Last week during my master certification training in hypnotherapy, we listened to a guest speaker, Jason Parker, PhD, MHt, talk about spirit attachments and parts releasement. Parker has done research at John Hopkins University and taught at Virginia Tech and is currently a Professor of Psychology at Old Dominion University. He is a riveting speaker.
For one whole day, from nine in the morning until 4:30 in the afternoon, he talked (and he is a fast talker) about how hypnotherapy can help people afflicted with more than a bad habit. He first spoke at length about abnormal psychology, and all manner of brain studies that are solidly based in the realm of logical and documented science.
Then things got strange.
I’ve talked to a few friends and colleague about what Parker said and they have responded by asking me about my beliefs. Do I believe in demonic possession? Do I believe that the earthbound spirit of a complete stranger can attach to an unsuspecting person and change behaviors and health patterns? Do I believe hypnotherapy can help these people?
There was a point in the lecture, when Parker was talking about how to recognize a demon (red eyes was one of the symptoms) that I did a little bit of an out-of-body moment and had a chat with myself. The skeptical part of me took the overly curious part of me aside and had a conference. The conversation went something like this:
“Are you aware of what you are actually listening to?” Skeptical Cynthia asked, in a rather alarmed voice I might add. “This is wacky.”
“Yeah, but interesting. Creepy, but interesting. Look at how he talks about this Hollywood movie stuff as if it is real. That’s interesting. And who’s to say it’s not real?”
“You are being had. Any minute now someone is going to come out from behind the curtain and tell you that you’ve been punked.”
“Well, who am I to say it isn’t possible? After all, there is literature, including the Bible, documenting demonic behavior and going back to the beginning of time as we know it. And this guy is an expert with a great resume. He has actually had clients who have taught him this stuff. I haven’t had a single demonic client. How would I know? I’ve had other clients experience things that were hard to believe, yet hard to deny. I’ve experienced things that are hard to believe.”
“Fine. Listen to him some more, but stay on your toes.”
“It doesn’t really matter what I believe, does it? It only matters that the client finds relief.”
“True. I suggest that you decide to not believe anything.”
“I can agree to that, with one exception.”
“Which is?”
“I believe that all of our experiences ultimately are used by God to bless us.”
“I can agree with that.”
“And I still think that whenever possible, it is more helpful to focus on using regression therapy to uncover our positive gifts and complexes to help us live a richer, more spiritual life.”
At this point, the two parts of myself melded back into the whole of me, just in time to listen to Parker talk about Disassociation Disorder.
Contact Cindie
