These undesirable past experiences usually cloud up a person’s mind and make him/her fixated in a certain stage of mind. They can not move on. They become dysfunctional. Professional help can be sought to combat these repressed thoughts. Psychologists and psychotherapists specialize in dealing with problems like this. They have techniques to diagnose the problem and eventually identify solutions for these problems.

One such solution is called the Past Life Regression, which involves the technique called hypnosis where the patient is guided by the therapist through out the process of visualizing some images or scenes that are designed to make him/her visit the past.

Generally, doing past life regression may sometimes involve two dangers. However, being informed and prepared of these dangers can definitely go a long way in controlling the damages.

1. Physiological Reactions: The mind does not only house a person’s memories and thoughts. It also triggers several physiological reactions. Remembering a painful memory or a traumatic experience may make the person nervous, hysterical or anxious. It can cause palpitations, increase in blood pressure, hyperventilation or even heart attack. Before going through past life regression, it is extremely important to know the health condition of the patients including his/her medical history. It is also a must to prepare first aid or pre-cautionary medicines just in case the situation becomes worse.

2. Psychological Disturbance: Going through the process of past life regression does not and will never guarantee absolute solutions to problems. The patient’s readiness to accept and face his/her fears, painful memories and traumas will definitely play a huge part in the success of the process. However, no matter how ready the patient is at the onset of the process, one will never know what will happen as the process progresses. Going through these painful memories may make the patient undergo psychological disturbances such as low self esteem, losing one’s morale or even making the fears and issues worse.

These are just general dangers that may happen. The possibilities may vary depending on the current state of mind, behavior and general well-being of the patient. Furthermore, the level of resiliency of the patient will also influence the outcome of the past life regression procedure and the dangerous effects that it could bring.

Revisiting your past life or experiences can prove to be tricky, difficult and even dangerous. On the other hand, it can also be proven to be rewarding. However, depending on the complexity of the problem, it may be best to consult a mind specialist before attempting to perform a past life regression procedure. Being prepared for the possible effects is an essential step in doing the process. After all, the objective of the procedure is to diagnose and identify solutions to the patient’s problems and not worsening it or add more problems to it.

A Brief History

There are very limited accounts on PLR in history. The more substantial writing is that of Patanjali, a Hindu scholar, who said that the soul is always burdened by its karma and thus introduced prati-prasav or reverse birthing. This is a technique where the subject revisits memories to address present issues. Prati-prasav is currently being practiced in yoga.

PLR was revived through the efforts of Madame Blavatsky. She is the co-founder of the Theosophical Society and her studies have re-introduced the concept in the west. The practice was further developed in the 1950’s when credible medical practitioners began their advocacy on PLR as an instrument to improve mental health. In 1967, Dr. Denys Kelsey was the first to use regression as a type of therapy.

The Practice of Past Life Regression

Studies made on religions believing in reincarnation did not take into account nor accept the idea of repressed memories. The practice of PLR is usually done to simply experience this spiritually and therefore, be able to venture into the unknown. To draw information on the subject’s past life, practitioners would use hypnosis and ask their subjects a series of questions.

With the use of bridging, the unearthed memories are brought to consciousness. This is very important for both the doctor and patient as unresolved issues in past lives are believed to be significant in healing the present issues of the patient. However, they are not always easily dealt with as in most cases; the memories are of a negative nature.

Past Life Regression on Television

Oprah featured Past Life Regression last May 2008, with the help of Dr. Oz and Dr. Brian Weiss, who have been studying Past Life Regression for many years. Their subject named Jodie, sought the help of Dr. Weiss to find out why she has such a compulsive fear of dolls.

Fear Of Dolls

Then it was described how Jodie got to see her dead grandfather shortly after entering the state of hypnosis and minutes later, she began describing what she thought of as a car accident she got involved in, then she began to cry. Apparently, she had died unexpectedly in her past life, leaving her children to grow up without her and this resulted in her fear of dolls which is a metaphor for her inability to care for her children.

