"The Recording Studio"

(Used To Neutralize Verbal Abuse) excerpted from "The Spa of Your Inner Mind,"
by Michelle Beaudry

The Recording Studio technique neutralizes verbal abuse. I created this technique to be used on myself, and ever since then one of my first questions on intake is, "Do you yell at yourself?" If the client says yes, it means a quick trip to her Recording Studio.

Its most important feature is the bullet list defining verbal abuse. For those of us who were subjected to piles of it during childhood, we know that "verbal abuse" means a whole lot more than yelling. It includes silences and secrets.

The Recording Studio Technique is guided imagery, not Spawork per se, though done in the context of the Spa. In other words, her Recording Studio is a room in her Spa, and it contains audio recordings of her whole life.

Following is the thumbnail, then the full technique.

Recording Studio Thumbnail

• Explain concept
• Take to Recording Studio
• Notice Cassettes
• Notice Magnet
• Erase Impact of Tapes
• Destroy Tapes
• Listen to Positive Playback

The Recording Studio Technique

Explain the Concept

This technique is used to neutralize the impact of verbal abuse.

"It's time to neutralize the impact of all the verbal abuse of your past. No matter how many times you used to hear all those ugly words in the past, we're going to completely neutralize their impact."

Take Client to Recording Studio

"Walk down the hall of your Spa until you get to your Recording Studio. It's right there. Let me know when you've found it."

Or you can simply fingersnap her there.

Notice Cassettes

They must be cassettes, not CDs, not DVDs.

"Step inside and notice the shelves full of audio cassettes. These recordings contain everything that's ever been said to you, about you, around you or by you. These are audio cassettes of your whole life. There are lots of them in three groups. The first group are the positive tapes of all the kind, encouraging, positive statements of your life. We'll leave them as they are today. The second group are of neutral statements. We'll leave them alone today, as well. Please walk over to the third group. These contain all the negative, unkind, discouraging statements said to you, about you, around you or by you. Don't listen to any of them."

Here's the bullet list, the crucial feature of this technique. Don't skip a single item.

"These unkind recordings may contain:

• any words that ever hurt you, any words you ever used to hurt others or yourself;
• any words of rejection, any insults, any taunts, any name calling;
• any secrets that ever hurt you;
• any criticisms that ever hurt you;
• any expectations or promises that hurt you;
• any threats made against you or anyone else;
• any statements that forced you to do anything you didn't want to do;
• any arguments or fights that frightened you;
• any silences that ever hurt you;
• any hurtful words spoken under the influence of anger, drugs or alcohol;
• any lies told to you or about you, or any lies you felt you had to tell for any reason;
• any slander, gossip, or accusations that ever hurt you;
• any excuses, rationales, or dreams that ever hurt you;
• any words you ever read that hurt you;
• any words, any words at all, that ever hurt you, and any words you ever used to hurt others or yourself."

Here is why they must be cassettes.

"Cassette tapes are plastic on the outside, as you know, and inside are long tapes containing bits of magnetized metal. Anything recorded on the tapes puts the metal bits in a certain order, and it is done so magnetically. This means that the contents of the tapes can also be undone magnetically."

Notice Magnet

"Look over to the floor on the side of your studio, and notice the horseshoe magnet there. It's so big, that when you pick it up, and you do pick it up now, it stands all the way from the floor up to your waist. This is a big magnet, and it will scramble the metallic bits inside all the negative cassettes, and neutralize all those old, ugly words from the past."

Erase Impact of Tapes

"All you have to do is point your magnet at the negative cassettes and the impact of their words will be erased. So when I count to 3 and do a friendly fingersnap, let's do it. When you are finished, say, "Done," so I'll know. 1, 2, 3, (snap)."

Wait for the Done signal.

"Excellent. Any left that didn't erase?"

Always check to make sure the task was done. If yes, there are some left:

"Let me help you with that, for I have a great big magnet too. (Make zzzzt noise.) There! All done."

If no, there are none left, she did indeed erase them all:

"You got them all, that's great. Now, shall we destroy them?"

Destroy Tapes

They'll want them destroyed, trust me.

"Find a way to destroy them. You can burn them up in a furnace, blow them up in the sun, truck them away to the dump, whatever works. Let me know when you're done."

Wait for the Done signal. Reinforce what she's accomplished.

"Notice how much better you feel now that all those old, ugly words are gone. Those recordings can not play back anymore because you neutralized them, because you removed the impact of all those old, hurtful words, and from now on, you will live happily without them.

"No matter how many times you used to hear those old hurtful words, they are now entirely erased, fully gone, completely ineffective, utterly neutralized, and you feel great about this.

"What a relief! Notice how much lighter you feel, how much better you feel, how much more calm and in control of your life you are."

Listen to Positive Playback

Always include this step. It's not enough to neutralize negativity, do a positive task immediately afterwards.

"Now we have one more thing to do. Every recording studio has a Playback Area, a chair with a set of headphones. Find it and have a seat. In a moment you're going to put on the headphones. You'll hear words of approval, of praise, you'll hear the exact positive words you most need to hear right now. I don't know whose voice or voices you'll hear, but you'll know who's speaking."

Never specify whose voice/s she'll hear.

"Go ahead, put on the headphones and hear the positive words you most need to hear right now."

Wait for the Done signal. Allow plenty of time. It may be insightful to know whose voice/s she heard, so ask, if you feel it is appropriate.

The Perpetual Repeat Option

Credit for this option is given to hypnotist Steven Morgan. At the end of the technique, have the client record a fresh tape of a positive phrase, then hit the Repeat Button before leaving the Studio. This way the positive phrase repeats forever. You may suggest an appropriate phrase or let the client create her own. Either way, be sure to ask her for the precise phrasing she used, and write it down.

A Few Notes

The Recording Studio is a quick technique, taking anywhere from five to ten minutes to complete. For those of us who benefit from it, the time is well worth spending. Is it as powerful as Regression To Cause, Parts, or the Forgiveness Pyramid? No, it is not. Its primary value is that it addresses an issue that for its sufferers pervades everything else. Any client who has ever had the ongoing nightmare of verbal abuse in any period of her life will benefit. And the change is immediate. She'll stop yelling at herself in the present exactly because she no longer hears others yelling at her in the past. I find that doing The Recording Studio technique just before doing the Forgiveness Pyramid clears off a sizable layer of ugliness, thereby making the Pyramid happen more efficiently and effectively.

Written by Michelle Beaudry, CHt, author of, "The Spa of Your Inner Mind," and "The Forgiveness Pyramid," both available at the Banyan Hypnosis Mall. Miss Beaudry is an adjunct faculty member of the National Guild of Hypnotists, a graduate of the Omni Hypnosis Training Center with additional studies in Ericksonian hypnosis at Phoenix Development, and is a member of the Innovative Hypnosis Research Group, the Hypnosis Education Association, and the Conscious Awareness Network.