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Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: Watch My Words

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Carrying a lot of extra words around?
-Artwork © 2024 Jan Ketchel

Thought is the first cause of manifestation. Words are the currency of thought. The words we use create our realities.

Take for example the use of the word my. It’s quite typical for people to refer to a physical condition, such as a migraine headache or cancer as my headache or my cancer when discussing their status.

Though logically it makes sense to refer to a condition one is grappling with as my ________,  on a subtle level the use of this possessive adjective grants the condition full citizenship in the physical body. Every time we use the word my we suggest to the subconscious mind that the condition being identified exists in and is a part of me.

Of course, a diagnosis, deemed essential for proper treatment, requires a distinctive name, but once we put the word my in front of it, we plant it as a seed in the fertile soil of the creative substance in the subconscious mind, the very substance that creates and manifests life.

Inadvertently, through the use of the word my, we may be sending suggestions to the subconscious mind that substantiate the very condition we are seeking to eliminate. From an internal family system perspective, the word my can generate an entity that is entitled, because of its my-ness, to be part of one’s internal family. We might then actually feel powerless to insist that it leave us.

An alternative, which bypasses this conundrum, would be to acknowledge the symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment one is working with without claiming personal ownership of it through the use of the word my. For example, one might speak in this manner: “Sometimes I experience headaches that have been diagnosed as migraines. This is the treatment I’m involved with to eliminate the issue.”

Another common misuse of the word my is in the oft-stated phrase, my triggers. The phrase my trigger grants a trigger legitimate entity status and permanent residence in one’s personality. Triggers should actually be treated as transient experiences that reveal the existence of root issues that need to be processed.

The processing of a trigger means to fully neutralize its negative effect upon one’s life. When we say, my trigger, we send the message to the subconscious mind that this is a powerful and permanent condition that must be avoided at all costs. This also results in the expectation that other people take responsibility to both know and avoid provoking these hidden bombs that we house but seek to avoid.

The antidote is to assume responsibility when triggered. Often this requires one to retreat, release activated emotional energy, and then process the root issue that has come to the surface. Triggers should be thanked for their guidance as we track the true culprit of our discontent.

Saying thank you is a powerful way to gain the support and influence of the subconscious mind. Triggers are actually present associations to established habits that the subconscious activates, as per the instructions it receives from established beliefs and suggestions.

By thanking the subconscious for the trigger that enables us to root out its cause, we warmly engage our inner partner, the subconscious mind, in the task of reclaiming our defensive energy and releasing entities we have created to avoid uncomfortable issues.

Thank the subconscious often for its tireless efforts to create the self we ask it to be. For best results, may that intended self reflect the truth of the heart.

Thank you,
Chuck

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: Erasing Personal History

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Erasing personal history…
-Illustration © 2023 Jan Ketchel

At one point, Don Juan Matus abruptly threatened the continuation of Carlos Castaneda’s shamanic apprenticeship by challenging him to immediately disengage from all his attachments and habits of daily life, thus erasing personal history, a prime tenet of a shaman’s advancement. For instance, Carlos was encouraged to immediately dissolve a lucrative tie dye tee shirt business partnership, which he did within a few hours.

Erasing personal history means ending the control of an identity, rooted in past associations, that continues to define one’s present life activities and sense of self. When I was in Castaneda’s world, I experienced people taking this insinuation to change to the extreme, completely leaving their daily lives, even changing their names, to free their energy to be employed in a totally new way.

This radical form of dissociation from the past is more a metaphor than a practical and effective form of achieving desired change. As a therapist, or spiritual guide, I approach such an intent for new life through the experience of changing one’s past self, and thereby, altering one’s present and future selves. Changing one’s past self is indeed erasing the hold of one’s personal history.

To change the past self we must fully revisit it. The power of suggestion is extremely powerful and can indeed change the present self, at least temporarily, through the power of dissociation. However, our wholeness requires us to fully associate with ourselves, which requires full acceptance, not dissociation, from our past self, and all it has experienced.

When we encounter our past self we must be willing to feel the fullness of everything it has experienced. This includes its feelings, bodily sensations, and beliefs, particularly around powerful experiences that overwhelmed its capacities and froze its further development.

The presence of the past self’s frozen state is experienced in what is called a trigger. When we are triggered our past self eclipses present self adaptation, as we become locked in our frozen past. Often, we expect others to respect our triggers, controlling their speech and behavior so as to protect us from experiencing the sting of our triggered, unsettled younger self.

Relationships are often tasked to avoid each other’s minefield of triggers. Sometimes this is considered an act of true love. How ironic. For triggers, once resolved, are the gateway to new and fuller love of self and other.

