Mold Toxicity

I’m going to deviate from the topic of pre-birth planning – or am I? – to share a personal matter with you. For more than six years I’ve been dealing with a serious physical illness: mold toxicity. I would like to share my experience with you in the hope that it may be helpful to those of you who face mysterious, undiagnosed physical symptoms as I once did.

The onset was insidious, beginning with shorter, lighter, less restful sleep. I already knew that I had sleep apnea, so I purchased a CPAP machine . . . which did nothing to help me sleep better. Over time my sleep became worse and worse. Often I would wake up at 3 am and not be able to fall back asleep. When this happened several days in a row, as it frequently did, the fatigue was overwhelming.

Then neurologic symptoms developed. At first, it was a tingling sensation in my lower arms and legs and on occasion a feeling that my toes were on fire. Over a period of a few years, the tingling moved from my lower to my upper extremities. Then I noticed that I became short of breath much more easily.

Matters came to a head on a trip to New Zealand. After carrying two heavy suitcases up three flight of stairs, I was suddenly barely able to move or think. I sat immobile in a chair for hours, knowing that I had no energy for movement of any kind. Worse, my thought process slowed dramatically; I could scarcely plan what to do next. I later learned that this is what’s known as post-exertional malaise, a symptom of mold toxicity.

In the home in which my wife and I live, my office is on the lower level. There’s only one flight of stairs between levels. Things were so bad at one point that my wife and I had to plan when I was going to leave my office for the day . . . because I could only go back up the stairs once in a day!

It took over five years for the symptoms to progress in this manner. During that time period, I went from doctor to doctor, none of who were able to help me.
Initially, the most likely diagnoses were pre-diabetes or diabetes. I was worked up for those, and they were ruled out.

The next several most likely diagnoses were various autoimmune disorders. I was worked up for those, and they were ruled out. The doctor who evaluated me for the autoimmune disorders then dismissed my symptoms as due to “stress.”

The next several diagnoses were various neurologic disorders. I underwent testing – some of which was quite painful – for those, and they were ruled out.

The next most likely diagnosis was Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I had a Skype consult with an expert in CFS, Dr. Courtney Craig, a brilliant and very caring person. At the end of the hour, she said, “Well, you don’t have CFS, but you might want to look into mold toxicity. It presents in a similar way.” I thought, “Mold toxicity? No, it can’t be!” As it turned out, Dr. Craig was right. She literally saved my life; I doubt if I would have ever gotten to that diagnosis without her. You can reach her through her web site http://www.drcourtneycraig.com.

After the call with Dr. Craig, I found an article online in which the author had surveyed many people with mold toxicity and asked them which doctor had helped the most. The ten physicians most often mentioned in the survey were profiled in this article. I showed the article to my wife, who got a strong intuitive hit regarding one of the physicians, Dr. Neil Nathan.

Dr. Nathan had me tested for mold toxicity. (The gold standard is a urine test from Real Times Labs.) I was strongly positive for all four types of mycotoxins (mold toxins) measured by the test. Within just a couple of weeks of starting treatment, I was dramatically (about 40%) better. Progress has been much slower since then, but Dr. Nathan and I are hopeful for a full recovery in another 2-3 years.

I view Dr. Nathan as one of the world’s leading experts on mold toxicity. He can be reached at askdrnathan@gmail.com. His web site is http://www.neilnathanmd.com/. I suggest you read his book Toxic. (The documentary Moldy is also a good resource.) Dr. Nathan estimates that as many as two million people in the US alone may have undiagnosed mold toxicity. Mold toxicity can cause many symptoms other than the ones I described, so please do your own research.

One last tidbit: drywall is a fertile breeding ground for mold. If you live in or have lived in a home with drywall, this is something to consider.

I hope that my experience may be of value to some of you. And, for those of you who have already successfully treated mold toxicity, I would like to hear any suggestions you care to offer. Please feel free to write to me at rob.schwartz@yoursoulsplan.com.

Disclaimer: I am not a physician. Nothing that I have written is intended to be taken as medical advice. Please make all medical decisions in consultation with your doctor.

