What is Past Regression Therapy? Chizzy Akudolu and Michelle Visage say they are fans

Have you ever thought that maybe you had a past life? How would you like to discover your past?

On a recent episode of Would I Lie to You, actress and producer Chizzy Akudolu admitted to undergoing Past Life Regression Therapy (PLRT), in which she claims to have discovered she is medieval French.

Singer and TV presenter Michele Visage, who also guest-starred on the show, chimed in, saying: “I’ve been talking about it with my therapist [PLRT], but it’s not an easy journey. It’s a very bumpy ride to get where you want to be.’

Past lives and reincarnation are strongly held religious and philosophical concepts that we will not discuss.

But what is PLRT? And if you’re paying for it, how can you make sure it’s safe and ethical?

So first what is this?

Unlike regression therapy, which requires us to look back at our formative years and old memories to overcome trauma, past life regression examines our past lives to resolve issues in this life.

Clinical hypnotherapist, psychotherapist and meditation teacher Jacqueline Carson explains that it is a technique of hypnotherapy.

“Often people experience a particularly persistent problem in their lives that they couldn’t solve because they can’t pinpoint the source of the problem,” she explains.

“PLRT offers the opportunity to investigate whether the problem originated in a previous incarnation.

“It’s a therapeutic and holistic method that can identify where the problem is coming from.”

How does it work?

Those who practice past life regression use hypnosis, a natural state of relaxation that we go in and out of every day.

“It’s like daydreaming or watching a movie,” hypnotherapist Rachel Claire Farnsworth tells Metro.co.uk.

“The therapist takes you back to events that happened in the subconscious in a past life. The goal is to expose issues that affect you in this life so that they can be brought to attention and then resolved.

“I often tell my clients that it doesn’t really matter whether the memory of the event is true or not. Your mind has presented it to you the way it wanted you to understand.

“It’s more about letting go of the emotions that come up so you can feel powerful and free from emotional or physical pain in this life.”

10 years ago, Jemma Brookes-Nuckowski, a 35-year-old from Nottingham, decided to undergo PLRT.

“I used to have spiritual readings and was always fascinated by past life therapy and had often experienced deja vu and wondered why,” she tells Metro.co.uk.

The mother-of-two has struggled with fertility for nine years and conceived both her twins and her current pregnancy through IVF.

To get some clarity, Jemma decided to try therapy and booked a session.

“I learned about my past lives. In one of my lives I discovered that I am an important woman,” she says.

“I saw the year 1574 written on a wall, and the next moment I saw myself running down the hall of a stately old house.

“I knew I was a woman because of my shoes, and then I realized I was also wearing a dress.

“I soon found myself crying and running from something I had just seen in one of the rooms. Something inside me knew I had just lost a child.”

When she awoke from the memory, Jemma reviewed the information she had been shown and found that her memories of past lives were very similar to Anne of Denmark’s life.

“I had never heard of her, but she lost her daughter Mary when she was about 18 months old. And I found myself connected to her in many ways. It was surreal,” she adds.

Entrepreneur and personal development expert Justin Gasparovic also experienced revelations after undergoing PLRT.

“During the trial, I found myself in what felt like the body of a soldier on a battlefield during the Civil War,” he explains.

“I identified as a soldier during the American Civil War by recognizing the historical context of the script, the uniforms and weapons used, and the emotions and feelings experienced.

“I felt anger and frustration, but also resignation. As I allowed myself to explore the scenario further, I realized I was the soldier and felt deep regret for the actions I had taken in the past.

“This experience was both powerful and emotionally moving and changed my perspective on the concept of past life regression.”

Justin says the experience helped him gain a better understanding of his own emotions and behavior, ultimately helping him work through his unresolved issues and trauma.

Typical results

According to Rachel, many things can prevent us from reaching our full potential in this life, and some of these problems may stem from a past life.

“Whether we focus on a current life or a past life, it’s not the event that affects us so much, it’s the emotions we associate with that event,” she says.

Through this therapy and the release of the emotions, clients should feel indifferent, stronger, and freer to the event.

Rachel believes PLRT would benefit anyone who wants to get to know themselves better and is curious about their past lives.

But people should be aware that there are no guarantees you’ll be able to connect to a past life, and there’s no way of knowing whether or not you will until you seek therapy, Jacqueline warns.

“For those who experience a past life or even a stored memory from this life, the results can be very good because you have insight into your behavior and can then use that information to better understand yourself and make the necessary changes,” Jacqueline explains.

PLRT can be used to explain relationship decisions. It can help identify the root cause of a fear or phobia, or even addictive behavior.”

She says it works best with people who are open and willing to solve their problems.

In addition, “As with any other therapy, if you come to the session with a closed mind or doubts, you are unlikely to experience a past life. This is only because your subconscious is asking you to let go to fully explore.”

Is it safe?

Really, it depends who you ask. A report in the Journal of Medical Ethics and History of Medicine states that it is not ethical.

“Past life regression is based on the reincarnation hypothesis, but this hypothesis is not supported by evidence, and indeed runs into some insurmountable conceptual problems,” writes author Gabriel Andrade of Xavier University School of Medicine, Aruba.

“If patients are not fully informed about these issues, they cannot give informed consent and the principle of autonomy is violated.”

“Second, past life regression therapy carries a high risk of implanting false memories in patients, causing significant harm.”

Others, however, strongly disagree.

“PLRT is absolutely safe,” says Jaqueline. “All hypnotherapy is performed with the full consent and consent of the individual. The hypnotherapist cannot control your mind or see into your mind in any way.

“Your subconscious only tells you what it wants, and that depends on how open you are.

“Even if you’re experiencing a past life, the focus is always on healing and recovery.”

“I don’t work with clients who have been diagnosed with a psychotic illness because their sense of reality can be compromised,” says Rachel. “Relaxation can also cause epilepsy if the client already has it, so I will not work with any of these conditions without a doctor’s approval.”

If you want to do PLRT, always go to a registered clinical hypnotherapist who is qualified to do PLRT.