Spiritual Experiences, Challenges and Resources for Support

By: Shaye Hudson MA, Psychotherapist & Clinical Hypnotherapist 

We have talked about what is a Spiritually Transformative Experience in the previous blog and how it can affect the experiencer. We know that each person will be affected differently a particular spiritual experience but there will often be challenges that will show up in different areas of their lives. Also, integrating these experiences can be especially difficult for those living in cultures that are not as supportive of these often strange and difficult to understand experiences that often result in less than accepting responses from friends, family members and others. It is important that the experiencer, clinicians, and other professionals involved have a general understanding of these potential challenges and where they can go to get support.

Spiritual Experiences and Western Culture

Modern societies and those in Western culture generally have an impoverished understanding of such spiritual or religious matters. There is a tendency for Westerners to use a scientific or even a religious worldview to explain away such experiences as just neurons firing in the brain or stating that the experience violates some holy declaration. I have found that due to these cultural norms, the spiritual experiencer may often hesitate to tell friends, family members, coworkers, mental health, or medical professionals, due to fears of being invalidated or even labeled as psychotic.

Spiritual Experiences and Mental Health

There has however, been progress in the mental health community in the distinguishing between what is determined to be a pathology and what is a problem. Practitioners in the mental health field refer to the Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM V) and the code “V62.89 Religious or Spiritual Problem.” This is a very helpful code that mental health practitioners can use to acknowledge distressing spiritual experiences as non-pathological problems.

While some will not have any significant issues after their experience, common challenges may include:

· Processing a radical shift in their worldview

· Accepting their new perspective

· Experiencing “homesickness”

· Issues related to sharing the experience

· Integrating new spiritual values, and changing ones religious beliefs

· Problems dealing with psychic experiences

· A desire to find, and live one’s purpose.

The spiritual experiencer, depending on their life situation and other factors, may have difficulty with depression, anxiety, isolation, divorce, financial distress, or substance abuse. The above situations could potentially require a mental health professional with a transpersonal orientation or competency to assist individuals in the area of religious or spiritual issues.

Spiritual Experiences in Supportive Cultures

Eastern and tribal-centric cultures often have a history, lineage, and psychological framework accustomed to providing support and integrating the spiritual or mystical experience. The Tibetan Buddhists have the “Tibetan Book of the Dead” to help integrate their encounters. The Senoi, a Stone Age tribe in Malaysia, consider the dream world to be more real than the waking world and have daily practices of dream interpretation. Also, some Native American cultures are known to have more supportive communities that were generally more welcoming of such extraordinary experiences.

Resources for Spiritual Experiencers

We in the West have the opportunity to create more of a conducive social, cultural and psychological framework to help others who have these transpersonal experiences. Where can people in the modern cultures and the West who have had such transcendent encounters find a supportive resource or community to help Integrate in a healthy, safe, supportive way?

I have personally found resources that were invaluable in helping not only myself but others process and integrate their experiences with a sense of community, acceptance and validation. You can find local support by contacting a professional or group affiliated with--or having received training from-- but not limited to, the following organizations:

American Center for the Integration of Spiritual Experiences (ACISTE)

International Association of Near Death Studies (IANDS)

The Monroe Institute (TMI) TMI has an International Local Chapter Network and Outreach Facilitators that can provide local support in their groups.

Psychology Today: Online resource for Psychotherapists and Clinical Hypnotherapists with Transpersonal, Humanistic, and related orientations with specialties in spirituality. https://therapists.psychologytoday.com

We have come to understand that unlike many other cultures, the west may not have as supportive culture and container to help many people integrate have what they believe are spiritual experiences. Many are often hesitant to share their encounters due to ridicule or even condemnation. We also have seen how these experiences can be both positively transformational and at the same time challenging. In some cases, the person may require a Therapist, Coach or spiritual counselor who can assist them in a healthy adjustment to their transcendent or peak experiences.

