I communicated with the subconscious by asking leading questions and getting “Yes” and “No” answers. It is similar to the game of 20 questions. I discovered the surrogate subconscious was a programmed part, a part deliberately created by the use of torture. One of its activities was to repeat “I won’t do it” continuously in the unconscious. This repetitive, unconscious behavior caused a barrier to treatment. It disorganized the patient’s unconscious behavior so treatment would not work. It was like receiving therapy while repeatedly singing “Bongo, bongo, bongo, I don’t want to leave the Congo.” I reassured the subconscious that painful emotions motivated the “I won’t do it, I won’t do it” program. The patient learned these emotions from the trauma during the programming. I stressed that the repeating response would become less motivated as she treated the trauma emotions associated with the program. She said she would try to treat the programmed part as I had previously requested. I waited while the subconscious was doing the treatment and talked to the programmed part. After several minutes, the surrogate said, “I’m beginning to feel confused” and then, within a minute, she gradually went into a dormant state; my patient’s eyes closed and her head slumped. Barbara returned to become the active personality. She said spontaneously that another fragment joined with her. Therapy continued.
Flexibility when treating with the subconscious
In a recent case, a patient came in complaining that she felt confused after she exercised. She had stopped exercising for about 10 days and started feeling clearheaded. Conversation with her subconscious suggested there was a part that was co-conscious in her conscious experience when she was exercising that gave her the lingering confusion. I set up rapport with all parts and was soon teaching the subconscious how to diagnose and treat parts. I then ran into a barrier. I was not seeing any finger responses.
I dealt with this barrier by assuming it was caused by a part. My approach was to set up rapport with the part and then treat it. I told her that all parts, including the prebirth parts, parts formed at birth, preverbal parts, or any other traumatic parts, were members of one personality. Trauma created those parts that seemed independent. They had experience in the body that gave them a false sense of ownership or fears about treatment. If they were all treated by neutralizing their trauma emotions, they could join the Main Personality. They would then experience more satisfaction in life and be able to protect themselves more effectively. With this explanation, I was hoping to get permission from this part and other parts to teach the subconscious how to treat trauma memories. By being respectful of all parts and by educating them and answering their objections, all parts eventually wanted treatment and to join with the Main Personality.
After getting permission from the parts, I taught the subconscious to locate the treatment points by tapping the points on myself. My demonstration taught the subconscious how to treat the painful emotions associated with the trauma memories learned during the trauma experience. The subconscious eventually signaled that she was able to treat a part that was co-conscious with the patient and who was the cause of her confusion. I asked the subconscious to start this process and chatted lightly with the patient as the subconscious continued to treat the part. After three or four minutes, the patient said she felt clearer. I asked the subconscious to signal with a finger response when she finished. Within a few moments, the subconscious signaled that she was finished. The patient felt much clearer by the end of the session. She later reported that she had no confusion after exercising.
Summary
A language process starts forming in utero and later becomes our subconscious. By explaining how the subconscious and the personality are formed, one can get rapport with the subconscious and all aspects of the personality. The subconscious is useful to direct the path of treatment, to help create new ways to treat difficult issues, to organize treatment plans, and to learn how to treat the effect of trauma. In addition, the subconscious can learn how to treat negative experiences automatically and independently of the Main Personality. The subconscious can treat active memories (negative beliefs, simple memories and life experiences) in different ways. The subconscious can apply these techniques to treat unknown trauma in a person’s history, such as self-limiting beliefs and other traumatic experiences and memories. While this form of treatment lacks support from published research, it has been effective for scores of patients treating themselves, as well as patients in my office and patients in clinics in Latin America.
The Process Healing Method is a treatment intervention that developed out of my relationship with my various patients’ subconsciouses. To summarize the process, the therapist first educates and works with all aspects of the personality to convince the aspects to want to receive treatment and join with the Main Personality. This approach is both respectful to the patient and makes later treatment easier. I call the process of getting parts on the Treatment Team the Education Process. The goal is to get all aspects of the personality to want to be treated and join the Treatment Team. During this process, the patient learns a way to communicate with the subconscious and aspects of the personality. When all aspects are on the Treatment Team and give permission, the therapist then teaches the subconscious how to treat painful emotions. Then in the treatment process, the patient or therapist asks the subconscious to treat painful or problematic issues.
This tale started in October 1991. By 1994, I was teaching the Process Healing Method to my patients by modeling the tapping treatment process. At first, I physically showed each of the acupressure treatment points to the subconscious, point by point. Now, a 30-second metaphor, which always works, teaches the treatment process. The next chapter, Chapter 2, introduces and gives an overview of the theory and procedure of Process Healing. It includes a transcript of the first session of the Process Healing Method and several examples of treatment interventions. Chapter 3 describes the entire basic procedure for getting all parts on the Treatment Team and teaching the subconscious the treatment method. The procedure to obtain rapport with the subconscious and all parts is now routine. In Chapter 4, I give detailed examples of many useful treatment interventions and aids. I use these treatment interventions routinely with most patients.
The theory of the development of the personality and memory structures is presented in Chapter 5. This is the most challenging chapter in the book. This knowledge is useful when problem-solving new structures and finding solutions for complex personality issues. Chapter 6 will teach you how to problem-solve and resolve difficult or complex barriers to treatment. Many readers won’t have to solve complex problems, but the interventions are included for those who do. Chapter 7 describes the treatment of dissociative and amnesic parts and all the complexities that can arise when treating parts. Chapter 8 introduces the more complex features of memory, namely memory structures and other constructs. These structures and constructs were discovered while solving patients’ issues and are frequently found to be the cause of problematic behavior and unusual experiences. Chapter 9 describes many treatments that are useful for relatively simple issues. Chapter 10 focuses on several complex disorders like depression, addictions, obsessive-compulsive behavior, psychotic behavior, and so forth. Chapters 9 and 10 are written primarily for therapists.
Now you know how my patients taught me and helped me learn a new respectful and effective treatment intervention. For those who have read some books about psychology and have opinions about brain, mind, and behavior, I want to point out what I think may be a paradigm shift for some readers. If you can suspend your previous learning and research-based ideas and accept the clinically based truisms presented here, this book offers a refreshing description of the development of the personality and explanations for complex mental issues. Here are what I consider to be the major shifts in beliefs.
1. The subconscious is accessible in everyone. It is not the unconscious. The subconscious is a unique process, with whom a therapist can communicate.
2. Dormant memories are available to be triggered into activity in the conscious or unconscious. They are not located in the unconscious.
3.