Hi all, I realize that Jo Hainsworth just posted this wonderful piece she wrote on Karl Dawson's Matrix Reimprinting. However, it is on page 4 of a VERY large discussion thread.
Over time, it will surely get lost in the shuffle. People who'd find this info. informative and helpful may not discover it at all, because they didn't have the time or focus to read all the way through that huge thread.
It is extremely valuable information and I thought it would be beneficial to have it's own thread.
Enjoy! Karen
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Re: Matrix Reimprinting/ECHOs
(by Jo Hainsworth)
I have found Matrix Reimprinting to be such a powerful way of healing, since posting on this thread last year, that I thought someone else investigating it might find some tips from someone who has been using it helpful. What I have written here assumes that you have already had some exposure to Matrix Reimprinting. If this is not the case, you will get more from this if you read/listen to the following resources before reading the rest of this:
The easiest way to learn Matrix Reimprinting is to watch one of Karl Dawson's DVD sets and then to have a treatment with a practitioner experienced with using this method. Even if you are unable to learn Matrix in this way, you can still learn to use it very successfully for your own healing. Here are some tips on how to use this wonderful technique based on my own use of it over the last couple of months.
1. The ECHO is the client
Karl really stresses this in his interviews and training materials and it really helped me understand why I was having difficulty getting to the bottom of some issues, no matter how much I tapped on them. When we go through a very difficult experience, a part of us holds the emotions and beliefs and memories for us in order to protect us from them and be able to continue to function. This is exactly what we need to get through the ordeal at the time, however without an understanding of this, healing the issue later on can be difficult because we simply can't access the memories and emotions to tap on them. With Matrix Reimprinting, we know that the ECHO (the part created during the experience) is holding all the memories and emotions for us, so the ECHO is really the client. So often when we do EFT with a "stubborn" issue we can get frustrated because we can't access the memories or emotions. Understanding that it is perfectly normal, and it is because the ECHO is holding them for us, can make a really big difference in our healing journey.
So when we do Matrix Reimprinting, whether with the support of a practitioner, or on our own, we are simply helping the ECHO to come to terms with what happened and move to peace and this flows through into peace on the issue in present time.
Sometimes an example helps us better understand a concept like this. When I was learning Matrix Reimprinting I had an experience that resulted in me tapping and tapping for ages and just not being able to shift the awful feeling I had in my solar plexus. I felt like I had been thumped in the solar plexus and like there was a huge gapping hole left that no amount of tapping would heal. After some time of feeling frustrated that he wasn't able to help me with the tapping, my partner decided to suggest that I sit and use Focusing to see if I could access what had caused the feeling in my solar plexus. When I did this, I immediately saw an image that was soon followed by another one, led to me recalling something that someone had said to me that morning that had resulted in me going into shock. I had completely forgotten that the person had even said it (I was in a very vulnerable state at the time it was said). Once we had the phrase to tap on, we used Matrix Reimprinting to talk to the me of that morning, and discovered why the phrase had so upset me. The details I found out were completely new to me, I never would have guessed why the image conjured up by the phrase I heard had such a huge impact on me in the circumstances. All day I'd been tapping on what I thought was the issue, and when I was able to get into my body and get back to the event and then tap with the ECHO, I was able to heal and move forward. This example also shows that you can just as easily work with an ECHO from a few hours or days ago, following a recent trauma, as you can work with one from earlier in your life.
2. You don't have to be visual to use Matrix Reimprinting
The instructions for Matrix Reimprinting include starting with a movie of the event and then placing yourself in the picture and tapping on the earlier you. This sometimes results in people thinking that if they are not visual or able to make a movie of the particular event, that they can't use Matrix Reimprinting to heal the issue. I initially assumed Matrix wouldn't be of use to me because I have never successfully made a movie of any past event!
If you aren't visual and/or can't recall any specific details of the event, you can definitely still use Matrix Reimprinting. One way that I've found is very effective is to simply talk to the earlier you in your mind, just as if you were on the phone with them. The first time I used this I was a bit hesitant and felt that I couldn't do it, but when the practitioner I was working with encouraged me to just start talking, just like I would if I had phoned someone, it opened up and I had the most extraordinary conversation with the earlier me and learnt all sorts of details about the event that I was previously unaware of. I've also very successfully used Matrix when I don't even have an event to work on, just a vague feeling that the root of an issue is from earlier in my life - when I do this I simply intend to contact whichever ECHO I need to talk to. More often than not I find the easiest way is to start some general tapping on the issue and follow the lead of what comes to mind, and then when I have a sense of an age when it might have started, I can start talking to the me of that age.
3. ALWAYS respect the ECHO and treat them as you would a real person
It is very important to realise that as crazy as it might sound, the ECHOs are just like real people stuck in time. It is vital that we respect the ECHO as we would a person we wanted to assist with their healing. Here are some tips to help you to do that:
* Start by letting the ECHO know who you are and why you are there. Once you've used Matrix a few times you may find that the ECHOs already know who you are, but don't assume until you know for sure. The ECHOs are stuck in time and while they seem to be aware of some of what is happening in our life now, because they see life through a filter of pain and hurt, they can easily misinterpret things. One example Karl gives is an ECHO that refused to be tapped on and they discovered that because the woman looked like her mother, the ECHO thought it was her mother who she was still very angry with. Once they had explained to the ECHO that it was in actual fact the future her, she was happy for the woman to tap on her.
* Use the language that is appropriate for the age of the ECHO you are working with. The language you use when talking with a baby or young child will be very different to the language you use with a teenager or an adult ECHO.