Shaye Hudson, MA, CH.t is a Psychotherapist and Clinical Hypnotherapist in Atlanta, GA with a Transpersonal orientation and training, who specializes in Spiritually Transformative Experiences. He is also a Reviewer for the Journal of Exceptional Experiences and Psychology.

www.growhealchange.com

What is a Spiritually Transformative Experience?

By: Shaye Hudson MA, Psychotherapist & Clinical Hypnotherapist 

“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.-Pierre Teilhard de Chardin”

In the last blog, we covered some examples of reported spiritual experiences. We hear the amazing accounts from those who have had Near-death experiences, Out of body, After-death communications and more but in what ways can and do these encounters affect the experiencers? We will now be covering a standard definition or understanding of what is a spiritually transformative experience.   

According to the American Center for the Integration of Spiritual Experiences (ACISTE) an STE is “an experience that causes an individual to perceive themselves and the world profoundly differently: by expanding the individual’s identity, augmenting their sensitivities, and thereby altering their values, priorities and appreciation of the purpose of life. This may be triggered by surviving clinical death, or by otherwise sensing an enlarged reality.”

Expanding the Individuals Identity

Many of us go thought our everyday lives experiencing life as who we know ourselves to be. We grow up in certain geographic location inheriting the customs and expectations of that culture. We grow up listening to the influencing truths of our parents ranging from what’s acceptable from a religious, political, and even a the kind of relationships and vocations we choose. We receive these templates and make some minor or major adjustments along the way. Our mindsets are formed though the templates placed upon us and through life experience.  Imagine going through your daily life and this mindset being interrupted by some sort of transcendent experience. The truths we have been known and lived up to this point have been disrupted allowing a new worldview to emerge and thus making room for an expanded identity to take form.

I have personally gained some understanding of spiritual experiences after having my own transpersonal encounters and after listening to clients.  Many also report an expanded identity to include the spiritual. They no longer see themselves as just a physical human being, but one with an eternal spiritual essence or nature. A by-product of this new identity is the reduction of the fear of death, emotional healing and confirmation that the spiritual world is a reality for them.

Augmenting their Sensitivities

Many clients report that after their experience, they feel more emotionally and intuitively sensitive. Whether this is a spiritual, psychological, emotional or physical symptom it doesn't matter because all these aspects affect one another. What matters is that the person may need help with first coping with their new sensitivities. These new sensitivities can result in anxiety and a feeling of being overwhelmed from being around large crowd’s as well emotional sensitivity in relationships causing arguments or hurt feelings. In some cases the experiencer may require learning to create boundaries and not let the emotions of family, friends, coworkers and even strangers affect their moods by just by being around them.

Altering Values, Priorities, and Appreciation of the Purpose of Life

Imagine having a Near-Death experience or a spiritual encounter with a deceased loved one and receiving a message that life is about love. You have been climbing the corporate ladder with a Machiavellian “ends justify the means” attitude and now grandma give you a gentle and loving reminder to be nice.  This may be quite the adjustment and may redirect the experiencer to consider a different practice or path in life.

With some their experience may challenge their religious or lack of religious attitudes. Their typical programming has been challenged and often altered during the experience.  This new perspective can cause one to rethink their views on both life and the afterlife and open a “Pandora's box of questions, thus creating a thirst for answers and spiritual seeking.

With these changes jobs, relationships and friendships may fall away and along with this comes the stresses of change. This transformative encounter can be the just beginning of the potential challenges the person may experience.

In the next blog in this series, we will cover some common challenges for the spiritual experiencer and resources for support and integration.

Shaye Hudson, MA, CH.t is a Psychotherapist and Clinical Hypnotherapist in Atlanta, GA with a Transpersonal orientation and training, who specializes in Spiritually Transformative Experiences. He is also a Reviewer for the Journal of Exceptional Experiences and Psychology. Shaye facilitates weekly spiritual groups at Tru Integrative Health & Wellness.
www.growhealchange.com

Four Common Types of Spiritual Experiences

By: Shaye Hudson MA, Psychotherapist & Clinical Hypnotherapist 

In this blog, we will be discussing some of the type’s experiences and encounters that clients have shared with me in the previous blog. Many of us have read in bestselling books of those who have died and came back to life in the near death experiences, others having out of body experiences gaining an expanded sense of identity, after-death encounters with loved ones who have crossed over and other peak experiences. There are a multitude of other variations of transpersonal experiences but in this continuation of we will cover some of the more commonly reported experiences.

