Hacking Reality
As gentle as EFT is, Hacking Reality is even more so. This is because we do not need to feel the negative emotions and distress contained in the distressing memories of a Younger Self. After all, that distress belongs to the Younger Self.
When we experience the freeze response, a part of us becomes frozen in time. In order to continue our lives, we dissociate from the memory, which includes a part of who we are. Stress happens because it takes a lot of work to keep us safe from experiencing the contents of these “Trauma Capsules.” Unfortunately they can leak, and therefore are not always successful.
We might go days, weeks, months, or even years without remembering some painful event. Suddenly, we meet someone or experience something that contains elements of that event, transporting us right back to that moment. Rob Nelson, in his book Hacking Reality, uses the analogy of a wormhole. It feels like time travel, and in a very real sense, it is.
We might go days, weeks, months, or even years without remembering some painful event. Suddenly, we meet someone or experience something that contains elements of that event, transporting us right back to that moment. Rob Nelson, in his book Hacking Reality, uses the analogy of a wormhole. It feels like time travel, and in a very real sense, it is.
Unlike us, our Younger Self, that entity from whom we have dissociated, never stops experiencing the moment of trauma. This is because when we go into freeze response every element of our environment is saved, like a snapshot, in procedural memory.
To understand how this works, think about riding a bike: You never have to remember how to ride a bike, because the skills are stored in procedural memory; it is ever-present; you never forgot how to ride a bike!
This is why talk therapy isn’t particularly helpful when dealing with the freeze responses of Younger Selves; procedural memory is non-verbal! The amygdala has no idea you are talking to it. It cannot understand!
It is also exactly this aspect of the freeze response that allows EFT and Hacking Reality to be so effective.
In Hacking Reality it is possible for us to visit our Younger Selves. A Younger Self from whom we have dissociated has a current ongoing reality. We know that already because they so often affect our current reality.
When we visit a Younger Self, we enter the scene as our current selves, remaining energetically separate. We remain dissociated from the emotions of the Younger Self while visiting them in their ongoing reality.
As Rob Nelson likes to say: “You cannot help the Younger Self if you are the Younger Self.”
There is no reason for us to feel their pain when we visit them. And we add no distress to the Younger Self, as their distress never stopped occurring.
Until now. While visitiong our Younger Self, we have an amazing opportunity: to tap on their distress until they are at peace. Herein lies the magic.
But we don’t stop there! Because we have already lived our lives, it is not necessary for the Younger Self to experience the same things we have. We ask the Younger Self how they would like the picture to change, and we create a way for that to happen. The joy and gratitude of the Younger Self can be incredibly powerful and meaningful!
At this point, we are ready to re-imprint this new memory into the quantum field, throughout our timeline and beyond. This can have unexpected and welcome effects on our current lives and on our relationships with others. And an amazing bonus is that we now have a beautiful new memory. Some of my fondest childhood memories are those that have been re-imprinted in this way!
“Tom is simply amazing and holds the space in a beautiful way. He has so many tools to help you facilitate change. He is a natural at this!”
~Tania Macdonald
Please Note: I am NOT a licensed health care provider, counselor, or psychotherapist. I offer my services as a self-help educator and ordained minister. I do not diagnose or treat illness, disease, or psychological disorders. EFT and Hacking Reality are not a substitute for professional health care. Information provided in this website is for general education and not intended to replace qualified medical or psychological advice.