By Julie Daley
During the Hoffman Process, you utilize multiple powerful tools and practices to heal the pain of childhood and to disconnect from parental patterns. Each one supports the journey in a powerful way. One of these tools, the elevator, is a brilliant way to help make conscious the compulsive patterns that unconsciously continue to rule your life. We learned to keep what seemed like too much to face where we wouldn’t have to face it. Eventually, though, to heal the pain we have to see what’s ‘down below’ or deep within, hence the elevator. The Process is brilliant at doing this in a way that is both real and loving.
When I did the Process many years ago, my first elevator felt very intimidating. The thought of going ‘down’ deeper into my underlying patterns and beliefs felt as if I was descending into dark, murky waters of the unknown. I felt conflicted. I wanted to uncover the patterns, but I also was nervous of what I might find. I don’t think I’m alone. As those doors open and we step into the scene, we don’t really know what we’ll encounter.
What’s wonderful about the elevator tool is that we’re encouraged to enter into the elevator – and the experience – with ‘eagerness and curiosity.’ We’re invited to step into the elevator and see our question on a button on the control panel. And, we’re reminded that there’s no need to think about anything – that you get to just let yourself be a passenger.
When I approached my first elevator in the Process, my guide, Ben, joined me at the door. Ben is a happy guide with a quirky sense of humor. He first appeared to me by sliding into my awareness in his hot pink high-top Converse – literally sliding so that the first thing I saw were his two pink shoes.
To be honest, I was afraid to go down in the elevator because I didn’t want to see what awaited me. My childhood had some hard moments and I’d spent my life trying to pretend they hadn’t happened. I was sure the elevator was going to present me with situations that would be too much to face. What I found, though, is that the Process is done in love and that my guide, Ben, was exactly what I needed by my side in order to go through each experience presented. Ben always slid into view with his joyful nature. He let me know from the start of my Process that I could approach my healing Hoffman journey with a lightness that had seemed to elude me for most of my life. I sense, with wonder, that our guides bring that which will support us most along the way.
As the doors closed and I headed down on that first elevator ride, Ben was with me, right by my side. I remember seeing his hot pink high-tops as I looked down at the elevator floor just before the doors opened. I found that looking at the floor first allowed my eyes to gradually look up to see what I was to step into. His hot pink high-tops made me smile. He was there, and I knew I didn’t have to do any of this alone. I became healthier and happier through the process of facing and transforming what I found.
Oftentimes, facing our childhood experiences can feel frightening and overwhelming. That’s what I love about bringing eagerness and curiosity to the elevator and our continuing engagement with the Hoffman tools. As you push that button and head on down, leaving your expectations behind and embracing what you find when those doors open, you learn to trust both yourself and the process of healing transformation. No matter what you find when those doors open, you’ve got what you need to transform it into positivity and light.
Find out more about elevator teleclasses here, or check out the guided visualization here and here.