, considered themselves spiritualists, and stated that those problems presented for this work had not improved through other therapeutic approaches. Most complaints presented were emotional problems, phobias, physical problems,
Evidence for the Thesis that Souls Repeatedly Incarnate and that Individuals Have Composite Souls from Multiple Past-Lives – Esther M. Iseman and Roger E. Spitzer (Is.18).
by Esther M. Iseman, M.S., D.C.H. and Roger E. Spitzer, M.D. Abstract Past-life regression of a single individual has revealed 500 sequential years of repeated soul incarnation between two lineages of soul mates. In addition, the existence and function of “helper souls” has been delineated. In each lifetime, including Columbus’ voyage, the Civil War, Post Reconstruction, The Indian Wars, World War I and World War II, soul mates have bonded only to be separated and required to return to a subsequent life in order to restore their love. Verification of these stories was obtained by war records and independent regression of both soul mates in the present to the same past lifetimes leading to identical stories. Introduction It has been amply demonstrated (Weiss, Brian L., Many Lives, Many Masters and Woolger) that each of us has lived multiple past lives. The past lives recorded in this study were the result
Double Exit: Evidence of Soul-Division in Past-Life Regression Reports – Peter Novak (Is.18)
by Peter Novak The word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword and cuts so deeply it divides the soul from the spirit. Hebrews 4:12 Thanks to modern research into Near-Death Experiences, Past-Life Regression, and other afterlife phenomena, one of humankind’s most ancient afterlife traditions—the Binary Soul Doctrine—seems to be making a triumphant comeback. Although few realize it today, cultures all around the globe once believed virtually the same thing about death and the afterlife—that human beings possess not one, but two souls, which tend to divide apart from one another after death. Surprisingly, the data patterns emerging from modern paranormal research seem to be pointing in this same direction, causing many to take a fresh look at some of mankind’s oldest teachings. Many cultures thought that one of their souls reincarnated after death (mirroring our Eastern religious traditions), while the other soul would become
On the Timelessness of Time: A Personal Past-Life Exploration – Melissa Bowersock (Is.17)
Melissa Bowersock, C.Ht. Melissa Bowersock, an author new to the Journal but not to PLT, takes us into the mysterious realms of time through her own experiences. She finds that past, present, and future are interlocked and continuously interactive. A thoughtful article that raises questions about the nature of time itself. I have been fascinated by the enigma of time as much as the next person, maybe more. As a teenager I devoured every book on time travel and/or alternate pasts and futures that I could find. By the time I started experiencing past-life regressions as an adult, however, understanding the concept of time was not high on my agenda. But maybe that’s the nature of true discoveries ‑ finding what you’re not looking for. Once I began doing regressions, I was eager to review as many lives as possible. They were all fascinating in their own way. One particular
Rescripting in Past-Life Therapy: Its Use with Clients as Thinking Beings – Maggie van Staveren (Is.17)
Maggie van Staveren, L.C.S.W., C.Ht. It is important that we take a second look at our work as past-life therapists. We have learned a lot over the past few years. We are more aware of who we are, who our clients are, and more aware of the nature of our work as past-life therapists. Perhaps there is more than one technique to use with our clients. Now that we know more, let’s take a look at rescripting. We and our clients are spiritual thinking beings in human form. The very word “man” means “thinker” in its Sanskrit origins. We think and by our thinking we create. Our greatest power is to choose our thinking. There is that part of us, soul, that can instantly communicate and create by thought. As spiritual beings we live many lives in human form for a purpose. The purpose is to experience everything in this
Reframing or Rescripting – Hans TenDam (Is.17)
Hans TenDam Rewriting history is a crime. Rewriting somebody’s personal history is a crime against the individual ‑ even on request. Rewriting is done by people who don’t understand what therapy is, probably because they don’t understand what life is about, what people are. There are two types of rescripting, that done by the client himself, without awareness of the therapist, and that induced by the therapist as a conscious intervention. Why clients rescript, is simple: they resist facing the truth because of shame, guilt, humiliation, or sheer terror. The real memory is overwhelming, or ‑ as often ‑ resisted because it threatens a cherished self-image. The worst kind of rescripting as an intervention I have come across was a colleague who advised a client to simply erase a previous life that was bothering her. Erasing a part of our own experience is in the deepest sense probably impossible. But