Healing Through Past Life Regression

Months later, Jodie saw Oprah featuring the Osmond family where Marie Osmond handed her an Oprah-doll. She reiterates that had it not been for Past Life Regression, she would have immediately turned off the TV because of her fear of dolls. But what’s good to know is that after the session, it seemed that she was already able to deal with looking at one.

There are many practitioners of PLR in the United States and more studies are being conducted as of this writing. Accounts of reincarnation and repressed memory studies are present in the history of man, and his natural curiosity would only encourage him to know more about past life regression. Many movie stars like Shirley MacLaine have also delved into this realm and I do believe she wrote a book about her experiences

Man’s Desire to Learn from Mistakes – Past or Present Life

Whether traveling through time to relive the lives we left behind is legitimate, that remains a question yet to be answered and perhaps today, no form of science can produce concrete evidence about past life regression or the past lives’ existence. However, the moral of these presumptions could easily be traced into man’s desire to learn from what mistakes he has committed – whether in this life or in the past.

I have never had a near death experience, but I’ve read and heard about many that have and the transformations after these NDE’s have always brought about miraculous changes in those individuals. Dr. P.M.H. Atwater who has written many books and researched this phenomenon talks about many of her findings and below are some the psychological effects which can also be referred to as enlightenment or spiritual awakening:

• Communication- NDE survivors display the use of new language or new vocabularies which are totally different from what they were used to speaking before.

• Timelessness – survivors begin to follow the “flow” and tend to ignore schedules and time frames. They would shift their focus and give more importance to the present.

• Unconditional love- NDE survivors turn themselves into fully loving and generous people who would wander and express themselves to each person they see.

• The soul- survivors would show more interest in reincarnation and would later on accept this concept regardless of their previous belief. Since they have experienced the soul or the spirit separating from the body, they understand that the body is nothing but a coffer for the soul.

• Psychic – some survivors would wake up or return to the world of the living with heightened senses or extrasensory perception.

I have always sought to be spiritually enlightened and remove the veil that blocks me, but so far it really hasn’t happened, but I try to keep a balance between the body and soul by feeling my surroundings, being able to express my self, eating a balanced diet and regularly exercising, not being afraid to ask for help, never giving up, spending time with family and friends, and always trying to remember that I have a purpose and I’m the one that creates the meaning of my life.

Various religious beliefs do have their own versions of spiritual awakening. Most are rooted on their own sets of religious doctrines and principles. Some have come to a spiritual enlightenment through meditations and self actualization. To them spiritual awakening is the removal of whatever layers or walls we have that cover or hide our true selves. It is having the experience of peace, the calmness, the fulfillment, and completeness. One person has so eloquently put it as waking up through a big bump to head. That of course is a too simplistic way to describe the experience.

Spiritual awakening is not the end of the end. It is in fact can be seen as just a stepping stone where you can provide change to other people and the environment you live in. In some religions, spiritual awakening is the pre-requisite to spiritual healing. If spiritual awakening is the finding of your true self, the spiritual healing part is the part where you collect all the positive physical, emotional and spiritual elements and use them to live a happy, healthy, and fulfilling life.

Its important that this person pass to other people these positive energies to promote spiritual healing to all. There are religions that would suggest or even require people to accompany spiritual healing with prayers and going to their church. They insist that prayers will provide or reinforce the guidelines they need to reach, repeat and maintain spiritual awakening.

For Christians, spiritual awakening is also attained upon realization that they are sinners and begin to repent. They have this enlightenment that God is the only true path and going back to him and being faithful to the doctrines of the Church is the way to spiritual healing. This is, of course, only one religion interpreting the essence of spiritual awakening. One cannot say that their interpretation is wrong for the experience is really a subjective one based precisely on interpretations of what should and should not be.

Now those who are far less attuned to religious influences believe that spiritual awakening can be achieved through meditations. Through proper meditation, inner peace and serenity are attained. Healing can be achieved as well. But meditation is only a step towards spiritual awakening. One has to go deeper into the process to achieve the true enlightenment as some people would rather believe.

Meditation can come in different forms and techniques. There’s the mantra meditation where you need to repeat a certain sound which appeals to your mind before you reach that meditative state. There’s the trataka meditation technique where instead of sound, one has to focus his attention or mind on a particular object. This technique has been used in the past by a number of religions. Chakra meditation on the one hand is more of energy based mediation where the goal is to open the chakra points in the body to achieve a higher level of awakening of the consciousness.

