Can Hypnosis Help with Repressed Trauma?

Every so often, I get a call about someone wanting to remember a childhood trauma with hypnosis. As much as I’d love to help them, I know the dangers of doing such a thing with hypnotherapy. The results could be more traumatizing than beneficial. Actually, I explained more about the dangers of regression work with hypnosis in a previous article that you can read here.

I end up recommending those who suffer from early life trauma work on the effects of the trauma that they are experiencing right now. Trauma usually triggers a complex set of physical and emotional challenges in one’s life. Not only hypnosis can help with improving these struggles but also sometimes spontaneously, one can recall memories as the subconscious mind feels ready to process them.

Sometimes working on repressed traumas subconsciously can be more beneficial than working on them consciously. Even though we can consciously comprehend and rationalize what happened, we may still feel stuck when it comes to our actions. Hypnotherapy can help with moving forward subconsciously.

Does hypnosis work for repressed memories?

When we experience a negative event or trauma, we become engulfed with powerful emotions. These are usually difficult to deal with, especially when other environmental factors are taken into consideration. As a result, we end up suppressing these emotions, memories, people, and sensations into the subconscious mind.

Over time or by “not thinking about it” they don’t really disappear; they remain dormant until a triggering event or a life change happens. This is why we may not understand why we overreact to certain things at times but at the root, repressed memories can be the cause.  

Even though I don’t recommend using hypnosis to specifically remember the repressed memories, hypnotherapy can help with the emotional impact one receives from such events. Hopelessness, helplessness, or abandonment, are often suppressed subconsciously and can be processed and released with hypnosis.

It is also common to have spontaneous memories emerging during hypnosis. This is different than the regression work because it is a natural emergence of pictures and sensations. Sometimes processing these flashbacks can also be helpful to bring relief. 

Finally, we can focus on the end result and help someone transform what they are experiencing in their lives right now. For example, as a result of a repressed childhood trauma, one may have difficulty with commitment in romantic relationships. With hypnosis, we can focus on the desired state and help the subconscious mind refocus on what’s important.

Hypnotherapy can help working with repressed trauma subconsciously.

What techniques does hypnotherapy use for trauma? 

Hypnotherapy is a case-by-case technique like many other therapeutic methods. The approaches will vary from person to person and hypnotherapist to hypnotherapist. However, there are a few common hypnosis techniques we, hypnotherapists use when working with trauma.

Rescripting

Rescripting is a technique we can use when someone recalls at least portions of a memory already. During hypnosis, we create a calm and dissociative state for the person to go through the same memory but this time from a different perspective and ending.

During hypnosis, the subconscious mind doesn’t know the difference between reality and imagination. With the rescripting technique, we implant the seeds of positive outcomes for the same event.

Release techniques

There are multiple hypnotic release techniques we can use in various situations. The result of release techniques is more powerful since they target the subconscious mind. Hypnosis allows us to release repressed emotions, unexpected people, places, and much more. Just by releasing the stuck emotions subconsciously, one can gain so much more clarity and inner guidance.

Childhood work

Especially adverse childhood events affect the self-esteem and self-worth of a person significantly. Development as a child takes a pause and adaptation behaviors begin. This is why embracing that scared, lonely, confused, or abandoned child can be really helpful to move forward in this life.

Subconsciously, that little child is still there, waiting to be seen, heard, loved, and helped. During hypnosis, we can work on completing what was cut in half. Seeing yourself from the light of pure love and acceptance can help with walking into the future more confidently.

Dream therapy

Dreams are powerful messengers of the subconscious mind. There are multiple stages of dreams that I outlined in a previous article but especially early morning dreams can give us clues about the repressed memories held in the subconscious mind. 

Sometimes we may not be aware of what is causing our behavior. On the surface, nothing seems to make sense. But with dream therapy, the subconscious mind can open up and bring memories into the awareness. 

During hypnosis, we can direct the mind to release more through dreams or we can analyze dreams to understand the triggers of the mind more accurately.

Wrapping up

Dealing with a trauma can affect life quality significantly. If you suspect that you may be holding back events and memories, starting from therapy can be a good option to assess your situation with a professional. Hypnotherapy can be an alongside addition to empower and accelerate your journey!