The Healing Power of Acceptance

What do spiritual awakening, miscarriage, abortion, caregiving, having pets, abusive relationships, sexual orientation, adoption, poverty, suicide, and mental illness have in common? The answer is that all of them can be part of a life plan created by our souls before we are born.

Working with a team of mediums and channels, I explore the pre-birth planning of these and other life circumstances and experiences in my second book, Your Soul’s Gift: The Healing Power of the Life You Planned Before You Were Born. In the sessions with the mediums and channels, we talk with people’s higher selves and spirit guides, “deceased” loved ones, and enlightened beings about the spiritual meaning and purpose of the major challenges we encounter in a life on Earth. Equally important, we discuss how one heals from painful experiences – and indeed, how the soul utilizes such experiences to catalyze healing.

How and why, then, do painful and even traumatic experiences come to be part of a pre-birth plan? Let’s discuss one way in which such experiences occur.

Almost all of us have had past lives in which we developed beliefs or feelings about ourselves that the soul knows to be untrue and therefore wishes to heal. Two of the most common false beliefs or feelings are that one is powerless and that one is unworthy or perhaps even worthless. A basic spiritual tenet is that there is no unexpressed consciousness. So, if either of these beliefs or feelings is within your consciousness, regardless of whether it is at the conscious, subconscious, or unconscious level, it will manifest in your life, sometimes in the form of a traumatic experience.

From our human vantage point, this may seem harsh or punitive. The Universe’s intention, however, is to mirror you to you so that any aspects of self that are in need of healing will be brought into the light of greater awareness, where you may then set about healing them. This is one of the fundamental purposes served by life in a physical dimension.

At the most basic level, the pre-birth contract is the same for everyone: embrace and transmute all discordant (unloving) energies, including beliefs or feelings that are untrue (and thus unloving) toward self. Energies we have not transmuted from any life will come to us in this life so that we may do so.

We all requested this opportunity before we were born; indeed, it was a prerequisite for birth into the physical realm at this time. This lifetime is therefore of primary importance in the cosmic calendar. We are here to integrate into the whole of our Being and in so doing heal the remnants of all unintegrated energies from all our lives, both physical and nonphysical.

When we resist any aspect of life, we resist healing, too. When there is a block in one direction, there is a block in every direction. Ultimately, then, the purpose of every life challenge is the same: to grant us the opportunity to embrace that which we have so far resisted. As well, every life challenge is healed in the same way: through an increase in the vibration of what we think, say, and do.

Our experience of life is not determined by our life plan but rather by how we respond to that plan. Our responses—our thoughts, words, and actions in every moment—create our experience and potentially our healing. As we heal and learn life’s underlying lessons in a conscious manner, challenges that were planned as potentials in our lives either never manifest or occur in a more gentle form.

It is here that an awareness of pre-birth planning is profoundly helpful and healing. When we understand that our souls planned our lives, then we know there is deep meaning and purpose to all that occurs. When we know there is deep meaning and purpose to all that occurs, it becomes infinitely easier for us to think, speak, and act in loving ways.

As we respond to life in loving ways, our previous resistance becomes acceptance, our acceptance turns into receptivity, our receptivity grows into embrace, and our embrace is transformed into gratitude for the experiences that open our hearts and expand us as souls.

You have embodied on Earth at this time to heal by awakening consciously to the memory of yourself as soul. Your healing comes and is completed when you see the light of your soul and know that light to be who you truly are.

The Deeper Spiritual Meaning of Your Life Experiences

I explore the pre-birth planning of many different experiences in my new book, Your Soul’s Gift: The Healing Power of the Life You Planned Before You Were Born. In the sessions  we talk with people’s higher selves and spirit guides, “deceased” loved ones, and enlightened beings about the spiritual meaning and purpose of the major challenges we encounter in a life on Earth. Equally important, we discuss how one heals from painful experiences – and indeed, how the soul utilizes such experiences to catalyze healing.

How and why, then, do painful and even traumatic experiences come to be part of a pre-birth plan?