Near-death experiences (NDEs)

According to the The International Association For Near Death Studies (IANDS),“An NDE may begin with an out-of-body experience—a very clear perception of being somehow separate from one’s physical body, possibly even hovering nearby and watching events going on around the body. An NDE typically includes a sense of moving, often at great speed and usually through a dark space, into a fantastic landscape and encountering beings that may be perceived as sacred figures, deceased family members or friends, or unknown entities. A pinpoint of indescribable light may grow to surround the person in brilliant but not painful radiance; unlike physical light, it is not merely visual but is sensed as being an all-loving presence that many people define as the Supreme Being of their religious faith. “

Clients have reported the positive effects from their Near Death experience to include an expanded spiritual perspective, a reduced fear of death and a sense of deep meaning in their lives. Many report a certainty of life after death and how our loved ones are more than okay, and the lesson is to learn to be more loving.

On the other hand, I have heard stories of interpersonal, relationship, and intrapsychic problems. I have found that my response as the therapist can have a critical influence for those with the NDE experience. If their experience is validated it can lessen negative emotional resistance and is generally more easily integrated in a healthy way.

A counselor, coach or spiritual director with training in spiritual and religious problems can help in situations with family members that have that they have a difficult time adjusting to the new beliefs and attitudes. There are times where marriages are strained and even divorce can occur. The NDE-experiencer can also undergo anger, depression, withdrawl from the experience and other attitudes that can affect their psychosocial functioning. In situations like this, it may be necessary that the experiencer receive outside help to adjust to their new way of being and the ripple effects it may cause in some or the majority of areas in their life.

Out-of-body experiences (OBEs)

The Monroe Institute (TMI) is a nonprofit education and research organization which focuses on the exploration of human consciousness. This organization has residential and outreach programs as well as an International Local Chapter Network(ILCN) where participants experience altered states of consciousness through a patented sound technology called “Hemi Sync”. Many have reported having the “Out of Body” (OBE) and other transcendent experiences. Both TMI researchers and participants report that the “OBE” is an experience that usually involves a subjective sensation or experience of being outside one's body.

In my therapy practice, I have listened to clients share having experiences where they experiencing a paralysis, a buzzing sensation, lifting out and even seeing their own physical body. Some have reported that the “OBE” experience had a profound impact on reducing their fear of death as well as changes in their identity since they have come to experience themselves as more than the physical body.

        

Past-life experiences

As a part of my Hypnotherapy practice, I facilitate both - individual and group Past Life Regression sessions. I have had clients report amazing stories of how they lived in places and times that they did not expect. Some clients report having an experience of remembering during waking states or having a direct experience of a past life through hypnosis, dreams or other non-ordinary states. Past lives are associated with the idea of reincarnation, which is the religious or philosophical concept that the consciousness or spirit can (after physical death) return to another life in a new body. This doctrine is an integral part of various ancient and modern religions.

On occasion, clients report being the opposite gender, which is very amusing and even sometimes unsettling. Some shared that they were with people who they knew were people in their present day lives. In many cases the client can gain insight on their present day issues and relationships and use the experience to empower themselves for positive change.

After-death communications (ADCs)

These are experiences where a person has communication with a physically deceased person. This can generally happen during waking states, meditative, and dream states. ADC's often include sensing a presence, hearing voice, feeling a touch and other physical phenomena, smelling a fragrance, and visual encounters.

I have shared my personal experience ADC experience in my earlier blog and have also listened to a multitude of clients share their stories of contact with deceased loved ones with numerous combinations of the states of consciousness well as the sensory types. I have found that these ADC type experiences can be very healing to those who are experiencing grief and loss.

