Posted 11/24/2014 1:27 PM (GMT 0)
I had several sessions and it helped me a great deal. I was fortunate that I found a very good doctor, he is a scientist (physics actually) so he wasn't very spiritual - which suited me because I am more science-inclined. So it spoke to my predisposition anyway.
He was very logical and pragmatic, and my sessions were completely different than what I imagined. I remember every moment in full detail, I never felt strange or altered in any way and I certainly wasn't under any kind of control! It isn't at all what you see on TV or in popular culture, mine certainly wasn't anyway.
The purpose of his job was to create a safe environment where he could use breathing techniques to get his patients to a sufficiently relaxed state that they felt comfortable speaking about issues that they usually didn't articulate. He used very strong imagery to get in touch with the unconscious (the one that pipes up when you are dreaming!) and communicate with it in terms that it can understand. He explained to me that your unconscious doesn't comprehend language, so its useful to provide it with visual metaphors that it can relate to and use as tools to communicate.
So for example he created an exercise where he asked me to imagine a desk, and then he instructed me to systematically go through that desk and look at what it contained. I had to throw out all the clutter and pieces of paper, and he told me if I found anything I felt was significant that we would stop and discuss it. It was very useful, and the next day I always felt a little bit lighter.
Now, whether this was all placebo or not I'm not sure. But to be honest I don't think it matters. Even if it was just a different form of talk therapy it was beneficial to me regardless. It may be worth looking in to if you're at all interested :)