Let’s discuss one way in which such experiences occur. Almost all of us have had past lives in which we developed beliefs or feelings about ourselves that the soul knows to be untrue and therefore wishes to heal. Two of the most common false beliefs or feelings are that one is powerless and that one is unworthy or perhaps even worthless. A basic spiritual tenet is that there is no unexpressed consciousness. So, if either of these beliefs or feelings is within your consciousness, regardless of whether it is at the conscious, subconscious, or unconscious level, it will manifest in your life, sometimes in the form of a traumatic experience. From our human vantage point, this may seem harsh or punitive. The Universe’s intention, however, is to mirror you to you so that any aspects of self that are in need of healing will be brought into the light of greater awareness, where you may then set about healing them. This is one of the fundamental purposes served by life in a physical dimension.

At the most basic level, the pre-birth contract is the same for everyone: embrace and transmute all discordant (unloving) energies, including beliefs or feelings that are untrue (and thus unloving) toward self. Energies we have not transmuted from any life will come to us in this life so that we may do so. We all requested this opportunity before we were born; indeed, it was a prerequisite for birth into the physical realm at this time. This lifetime is therefore of primary importance in the cosmic calendar. We are here to integrate into the whole of our Being, and in so doing heal the remnants of, all unintegrated energies from all our lives, both physical and nonphysical.

When we resist any aspect of life, we resist healing, too. When there is a block in one direction, there is a block in every direction. Ultimately, then, the purpose of every life challenge is the same: to grant us the opportunity to embrace that which we have so far resisted. As well, every life challenge is healed in the same way: through an increase in the vibration of what we think, say, and do. Our experience of life is not determined by our life plan but rather by how we respond to that plan. Our responses—our thoughts, words, and actions in every moment—create our experience and potentially our healing. As we heal and learn life’s underlying lessons in a conscious manner, challenges that were planned as potentials in our lives either never manifest or occur in a more gentle form.

It is here that an awareness of pre-birth planning is profoundly helpful and healing. When we understand that at the soul level we planned our lives, then we know there is deep meaning and purpose to what occurs. When we know there is deep meaning and purpose to what occurs, it becomes infinitely easier for us to think, speak, and act in loving ways. As we respond to life in loving ways, our previous resistance becomes acceptance, our acceptance turns into receptivity, our receptivity grows into embrace, and our embrace is transformed into gratitude for the experiences that open our hearts and expand us as souls.
You have embodied on Earth at this time to heal by awakening consciously to the memory of yourself as soul. Your healing comes and is completed when you see the light of your soul and know that light to be who you truly are.

The Deeper Spiritual Purpose of Pets

The process of placing our energy within a body, and in so doing forgetting that we are vast, majestic, Divine Beings made literally from the energy of Unconditional Love, is akin to being struck on the head by a heavy tree branch and rendered unconscious, only to awaken with no memory whatsoever. What would happen if you actually had such an experience? All who love you, each member of your family, every dear friend, would come to your side and express great love for you. Though you would recognize none of them, their powerful outpouring of concern and affection would touch you deeply. You would conclude that only a truly loving person could be so beloved. And in that instant of realization, you would know, beyond any doubt, your true nature.

Such is the role pets play in our lives. In my new book Your Soul’s Gift: The Healing Power of the Life You Planned Before You Were Born, I share the story of Marcia, who chose before coming into body to be a dwarf. In this lifetime Marcia is but 1.4 meters (less than 5 feet) tall. Marcia knew before she was born that people would reject and dismiss her because of her height, and she chose this difficult experience to foster her spiritual growth. She then built into her courageous plan a safeguard: she would always have the unconditional love of her pets. These animals are part of her pre-birth planning session. Her future dogs (Dusty, Brutus), cats (Snowflake, Goofy, Willie), rooster (Crooked Beak), and horse (Cheetah) all pledged in her planning session to support and care for her even when her fellow humans do not. Because she also planned to be clairaudient in this lifetime, Marcia has always been able to hear her pets’ thoughts when they communicated with her.