Shaye Hudson, MA, CH.t is a Psychotherapist and Clinical Hypnotherapist in Atlanta, GA with a Transpersonal orientation and training, who specializes in Spiritually Transformative Experiences. He is also a Reviewer for the Journal of Exceptional Experiences and Psychology. Shaye hosts spiritual groups at Tru Integrative Health & Wellness. 

www.growhealchange.com

A Therapist's Personal Spiritual Experience

BY: Shaye Hudson, MA, Psychotherapist and Clinical Hypnotherapist

Many people often have experiences that we, in the psychology community call ‘transpersonal’, 'spiritual' or ‘exceptional experiences of consciousness.’ Exceptional psychology is a field that studies these experiences and phenomena which are traditionally related to parapsychology. Some examples of these type of experiences may include extra sensory perception, survival after death, out of body experiences, and after death communications.  Depending on the nature of the experience and the individual, one can find it to be very healing and positively transformative.

Unfortunately, some refrain from sharing with friends, family members, and “professionals” (such as clergy and mental health professionals,) due to ridicule, invalidation, judgement or even been labeled as a “brick short of a full load.” There is a prevalent lack of openness and understanding in regards to these exceptional experiences. I am a little different than many of my peers in the field of Mental Health. I approach my clients and others with a different perspective--one of a fellow experiencer, and one educated in transpersonal or “spiritual” psychology, as well as a Psychotherapist.

I have been present for many peers and clients while they have shared their accounts in transcendent realms, communications with deceased loved ones, and more. These accounts can be very powerful, but there are few words to fully describe the impact when you personally have one of these experiences. I listen, empathize, understand, and validate these extraordinary subjective experiences, because I too have had similar exceptional experiences and life changing encounters with loved ones who have passed.

Here is my story: I was raised in the south in a small college town called Milledgeville, GA. Almost every Sunday, my parents would take me and my brother to go see our Granny, Annie Dean Garner, after church. She had a quaint little house, with pictures of all the family members on the walls, and a turquoise blue couch that I often played on in her living room. She was a very sweet woman with long, brown and gray hair that she kept braided on top of her head. She always wore her glasses, and was warm and loving. I would spend the day hanging out with her playing and helping around the house.

Later on, during my early college years, we discovered that Granny had been diagnosed with colon cancer. This was devastating to our family. I remember my mom calling me and telling me “you’d better go visit your Granny.” I went to the local hospital to visit her, and I remember seeing her in the hospital bed. Although she was sick, she was smiling and very appreciative that I came to see her. That would be the last time I would see my Granny alive.

A few days later, my mom and dad were notified by the hospital that Granny was in a coma. I received a call and rushed to the hospital. I ran into my father in the parking lot. He had a very concerned look on his face, and, without saying a word to me, kept walking towards his car. I quickly went inside, up the elevator and to the floor where my Granny's room was located. I found my mother sitting there crying. My mom explained that she was holding Granny's hand when she took her last breath. My Dad could not stand to be there to watch her pass.

Years later, I had an experience that transformed my life in a deep and profound way. One Sunday afternoon I was feeling tired, so I chose to sit and meditate on my couch. I started to move into a deeper state of meditation and began to feel my body less and less as I rested with my eyes closed. I observed my thoughts, watching them subside. As I was meditating deeper and deeper, I felt my head nod. The third time I nodded, my head jerked. I opened my eyes and just happened to look down at my couch. Something strange was happening. My couch was normally beige, but now it was turquoise blue! When I looked around, my vision seemed cloudy, but I could sense someone sitting across from me. 

I heard a familiar voice in my head say "focus.” I decided to focus and my vision cleared and I saw someone sitting across from me in the room. It was my deceased Granny sitting in her chair and smiling at me! I couldn’t believe what I was seeing!

I thought to myself, “I am making this up.” My vision became cloudy again and I heard the voice say “It’s your own fear and doubt getting in the way. You need to focus.”

