When I was young I was afraid of the dark, I had trouble sleeping, ran from imaginary monsters in the middle of the night and generally hated being in dark places.  While in time, I "grew" out of this habit I believe now that one mystical experience allowed me to realize I was always safe.  I soon understood that it wasn't the dark that was the problem but the things I had hidden in the darkness that were causing my distress.  When I finally uncovered the truth of my past and stood up for myself, the nightmares ended, and the work to become whole began.

It is the internal turmoil of things left unsaid, actions hidden and unknown forces feared that seem to fall under a veil of darkness within.  These places where we believe we can hide away that which challenges us or calls into question our idea of safety are really not "places" at all.  So it is no wonder that when we fall asleep or find ourselves in darkened solitude that they take shapes seemingly all on their own.  We can only banish them when we realize we are in control of them, and in fact it is us who are responsible for their very existence.  For it is not the past that harms us but our own relentless, internal, pilgrimage to resurrect the missteps, tragedies and transgressions of the past  that bring the memory of the moment back to life. 

Hypnotherapy is a great tool for managing the power of such regression by taking the client from the shadows of their past into the light of present day.  Even better, when coupled with The Power Plan program a person can take control of their whole life by designing action steps to help create a brighter future full of purpose, passion and power.  
 
 
If by some chance you've never seen The Wizard of Oz, you may not know the story of the cowardly lion.  The lion known to most as the king of the jungle is anything but in this wonderful classic tale of self-discovery.  This lion is lost in a prison of his own fears and limitations.  Fears that cause him to lash out at the world rather than rule it but soon finds hope in the promise of a magical wizard.

It is only when he finds himself engaged in a journey to success that he discovers his inner strength and the courage to stand up for himself (and his traveling companions).  The cowardly lion learns that he must stand tall in the face of adversity if he is to stay on the path to see the wizard.  Even though his knees are shaking he defends his right to be successful and in doing so finds his faith and courage renewed.

We could all learn from this icon of courage to overcome our fears and strike out in the direction of our dreams.  First, we must believe in our desires more than our fears, next we must take one step after the other in the direction of our dreams, and finally we must accept that everything we need has been deep within us all along.  The way is not made easier for those who fall prey to fear but those who feel the fear and face the challenge anyway.  With every small victory our confidence continues to grow until the drive to succeed becomes unstoppable.