Just as people with amnesia do not remember those who were in their lives before the forgetting, so, too, do we not recall the pets who were with us before we were born. Yet, our pets come to our side and express their great love for us, reminding us daily that only we who are Love could be so beloved. And they remind us not only that we are loved but also that we are worthy of love. When Marcia came home from school and cried over the cruel words from the other children, Dusty was there to tell her she was perfect, that she “could always come home, and I would be there, and I would love you.” Cheetah also reminded Marcia that she was worthy of love: “It doesn’t matter what they say. Look what you and I can do together! Get on! Let’s go!” And so they would ride like the wind, the smallest of children on the largest of horses, both free and safe, in love with life and each other.

Too, pets bring healing. Indeed, our animal companions are master healers, in part because they embody love in an entirely nonthreatening form. The clear absence of threat creates within us a willingness to receive healing. We may fear accepting love from another person, but Marcia had no such fear with Brutus or Snowflake. When Marcia’s mother lay ill in the hospital, Brutus, tail wagging and big ears flopping, was a healing balm for Marcia’s heavy heart. When Marcia’s mother returned Home, it was Snowflake who healed Marcia’s grief, saying, “My job with her is done. Now I need to take care of you.”

How do pets heal us? There is no greater healing power in the Universe than that of unconditional love. Yet, beyond unconditional love, pets heal by transmuting energies. Even when we feel weak and small, our pets still come to us for care and so remind us that we are strong enough, capable enough to provide it. Even when we are enmeshed in anger or blame, they sit joyfully at our side, radiating contentment and instilling peace within us. When we feel shame, guilt, or unworthiness, they look at us and see only perfection. Our pets see us as light, the light of which we are literally made, the light we knew ourselves to be before we were born. When we lose sight of our magnificence, they remind us of it.

Sometimes a loved one, even a spirit guide, will incarnate as a pet because it is the best, and perhaps only, way to share a lifetime with us. I have a close friend who planned not to have children in this lifetime. A soul she loves and who loves her dearly incarnated as her dog so they could complete the mother-daughter relationship they shared in a past life as Native Americans. Both had been healers in other past lives, and they continued their healing work together in the current lifetime. My friend often brought her dog into healing sessions with clients, many of whom commented that they felt healed by the animal’s presence.

Ultimately, whether it’s Willie reminding Marcia to have fun, Goofy caring for Marcia and so healing her grief after Snowflake’s death, Brutus teaching compassion and kindness, Snowflake modeling independence, or Dusty, Cheetah, and Crooked Beak loving a little girl who just needed acceptance and friendship, each of these animals came to Marcia to love her and to receive her love. When we choose to take human form on the physical plane, our primary intent is to learn how to give and receive love. We select Earth as the school in which we will learn this lesson because here there are teachers who have mastered it. We call them dogs and birds, cats and horses. Yet, Love by any other name is still Love.

A Great Shift in Consciousness

As I describe in my new book Your Soul’s Gift: The Healing Power of the Life You Planned Before You Were Born, a great shift in consciousness is now occurring on our planet. This shift depends completely upon those of us who are in body to raise our vibration, which means, quite simply, being the most loving people we can be. As we raise our vibration, Earth rises in vibration as well. Spirit guides, angels, loved ones, and others in the nonphysical realm can send love, wisdom, light, and inspiration to us, but we must receive and embody these gifts. The nonphysical beings who love and guide us cannot create a shift in human consciousness for us.

Victim consciousness—the belief that you have been victimized by a person, experience, or life in general—vibrates at a very low frequency. When we understand that we are the powerful creators of all we experience—even if we may not know how or why we created something—we move out of victim consciousness, raise our vibration, and, in turn, raise the vibration of Earth. If your intention is to contribute to the shift in human consciousness, know that moving out of victim mentality is a powerful and magnificent way to do so.

Victim consciousness is a false belief, one that has become part of our limited, habitual way of thinking. It has tempting secondary benefits: it’s a way to obtain sympathy from others and a means of bonding with others who also believe themselves to be victims. Victim consciousness and its secondary benefits are not to be judged, though. After all, it’s easy to believe what we have been taught, and natural to want support from, and bonding with, others. My intent is not to judge the choice to perceive ourselves as victims, but rather to clarify that it is a choice. The alternate choice is to come into remembrance of our identity and power as expressions of the eternal souls that planned the lives we now live, to know ourselves as the creators, not the victims, of our experiences. This awareness uplifts the entire world.