I focused on the figure in front of me and my vision instantly cleared. I saw my Granny sitting only a few feet away from me—she smiled and stared at me. Her brown and gray hair was still neatly braided and she wore her beautiful white gown.

I decided to go along with the experience and told her "I miss you Granny, and I love you."

She replied, “I love you too.”

I asked, "How am I doing spiritually?"

Granny replied, "You are doing well, but you should stay away from the theological debates." (At the time, I had been having a rather strong religious debate with a friend of mine.)

I acknowledged Granny “I understand it is not my place to tell anyone their beliefs are wrong.”

She said "I love you. Take care of your father if he ever gets sick.”

I acknowledged Granny “I understand it is not my place to tell anyone their beliefs are wrong.”

She said "I love you. Take care of your father if he ever gets sick.”

I said "Granny, I need you to give me validation that this experience is real and true.”

She said, “Okay,” and led me into the kitchen where she showed me squash and onions cooking on the stove.

She said, "Ask your mother about the squash and onions she cooked today."

I said “I will Granny and I love you." I then felt myself coming out of my deep meditation and back to my waking awareness.

When I opened my eyes, the first thing I thought was that I needed to call my parents to see if what my Granny told me was true. My heart was beating fast with excitement as my dad answered the phone.

I asked "Dad, did you eat squash with onions today?”

He said "Yes. What are you doing, some kind of mind reading?”

I replied "No, but you wouldn't believe me if I told you." Dad put my mother on the phone and I asked her the same thing.

She said: "Yes, I cooked squash and onions today and your aunt did too." She asked me, “how did you know?”

I told her, "I saw Granny and she told me what you did today. Granny also told me to take care of dad if he ever gets sick."

I am thankful to have seen my Granny again after her passing, in a non-ordinary or altered state of consciousness and having what I believe was a face-to-face encounter. This experience had a powerful transformative effect on my life--I no longer feared death. For me, I now have certainty that there is an afterlife, and our loved ones are continuing their lives in another way. The knowing she gave me in this encounter is what parapsychologists and other researchers call “vertical evidence.” My Granny shared corroborating information that I could then check, by telling me what my mom cooked that day.

My Granny did not come back to give me the secrets of the universe or share the “right” religious beliefs. If anything, she urged me to stay away from religious debates, and instead, guided me in another spiritual direction. She came back to give me the simple message of taking care of her son --my dad. It was a simple message of love.

This profound experience helped me reconcile my emotions with not only the loss of my Granny, but also with the passing of other family members and friends. While the encounter has never taken away the initial grief of saying goodbye, it has had the lasting effect of creating a stronger ability within myself to understand and better cope with the eventual passing of others close to me.

This experience served as a significant catalyst for my evolution, both personally and professionally. My biggest concern was no longer whether or not I was going to ‘continue existing’ at the end of my life, but now, how can I live to my fullest potential? If I were to live to my fullest potential, I knew that my inner spiritual life needed to be congruent with my outer life. My previous corporate positions were not a good match for my newly-evolving spiritual life. I realized that I had to follow my heart now, and move into a healing profession.

My values shifted. No longer was I concerned primarily with achievement and financial success. I was now more focused on serving and helping others heal, grow, and transform in a deeper, more heart-centered way. This life changing experience awakened a deep spiritual need inside of me to become a Psychotherapist and Clinical Hypnotherapist, with a specialty in religious, spiritual, and transpersonal issues and experiences. I am now gratefully providing individual and group mental, emotional and spiritual support for those with similar exceptional experiences.

I send a very special thank you and I love you to my Granny, Annie Dean Garner. 

Shaye Hudson, MA, CH.t is a Psychotherapist and Clinical Hypnotherapist in Atlanta, GA with a Transpersonal orientation and training, who specializes in Spiritually Transformative Experiences. He is also a Reviewer for the Journal of Exceptional Experiences and Psychology.

www.growhealchange.com