Many people attending counselling do so because they are keen to let go of issues from their past.
They are aware that their past is keeping them trapped and they cannot fully embrace who they are until these issues are released.
Many of us may believe that the past is in the past and no longer has any power or control over us.
Every event, good and bad, registers in our minds, our emotions and our energy system.
For example, when you think back to a happy memory as a child, it may bring back positive feelings and a feeling of love for you in the present. If you remember a past trauma or negative event , you may notice a tightening in your chest and a sense of dread, fear or sadness.
A sign that a past experience is impacting on your present life is when you find yourself over-reacting to a current minor situation.
These past events can feel like a cage we need to remove in order to liberate ourselves and feel free again.
The good news is that we can work to lessen the impact of these triggers with psychotherapy and EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique).
I am often moved by how clients are really surprised at how they feel when they talk about something that may have happened 10, 20, 30 or even 50 years ago!
The amount of time that has passed is irrelevant when it comes to our feelings.
When I meet new clients and ask when the person first experienced a particular feeling, many people can bring themselves back to an exact moment in time and remember it with real clarity.
Many people make statements such as 'I was never the same again ' , 'I lost the real me back then' or 'everything changed after that'.
I describe past experiences like a rope- there can be a rope for anger, loss, fear, happiness etc. Each current experience pulls on this rope and can bring us back to a particular moment in time and an original event that registered strongly for us.
For example, a client might report feeling they are overreacting to feeling excluded in a friendship and find that the first time they felt the particular feeling in question was in secondary school when they felt excluded and ignored by their peers.
I work with clients to help resolve and heal the original negative event so that it no longer impacts on the client in the same way in their present experience.
EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) is particularly useful for clearing the energy attached to past negative events. In this way, we are no longer held prisoner by our past and can live from who we truly are.
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