When the present self is fully able to be present to the experience of its past self, we begin to change the past. For one thing, this very act of showing up establishes a new fact of the past: Whatever was experienced in the past no longer has the power to shut one down.

When the present self is fully present for the past self it is also no longer alone. This alters its isolated experience of the past, as the present self becomes a true traveling companion to the past self’s journey.

When the past self relives its frozen moments, it is encouraged to  express its innate reactions that were previously suppressed. Words and agency come on line and metabolize a prior silent scream. The body breaths deeply as it expands beyond its habitual, frozen in time, stance.

In a dream, I am back in an old neighborhood under great siege of winter storm. I am confronted by an intimidating, rageful acquaintance. His threatening silent glare intensifies as his eyes bulge. I force myself to speak, refusing to accept this frozen encounter. A portion of my past self is changed in that moment.

Dreams often present us with dramas that are permutations of our frozen moments. With consciousness we can send our present ego self into dreaming with the intent to act where we were once previously frozen. Ego advance in dreaming generalizes to ego advance in waking life.

Often, the cognitive understanding of frozen moments in time is highly distorted for defensive reasons, or developmentally hampered by the age at which the traumatizing event occurred. The developmentally matured and advanced present self can be extremely helpful in broadening the scope of the past self’s experience by exploring factors unavailable to the younger self. This can considerably alter the past self’s identity, which then contributes a changed foundational stone to the present self’s state of being.

A fully transformed younger self no longer lives in the prison cell of its frozen past. While this in no way erases the facts of its prior experience, the younger self is no longer emotionally or cognitively conditioned by it. Its freed energy is liberated to rejoin its wholeness of being.

Thus, the past becomes fully recovered, resolved and revitalized for new life. The fully matured past self delivers its evolved gift to the present and future of self. This is how to truly erase personal history.

Erasing,
Chuck

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: Neutralizing The Terror Of Archetypal Trigger

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Our archetypal partner…
-Illustration © 2023 Jan

Ever-present in the background of ego consciousness is the archetypal human, that which, with its accumulated wisdom from having lived the entirety of human history, lives inside us and reacts along with us as we think, imagine, and encounter the phenomenal world.

Imagine standing at the edge of a tall mountain, flying in a plane, or crossing a turbulent river. The immediate instinctual reaction of our inner archetypal human might be anxiety, as it accents its knowing of potential danger. Archetypal triggers are the emotional downloads of ancient wisdom, gleaned from prior human experience, that automatically react to similar stimuli that appear in present-day life.

Our ego reaction to these same imaginary scenes might be to quickly rationalize the overwhelming statistics of the safety of flying and the ability to stay calm and in control in challenging situations. These efforts are attempts to minimize archetypal fears and master the challenges presented.

Ultimately, ego is tasked with becoming the Hero, who finds the means to  surmount the archetypal challenges being presented. Ego does well to begin with humility. Instinctual reactions are automatic; there is no blame in the reaction of terror.

The thought of giving a speech or performing before an audience might provoke immediate terror. It’s a completely valid instinctive response. This is the archetypal mind scanning the power of groups in myriads of human encounters throughout history and delivering its verdict—terror.

The lowered consciousness of group mind in such experiences has resulted in many tragic consequences in the course of human history. The ego does well to acknowledge this truth and to consider how it might best prepare itself for such a challenging event.

Sometimes ego might attempt to puff itself up to feel equal to or greater than the power of the archetypal trigger. Positive self-talk in such circumstances may be helpful but is not likely to maintain the confidence needed for true mastery.

The Hero’s journey is its own archetypal journey of ego development. First and foremost, one must heed the call to action. The call originates from our High Self or Spirit, informing us that it is time to grow: “Yes, you must meet with this person whom you experience as the archetypal bully or harpy.”

The instinctive reaction to freeze or retreat is respected but not chosen for this challenge to be successfully met. One might engage in yoga, breath work, meditation, neurofeedback, or any body-centered technique to increase conscious control over the instinctual reactions of the central nervous system generated by the archetypal mind.

The home of the archetypal human is the subconscious mind, which responds immediately to triggers or suggestions by generating chemical and electrical reactions in the body. The use of conscious positive suggestions to the body present new behavioral options to the subconscious mind. Just as the subconscious mind reacts to instinct, it also reacts to consciously generated suggestions.

Thus, regular self-hypnosis that suggests actions of calm and mastery can give the ego greater control over the habitual, instinctive reactions of the archetypal mind. The calmer we can be in an archetypal encounter the greater will be our ability to remain present and to respond quickly and thoughtfully to rapidly changing conditions.