My Thoughts on Rescripting – Thomas G. Shafer (Is.17)
by Thomas G. Shafer, M.D. Dr. Cunningham has given us an excellent clinical example illustrating the problems with rescripting and some excellent arguments. I have ethical concerns here. There is a vast power differential between the therapist and the client as an innate part of the process. Allowing therapists to rewrite history and change the fabric of time itself raises their power to the point of being God-like. I think God has enough trouble being God without humans, even those with a Masters, a Ph.D., or a M.D. taking over some of the job. Another objection is the complete removal of causality. If I can go back and change time because everything is truly simultaneous, the cause and effect relationship is simply another illusion of my mind. This is all well and good but it quickly dumps us into circular logic because how can changing an event in the past
Refraining from Reframing in Past-Life Sessions – Holly Holmes-Meredith (Is.17)
Holly Holmes-Meredith, M.A., M.F.T. I have been using regression therapy in some form in my private practice since 1981 and have been training hypnotherapists and past-life therapists through HCH, a state-licensed institute, since 1986. I have a strong background in NLP and use reframing and rescripting techniques primarily while working with habit control and current-life inner child work. I find reframing and rescripting profoundly transforming in these areas. In past-life work, however, I consider reframing and rescripting unnecessary and dishonoring of the soul journey and soul lessons; not only of the client, but of all other souls involved in the past-life events and soul experiences. The discussion that follows will explain my thoughts on these important clinical issues. If the client requests inner child work I spend time asking what he wants and expects from present-life regression therapy. A detailed discussion follows which outlines the therapist and client’s responsibilities in
The First Law of Time Travel: Don’t Change History – Thelma B. Freedman (Is.17)
Thelma B. Freedman, Ph.D. As all sci-fi savvy people can tell you, The Federation’s First Law of Time Travel is “Don’t Change History.” There is an intriguing short story by Isaac Asimov about this. An eminent professor of chemistry is giving a lecture to a packed auditorium; he is carrying out the first trial of his new “time machine,” which will carry one drop of water back in time several million years. As he speaks he fires up his apparatus (sparks and humming sounds) and carefully drops the fateful drop of water onto the waiting plate of glass. More sparks and louder humming sounds ensue. The professor continues to talk, describing what the machine is doing, and as he does so everyone in the auditorium (including himself) slowly changes into green scaly reptilian creatures. The professor’s words come out in squeaks (but everyone understands him fine) and the building itself
Some Concerns About Rescripting – Janet Cunningham (Is.17)
Janet Cunningham, Ph.D. The technique of rescripting is not one that I use, and I have never had a clear explanation of its benefits, although I have discussed it with colleagues who use the method. As I understand, rescripting grows out of quantum physics and current thinking that all time exists now; there is no past, present or future, there is only the eternal Now. My concern for rescripting in past-life therapy comes from three primary positions: Even though all time may exist now, the fact is that in this physical dimension and in physical bodies we do exist in time; time is a truth of our lives in this reality. In my personal experience it simply didn’t work, it brought confusion and a lack of resolution. Rescripting, as I have seen it applied, comes from the mind of the therapist/ practitioner and not from the mind of the client;
Reframing or Rescripting in Past-Life Work – Joseph Costa (Is.17)
Joseph Costa, Ph.D. In any field of endeavor there are advocates of doing work in different ways from others that produces successes. In our field we have counselors and therapists who use the methods called reframing and rescripting. In my own practice I use both methods, choosing that which serves the client as the work unfolds. What I present here is from a perspective of energies. For example: I interpret the dynamics of events, feelings and trauma as energy experiences. The events, feelings and trauma have more or less energy involved, based on the degree of the lesson experienced by the client. When a client has an emotional experience that has an effect on his or her future behavior I see that as an energy experience that either benefits the person or interferes with the person’s well-being. We can label this as either a positive or negative experience. In the
