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Dereflection: What It Is—and What It Isn’t

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In the realm of psychological growth, self-reflection is often seen as a virtue. And for good reason – it helps us gain insight, examine our values, make more conscious choices, and respond to life with awareness rather than automatic patterns. But like all things, even a good thing in excess can turn counterproductive. When self-reflection tips into obsession , hyper-analysis , or constant self-monitoring, it can turn into what many refer to as overthinking . In these situations, a therapeutic approach called dereflection can be incredibly helpful. Still, dereflection is often misunderstood – and sometimes even mistaken as the opposite of self-reflection, or as a suggestion to avoid reflection (or self-reflection) entirely. That’s not the case. Let’s take a closer look at what dereflection actually is – and how it can work with , not against, healthy self-awareness and self-reflection. 1. What Is Dereflection? Dereflection is a therapeutic technique developed by Viktor Frankl, fou...
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Self-doubt – what causes it and what you can do about it

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From an epigenetic perspective, self-doubt often stems from deeply rooted, inherited or environmentally triggered patterns linked to early experiences and childhood conditioning. This model suggests that our environment—parental messages, cultural norms, and formative social interactions—can activate genes linked to anxiety or low self-esteem, thereby influencing our thoughts and behaviors. A psychologist or coach may observe that self-doubt in adulthood can be a residual effect of these early activated patterns, where certain "scripts" of inadequacy, rejection, or conditional love remain subconsciously reinforced. Inner child healing can be particularly effective, as it allows clients to revisit and compassionately reframe those formative experiences, offering the "inner child" an opportunity for understanding and emotional release. This can help clients neutralize limiting beliefs formed early on, effectively "rewriting" the origin of their self-doubt...
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Why Am I Feeling Stuck & What Can I Do About It?

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Why is it so easy for so many of us to feel stuck? Are you feeling stuck? At work, at home, in relationships, with our finances, our health condition? Whatever the situation may be – we have all been there, have we not? Most people, at some point, feel trapped by patterns of thought, behavior, or circumstance. Why is it so easy to get stuck, and more importantly, how can we break free from these cycles? Much of what makes us feel “stuck” stems from social conditioning and past experiences, which form the foundation of our self-concept, behaviors, and beliefs about the world. This conditioning is woven into our lives through various societal messages, social expectations, and life experiences, which all contribute to how we perceive our potential and limitations.   Social Conditioning and the Roots of Limitation From early childhood, we are bombarded with social norms and expectations that shape our understanding of what is acceptable or achievable. For instance, messages ...
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Intake and Interview - prior to hypnotherapy session

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  Intake and Interview T he entire process before an individual becomes your client is the Intake and Interview. As such, everything you have done thus far – explaining to (introducing & educating) the individual about hypnosis as well as conducting the suggestibility assessments – are part of this process. While the primary purpose of the intake and interview process is to collect information, there is more to it than just gathering information to help you prepare for the actual hypnotherapy session. Four Goals of the intake: 1.              Eliminate fear and misconceptions about hypnosis. You do this through your explanation of what hypnosis is and is not. It is essential that we “demystify” the many misconceptions the public has with regards to hypnosis. Remember: -  Hypnosis is a naturally occurring phenomenon. We have all experienced it, and in       fact we experience this on a dail...
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The 4 components of hypnosis (3 & 4 of 4)

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  4 components of hypnosis (#3 & #4) Following up from the previous entry. 3. Mind-Body connection  (Body is robotic) The body is robotic refers to the idea that the body responds to whatever the mind thinks. Our thoughts, though usually treated as if they are “not real” because they are not visible and cannot be held or touched (i.e., physical/material), are actually “real” in that it produces a bodily (physical) response. Most people have been conditioned to consider only the materialistic (something that can be perceived by our senses (especially sight and sound) to be “real.” However, a different perspective would suggest (even if we do not enter the realm of spirituality or metaphysics) that our thoughts (and feelings) are also real even though they are non-material/physical. One of the ways of explaining this is in the example of watching a movie. While it is all acting and images projected on a screen, our thoughts or perception of what’s happening (be it actio...
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The 4 components of hypnosis (2 of 4)

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4 components of hypnosis (#2) Following up from the previous entry 2. The subconscious / unconscious (Brain or Mind) In this section what we want to look at are essentially three related sub-topics: A.    Conscious & Unconscious/Subconscious B.    Brain Waves C.    Brain Hemispheres     A.        Conscious & Unconscious/Subconscious . While there are distinctions among the three terms – conscious, subconscious, and unconscious – for the purpose the moment, we will look only at conscious & subconscious/unconscious.   That means, for now we will assume the subconscious and the unconscious are synonymous even if they are not. These two terms (for our purpose here this moment) will be used interchangeably. We may delve further into distinguishing these two terms later. It is said that 10% of all our daily behaviors operate at the conscious level. 90% or the remainder (daily actions – inc...
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The 4 components of hypnosis (1 of 4)

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  4 Components of Hypnosis - #1 I have listed four (4) components of hypnosis here. This is not to suggest that there are only four (4) components. Others may well describe different factors/components. I have listed these out here purely for the purpose of helping others better understand hypnosis as I teach in in the training courses I conduct. These components are: 1.     Suggestion – beliefs / patterns of behaviour 2.     The subconscious / unconscious 3.     Mind-Body connection - Body is robotic 4.     Imagination: Visualization (Imagery) & Feeling  In this entry, I will be covering the first of the four.  The rest will come with subsequent entries to this blog. 1. Suggestion – beliefs / patterns of behaviour One of the best definitions of hypnosis I have come across is: “The Art and Science of Suggestions.” It is both an Art and a Science. “ Art ” means something intuitive, imprecise...
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