Victim consciousness tends to be self-perpetuating. If you believe yourself to be a victim, you vibrate at the frequency of victim and energetically draw to yourself experiences that will confirm in your mind that you are a victim. One key to breaking this cycle is to release blame, for blame places you vibrationally at the frequency of victim consciousness. We may more easily release blame when we take responsibility for having agreed to our life plans, and the personal stories of pre-birth planning in Your Soul’s Gift are intended to help you do just that.. Such self-responsibility is the fertile ground in which expanded consciousness and self-knowledge blossom.

Like victim consciousness, judgment resonates at a very low frequency. Judgment creates separation, separation creates fear, and fear creates most of the problems in our world. The current shift in human consciousness is in part a return to Oneness or unity consciousness, which is our natural state of being in our nonphysical Home. We cannot return to this state of Oneness consciousness if we are in judgment of, and therefore separate from, one another. An awareness of pre-birth planning makes it easier to release judgment of others, for then we come to realize that every life plan is birthed in love and founded on wisdom.

Society reserves particularly harsh judgments for people who have certain experiences such as homelessness, alcoholism, drug addiction, and AIDS: “She needs to get her act together,” “He isn’t really trying,” “She’s weak,” and “He needs to pull himself up by his bootstraps.” The judgments of people who have AIDS are particularly harsh: “He must have been promiscuous,” “She deserves it,” and “AIDS is God’s way of punishing homosexuals for being homosexuals.” Yet, in truth these experiences are planned before birth, and they are plans of boldness, plans many would not dare to undertake. When we understand pre-birth planning, our judgments evaporate and are replaced by an abiding respect and admiration for the courageous souls who face such challenges.

Judgment may, however, be a useful tool for gaining insight into your life plan. Ask yourself, “What trait do I judge most harshly in the people who are in my life?” Then ask, “What is the opposite of that trait?” In all likelihood, before you were born you wanted to develop and express that opposite quality. In regard to the trait you have judged in someone else, it is likely you had that trait in a past life, and it is certain you have that trait (to some degree) now. All judgment of others is cloaked self-judgment. If you did not have the trait you judge, you would either be unable to recognize it in another or you would not judge it if you did see it.

Because what we experience outside ourselves is always a projection of our inner reality, it is not possible for us to be in nonjudgment of another until we are wholly in nonjudgment of ourselves. Speaking nonjudgmental words and engaging in nonjudgmental actions are not indicators of being in nonjudgment. The one true indicator of nonjudgment is how we experience ourselves, for that is how we truly experience others.

Care must be taken here not to go into judgment of judgment. Although none of us enjoys being judged, we chose for good reason to incarnate in a time in human evolution in which judgment is commonplace. Simply put, judgment is a powerful teacher for us, and some of us learn best through the experience of being judged. That experience is an effective means by which to develop empathy, compassion, and many other divine virtues. The lives we plan before we are born are opportunities to develop and express such virtues.

Discover your life plan and the deeper meaning of your challenges

Many of you have written to ask how you may heal various emotional/physical issues or how you can discover your life plan and the deeper spiritual meaning of your challenges and relationships. These intentions may be fulfilled through a Past Life Soul Regression (PLSR) or a Between Lives Soul Regression (BLSR).

PLSRs are very good for “deletion” work. That is, many physical and emotional issues have a past life origin. By returning to the past life in which the issue originated, a process known as abreaction occurs. This means that when you re-experience the origin of the issue, it is “deleted” from or healed in your current lifetime. For example, I recently worked with someone who had experienced pain in his left foot for many years. In his PLSR he saw himself as a young boy in India running through the jungle. In that past life scene, he tripped, fell, and injured his left foot. After his PLSR the pain in his foot resolved.

BLSRs, which are longer sessions (averaging 3.5 hours), are profound spiritual experiences in which clients may obtain answers to life’s biggest questions, such as “What are my life purpose and plan?”, “Why am I experiencing, and how do I heal, this particular life challenge?” or “What did I plan with, and why did I choose, my mother/father/partner/child?”

