What I am about to share isn’t going to be my life story but that of how I came to this profession of hypnotherapy and why I am such a strong believer in the power of a clinical approach to hypnotherapy.
I haven’t had an easy life, however if you watch the news for even a few moments, most of us can agree that others have far greater difficulties and sorrows. What I will tell you is my personal experience, which convinced me of the potential and power of the mind in its ability to resolve issues when given the right opportunity.
My own difficulties throughout my life led to the realization that if I wanted to change my circumstances, I must take action to change my self and my thinking. I knew that my challenges and struggles: with illness, disappointments, poverty, sadness and often despair brought about by negative experiences in relationships, health, family circumstances, livelihood, and all of life’s ups and downs, had left me with deep traumatic scars. I knew I had to reinvent myself. This led me on a path in the healing arts, many of which you can read about when you click on “about me”.
The healing arts studies added value and helped me to grow, to become a more confident person, to love myself again, to set boundaries with others. It changed my thinking about many things (I could go on and on). I am here to tell you, this all runs so deep…. deep in your subconscious mind!
Even with all of the directed work I had been doing, there was one recurring challenge that was relentless… just when I thought it was over, again it would pop up in my life: this relentless battle was with psoriasis.
It first showed up after my parents divorced and I was suddenly living at my Great Grandmother’s house. She was cranky and mean, didn’t want my mother and I there. Our room was upstairs and had no heat – it was cold, and I was alone…a lot. I was miserable! This first encounter with psoriasis was a mild case and it was embarrassing as a child. (You know how cruel children can be.)
As a teenager it surfaced again, triggered by an allergic reaction to medicine after becoming very ill.
Then it returned after my own divorce. Being free from an emotionally and physically abusive man was liberating, but I was then a single mother of three small children, no money, no car, no where to go, being harassed and threatened, even after divorce. This bout was much worse. A dermatologist treated me for quite some time, but without lasting effects. Then an environmentalist doctor treated the psoriasis with alternative medicines. At this time I also learned about the systemic candida problem lurking within me. Now I contended with two problems. Despite this, it was an eye-opening journey of discovering healthier lifestyles and food choices. And the psoriasis finally abated.
A few times it seemed to want to flare up again although it didn’t turn into an outbreak therefore it truly seemed to have disappeared. I felt sure that my new diet and lifestyle was key to being psoriasis free.
I was wrong! Again it came back and it was worse than ever. The constant itching was maddening and some of the affected areas were very painful. Doctors tell us that stress is a big factor in this condition. So I tried to relax myself, but I couldn’t; the constant itching and pain were relentless, no matter what I tried. All of the past methods of treating it were now ineffective, and it worsened. The two most severe areas on my wrists would crack and bleed.
I began to suffer from the “superficial” aspects of psoriasis: It is unattractive. When people see it they look at you as if you have leprosy and are repulsed. In addition to the inflamed skin itself, there’s a tremendous amount of flaking skin, apparent on clothing and elsewhere, often misconstrued as uncleanliness.
The emotional impact of dealing with this disorder took its toll on my psyche. It was so disruptive to my life. I was desperate for a solution!
I started to dive into self-improvement to see if I could resolve the psoriasis through emotional healing. I had heard many times that emotional and mental issues can manifest as physical health problems.
I attended a seminar that focuses on resolving personal issues and changing one’s mindset. There were a number of activities we did in the seminar, including breathwork/rebirthing, that seemed to effect my psoriasis. I felt like I was onto something. After the seminar, I booked an appointment with one of the instructors and did some anger releasement work with her. At the time I didn’t even know that I had anger stored in my body’s tissues but in good faith and desperation I tried it. I beat the s**t out of a big pillow with a tennis racket while shouting, under supervision of the therapist of course, to make sure I was doing it right. Much to my surprise, my psoriasis did improve, but it was still severe and chronic. I decided to go back to the therapist again.
What I will tell you next was nothing short of a miracle.
I didn’t have any idea of what would happen in this session with the therapist but I had the sole goal of getting to the bottom of the cause of this psoriasis! I was full of hope. I entered her office and began to talk to her about some memory of my childhood and somehow spontaneously slipped into a hypnotic state. I began to experience sensations in my body coupled with visuals of a strange situation. I had accessed a memory of a past life. (Okay, some people reading this will say, “I don’t believe in past lives; it is nonsense”. But you don’t have to be a subscriber to the philosophy to get results.) I had accessed the memory of being a young girl in a Nazi concentration camp and dying in the gas chamber. I saw someone holding my wrists (where my condition was the worst) and slight sensations of my skin burning, choking and difficulty breathing. After seeing all this almost like a movie, about myself but not myself now, I came back to my present reality. I felt like I had had a release of some sort and it was quite a compelling new perspective I had gained.
Freud said that reliving is relieving. Well… within three days, my psoriasis had completely disappeared as if it had never been there! And that was it. It was finished.
After reflecting upon how this past life revelation had fostered healing in my body I realized that the recurring theme carried over into this lifetime was the feeling of being trapped and not being able to escape a terrible situation or circumstances (your body thinks it will die). When I saw the power and potential of hypnotherapy, I was astounded! I thought, “I have to learn how to do this to help others”.
Hypnotherapy really resonated with me as the ultimate tool for activating the body’s self-healing powers. I decided to pursue the path to becoming a Clinical Hypnotherapist with Master Clinical Hypnotherapist Charles Skillas.
This story was an account of my personal experience, with hypnotherapy as a client. From the perspective of the hypnotherapist, everyone has their own unique experience, because it is your own subconscious mind. It holds the intelligence of what you need and presents sources of challenges in a way that is understandable and acceptable for you.
Hypnotherapy has countless applications for emotional, mental, physical, spiritual needs/desires, to enhance your life, which is why we often refer to it as Quantum Hypnotherapy! If you are willing to be hypnotized and discover your true self, waiting to be freed from self-imposed blocks, try Clinical Hypnotherapy.
Clinical Hypnotherapist
Living abroad on the beautiful Mediterranean Coast of Turkey. It is my intension for this blog to add value to others with similar interests, a curious nature and a sense of humor. My perspective comes from my experience as a hypnotherapist and ever-growing awareness of the delicate balance of human spirit.