“We are here to learn and to love. Nothing else really matters.” Dr Brian Weiss, Through Time Into Healing, page 167.

On 2 March 2017, when I had my first past-life regression, my sense of self changed profoundly. Since then I have come to understand much more about who I am in this life and why I’m here, because of what happened in previous lives. I am training to become a guide for others who seek to know about their past lives.

A regression is a deep form of relaxation. A bit like taking a nap in a comfortable chair. It is a kind of hypnosis. During the process we meet our Higher Self, who answers questions for which we seek answers. It is safe: Under hypnosis people cannot be forced to do anything they do not want to do. Our Higher Self – think of it as being like a guardian angel – always protects us.

We have all led multiple lives. With each regression we go to a past life that our Higher Self considers the most appropriate for understanding our current life. In my case I was an officer in the Royal Navy about 250 years ago ordered to explore the Pacific. I sailed because I was ordered, but also because it might mean I would discover new lands and maybe return famous. Instead, I died alone on a deserted island after being shipwrecked, starving to death over many years.

Learning about that previous life has helped me understand so much about who I am in this life. Here are some examples:

• I love living by the sea: Its aromas and sounds, such as wind whistling in the rigging of nearby yachts or the tang of salt air
• But I am afraid of rough seas, after nearly drowning and losing all my shipmates to a storm
• I love exploring new places, which explains why I’ve lived in 9 countries
• But I also need a harmonious home, after living in a beach shack for many years
• I’ve always had a sense of never feeling full even after a large meal, the result of constant hunger on a deserted island
• I dislike the taste of excess salt in food, possibly the result of nearly drowning
• A sense of “alone-ness” has engulfed me all my life, the consequence of missing human companionship for many years. Isolation has produced in me a deep desire for a relationship, for companionship, and a deep need for connection and touch (I love giving and receiving massages, for example)
• I have little interest in money, possibly because I did not need it on the island
• My sex drive has always been high, again because of loneliness on the island and lack of human contact
• I find sunsets and sunrises especially beautiful and I love nature, because my solace on the island was the chance to witness thousands of spectacularly beautiful scenes

I was never diagnosed, but believe I have a condition known as “Asperger’s Syndrome” (it was not known when I was a child and is usually diagnosed when children are aged about three or four). This is the result of all those years alone on the island, in the sense that I have become accustomed to being alone, and Asperger’s is one way of coping with that “alone-ness”.

These lines from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner have resonated with me since I heard the poem in 1966: Alone, alone, all, all alone / Alone on a wide wide sea! / And never a saint took pity on / My soul in agony. Like the mariner in the Samuel Taylor Coleridge poem, I feel compelled to tell you my story – for a range of reasons painful to relate.

Here is a brief version of my previous life: It was about 1780 and I was a British naval officer aged in my early 30s. I was in love with a young woman. She was pretty, slim and blonde with blue eyes, and she loved me dearly. We planned to marry. When I received my orders I knew I might not survive. Perhaps I had some intuition of what might happen. I lied to her in an attempt to help her accept my departure, and told her I did not love her. She was devastated. I was trying to be kind and instead I damned myself. Every day on that island, for all those many years I was alone and dying slowly, I regretted my cruelty and stupidity. I died alone, my body wasting away over many years. She was my love and I hurt her, and I still regret what I did, even if done with the best of intentions. Now I must live with my choices in this life, because I met her in this life, and she did to me what I did to her in a previous life. Such is karma: Something done in an earlier life that affects us in our current life. It still hurts.

During a regression, the guide records what is said. I have had three regressions in recent years and all have been powerfully informative. I have listened to the recordings of these sessions many times, and each time I discover more useful information.

Prior to doing a regression the client gives the guide a list of questions for which they seek answers. After taking the client through scenes in their previous life the guide asks the client’s subconscious for permission to speak with the client’s Higher Self. The Higher Self answers the questions. I have always received profound answers to my questions. The change in voice tone from the person experiencing a past life (me) to the Higher Self is very noticeable on the audio recordings. The language also changes from “I” to the third person – in my case the Higher Self refers to me as “Stephen”.

Dolores Cannon developed the form of regression process I am learning. It is known as the Quantum Healing Hypnosis Technique (QHHT). I am classified as an intern because I have completed QHHT level 1. I need to do 25 regressions and submit my notes to the organisation’s headquarters. All this work must be done for free. Afterwards I can start charging for regression sessions. I plan to do levels 2 and 3. My training will probably take me into 2023.

A regression or past-life experience typically takes about 4 hours. The guide spends about 90 minutes getting to know the client and compiles a detailed summary of that person’s life history. It involves questions about medical history, family and life experiences.

Some people who undertake a regression have experienced pain in some part of their body that doctors have not been able to explain. In many cases that pain disappears soon after the regression. Eminent doctors have described the benefits of regression. Probably the best known is Dr Brian Weiss, a graduate of Columbia University in New York and Yale Medical School. I am reading as many books on the subject as I can. Please recommend any you appreciate. I especially liked Same Soul, Many Bodies by Dr Weiss.

The actual regression takes about 2 hours, and then client and guide spend about 30-60 minutes completing the process. Clients are encouraged to avoid caffeine or tea before the process so it’s nice to have a cuppa afterwards. The process is sometimes done on an empty stomach and sometimes involves emotional catharsis. Usually the client is tired and needs food and a bathroom break. It is best to be gentle with oneself after the session.

Sometimes the answers to the list of questions the client prepared are discussed. All my guides have managed the process professionally and gently, and I felt comfortable and taken care of throughout.

After the regression it was like coming out of a deep sleep and I felt very relaxed, if a little spaced out at first. Clients are encouraged to listen to their audio recording several times. I find I make new discoveries every time I listen to my recordings.

I believe in reincarnation / past lives and the benefits of regression. For me the results have been profound. I have a much deeper sense of who I am and where I need to go.

Feel free to contact me for more information.

With much love,
Stephen Quinn, PhD