The last fortnight has been really busy and I am happy to report that it has also been really productive. I have been undergoing therapy with life coach and hypnotherapist Karim Boktor since January this year. He uses Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) techniques to reduce the effects of trauma in my everyday life and it’s a so far so good feeling at this point.
I’ve found that my anxiety has reduced greatly and I definitely feel an overall improvement in my well being. Together with Karim, we have covered topics including anger, sadness, hurt, guilt and depression. It was surprising to me how these things are so intertwined with our belief system that we have predominately formed in our early years. By unravelling these beliefs and then magically putting them back together better I have found that it is possible to remove particular emotions that have commonly been attached to traumatic incidents for me. The trauma is not wiped however the physical and sensory feelings that I have when I think of the trauma are greatly reduced or in some cases even diminished. This means that I don’t feel like I need to dry reach or disassociate every time something reminds me of a past trauma.
It really is amazing and I was sceptical about it before I tried it. Now, I’m not saying that this is a magic bullet but as many of you are aware, I have tried so many different treatments over the years including but not Iimited to DBT, CBT, TMS, TBS, CBD, so many different medications and Kinesiology. I think I tried some fish slapper with 100 cats whilst I was overseas too but I don’t actually recall the name of that treatment other than it cost me a carton of smokes and a bag of this fruit that smells disgusting.
All of these treatments and experiences have played their part in where I’m at now and I believe that most of them have helped me with my own self awareness to a degree.
NLP however is in my opinion next level. I feel that it has helped me the most and I’m happy with everything that it has done for me so far. That being said and for transparency, I am in hospital receiving Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) as I write this. I find TMS to be excellent for me in keeping my depression manageable. It has been part of my treatment for a number of years now and if I let it lapse I soon find that I am struggling with the black dog. For me it works however for some others it doesn’t, Treatment is not a one size fits all thing and I recommend trying different treatments to work out what it is that helps you.
A further positive of my NLP treatment is that I have managed to reduce my medication and I’m working on reducing more in time.
Our last guest speakers were Kosta Nikolaidis and Girish Shanker. Kosta talked about his multiple trauma minimisation technique (MT)2 that is reportedly having great results to alleviate symptoms of trauma and PTSD. This helps to reduce the emotional intensity and distress associated with the memory, allowing patients to move forward with their lives. This technique again uses NLP and Kosta is a man with great knowledge having been a psychologist for 29+ years.
Girish spoke about his Beyond The Badge program that is useful in helping participants achieve their goals after trauma.
We are overwhelmed with the support that we are receiving and thank each and everyone of you.
Another thing that we are currently working on is a Zoom option for those that are not in a position to make the trip to Carrum for our fortnightly catch-ups. This is going to take a bit to set up and is only in its infancy but we can see a need for it to better assist and support more people. As The Journey Forward grows, so will it’s tech and the services we can provide. It really is a crawl before we knock the ass off a triathlon situation.
I’d also like to say a massive thank you to Dave from The Journey Forward for all of the work that he does behind the scenes planning and putting together sessions. He is a massive support to so many including myself and I feel that it needs to be acknowledged. Thanks again legend!
Coming up, we have a number of social activities in the pipeline including barefoot bowls and pétanque. We want participants to enjoy their life and are constantly looking for different activities so if you have a great activity or opportunity in mind then please let us know.
Thanks again for the support! Keep fighting the good fight, keep moving in the right direction and look after yourselves!
Cheers and #tjf
Cleve