Religion and spiritual awakening are connected but depending on the religion as well as the approach and techniques, the interpretation of spiritual awakening varies. But one thing is certain, achieving spiritual wakening results to having a positive outlook in life making living in this world happier and more content.

One of the tenets of conscious creation is that we each have a separate reality that other people cannot know or really understand. And that each of us has the ability to create that reality into anything we want it to be.

Every day when we get out of bed, we set into motion the creation of a certain reality, good or bad. And through conscious, also sometimes called deliberate, creation, we can shift that reality in either a better or worse direction.

At the root of this belief system is the idea of channeling. This can be interpreted two ways. Some use it to mean channeling your own deep-seated ideas and desires, while others see it as channeling other spirits or entities that have some sort of knowledge to impart. Many use it to mean both types of channeling.

Also at the heart of this conscious way of living is the belief that we all create our own reality, even though we don’t realize it. So that when something bad happens to you, it was actually your choice to have that thing happen.

If you are born into poverty for instance, many hardcore believers in conscious creation will tell you that you made those choices, even before you were physically born onto the earth, to experience poverty.

If you suffer serious illness, believers will tell you that you have brought that into your life through choice, whether you know it or not. But that by gaining control of your reality, you can change things and bring what you want into your life, whether it’s health, prosperity or overall happiness.

Through the act of deliberate creation, you start each day with a goal. Rather than the goals you might wake up to now like getting the kids to school on time or completing a project at work, you look at the bigger picture. Those will still be part of your goals of course, your daily life must continue. But you will choose different goals that will help define your reality.

The first step in creating your own reality is through your beliefs. Let’s say that right now you believe that most people are selfish and only out to get what they can for themselves without regards to other people. Your belief is creating that reality in your life, so most people in your life will be just this way.

If you shift your belief to one that says that most people are good at heart and want to do the right thing, most people in your life will fit that description. If you believe that you will never get out of debt, you probably never will. But if you wake up each day using conscious creation to believe you will get out of debt, you can make it happen.

I try to start the day by counting my blessings and everything I’m grateful for and compared to so many around the world I have much even if it’s very little compared to others around me. I have a warm bed to sleep in and a loving partner to share it with. I have a roof over my head and it’s paid for so we don’t have to worry about it being taken away. I was given the opportunity to stay at home while my partner still has a good job to support us.

I have plenty of food to eat, perhaps too much at times. I am able to make a few dollars online for incidentals, I have clothes on my back and shoes for my feet, I have my computer and dsl, but none of those things compare to the love and happiness I have known through having my son and grandchild and loving my partner and his family and my pets. I try not to sit around and complain because that only brings other people down and it’s negative energy.

Life has many good things to offer even when something bad happens to us and I always try to see that glass as half full instead of half empty even though at times during my life it’s been very difficult, if you can keep a positive attitude you will eventually find yourself in a better place and position. Fear is very often the culprit and we are often our own worst enemy. Fear surrounds our comfort zone and when we use negative self talk it helps keep us there.

I was afraid to go back to school when I was 45 and could have very easily talked myself out of it, but I decided yes I can and indeed I did. I did not let fear keep me from doing something I had always wanted to do, I used positive thinking and pushed that fence of fear around my comfort zone down and accomplished my dream and as anyone can see from Obama he has done the same thing and accomplished his dream and it didn’t happen from having a negative attitude.

I knew that my Son was dying and I was so afraid of latching on to this child that is a part of me, but looks nothing like my Son or myself. How do people deal with a dying child? I know that I am trying and I have given my Son into God’s hands, but it’s very difficult to let go.

I did feel Love as a Grandparent, but I’m not sure exactly what kind it was because I was afraid of letting my feelings go because if my Son dies then maybe I wont see him again and it scares me. I know that’s wrong, but I can’t help it.

Meditation and prayer are ways that the mind connects with a higher awareness and helps us to realize that we are more than just a human body. I know that who I really am is not that human body I see when I look in the mirror that is just a shell, I am not this body. This body grows old and will perish, but I will not, my source and energy will return to it’s creator because it belongs to him.

