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Most people seeking Spiritual Regression Hypnotherapy, better known as Life Between Lives Hypnotherapy (LBL) have read at least one of Dr. Michael Newton's books about "Life-Between-Lives" regression hypnotherapy ("Journey of Souls", and "Destiny of Souls"), and usually have some questions and expectations about what they might experience during one of these sessions. I attempt here to address some of the more common questions, and to paint a fairly accurate picture of what one can reasonably expect to experience during an LBL session.
[WILL
I BE AWARE OF MY SURROUNDINGS?]
Probably the most common questions I encounter relate to both LBL and traditional
hypnotherapy, and usually come from clients experiencing formal hypnosis for
the first time. These clients often ask something like "Will I be aware of my
surroundings?" (e.g. what is going on around them in the therapist's office),
and "Will I remember what I experienced while in trance?" Both of these questions
relate to their concerns about the "depth" of trance. Due to their observations
of stage hypnosis, many first time hypnosis subjects hold the mistaken expectation
that they do not experience true hypnosis unless they are totally unaware of
their surroundings during the session, and are afterwards completely amnesic
as to what transpired during the session.
It is important to understand the phenomena of trance. Trance does not necessarily mean that you are unaware of your surroundings. In a sense, trance is a shifting of the focus of conscious awareness, combined with an intensification of that focus. Just because one has some awareness of one's surroundings, it does not mean that one is not deep in trance. When you are driving down the highway, deep in thought about something other than driving, you are most likely maintaining just enough conscious awareness of your surroundings to operate the vehicle. The primary focus of your conscious awareness is upon the subject of your thought. It is possible to travel many miles before some external event exerts enough energy upon the driver's psyche to divert their focus from the subject of their thoughts, and return it to full awareness of their surroundings (such as the sudden realization that you just past your intended exit!). You have been deep in trance for miles!
Even though I encourage clients to restrict their fluid intake before an LBL session some clients still have difficulty. Three hours is a long time to sit without having to empty one's bladder. The way I handle this is to have the client use the toilet down the hall from my office before the session commences. This serves two purposes. First, the client learns where the bathroom is and, second, it buys us some time until the "sense of urgency" enters their awareness, so that we can become well grounded in the preliminary work and deepening of the trance (an over-full bladder is just so darn distracting). During the induction, I give people permission to take care of their bodily needs, so that they can remain comfortable, by signaling me when they start to become aware of some pressure in their bladder. If the sense of urgency does arise I simply instruct them to remain in trance and have them get up and go down the hall to the bathroom. It works wonderfully, and also enhances their trust in the trance itself.
A related topic is the subject of the client's critical/analytical thought processes as they function during an LBL session. Most clients will experience a portion of their consciousness that is observing their experience and doing a running commentary on it. This is normal. I alert clients to expect this. It is important to send that critical/analytical part of you lots of love, compassion, and reassurance that it is OK to think. (As a matter of fact, it is absolutely essential to think, for without critical thought we fall prey to all manner of propaganda.) Assure it that you will need it to help you put things into perspective after this expedition. With the help of trance this critical/analytical portion of your consciousness will take more of a back seat, but it will still function. We must make it our ally. If you try to *repress* it, it will just get louder. This is what makes a thorough trance-deepening process an essential part of LBL (see below).
[WILL
I REMEMBER WHAT I EXPERIENCED WHILE I WAS IN TRANCE?]
Most people will retain a clear memory of most of their LBL experience, at
least for a few weeks, or even months after the session. There will also be
portions of the experience that are so vivid and meaningful, that one easily
recalls them in detail for the rest of their life. Spontaneous posthypnotic
amnesia occurs in only about 5% of the population. While it is possible to insist
upon posthypnotic amnesia, amnesia isn't essential to the success of this therapeutic
process, unless the client believes it is. This mistaken belief is best dealt
with at the beginning, through education. When I fail to educate new clients
to the above they will frequently state, at the end of a session: "Well, I feel
very relaxed, but I don't think I was hypnotized. I heard everything you said
and I remember everything that happened".
[WILL
THE SESSION BE TAPED?]
It is my practice to make an audio recording of LBL sessions, and provide the
client with a copy at the end of the session. Having a recording to review allows
one to retrieve portions of the session that may have been hazy, or escaped
conscious awareness. It also helps to stabilize one's memory of the experience.
Our memory of past events is constantly being "re-stitched" into the fabric
of our consciousness as we acquire new experiences and rework the meaning of
past experience into the context of our total experience. Consequently, without
a stable record, recall of events tends to change over time. Reviewing a session
at a later date also often provides fresh insights. LBL is a gift that keeps
on giving.
[HOW
LONG IS AN LBL SESSION?]
A typical LBL session runs from 2 to 4 hours in duration, with most averaging
2-1/2 to 3 hours. This is largely due to the extensive trance-deepening process.
The deepening process includes current life regression. This process provides
the client with an opportunity to become more comfortable with, and more adept
at, engaging and expressing detailed information stored deep in their subconscious,
and eventually superconscious memory, while remaining in a deep trance. As the
client encounters memories that have remained subconscious for years, yet evoke
a visceral knowledge of truth when brought into recall, the client's critical/analytical
faculties become more comfortable with suspending disbelief. It is, in a sense,
a process of deep acclimation. The deepening process also permits the therapist
to become attuned to the client's lead sensory modes (see below). An astute
therapist will adjust the types of suggestions and questions put to the client
so that they are in alignment with the client's primary sensory modes.
