Life is like a tale. It is not how long it is, but how good it is that matters.
--Seneca
Most people are familiar with Charles Dickens' story, A Christmas Carol, in which the miserly Scrooge is visited by three spirits who frighten him into becoming a lovable old man who "knew how to keep Christmas better than anyone." If Dickens had written this story in the 21st century instead of the 19th, Scrooge would probably have made three visits to an experiential hypnotist. But, in light of our current understanding or motivation, instead of "scaring the Dickens" out of him, the hypnotist would have used reward rather than fear as an incentive.
When hypnosis clients are facing challenges for which they are not emotionally prepared, we can provide them with corrective experiences in a parallel universe which are meaningful enough to change their ongoing life narrative in this one. Regardless of whether or not these parallel universes actually do exist, all that is necessary to change the narrative of a person's life is to believe that they exist, so that this belief can serve as a catalyst for productive change.. For example, I was once working with a client who was going through several stresses at the same time. She had lost her job, she was separated from her husband, and she was being evicted from her apartment because she was ubahke to pay the rent She was an excellent amateur gymnast, however, and she would probably have had great success if her family had the means to allow her to compete at the national and international level.
She responded extremely well to hypnosis. To boost her confidence and self esteem, I suggested that she would experience the thrill, the exertion, and the triumph of winning an Olympic competition in a parallel universe, and of having the gold medal hung around her neck at the end of the ceremony. At the conclusion of the session, she opened her eyes, obviously thrilled to the core, and exclaimed, "Wow! I just won a gold medal!"
We chatted for a while, and I jokingly mentioned that I should adopt the motto for our practice that some dance studios use, posting a sign outside which read, "Walk in, dance out." To my surprise, as I watched her leave the office and walk down the hallway to the door at the far end, she was dancing!
She later told me that she had no more difficulties in facing her current stressors with resolution and courage. Just as the three spirits had done for Scrooge in Dickens' story, suggestion-enhanced experience had changed the ongoing narrative of her life.
Now, imagine the changes in one's life narrative which might ensue if a person we're able to repeatedly experience the fulfillment of one''s existence by dissolving into an ocean of infinite, unbounded love at the center of the Multiverse itself!
