to be considering past life regression?

[izzywhizzyletsgetbusy]

I love messing about in boats off UK coasts or the eastern seaboard of the US and in the Med.

HOWEVER, merely the names 'South China Sea' and 'Cape Horn' fill me with dread, as does the thought of the extremely deep waters of the southern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

I'm not likely to venture into these regions in any kind of sea-going vessel but, nevertheless, I'm wondering why I have this seemingly irrational fear of the deep in those particular parts of the world.

Would it be unreasonable to explore whether past life regression can shed any light on my fears? Have you had any experience of recalling past lives and, if so, has it helped you in your present life? Is it something that you would like to do (someday, sometime, when you get round to it) or are you disbelieving of the concept of reincarnation?

[MrsReasonable]

Dexifehatz, false memory syndrome is not a dangerous phrase.

There is no significant evidence to support the idea of 'repressed' memories - unfortunately, people who go through horrible events have to remember it for the rest of their lives. There is evidence that memories can be altered and even created, however.

[Dexifehatz]

I think 'false memory syndrome' is actually a very dangerous phrase. Who says they are false memories? usually the accused or those close to them.A lot of shit can be swept under the proverbial carpet by telling someone their memories are false.

[WhoseGotMyEyebrows]

LaurieFairyCake Sorry I bit your head off!

[Sillybones]

Hi cortina - have been out, so only saw this just now.

Well, I can't say eactly what she said as I'm so suspicious that I never want to write really unusual stuff down in case someone somewhere accesses it at some point and uses it when they read me! It was a very unusual medical thing and she was quite specific (very specific - she didn't know what it meant, she just told me the symptoms). She also said that I was drawn to a certain thing that you probably couldn't guess - certainly not as a first guess.

I do think they are fantastic at reading people and at working things out from your age/class/accent etc - eg, someone looking at me and guessing my age and background could easily work out that there were lots of Susans/Lorraines etc in my day so could guess I might know someone. Similarly, if they guessed at names a generation before me, they would have a good stab at aunties and uncles. Where they always fall down, with me, is that I have a very small family so they can guess all day and I won't have one usually.

However, this woman didn't do that - she closed her eyes (I stared at her throughout to see what she was up to), and spoke constantly, telling me not to say anything, then just see what I could take from it.

So - what's going on there?

Certainly, with psychics/mediums, they never get anything and I end up feeling quite sorry for them as they flounder, as, presumably, they don't get any cues from me!

It's very odd, I really am sceptical, but I can't explain that woman at all.

[MigratingCoconuts]

I love the idea of spiritual beakers!!

[seeker]

Spiritual healers, obviously. Spiritual beakers would be something completely different. Maybe I was a Beaker Person in a past life!

[seeker]

A vaguely relevant fact- do you know that actors pretending to be spiritual beakers have a bett success rate than " real" spiritual healers? Because, obviously, they are more convincing and the placebo effect is stronger.

lawrie, you still haven't explained why you linked to scam-lady.

[MigratingCoconuts]

I think it makes perfect sense that they do, given that the whole thing is made up by the modern mind ...you are absolutely right, if it was true regression then they would speak in the old language.

[exoticfruits]

Does no one else think it strange that they all regress into modern day English?

[SiamoFottuti]

They are even more dangerous than the ones who know its all bollocks.

[CeliaDeBohun]

I have met people who do past life regression and they are, without exception, charlatans.

I know someone who does past life regressions and she does truly believe in it. She and I were very close friends many years ago. This was before she'd started working as a past life regressionist/alternative therapist. Anyway, she was convinced she was psychic even then and told me when i was 20 that she had a strong feeling that I'd never have any children. That haunted me for years - right up until my DS was born last year. I was terrified that she was right and all through my pregnancy, I was waiting for something to go wrong

Sorry, totally off topic there! As I was saying, this woman completely believes in what she does. Her 'regressions' may be utterly worthless but she definitely does believe in them 100%.

[mummymccar]

Please be very careful with it if you do go. My friend's mum is very into past lives and the paranormal so when my friend's brother started talking about the Titanic, pointing out pictures of the captain and saying 'bad man' she became quite obsessed with the idea that in a past life he'd been a passenger. He was under 10 at the time so she waited a few years and then took him when he was about 12. God knows why the hell they did it on a child but it really screwed him up. He didn't say anything about the titanic during the session but did talk about a little house he was living in. It really messed him up for a couple of years and he won't talk about it now.
As I said though, he was only a kid at the time so you may have a much better reaction to it.

[LaurieFairyCake]

Horrible story Rufus

I think anyone use hypnotherapy should be registered - it (like counselling) is still unregulated and voluntary.

[RufusTFirefly]

Be very careful. There are some charlatans out there who only want your money. Twelve years ago I was going through hell with severe depression and a chaotic life that I couldn't seem to get a handle on. I didn't realise that I had bipolar disorder, and was getting no help worthy of the name from the medical profession. I went to a "Reiki healer" who was charging £50 a pop even then - God knows what she rakes in now.

She told me I had been a witch in a previous life and burnt at the stake, and proposed to regress me to that past life by hypnosis so I could "put it right". Erm - how? "Just give me that flaming brand, Mister Witchfinder General, there's a good chap"?. Although I was all over the place, I knew enough to realise that hypnosis is very powerful and the potential to cause damage very great, especially at the hands of the likes of her. I declined and never went back to her. Some years later and after I had got into remission, I mentioned her name to a fellow-member of the bipolar support group to which I belong. My friend's reaction was a gasp of horror.