In my practice, about 80% of BLSR clients are greeted by a spirit guide when they enter the nonphysical realm. Half of these clients then spend the remainder of the session talking with their guide, receiving answers to their questions, deeply helpful insights, and at times energetic healing. The other half are escorted by their guide to the Council of Elders, the wise, loving and highly evolved beings who oversee the cycle of reincarnation on Earth. The Council members often talk with the client in detail about their life plan, why certain people are in their life, and how relationships may be healed or problems addressed. Clients may ask the Council members any question on any subject.

Those who have experienced a BLSR often talk about the powerful and healing unconditional love they felt from their guide and the Council. And, as a client said the other day, “I had read and heard about this, but I didn’t believe it was possible to experience. Now I KNOW there is a plan for our lives and that loving beings oversee what happens here.” To hold this as a concept is one thing, but to actually experience it is potentially transformative.

PLSRs and BLSRs can both be life-changing experiences. For more information please visit the Spiritual Guidance section of my web site at www.yoursoulsplan.com or write to me at rob.schwartz@yoursoulsplan.com.

Do We Plan Our Life Challenges Before We’re Born?

When difficult or traumatic experiences occur in our lives, we naturally wonder, “Why did this happen? What does it mean?” Often, such experiences may appear not to have any particular meaning; they may seem to be nothing more than purposeless suffering. Yet, in my years as a spiritual author and teacher, I have found that not only are our greatest challenges rich with meaning and purpose, but also that very often we ourselves planned those experiences before we were born. I explored this premise in detail in my first book, Your Soul’s Plan, and I do so again in my new book, Your Soul’s Gift: The Healing Power of the Life You Planned Before You Were Born. In this article I would like to share with you some of the healing and empowering insights in my new book.

 

First, a word about my methodology. In both books I interviewed people who had experienced common life challenges like physical illness, the death of a loved one, addiction, or mental illness. Those individuals then had sessions with gifted mediums and channels in which I asked Spirit, “Was this experience planned before birth, and if so, why?” In my books I present all the wisdom that then came forward. My intentions are to help people see the deeper meaning of their life challenges and, in so doing, heal from them. It’s important to understand here that painful experiences can catalyze profound healing for our souls if we, the incarnate personalities, respond to those challenges with love (including self-love) and an open heart, and if we learn the lessons offered by these experiences.

 

Let’s take an example. In the Suicide chapter in Your Soul’s Gift, I share the story of Carolyn, whose only child Cameron suicided shortly after he graduated from high school. Carolyn and I had a channeling session in which we spoke with Jeshua (Jesus). Jeshua began by telling us that suicide is never planned prior to birth as a certainty, but it is often planned as a possibility and sometimes as a high probability, as was the case with Cameron. In other words, Cameron knew that he was taking on so much in this lifetime that a suicide was likely.

 

Since Carolyn has no memory of her pre-birth plan (just as most of us don’t), she quite naturally felt that she had failed Cameron. She was filled with guilt and self-blame, wondering what she could have done. It was then that Jeshua shared with us one of the most important, startling, and powerful pieces of information I’ve come across in my research. He told us, “Every suicide preventable by outside forces was indeed prevented.” What he meant is that if the suicidal person has the slightest openness to changing their mind, the Universe will stage an intervention. It could be something as simple as a bird flying by and distracting the person, or something as dramatic as an angel assuming human form and physically interceding. If you have lost a loved one to suicide, know this: There was literally nothing you could or should have done to save them. You are not to blame. You are not at fault. You did not fail them.

 

In another chapter I explore the pre-birth planning of miscarriage and abortion. Here, I share the story of Rebecca, who was devastated by a miscarriage. Rebecca felt she had killed her unborn child, Calvin, by doing some heavy lifting that led to the miscarriage. In a channeling session, Rebecca spoke with Calvin. We learned that in their last past life together, Rebecca had been male and the commanding officer of an army fort in the old West. Calvin was a subordinate officer and also a close friend. When the fort was attacked, Rebecca (as the commanding officer) sent all the soldiers, including Calvin, out to defend it. The soldiers were massacred. Rebecca blamed herself for her friend’s death and was never able to forgive herself.

