This article was first published on the the RTT Forum and got Huge Support and Interest.
“This might seem odd but does ‘Istanbul’ mean anything to you.” I asked, bracing myself.
This article was first published on the the RTT Forum and got Huge Support and Interest.
“This might seem odd but does ‘Istanbul’ mean anything to you.” I asked, bracing myself. She looked back startled. Just less than fifteen minutes ago I had gone into a deep meditation. Meditating as I sometimes do before seeing a client. During my meditation, as I was focusing on my client, I kept seeing images of Istanbul. This seemed an interruption and I tried to bring my focus back on my client, but the same images kept coming back.
I was now peering intently into the startled face of my client across the screen. What must she be thinking? To be honest she really didn’t look like the type to visit Istanbul in my opinion. Nevertheless, I went out on the limb and ‘Trusted’, although I was now silently kicking myself, as I was obviously about to make an ass of myself.
4,416.
4,416 is the number of cities there are in the world. And I had honed in/zoomed in on 1...one long shot in the dark.
Although startled, she answered pretty quickly, “Well...only that it’s the last place Carl and I and Sean (only child) went to before we split up.”
Relief....she’s been there! Now it was her turn to ask, Why? I explained, and she took it in calmly and showed no further reaction.
What followed was an extraordinary session. With shouting, screaming, crying, and utter despair. Scenes that were petrifying, terrifying. For my client to experience. For me... I didn’t think. I switched myself off for the time being, my only focus was her. It was painful to watch...painful to see someone who’s soul seemed in such agony. Her heart was racing, mine was too. At one point her little cat, our silent witness, jumped up and tried fervently to console her. Poor chap.
My client, someone whose profession could hardly be more Scientific and less esoteric if they tried.
RTT forum, and an open call by Graduate Support is how my client came to me. The call was if anyone would be willing to give a session to a member who may possibly have been subjected to sexual abuse. Having done this a few times, I applied. Coincidentally I happened to be online within a minute of the post being published.
Client- lets call her Mabel, in her 50s. Professional Background- Scientific.
Presenting Problem- Find the meaning of the 2 Regression scenes with previous therapist.
Discovery call- I said okay, sure (find meaning of the 2 scenes), but don’t you want anything else? If I simply resolve the scenes, what is my ‘Cure’/’Transformation’ going to be about I wondered? What’s the substance of that? But my client had multiple issues, and she finally suggested- Maybe we could work on Life Purpose. To be honest, I knew she only said it because I kept asking what else we would work on during the session. All she really wanted, I felt, was to resolve and understand what those ghastly, painful and petrifying scenes were about. Her trust in me was limited. As it is in the rest of humanity I ventured to think. I even told her during the discovery call, Mabel when we do this, you are going to have to Trust me, have Faith in me, and I know that’s hard for you. She said, “Do you think I don’t trust people?” I immediately answered without thinking, “Yes.” She just said quietly, “Wow.” Nothing further. God knows what she must be thinking I thought. Presumptive, impetuous?
Also during the call, at one point I suddenly had the urge to interrupt her to ask, which I have not asked any client before, “Mabel, do you have any pets?” She paused, she had been talking continuously before this moment. I said, “Sorry, never mind. It doesn’t matter...” She cut me off this time, “No. I do. It’s funny you ask, because actually a year ago when my previous cat died, that’s when all of this started. I had a very bad reaction to losing him, I don’t know why...but that’s when my body went into collapse, and...” she explained further. Our call had been in complete background silence. I don’t know why I had the need to ask the question, if I could have controlled the urge, I would not have asked. Pets?
She had had a session with another RTT therapist. The Presenting Problem there was for a physical ailment, for painful knees and an inability to walk more than short distances. During the session with the other therapist however, 2 painful and Very Disturbing scenes came up which neither Mabel nor the therapist could resolve or understand. Even while describing the scenes to me over the phone during the discovery call, Mabel seemed terrified, petrified. She said she didn’t know what it was but during the scenes she felt So much pain and resistance, feeling restrained by someone or something, that she thought it could do with being abused or raped.