I think that "healer" is beyond evil, preying on vulnerable people like me. What she proposed could have blown my head off my shoulders - just think of the images I would have conjured up; burning and screaming. Wicked old cow.

[SiamoFottuti]

Some charlatans are very good at it, and have tricks like you wouldn't believe. Just because you don't know how they do it doesn't mean you have to think its true. Do magicians really saw all those women in half and make elephants disappear into thin air?

Most charlatans are rubbish though, and rely solely on the willingness of their clientele to be fooled. I got dragged along to an angel reading with a friend a while ago, it was laughable, she didn't even need to try to fool anyone. She gave about as much out as your average tabloid horoscope and people lapped it up.

[Cortina]

Sillybones, possibly working in a Derren Brown way? What sort of details, a friend of mine was told the name of his current girlfriend, she had a highly unusual nickname that was very alarming!

I had an uncannyily accurate reading in Brighton once. My theory, looking back, was the waiting room was bugged. The details I was told could not possibly be known but thinking back I think I may have mentioned some to my friend & then this guy cleverly filled in the blanks!

What sort of information was revealed?

[MigratingCoconuts]

good pt exoticfruits!

Sillybones, I agree its difficult to explain...however, if your experience could be repeatedly demonstrated under clinical conditions then I would accept that there was something in it afterall and I would only then be interested in trying to explain it.

Until then, the most likely explanation is that this con artist is able to draw information out with you even realising that is what has happened. (and even for a sceptic, I think they are very persuasive)

[exoticfruits]

If you were being regressed and explaining life as a Viking child why would you be doing it in modern day English? Does this mean that while being regressed (not having done it/seen it, but presume it is hypnotic state)you are aware enough to understand you must speak in the language of your present life? Are they told to answer in English? The person could prove it once and for all if they said 'say "yesterday I caught 5 fish" in your native language'.

[LaurieFairyCake]

Whosegotmyeyebrows - I'm not criticising cbt, I use the techniques as part of my therapy too (and am qualified in it).

I'm criticising that the govt are putting it forward as cheap and effective. Many of the cbt practitioners are not therapists, have only trained for 3/6 months, have had not therapy themselves as part of their training (when I was training I had to have therapy for the entire 4 years I was training). Many of the short-term methods, carried out by untrained practitioners are not useful or memorable long-term.

I am very pleased it was helpful for you

[Sillybones]

So, how does it work then? Not in the obvious sense where you're just being told nonsense and you quite fancy being a bit more dramatic so you agree with it all, but . . .

I didn't have regression as such, it was some sort of thing where the woman told me about past lives (I'll use these terms, but it doesn't mean I believe them!), without regressing me. The one she told me about was amazing; she claims to pick up on things that are still affecting you or that you have never processed.

Now, as I've said, I don't believe any of this stuff. I've had loads of psychic readings, been to lots of places where things were allegedly happening (I was a journalist and because I was the really sceptical one, I got sent to this type of thing), written books on it, and I've never believed a word of it. But this woman told me things that I have never written of, never blogged, never done a column on, close friends don't know, and they were accurate.

I was thrown by it, and even when going over some of it at home later with my equally sceptical DP, couldn't work out how she had done it. Any ideas?

[SiamoFottuti]

I'm not trying to persuade anyone, and I couldn't give a monkeys about anyones personal beliefs. I'm a scientist, I deal in facts and logic. I'm also a professional, and I don't think much of those who hang off the coat-tails of a professional established area with their fringe nonsense, who take advantage of often vulnerable people.
If that comes across as harsh, I really don't care. I'm not ashamed of my position. The woman linked to in that post can't possibly be working ethically as far as my concept of professional standards go. She is selling this boohockey as fact. Not to mention selling professional looking diplomas.


@ Coconuts, Duh, of course it is! I should have remembered that. More of of a Life of Brian woman myself

[Cortina]

Does anyone remember a documentary a few years back about a young boy who recalled a previous life in a cottage in the Orkney islands? He named the family and drew a picture of the landing strip and type of planes used there etc. He provided a huge amount of detail about this family, he was around 6 as I recall.

[seeker]

,The woman who'ss website I linked to will have supervision in the normal clinic sense as all therapists do if they're working ethically. This is if she uses it as part of therapy and not as some separate 'treatment'."

And the people who she sells Diplomas to?

[LaurieFairyCake]

Can I just point out that I dont have a personal 'belief' in regression as an actual past life experience.

I use it as a tool to get people to access other parts of themselves they may find it difficult to access or incorporate.

I know it's right at the beginning of the thread where I said what I thought but I don't want to be linked into some woo-ness where I'm defending regression as a 'science'.

The woman who's website I linked to will have supervision in the normal clinic sense as all therapists do if they're working ethically. This is if she uses it as part of therapy and not as some separate 'treatment'.

[seeker]

He didn't say anything, whosegotmyeyebrows, because he was with his wife at the time who was a full blown woo- merchant, and regarded his scepticism as a character flaw. He said something to her later, and it was instrumental in their final break up!

He wishes he had now, and tells the story whenevr he can as a public service,