Practice, practice, practice! This is the guidance given to all music students. Its wisdom can be generalized to prepare all of us for all kinds of archetypal encounters.

For instance, visualizing the scene and the myriad of possible permutations of an event, accompanied by the bilateral recapitulation breath as you live those scenes, allows you to gain greater clarity, fluidity and calm over the actual event.

Ego is also free to ask for help and support from its High Self, who appreciates ego’s efforts to meet its appointed task. In particular, one might ask the High Self for help in gaining access to the appropriate words and ideas that would be helpful as it navigates the challenge before it. Memorization has its place, but a quickness of mind is best suited to be fully present and responsive to an unfolding challenge.

Ultimately, the archetypal human is extremely conservative. Its aim is to keep us safe and alive. In fact, in actual life-threatening circumstances this ancient human can take possession of the ego and the body and perform superhuman feats. Don’t leave home without your archetypal human self!

On the other hand, realize that consciousness was evolved at the behest of the archetypal mind, who saw the wisdom of being able to change course on a dime, rather than suffer the consequences of habitual patterns ill-fitted to changing circumstances.

The ego is the child of the archetypal human who must truly become the adult to the personality, working respectfully with its archetypal partner and cohort.

Archetypal triggers are merely necessary tests meant to be mastered. Also, life always provides many makeup tests!

Choose wisely,
Chuck

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: Trigger, Habit or Both?

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A sting can cause a trigger; gathering pollen is a habit!
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

“That really triggered me!”  Here, a sore spot, a vulnerability has been touched by someone’s comment, setting off this emotionally explosive reaction. Typically, the wounded party expects that others should know and respect this sensitivity and refrain from going near it. One often feels entitled to an apology.

A trigger is anything that can cause one to remember and feel an unprocessed emotionally charged experience. If someone tries to forget being attacked by a dog, the mere mention of its name can arouse anger and terror. Inwardly, the experience of being bitten has been pushed out of consciousness, protecting one from the discomfort of the reactivated memory.

The psyche envelops overwhelming experiences with strong defenses to keep the dreaded event far away from consciousness. Traumatic events may be so far removed from consciousness as to render one amnesic of their existence, even for decades.

Though the need for distance from a disturbing event may be necessary to function, it comes at the price of wholeness. The psyche must employ a good amount of energy to contain the disowned, unwanted or unknown parts of its experience. Furthermore, relaxed functioning may be compromised, as vigilance may be needed to avoid encounters with triggers associated with the split-off experience.

Ultimately, all events of a lifetime must be reconciled. A shamanic recapitulation, in this life, emotionally neutralizes all experience, rendering the psyche fully cohesive and able to be open to life without concern for triggers.

The life review referenced in near-death experiences, or reported by spirits in the afterlife, is required before one can advance into new life. Problems we haven’t resolved will preoccupy our lives, regardless of what subtle plane we may transition to. Recapitulation in this life both frees one for fulfillment in this life but also advances one in preparation for new life in the afterlife.

Habits are automatic beliefs, programs or pre-programmed behaviors that lie dormant in the subconscious mind. Programs are connected to genetic coding, as well as instinctive and archetypal imperatives that are specific to the nuances of the human species.

When a need or suggestion is encountered, the subconscious automatically activates the relevant program to address the situation. Thus, if one is attacked the subconscious will automatically activate fight, flight or freeze in response to the event. These reactions are not reactions to triggers, they are purely instinctive reactions to an existential threat. An instinctive habit is objective, a trigger is subjective.

The subconscious is also filled with habits that are derived from one’s subjective experience in this life. Thus, a person who has been bitten by a dog may consciously choose to always avoid dogs. This intentional behavior becomes a suggestion to the subconscious mind that molds it into an automatic, unconscious habit.

Thus, for instance, our bitten subject may unconsciously find themselves only walking certain routes that are known to be dog free. Now, if, while calmly walking one of these routes, a bark is heard, the subject may be triggered into emotional distress via encounter with the unreconciled memory of the original bite.

While triggers require a successful recapitulation if they are to be neutralized, habits, to change, require new suggestions to the subconscious mind. Thus, if one’s habit is a belief that one is unable to dance, one must first eliminate the conscious restating of this long-held belief. The subconscious will only manifest the suggestions one states.

To change a habit we must routinely state the new instruction to the subconscious mind: “I am able to dance.” This is not a discussion with the conscious mind. No reasoning or processing is required. What is required is the statement of intended fact to the subconscious, without any discussion.