Regardless of all the problems we create and see in this reality that we have chosen to create we are not alone as we so often believe. We have not been forsaken and cast out these are truths that I know for myself. I truly believe that I am dreaming this gift of life and that I can awaken whenever I choose to  my true reality and find that I’m perfectly safe and loved where I always was and that you are there with me.

I don’t ever argue Bible or beliefs because there is nothing to argue. I don’t have to prove what I believe and neither does anyone else. Bill firmly believes in Heaven and Hell, I do not, but we both solidly believe in a higher being regardless of whatever name he is known by. I think the Bible was written to keep a bunch of heathen in check and scare them with a mean judgmental Father and fire and brimstone.

I think God is loving and giving and forgives all of us poor creatures that believe we are separated from him and doing bad things and are scared to death to leave behind what we think we are in this reality. That’s why I try so hard to meditate and lift that veil. I don’t think that when the veil is lifted that I will be whisked away or disappear. I hear so many people say well if there is a God why does he let all these bad things happen?

My thought has always been that we are the ones letting all these bad things happen that we cry about daily because we were given the right to choose and to create and we have apparently created what we want to see. We have the power to change so many things because we were given that power, but there are so many righteous people that think their way is the only way and so we create wars because everyone wants to be right in their beliefs.

This is a quote from an unknown writer about meditation: ” The opportunity to set our own destiny, develop our manifestation of what we believe our life should be, is the opportunity meditation provides. Every action we’ve ever taken started as a thought. The thought was then brought into reality by our action on that thought. So are we able to produce new thoughts and new possibilities, in this time of quiet reflection. “

Bill was the best present ever given to me and I’m so glad I was smart enough at the time to realize it. He has enriched my life so much and I often worry that I don’t give back as much if not more than I receive. He does tell me that I make him feel important and that he feels appreciated, so that’s a good thing, but I know there are lots of things I could do better.

Bill and I are very different, he talks to everybody and I’m more reserved, the man doesn’t know the word stranger. Of course if someone talks to me I will converse with them, but I’m usually not the instigator of the conversation whereas Bill is, he can talk to anyone and he’s so funny. I have always told him that he is perfect for me and that he balances me and so he does.

The world is full of other people and we either decide to make friends with some of them so that our lives can be enhanced or we can choose to remain silent and aloof and stay in our own little world. I am so much happier because I opened that door and decided to include others and Bill in particular because my life has been  enriched with his knowledge and personality.

I posted about happiness yesterday and how we need to think positive thoughts and try to find that silver lining when confronted with negative events. Many stories have been documented where a patient was diagnosed with a fatal illness and with prayer and laughter and positive thinking they dumbfounded their doctors by curing themselves. Whether you believe these accounts or not is your choice, but I tend to believe.

Focusing on negative things will cause negative things to become reality. That’s why when I think of something negative I have a switch word to change the direction of my thoughts and it always works for me. If your mind and life is filled with dissatisfaction, anger, and hate then you will find yourself surrounded by those very same things. I do believe we need to train our mind to see the positive in order to attract the happiness we deserve.

If we can learn to focus our thoughts on positive things, love, happiness and contentment we will have the desired results and life will be filled with positive things. Just wishing for the good things in life though wont make them magically appear, we have to change the way we think and it’s a learning process that most of us want to learn. Many people believe subconsciously that they don’t deserve good things because they haven’t learned to let go of something from the past.

Last year I made a list of everything bad I ever thought I had done and I made myself be brutally honest and then one by one I went through the list and forgave myself for whatever it was I was still holding on to. The average human mind tends to focus on the negative instead of the positive. I not only gave myself permission to forgive myself, but I forgave others that I thought had wronged me also and let them go.

Many of us sit around just worrying about fears, whether they are real or imagined and it consumes our thought process. It’s part of our survival instinct. Often this takes place on an unconscious level, and we don’t even notice these thoughts. Regardless of what it’s being called this year, The Secret or The Law of Attraction, it’s a way to improve your life by changing your thinking process with the power of positive thinking.