* Respect everything that the ECHO says and don't assume anything. Always ask if it is OK for you to tap on them and respect what they say - on one occasion I was working with a teenage ECHO and when I asked if I could tap on her she gave a very typical teenage response and said "No way, I'll tap on myself thanks!! I suspect that if I had insisted on tapping on her, instead of agreeing with her and simply showing her how to tap while I did, I would have hit a brick wall pretty quickly.
* NEVER force the ECHO to do something that you want them to. Some people when they learn Matrix make the mistake of thinking about how they want a past picture to change and they try to force the picture to change with tapping. This is totally disrespecting the ECHO and missing the whole point of Matrix Reimprinting. The key is to be led by the ECHO - sometimes you will get a sense while talking to them that they would like to change the picture, and in that case it is entirely appropriate, however to force a change from your own agenda is to invite major resistance and sabotage the whole healing process.
* The ECHO may have a reason that they do not want to let go of the pain they are feeling. It is very important to respect this. Talking with the ECHO with the intention of simply understanding how they feel (rather than finding a way to make them heal) can be a wonderful way of revealing the blocks that are standing in the way of us healing an issue. Once you are aware of what is preventing the ECHO from feeling safe or OK with clearing the issue, you can talk with them and provide new information and tap with them, all the while respecting their concerns as very real.
4. The ECHO may want you to tap with another ECHO too
Sometimes when we are using Matrix Reimprinting and we ask the ECHO if there is anything else they would like to work with, they will take us either forward or back in time, to an older or younger ECHO. When this happens it is important to follow the ECHO's lead. I have had examples moving in both directions in time and they have been amazing healing opportunities. On one occasion I ended up with the 13 year old I initially worked with going back in time with me and she wanted to tap on the 6 month old we were then tapping with, and the three of us had an amazing experience integrating into my heart now. Sometimes a gatekeeper or more recent memory needs to be dealt with first. In one example of this I was working with my 2 year old self who didn't want my younger sister to be born and all of a sudden my 6 year old self showed up and the picture completely changed. It was like suddenly finding myself in a new scene of a play several years later. Once I'd worked with the 6 year old ECHO we went back together to the 2 year old and her feelings had already been resolved! You may also find yourself tapping with someone else in the picture, for example in one session I was tapping with my baby self and my mother. It was a real learning experience because when I showed them both my life now, my mother (of that time) was really surprised to see that adult I had become, but the baby Jo not interested, she was just relieved that Mum's Ok now!!
5. The importance of Integration
Often when we are healing it is very important to integrate the previously fragmented parts of us into our heart now. Again it is important to honour what the ECHO wants - if they aren't ready to integrate it may indicate that there is more healing to be done, or that they need a little time to digest the healing that you've done, and it would be more appropriate to let them know you will be back at a later date to talk with them again. The ECHOs are generally stuck in time at the time of the event and oblivious to what happened after the event and how things are in your life now. If it feels right to you and the ECHO, it may be important to bring them forward in time to a point where they will benefit from seeing what happened after the event (to help them know that you survived it and are OK), and it can be helpful to show them elements of your life now that they may not be aware of. One of my teenage ECHOs was amazed to see that I had a man in my life who loves me, she was sure that would never happen, and it was a very emotional experience as she came forward in time to join me, having seen what my life is like now. This can be a really important aspect of our healing.
6. You CAN do Matrix Reimprinting on your own
While for some people it is easier to get started with a practitioner, for many, Matrix Reimprinting is actually much easier to do their own than standard EFT, even in cases where the event was very traumatic. Because we are working on the basis of the ECHO being the client, it seems to bring enough distance for many people to be able to do their own healing work. Just as in real life it is often easier to help someone else than ourselves, it can be much easier to do our healing if we let go of any assumptions we have and simply follow the lead of our earlier selves. It is however important when using Matrix Reimprinting, as with any form of EFT, that we honour our own needs and our safety and if we feel more comfortable working with the support of someone else, to work with an experienced practitioner or a trusted friend who can support us. Also if you find that it's just not working for you on your own, you may benefit from the presence of a more objective person, again either an experienced practitioner or a trusted friend. If your have a friend who is also healing with EFT, you could consider learning Matrix Reimprinting together and supporting each other. If you don't have a friend who is interested in learning Matrix, consider signing up for a tapping buddy, a free service available from
http://tappingbuddies.net/.
7. The importance of Persistence
Gary Craig says that the three most important things about using EFT are persistence, persistence and... persistence!!! While often with Matrix Reimprinting things open up really quickly, there are also times that it just feels like we are hitting a brick wall and getting nowhere. When this happens, know that it doesn't necessarily mean that you can't use Matrix Reimprinting to heal the issue. I have had occasions where I have hit this sort of brick wall and become very frustrated, only to take a break and get back to it at a later time and have things really open up quite quickly. I've found that the attitude I bring to the session makes a really big difference - if I'm judging myself for having the feelings I do, or for not having resolved the issue, I find it very difficult to get back to the earlier self I need to work with. Often if this happens I stop doing EFT and go and do a relaxation meditation and find that I can approach the healing later with a more open and relaxed state of mind.
In summary, Matrix Reimprinting, like standard EFT, is a rather forgiving technique, and we each find our own ways of working with it. The important things to remember are that the ECHO is the client, always respect the ECHO, and be persistent if necessary. While this sort of healing can seem very strange to some people, the latest scientific findings of scientists like Bruce Lipton are showing time and time again that the information that is held in our energy fields is so powerful and it IS creating our lives now. When we work with Matrix Reimprinting and our imagination, we are directly changing the information held in our field, and that flows through to our physical and mental life now. Done with respect, this sort of healing truly moves mountains in our lives!
Very best wishes all,
Jo
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Link for the other discussion/thread: