Past Life Hypnosis
By Susanna Sweeney, MSC, MBACP, CHT
Some practitioners specialize in past life hypnosis, which has become somewhat fashionable.
Using a particular session protocol, they bring people back to what they describe as ‘past lives’, i.e. experiences associated with a different person living at a different time in history.
Do you Believe in ‘Past Lives’?
Do you believe in ‘past lives’? This question points you to the level at which the subject tends to be discussed:
- Whether or not you can experience ‘past lives’ is considered to be dependent on whether you believe in ‘past lives’ or not.
- The issue of past lives is associated with ‘new age’ folks and ‘hippies’ and there are many other judgements attached to the issue.
These judgements and associations are the first reason I am uncomfortable using the term ‘past lives’.
The second reason is that for me, the term ‘past life’ implies too much of an ego connection to these experiences, as if it was actually you- the person you are today, who experienced them. But clearly, this is not so.
So then, what are Past Life Experiences?
It makes much more sense to me to think of these so called past life
experiences as pieces of the ‘collective unconscious’, a term coined by
Carl Jung, or as ‘transpersonal experiences’, a term coined by Stanislav
Grof.
These two models acknowledge that somehow, in ways we fail to fully comprehend today, other realities do exist that stretch beyond the boundaries of the individual mind and that these ‘transpersonal experiences’ or ‘pieces of the
collective unconscious’ have the power to impact our thinking and our emotions in the here and now.
Science has yet to find an answer as to what past
life experiences are exactly and how they have found their way into your mind here today. But we do know that people can have spontaneous ‘past life’
experiences- not only during past life hypnosis, but also in the context
of other regression work, such as Holotropic Breathwork, or Rebirthing.
In a nutshell, transpersonal experiences are a real phenomenon.
Past Life Hypnosis as Entertainment
Some hypnotists offer past life hypnosis workshops or parties to clients who are curious about the sensational side of past life experiences.
I suppose hypnosis has always had an entertainment based stream to it. In the late 19th century and well into the 20th century, hypnosis shows would travel around the country where extremely susceptible subjects would perform incredible things on stage under hypnosis guided by the hypnotist.
Some of this is still alive today. Stage hypnotists like Keith Barry are still doing that today- mixing magic and hypnosis for entertainment.
If you are so inclined, go along and enjoy the past life workshop for its entertainment value. If you do, please take the whole thing with a pinch of salt.
- Don't expect any therapeutic benefits I say- because deriving therapeutic benefits is really a different ball game.
- Be mindful of letting this entertainment experience inform your perception of the value hypnotherapy- which is a very different thing altogether.
In the next paragraphs I will go into what I believe is required for past life hypnosis to be of deep therapeutic benefit to you.
Is it a Good Idea to Offer Specific Past Life Hypnosis?
When you look at the stream in the hypnosis world that is about therapeutic benefit to you, the client, I am really not sure that it is a good idea at all to offer specific past life hypnosis sessions. Why?
Think about this:
If you booked a session with a past life hypnotist, what would you expect from that session?
Naturally, you would expect to encounter a past life experience, would you not?
And, if you did not encounter a past life experience, how would you feel?
- You would feel disappointed, would you not?
- You would question if hypnosis was of any value at all, would you not?
So, if that was the case, I would argue you would be deprived of exposure to the powerful healing with hypnotherapy that can drastically improve the quality of life of those with depression, anxiety and trauma issues. Such healing involving regression hypnosis requires thorough one to one work and holding by an experienced practitioner.
Most likely, you would, in that case, continue to hold on to hypnosis myths and look elsewhere for healing, or for a boost to your career or life if you needed it- instead of looking to hypnosis for success. The hypnotist then would not have done the field any favor in that case- I will argue.
Best practice in past life hypnosis involves being completely open to what material the subconscious mind wants to bring forward.And if, indeed you did encounter such a past life experience in this session, of what value would it be for you?
You have to understand that the censors around your subconscious mind are usually on high alert. They will censor such an experience as soon as you are back in your conscious mind:
- Was this real? No, it probably wasn't real. Who knows what that hypnotist did there...
- Where did this come from? Hypnosis is an odd thing...
- Was this really my experience? I can't believe that actually happened...
