How the Past and Future Influence Us
I’ve had experiences that I cherish. Some experiences I would rather forget. And yes, there are experiences I’ve pushed aside so I could move on.
The same goes for the future. There are things I look forward to with excited anticipation. But there are also situations I anticipate with apprehension, uncertainty, or stress. At times, the distress can feel intense, even though the situation I imagine hasn’t happened and may never happen.
What’s done is done. What will be, will be. My opportunity is to experience the present moment.
And yet, I’m human. The past and the future influence how I experience the present. Memories can bring back joy, sadness, fear, or frustration. Imagined scenarios can fill me with excitement or leave me feeling anxious and overwhelmed.
For a long time, I understood this as simply part of being human. We learn from the past, try to make peace with what we cannot change, and prepare ourselves for what might lie ahead. Sometimes we talk about difficult experiences. Sometimes we try to forget them, push them aside, or tell ourselves to move on.
My understanding, and more importantly, my experience, has shifted through my work with Logosynthesis®.
What Can Change?
One of the fundamental ideas in Logosynthesis is that we can freeze our energy in memories, beliefs, and imagined scenarios. These are more than thoughts about something that happened or might happen. The energy associated with this mental imagery can influence our physical, mental, and emotional experience in the present.
A memory can trigger a reaction as though the event were happening again. An imagined conversation or future challenge can create stress before we have even encountered the situation. The opportunity is not to erase our memories, deny what happened, or stop imagining the future. It is to work with the mental imagery that is contributing to our distress.
Through the Logosynthesis Basic Procedure, I have experienced how identifying and shifting specific memories, beliefs, and imagined scenarios can bring relief. We use the energy and intention of our own words to address the frozen energy associated with this imagery. As the energy shifts, the trigger can dissolve and the distress associated with it can diminish.
I often describe this as removing a splinter. Rather than trying to force healing or fix what is wrong, we address the mental imagery that is triggering automatic stress reactions, allowing energy to return to flow.
We cannot change what happened, but we don’t have to keep experiencing the distress associated with it.
The same possibility applies to the future. We cannot know exactly what will happen, but we can work with the imagined scenarios that create distress before anything has happened. We can still plan, prepare, make decisions, and consider possibilities without being consumed by everything that might go wrong.
When Patterns from the Past Shape Our Future
Growing up in a large family on a busy dairy farm, I learned to work hard and fast, be a team player, and do my share of the work. These expectations served me well in my corporate career. Over time, however, they also became rigid patterns of behaviour that limited my freedom to choose how I wanted to respond in the moment. If there was work to be done, I felt an automatic tension to get it done. There was no choice. It had to be done.
These beliefs also influenced how I raised my children. I knew from my experience that work hard was required to be successful. And imagining what could happen and worst case scenarios, including those offered by the media, felt stressful. Memories, beliefs and imaginations influenced the energy I brought to parenting. At times, my concerns and expectations created considerable tension, not only for me but also for my daughters.
Looking back, I can see how intentions that came from wanting to help and prepare my children for life could also create pressure. I wasn’t necessarily responding to what was happening in the moment. By listening to others and noticing when I overreacted, I began applying the Basic Procedure when my reactions felt intense for the situation. Gradually, I noticed that my patterns of responding began to shift. I had more choice. When I was calmer, I noticed that those around me often responded differently, too. I could express what was important to me without the same tension and consider alternative ways forward rather than automatically reacting.
I no longer believe that moving on means having to forget, suppress, or simply learn to live with what has happened. Nor do I feel the same need to anticipate, prepare for, or control every possible future scenario.
More Freedom to Be Present with Ourselves and Others
The difference shows up in everyday life. I notice that I am less reactive. I experience more freedom to be present, to choose how I respond, and to engage with the people and situations in front of me. There is not the same need to carry everything or have everything figured out. I notice what shows up and work with that.
AlsoI experience this shift when guiding others through the Logosynthesis Basic Procedure, too. I don’t have to fix their issues or carry their problems for them. Nor do I need to become caught up in their distress about the past or their apprehension about the future. I can be present alongside them, supporting them as they identify and shift the memories, beliefs, and imagined scenarios that are relevant to them.
This changes the quality of the work. I can care deeply without taking on someone else’s experience or deciding what needs to change. There is space for them to discover what is important and work with it in their own way.
For me, this is one of the most meaningful aspects of working with Logosynthesis. It isn’t about creating a perfect past or guaranteeing a worry-free future. It is about freeing energy that is caught up in the past or the future, so that more of us is available for living now.
More freedom to be ourselves and connect with others. More freedom to enjoy life more fully.