 

After that lifetime was over, Rebecca decided she wanted to work on the lesson of self-forgiveness. She therefore planned before she was born to experience a miscarriage, knowing that she would blame herself and thus have the opportunity to do what she could not do before – forgive herself. Having set that plan, she then asked Calvin if he would be the soul whose energy was associated with her unborn child. In service to and out of love for her, he agreed.

 

For a very long time, Rebecca was unable to heal from the miscarriage. She was sad and defeated, filled with doubt and self-loathing. Yet, when she learned that she had planned the miscarriage, that realization “changed my life,” she said. “It brought me home to myself. That’s a journey I could not have made on my own.” Such deep healing often occurs when someone comes into an understanding of their pre-birth plan.

 

     Your Soul’s Gift also looks at the pre-birth planning we do with our beloved animal companions. In the Pets chapter, I share the poignant story of Marcia, who plans before she’s born to be a dwarf. Today, as a grown woman, she stands four feet six inches tall. Marcia knew that dwarfism would be a tremendous challenge, particularly during childhood, when her peers at school would tease and ostracize her. With that in mind, she planned to have many unconditionally loving animals in her childhood and throughout her life – dogs, cats, horses, even a rooster named Crooked Beak. She also planned to have the ability to communicate with them telepathically.

 

As a child, when she came home from school in tears, Marcia’s dog Dusty would say to her, “It’s okay. To me you’re perfect.” And her palomino, Cheetah, would tell her, “It doesn’t matter what they [kids at school] say. Look what you and I can do together!  Come on! Let’s go!” Choosing to receive unconditional love from animals was a wise decision in Marci’s pre-birth planning session.

 

Too, I explore some of the most traumatic experiences a person can have while in body. There are chapters specifically about the planning of both incest and rape. I agonized for a long time about whether to include such subjects in my book, as I most certainly did not want to re-traumatize anyone or cause those who have had experienced incest or rape to feel that they are to blame. No one who has had such experiences is to blame for them. Ultimately, I felt that the wisdom in these chapters would offer healing, and I decided to share what I had found.

 

Why would anyone plan before birth to experience incest or rape? A fundamental spiritual truth is that there is no unexpressed consciousness. In other words, whatever is within you, whether at the conscious or subconscious level, will be expressed in the outer world. The outer mirrors the inner. Almost all of us have had past lives in which we came to believe things about ourselves that our souls know to be untrue. Two of the most common false beliefs are that we are worthless and that we are powerless. If you are someone who has one or both of these false beliefs within your consciousness, they will outpicture in the world around you, sometimes in the form of traumatic experiences like incest or rape.

 

The purpose of this outpicturing is not to punish you. On the contrary, the purpose is to bring your false beliefs to the light of conscious awareness, where they may then be healed. This is a particularly difficult type of life plan, but within it is the potential for profound healing.

 

We can, if we like, deny that the Earth is round, but that will not make it flat. It will still be round. Similarly, we can deny that souls sometimes (though certainly not always) plan before birth to experience trauma like incest and rape, but that will not mean that such planning doesn’t occur. It does. For millennia humanity has learned through suffering. If we want to move beyond the learning-through-suffering paradigm, then we need to take a courageous, unflinching look at what lays within our consciousness.

 

And then heal.

 

*          *          *

Robert Schwartz is a counselor and certified hypnotherapist who helps people heal by understanding what they planned before they were born and why. He offers Spiritual Guidance Sessions (usually focused on the life plan), Past Life Soul Regressions, and Between Lives Soul Regressions. He is the author of two best-selling books, Your Soul’s Plan: Discovering the Real Meaning of the Life You Planned Before You Were Born and Your Soul’s Gift: The Healing Power of the Life You Planned Before You Were Born. Your Soul’s Plan explores the pre-birth planning of physical illness, having handicapped children, deafness, blindness, drug addiction, alcoholism, the death of a loved one, and accidents. Your Soul’s Gift discusses the pre-birth planning of spiritual awakening, miscarriage, abortion, caregiving, having pets, abusive relationships, sexuality, incest, adoption, poverty, suicide, rape, and mental illness. For more information please visit Robert online at www.yoursoulsplan.com.