My point being that even at the level of entertainment value the results will be questionable.
And at the healing level?
Think about it:
How do you actually know that what your subconscious needs to further your healing at this particular moment in time is a past life experience?
- You don't, but you are setting up an expectation that that is the type of experience you want.
And what happens then?
- This expectation alone could set up a ‘past life’ experience being conjured up.
- You could convince yourself that all your difficulties go back to some past life experience, and you could overlook crucial issues from this lifetime and deny yourself the opportunity of resolving these.
Deciding in your conscious mind what content you want to bring out for healing to occur denies the power of your subconscious mind. Take this in: Your subconscious mind makes up far more of your personality than your conscious mind does. The ratio is said to be around 10 percent for the conscious versus 90 percent for the subconscious mind.
If you do end up having a past life experience, most likely you will lack the deep emotional connection that you will usually have in life regression hypnosis when your subconscious brings forward the real thing- the subconscious material that you need at this moment in time in order to change your life. As a result, most likely you will question the validity of the past life experience in the same way as described above.
Reflecting on this fact, do you now think it is a good idea to allow your conscious mind to lead the way with hypnosis or other altered state work?
To summarize, these are my objections to offering specific past life hypnosis:
- For truly deep healing to occur, I believe it is always best to trust the wisdom of the subconscious mind and let it guide the way.
- In my article on regression hypnosis, I advised you not to attempt this work on your own. This advice is based on the same reasons as my advice here to stay away from the gimmick of past life hypnosis for entertainment- genuinely deep healing work with hypnosis requires holding by an experienced practitioner that you have a good rapport with.
How to Address ‘Past Life’ Issues in Hypnotherapy?
This is where I see the place of ‘past life’ issues in hypnotherapy
work: If these experiences emerge spontaneously, from a place of open
mindedness, where the subconscious mind is free to bring up any relevant
material that needs healing- only then you are looking at the real deal. And it is only
then that ‘past life experiences’ make sense to me.
From my
perspective as a hypnotherapist who does regression work, it doesn’t
matter what sort of memories the client contacts. The important part is
that the memories emerge spontaneously, without any coaching or coaxing. The therapist has to remain a neutral facilitator who is not invested in the content of what will emerge. The client's subconscious must be free to find its own way.
Most of the
time, the memories that emerge in the context of regression hypnosis are
from this life time. For most people, this life time holds enough
trauma and resulting material that needs integrating. But if what comes
back is a so-called past life memory, so be it.
I won’t judge it
or attempt to alter it in any way. I will work with it in the same way
as I work with material from this life time, facilitating the client to
free up their energy so that they have more freedom of choice in their lives at the end
of the piece of work.
That seems the only sensible approach for me.
Past Life Hypnosis Done Well
When regression hypnosis is done well, I would expect it to help people integrate ‘past life’ experiences in the same way as any other material surfacing in a regression session:
- Facilitate the client to feel the emotions that need to be felt
- Facilitate the conscious and subconscious minds to co exchange information
- Facilitate the client to make sense of what is emerging
- Help the client to come to a place where they can let go of the imprint of the past
In other words, I believe best practice for any hypnotherapist is to use a very open session protocol that allows the subconscious mind to bring forth any relevant experience it needs to bring forward in order to heal, be it from this life time, or of a transpersonal nature.
When done well, past life hypnosis can bring about remarkable transformations as it did for the entrepreneur in this Forbes article.
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I hope you have not only enjoyed this brief article on past life hypnosis, but also gained more of an understanding of the complexities involved so that you are in a better position to know what is for you and what is not.
In the comments underneath, let our community know what you think!
Here is to your well being and success.
Regards,
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About Me | Contact | Privacy Policy | Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram | Twitter
Hello Venturer,
Welcome to my Online Hypnotherapy Clinic.
I am Susanna Sweeney, accredited psychotherapist and hypnotherapist.
I have been helping people to overcome their blocks and move forward for 30+ years.
Along the way, I have fallen in love with hypnotherapy.
Please note that any content or advice provided here is not intended as a substitute for medical advice.
Always consult your doctor before starting any health regimen.
Outcomes of hypnotherapy vary between individuals and cannot be guaranteed.
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