Rescripting and Other Delusional Thinking – David P. Armentrout (Is.17)
David P. Armentrout, Ph.D. Some years ago I saw a postcard with the caption, “I have abandoned the search for Truth and am now looking for an acceptable fantasy.” That seems to summarize the goals of rescripting. It also summarizes the dereific processes leading to psychosis. Rescripting means substitution of fantasied content for valid memory. The usual reason given for rescripting is that realty is too terrible to be handled. Psychopathology Mental disorders can be roughly broken down into those problems due to faulty wiring of the cranial computer and its peripherals, and those due to flawed software. In the first group we find various dementias, cyclothymias, autisms and the schizophrenias. There is a region of overlap in which subclinical problems may or may not become significant, as in the case of borderlines who may learn to channel their creativity, or who may dissociate under stress. Generally, these disorders are
If You Can Imagine It, You Can Achieve It; If You Can Dream It, You Can Become It! – Linda Adler (Is.17)
Linda Adler, L.C.S.W. There is wisdom in that title statement and most of us would endorse it, at least to some degree. However, if it were that simple, we would all be exactly who we want to be and do exactly what we want to do without limitation. Unfortunately, there are often underlying causes that prevent us from fully achieving our imaginings and becoming our dreams. I suspect that most of us embrace the concept that we create our own reality, although we might not agree on the exact meaning of that idea. If we are both the Creator and the Creation, we can also be Creative and, in alignment with the Higher Self, re-create our reality. As a Gestalt therapist I was encouraged to be expansive and creative in my work, and was trained to use imagination as a part of the healing process. I was thoroughly schooled at
The False “False Memory Syndrome” Syndrome – Hans TenDam (Is.17)
by Hans TenDam Dr. Hans TenDam shares his thoughts and experiences about the so-called “false memory syndrome,” something of concern to all past-life therapists and, in fact, to all who use altered states in their work. Dr. TenDam grounds his theories in what he has actually seen with clients. The False Memory Syndrome is a bogeyman hindering the acceptance of our profession. It has been discovered that clients who graphically “relived” sexual abuse by a parent when they were very young, had often “remembered” something that did not happen. It has led to court cases and negative publicity. It sometimes leads also to extra work for us as therapists. I have had several clients utterly shaken because of the false accusations of a daughter. The therapist or psychiatrist involved had worsened things further by prohibiting the daughter from having any contact with her denying parents anymore. Yet upon investigation, the
The Interplay Between the Inner and Outer Worlds – Dianne Seaman (Is.17)
Dianne Seaman, B.S., C.P.L.T. Here Dianne Seaman considers the surprising elements of the external world that seem to conspire to help us heal. Drawing on her work with clients as well as a past-life experience of her own, she discusses the seemingly “chance” events that the web of life leads us to find and use. As she might say, we may not always know where we’re going, but the world will make sure we get there anyway. As past-life therapists we try to create a distraction-free environment to prevent anything external from pulling clients out of their experience. However I’ve begun to observe that some distractions actually do the opposite by pulling people into a relevant past-life experience. Some examples: I have an office in my home, and last July I realized some urgent home repairs would cause distracting noise so I gave the scheduled client three options: to re-schedule,
Maybe Controversial? Thinking Outside One’s Parameters – Louise Ireland-Frey (Is.17)
Louise Ireland-Frey, M.D. Louise Ireland-Frey has been a true pioneer in Past-Life Therapy and Spirit Releasement Therapy (SRT), and here she gives us her personal view of her own ventures into “controversial” fields, in this case SRT. She considers some reasons others may have for considering new ideas controversial, but warns us at the end to keep an open mind but not an empty one. Introduction When my recent book, Freeing the Captives, was described as “controversial” ‑ in fact, as “very controversial” ‑ I was astonished. I had not thought of it as being so at all. A therapist friend commented, “I don’t feel that it is controversial, but then I know you and I am acquainted with releasement work. So it is not controversial to me.” We decided that probably the definition of the word “controversial” includes the reaction of persons to subjects that are unfamiliar and beyond