PSI Seminars and what Happened to me...
Date: January 03, 2007 09:04AM
Jeri and Joann I found this on another site. I found item 6 to be of interest.
DANGER SIGNS OF HARMFUL NEW AGE INFLUENCE
While many people seem to benefit from New Age seminars and training programs in terms of becoming more self-confident, relaxed, or creative, a significant number (as indicated in the accompanying article) suffer very serious negative consequences. Whether the programs are required or recommended by the corporate management, or entered into by the employee's own volition independently of his company, EAPs need to be prepared to intervene if necessary. In order for the EAP to be able to be effective in helping such individuals neutralize these effects, he or she must be able to recognize the danger signs. A few of the more common are the following:
1. Radical change in personality or behavior. Change is normal with any religious, philosophical, political, or social "conversion," but the key here is the word "radical." Has the person gone from being a quiet introvert to being an outgoing extrovert? Has he or she suddenly begun talking about new ideas or using new words or expressions such as enlightenment, holistic, human potential, transformation, transpersonal, transcendental, life force, etc. (these terms are not in themselves "bad" or proof of New Age involvement, but they can be the first clues of it.)
2. Severe depression or anxiety. These symptoms can be indicators of posttraumatic stress disorder, sometimes experienced by participants in New Age seminars. These disorders can be triggered by negative episodes undergone during sessions of guided imagery or "past-life regression" often included as part of such seminars. Both depression and anxiety are often accompanied by an inabilty to concentrate, chronic distraction, and inappropriate emotional response.
3. Confusion about reality, values, or knowledge. Since New Age programs are designed to "transform" the way one views and relates to the world as well as to the tasks at hand, the transformational process can result in a disjuncture between the individual and everything else that makes it difficult to determine what is real, valuable, or true. The New Age insistence that "we create our own reality" can, when inculcated by means of hypnotic or assaultive techniques, cause one to suffer psychotic episodes.
4. Diminishing or loss of critical thinking skills. The basic Eastern-mystical concept of the unity of all things includes as one of its corollaries that there are no distinctions between truth and falsehood, right and wrong, good and evil. In fact, Eastern/New Age teaching generally attempts to invalidate Aristotelian logic in toto, so that "A" can also be "not-A." This, if carried to the "logical" conclusion, makes nonsense out of language, and meaningful communication becomes impossible. A typical New Age statement is, "That may be your reality, but it's not my reality."
5. Sudden onset of a series of physical ailments. As Singer and Ofshe have found (see article), radical thought reform programs can cause a variety of physical as well as psychological problems. These include strokes, heart attacks, ulcers, and lowered resistance to communicable diseases. The EAP needs to be alert to these as they can be signs of psychological distress brought on by these types of training programs.
6. Marital or other relationship discord. Seemingly normal "spats" between spouses, siblings, or parents and children can be precipitated by attendance at a New Age (or other) seminar or program. The radical transformation or conversion that often occurs frequently produces a fanatic out of the convert, whether the conversion is to New Age thinking or Christian fundamentalism. Unconverted relatives normally find it difficult to endure the religious/metaphysical obsessions of the fanatic. EAPs should be prepared to inquire discreetly of the employee who is experiencing such discord at home to find out if the cause may be of this nature.