Hypnosis is a state of the relaxed mind. In its simplest application, it is a way of changing the mind. If we change the way we think, we change ourselves.  The mind is a process of producing thoughts and when one is hypnotised it is possible to change the quality of one’s thoughts.  As a therapy process, hypnosis is used to focus the patient’s attention while effectively communicating ideas that increase motivation and change perception. The process helps the patient to help himself with issues related to problems of living.

At a deeper level of understanding, the mind can be said to operate on two levels, conscious and subconscious. The conscious mind is selective, analytical and critical of the thoughts produced whereas the subconscious mind non-selective, creative and non-critical and hence receptive to the subtle power of suggestion. Suggestion is the subconscious realisation of thoughts and ideas, and is often applied as a way of inducing the hypnotic state in a patient to allow regression to take place.

Hypnosis has excellent clinical value in healing and psychotherapy.  Experience has shown that not only can the psyche or spiritual part of a person be helped through hypnotically induced suggestion, but the physical changes in the body can be influenced to occur. Furthermore, the subconscious mind remembers everything that ever happened to an individual, including what he has learned at a very early stage of his life. If one is born in a family with very strict discipline and under strong parental control, it becomes his truth or his truth of the world, and he does not even know that he exists in that truth.  With hypnosis, the therapist can facilitate his passage into an altered state, called a trance, so that the critical conscious mind can be bypassed, gaining access to the fabulous storehouse of his subconscious mind. A wonderful part of the subconscious mind is that it does not distinguish between the real and the imagined. Once under trance, regression therapy helps the person to get to the root of the problem by going back to the start of it, changing that original decision or perception and adding in a new proposition and decision, and then taking him to the future where he can see himself as successful.

Hypnoanalysis works at a much greater speed than traditional psychodynamic psychotherapy. The process relies heavily on the use of regression. By going back through the patient’s personal history it is possible for the individual to gain insights into the genuine cause of his personal issues. Similar to Freudian theory the assumption in hypnoanalysis is that difficulties in one’s life can be traced back to the “imprinting phase” of one’s development, between 0-7 years of age. At this age the individual has not developed the ability to see the world in other than a black and white manner. Therefore a child may feel significant negative emotion in a situation which, to an adult is either insignificant or can be rationalized.  

Using regression to go back and rationalize the root cause allows the past to be left in the past and enables the present to move forward with a sense of relief and resolution.  This rationalization can take the form of simple understanding or of emotional catharsis.

The use of regression can bring about success when many other efforts have failed because regression can uncover the cause of the problem and remove fears and perceptions from the past. Part of the power of regression therapy can be understood by examining the expression, “I only wish I would have known then what I know now.” With regression you can, in a way, do just that. When you re-live an event in the past you can take what you know now to that event and see it with greater insight.  Take for example, a problem which started when, as a child, the individual  misunderstood a situation in which he received a stern word from his parent. As a child he may have thought this meant that his parent did not love him or he was not good enough. Then when he re-experienced the situation under trance he could understand the situation differently, seeing now that it was just a normal childhood mistake that led to the harsh words, and there was really nothing wrong with him.

Interestingly, our past includes earlier events in current life as well as in past lives. Past life regression is a safe, comfortable and rewarding process to bring all aspects of our soul selves together and to provide wholeness in healing. Past life memories are stored away in the attic of our subconscious mind and these memories are the keys to the doors of all our experiences. The trance state is a key to unlocking these memories.

Past life regression is a compassionate therapy that brings forth a new manner of healing when all of the body’s energies are gathered together for a common goal. The body feels restful and at peace while the mind is acutely aware of each event that is being recalled and experienced. This amazing journey into our own subconscious mind allows us to open the door to our own soul’s history to discover information that may bring phenomenal change in our lives.

We gain insight into our current life by reviewing past experiences and mistakes. The knowledge of past hurts is balanced by the love and graciousness of the gifts we rediscover. Regression provides a method for exploring our inner space in the mind and the uncharted sanctuary of the inner self. Through regression people are able to fit together the pieces of a puzzling past. When a past problem enters conscious awareness, it can be encountered and neutralized. When a pattern is changed, the problem is resolved.

Regression also helps us to get in touch with our spiritual core. Some people are astounded at the love they feel, while others find great wisdom in guiding them to resolving their most difficult issues. The experience is non-religious and yet people are able to contact their own type of spirituality while under trance.  When we are able to contact this part of ourselves, great healing is possible. People find that they can move from their darkest inner states into the light when they make this connection. Fears fall away, anger turns into compassion, unwanted habits are release, pain lifts off and old traumas are transformed. It is a powerful vehicle for personal transformation.   

 

Further Reading:

Dwight F. Damon. Consumer Guide to Hypnotism. National Guild of Hypnotists, 2004.