I asked her to describe the scene, and while she was explaining I had a hunch, that this was not a rape or abuse scene. I don’t know how or why. We talked about it, and she told me a bit about her family history, Mother was in an extremely abusive relationship, Father- not present, an alcoholic. When she described the scene- darkness, feeling restrained etc, my mind immediately wondered if this could be a scene in the womb?
As a therapist, we see people regress to being in the womb occasionally. However, I know well from past experiences, never to assume. I once had wondered exactly the same, but as the scene developed, it turned out that the girl who was also seeing darkness and feeling restrained, was in the playground, had her eyes tightly closed, and was being held tightly to be comforted because she had torn open her leg while playing.
We started the session. Smooth hypnosis induction. I regressed her back to the scene which had come up during the previous RTT session. The transformation that came over her was profound.
She was rocking back and forth, her hands covering her face, crying, screaming, shouting in Agony. I kept reminding her, Mabel today is Xth day of September 2019, you are safe in your home while we have this Zoom session. I quickly glanced and thanked her in my mind for having diligently filled out my Intake form. Her address was on it. More than once during the painful and agonizing minutes that followed, I glanced at the address, thinking that at any moment I might have to pick up my mobile, next to me and call the Emergency services to her home. Now more than every I learned the Importance of having your clients address and contact details on hand!
Her scene, the agony, the pain, the rocking back and forth....I will not describe in detail here. In short though- after much investigation turned out to be a spontaneous ‘Past Life Regression’. She was being beaten, the poor lady, a young girl in the scene, was being beaten over and over and over. Being whipped among a crowd. The rocking back and forth were the lashings of the whip. The details of the scene are very painful and traumatic... We dealt with the scene.
And now I wanted to take her to the second scene she had had with the previous therapist. But she went right back to that same scene again. So I knew more was needed to resolve it. The tools I used were manifold. We dialogued and extracted a lot of meaning from the scene. It is never the scene, but the interpretation and meaning we attach to a scene or event that affects us. Using a variety of techniques from my arsenal.
Now the time...it was obviously late. I had worked extensively on the traumatic First scene which had come up Twice. Her mind had not gone to the second scene with the other therapist. I still had my brief- Life Purpose. What to do? How do I tie up these loose ends together, bring something about to give cohesion, structure, mission- Resolve? Transformation? I took a moment, took a deep breath, clearing and focusing my mind, how do I find clarity here?
My mind now went back to my meditation before our session. Istanbul! I must use that. It didn’t come for nothing. So, I said, “Mabel. I want you now to go back to a scene all to do with your trip to Istanbul.” She was surprised, confused. She said, “But how? Which scene, I don’t have a scene....” She was thinking., and said ‘’Which scene?. There are so many scenes.”
I said, “Is there a scene where you are near the water with Sean, and Carl?”
She said, “it’s funny you say that. I was actually trying to choose between two scenes. And one of them is exactly as you describe it... we are next to the pool.”
While she was thinking, I had had a flash, I saw a pic of a scene as I described to her. “Use that one” I said.
We went into the scene.... The details I leave out. We did LH-RH (Left hand- Right hand). I said, “Mabel, do you see the significance of this scene, the previous scene, and your issue with finding your Life Purpose?”
She was trying hard, thinking. “No, actually I don’t!”
“Mabel, do you remember the way you described your last job to me, and what you wrote in answer to Ques X on my intake?”
“Oh.” She said.
“They are...” I said.
“Exactly the same ‘feelings’ the same words.” She completed for me.
That scene whose inspiration came from my meditation, tied together the Entire Session. That scene, Istanbul which came up during my meditation, made sense of Everything, brought everything into place. It brought cohesion, it gave the structure, it gave the ‘Cure’, it provided the ‘Transformation’.
And my client, whom I have the highest regard for intellectually, academically, professionally- gave me one of the best Testimonials ever.
I went with my gut, I listened, I trusted, I kept focus, kept an open mind, kept calm, Wanted to Give my client everything she Needed, and it paid.
This article, has been reviewed and approved by Mabel before being published.
With immense gratitude and thanks... Isabella Ivory