[HOW
MUCH OF MY "LIFE-BETWEEN-LIVES" WILL I SEE?]
Because of the way Dr. Newton's books are organized, they give the impression
that a client will experience the entirety of their "life-between-lives" in
a chronological order. This is not typically the case, as Dr. Newton points
out in the introduction of his first book: "Journey of Souls" [pg. 5-6]. Most
people will experience portions of their "life-between-lives", these portions
being those that contain the most pertinent information relating to the client's
needs and current issues.
[IS
IT DIFFICULT TO ACCESS MY "LIFE-BETWEEN-LIVES"?]
The degree to which people are able to access their "life-between lives"
varies from person to person. Some people have very vivid experiences. These
folks wind up in books like "Journey of Souls" or Ormond McGill's
"Seeing the Unseen". Some folks have great difficulty with the process,
and are not able to access much information. Assuming the hypnotherapist is
experienced and competent in this type of therapy, there are a number of factors
that can influence this. These factors range from the quality of rapport between
the client and therapist, a client's ability to maintain focus and the depth
of trance, the degree to which the client is able to suspend disbelief and trust
in their experience, to psychological and psychic "blocks" that prevent
the client from gaining access to information that would be psychologically
unacceptable, or would inhibit their soul development. This latter instance
is an example of why LBL is not generally recommended for persons under the
age of 30 years. Younger individuals may not have had the opportunities to encounter
crucial "karmic crossroads".
It is strongly recommended that persons who have not experienced a formal hypnosis session do so, with a competent and qualified hypotherapist, before going to the time and expense of undertaking a Life-Between-Lives (LBL) session. Having experienced formal hypnosis helps to dispel any misconceptions about what the experience of being hypnotized is like, demonstrates to the client that they are indeed able to achieve a state of hypnosis, and enables the client to form more realistic expectations about trance experiences in general.
It is also recommended that one experience a Past-Life Regression (PLR) before undertaking a LBL session. Some LBL practitioners even require that a prospective client has had a successful PLR session before they will schedule the prospective client for LBL therapy. While a successful PLR experience does not in and of itself guarantee a successful LBL session, it does demonstrate that one is capable of achieving and maintaining an adequate depth of trance. It also demonstrates that one is able to suspend disbelief sufficient enough to trust in their experience without interrupting it.
Regardless of how much they were able to access, nearly all clients report that what they did experience was useful and beneficial.
Another factor that will influence the character of the client's LBL experience is the client's primary or lead sensory mode. Some people's lead sensory mode is visual. These people will often respond with statements like "I see what you mean" when you are explaining something to them. Others may be auditory in their lead sensory mode. They will tend to say things like "I hear what you're saying". Still others may be kinesthetic in their primary sensory mode. These people will tend to talk about how things "feel" to them. A client who is primarily kinesthetically oriented may not experience the depth of visual detail that a client who is visually oriented would. It is important, therefore, that the therapist be able to adjust their questions and suggestions to accommodate a client's sensory orientation. By the same token, asking a client a question that is framed in terms of a sensory mode other than the client's primary one, may lend more depth to their experience, or lead to a fresh insight. Generally speaking however, persisting in asking a client, who has difficulty visualizing things, what they are "seeing" will quickly tire, and frustrate the client.
[IS
THIS REAL, OR AM I JUST IMAGINING IT ALL?]
Even after a session in which the client's experience is vivid in detail and
range of sensory information, the common thought that nearly everyone has after
a session is "I have a good imagination. Did I just make all this up?"
All experience is ultimately internal. The debate about the objective reality, or lack thereof, of the information obtained from LBL will perhaps always continue, just as the debate about whether consciousness is an epiphenomenon of matter (only the product of brain activity) or an animating spirit existing independent of matter, will continue.
That said, this observer must in good conscience state that, in the course of his experience with PLR and LBL regression, he has yet to encounter expressions of material that is both sufficiently mundane (of such an ordinary nature that it is unlikely that one could have been exposed to this detail of information prior to the session) and verifiable (discoverable through research of historical data) as to constitute compelling evidence that the material being expressed is truly more than just a useful metaphor for one's present-day life experience.
One possible reason for this is that, during a LBL session I do not press the client very hard for this type of mundane and verifiable information. People typically seek my LBL services to assist them in sorting out and resolving something that is troubling them currently. They are not, typically, seeking to scientifically prove that there really is such a thing as reincarnation.
I feel it important to state the above, as I believe that critical thought is necessary and essential, for without it we are prey to all manner of propagandist. I strive (at times more successfully than at others) to strike a balance between a mind that is so skeptical that it is closed to new experience (and exploring possibly heretical ideas), and a mind that is so open that my brains fall out.
Regardless of whether the LBL experience is based in objective reality, is simply metaphorical, or is a combination of both, there is no doubt that this therapeutic method can be powerfully life affirming, inspiring, and life-altering in a myriad of positive ways. I have seen it. It is for this reason that I engage in the practice of LBL.
[OKAY,
BOTTOM LINE. - HOW MUCH IS THIS GOING TO COST ME?]
David's fee for Spiritual Regression Hypnotherapy is $60 (sixty) per hour. The
length of a session varies from individual to individual, typically running
2 to 4 hours in duration.
Here is a link to some FAQ's about hypnosis and hypnotherapy in general.
For more information, or to schedule an appointment, you can contact David at:
David
M. Pierce, CHt
P.O. Box 546, Paradise, CA 95967-0546
voice: (530) 877-2367
or click here to send David an email message
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