To avoid conflicting suggestions to the subconscious, which virtually nullifies the formation of new habits, it is critical that one have complete faith in one’s suggestion. If one can embrace the belief that anything is possible then one can mobilize the requisite intensity of suggestion most likely to influence the subconscious.

One is often tested by the subconscious by the activation of old programs, despite one’s new intent. Old habits will reassert themselves until the new habit is established. Be calm, patient and persevering until the subconscious automatically prompts the newly established program. Simply repeat the new intent with calm assurance that it will manifest.

Trigger and habit are frequently intertwined. A new habit will be blocked from formation if a defensive habit must be retained to protect one from a potential trigger. Triggers, which represent split off experiences, must be neutralized through recapitulation before a habit, used to keep triggers at bay, can be effectively replaced.

Though both habits and triggers may be permanently altered, their pathways to change are distinctly different. Triggers must be processed at a conscious level to be neutralized; habits require rote repetition of new marching orders to the subconscious to result in a changed habit.

When triggers and habits are intertwined it is necessary to first reconcile  the triggered event to effectively free the subconscious to take in the instructions for the desired change of habit. Change itself is always possible. Remember, anything is possible!

Peace,

Chuck

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: The Secret Life of Habit

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Habits unchecked, mushroom…
– Photo by J. E. Ketchel

The human mind is a vehicle in constant motion. When we drive our car we actually turn the driving over to the subconscious mind, the home of established patterns of perceiving and acting, while our conscious mind journeys freely into other realms of thought and imagination. The array of established patterns stored in the subconscious mind are known as habits.

Some habits are archetypal in nature, meaning they are encoded pre-birth in the subconscious, to direct perception and action according to the needs of a species. Animals function almost entirely at a preprogrammed habitual level. A seasoned hunter actually becomes bored at the ‘sport’ of hunting, as animals are easy prey, traveling the same monotonous patterns daily.

The human animal has the advantage of adding new habits to the subconscious pool through the exercise of conscious suggestion and intent. Most suggestions, however, are obtained from the socialization process. Behavior is largely shaped by the reward and punishment responses from one’s social environment. These reinforced patterns become strongly recommended to the subconscious, eventually taking up residence as established habits.

Sometimes habits are established via completely non-conscious processes. If one experiences a serious trauma during an activity at a particular location, the unconscious reptilian part of the brain takes pictures of these circumstances and directly encodes a message to the subconscious to avoid subsequent locations that look similar. These are experienced as triggers, which are managed via the subconscious habit of avoidance.

The conscious mind may prove quite powerless to overcome these habitual reactions due to the potent energy programmed by the reptilian brain. Habit change at this level requires trauma processing to rewrite and override the program of avoidance. During processing we gradually achieve a neutral response to a trigger, allowing a new program of calm to be introduced and accepted by the subconscious mind, overriding the now anachronistic and unnecessary habit of avoidance.

Beliefs are tremendous influencers upon habit formation. The current social dimension of human interaction is largely governed by belief systems that have become encoded in automatic subconscious reactions.  The possibility of calm communication between groups is largely blocked by the automatic perceptions, judgments and behaviors driven by these powerful habits that have been shaped by belief.

Most of our lives are lived via subconscious habits. If we had to instruct ourselves to breathe to obtain every needed breath, we would become exhausted in no time. Habits are not only necessary but quite welcome for good economy of our psychic energy. Nonetheless, habits tend to limit innovation and creativity, as well as keep us frozen in the past.

Intents, suggestions, mantras, and prayers are repetitive techniques to facilitate the formation of new, consciously driven habits. Begin with a definite verb like “will” or “am”. Too often we begin with “I’d like to” or “I  hope” or “I want”.  The subconscious works best with definite, not ambivalent or begging, statements.

Perseverance is critical in new habit formation. The subconscious is used to its default programs, whether inherited or learned. Unless we are quite persistent in the repetition of our suggestions for a new program,  it will move toward the default position. Remain calm and persevering, with no attachment to the goal, to avoid the static of frustrated emotion that then weakens the power of the suggestion.

Suggestions are further strengthened when they are imbued with conscious presence as they are stated. Suggestions are most powerful when not opposed by blocking beliefs or traumatic events still charged in the unconscious. If powerful emotions or triggers litter the mindscape, best to engage in intentional processing to clear the debris, in preparation for establishing new desired habits.

May our habits achieve peak performance through a positive working relationship with our conscious minds. May our conscious minds put themselves at the service of the greater good of the Self, to ensure healthy habits for the betterment of all.

Habitually yours,

Chuck