American Society of Alternative Therapists

Tap the Volcano

7/31/2020

When a client enters your office, they'll tell a story. The story they're relating is not real; it's what they believe is real. If the therapist spends the session addressing the false narrative, the therapist enables the myth and wastes time. However, just beneath the story, a volcano of emotions is churning, ready to be released. The therapist must tap these emotions and allow them to surface. When these emotions are released, the hidden issue lurking behind the false story will also emerge; healing can now begin. The first thing a therapist must do is identify what the client is doing to hide the emotions. Secondly, the therapist must aid in their release.

                                                          Spotting Suppressed Emotions

1. Look for the 4 D's: denial, discounting, distraction, and defense. The 4 D's always indicate the presence of fear. When the client is in any one of them, they're hiding from fear. When you spot either denial, discounting, distraction, or defense, stop, challenge it, and allow the client time to pause and go inward; there, they must feel the fear, not run from it. Practice spotting and identifying the 4 D's, your success as a healer requires it.

2. If you notice a client glancing upward in an attempt to think through a response or elevating the pitch of their voice, they're attempting to escape the emotion; they're going up into their head. When in fear or distress, animals 'go to ground.' When humans are in fear or distress, they go upward to their thinking. Spot this behavior immediately and get them to focus downward.

3. A client who comes to a session happy, bright, and sunny often possesses a darker emotion just beneath the bubbly surface. Life may genuinely be beautiful and flowing for the client, but there always will be an opposite reaction to this positive change. The client tends to race forward in an attempt to out-distance the fear; this is a distraction. They'll need time to pause and allow their resistance and fear to catch up.

4. If a client keeps shifting to a different subject, again, this is a distraction; they're in fear. Slow them down to allow the fear to catch up before moving on to another subject, pause and address the fear.

                                              Tapping the Volcano

1. When you spot a client showing any of the above signs of fear, you must pause and not proceed further. Gently ask the client to close their eyes and become still and silent. In that stillness and silence, ask them to allow whatever emotion(s) comes up to come up. It will not be long before a darker emotion surfaces. Encourage the client to feel this emotion at whatever depth they're comfortable.

2. When your client races upward to their head and thoughts, ask them to pause a moment and bring their attention downward to their navel. Ask them to lower their head. By keeping their focus downward, the negative emotion will have a better chance to be felt. The navel, the third chakra, is the seat of emotions.

3. Now and then, ask the client to pause and check in with their younger selves to see how they're feeling. Pausing to check-in allows these younger selves participation in the process; it will enable them to be heard and felt.

Don't race forward during your sessions. Now and then, pause and check-in with how the client is feeling. As all life ebbs and flows, each session, likewise, ebbs and flows. By allowing this rhythm to be apart of your work, you'll lay the groundwork more opportunities for healing to occur.

Remember, the story the client brings to the session is not what's important; what's up for healing is. By pausing to allow the emotions to surface, you can undertake the work that's required.

Listen to story; don't be seduced by it. Listen to the story; but listen more to what needs feeling. Tap the volcano to release its pressure.

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Why Are You Blocking the Door?

7/28/2020

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Want more clients? OK, we can plan some brilliant marketing strategy or hire professionals who specialize in such things to do it for you; that’s one way. We can put ads in newspapers or magazines; that’s another. Or, we can rely on ‘good old word of mouth;’ that’s certainly another. There are many ways to get your message out to the public. Some routes are costly; others, not so. Some are effective, some less so. But, when push comes to shove, there’s only one real way to draw clients to your services; and that’s to quit blocking the door.

The truth is that you can have as many clients as you wish; after all, it’s you who creates your reality, not some marketing or advertising firm. All techniques and methods used to attract clients are simply rituals. They’re successful or not so successful, depending on the one performing the ritual.

The question that needs asking is, what is it you genuinely desire? Or, better yet, who or what is doing the desiring?

Do you want more clients because your negative ego says it will make you happier and will fulfill all your needs and wants? If so, rethink it.

Do you want more clients because it will finally prove you’ve “arrived?”
If so, rethink it.

Do you want more clients because it will finally validate or vindicate you? If so, rethink it.

Do you want more clients because a lesser part of you believes this will make its life more complete? If so, rethink it.

Do you want more clients because consensus thinking says that having many clients is proof that you are, in fact, a healer? If so, rethink it.

Do you secretly hold that if you had more clients, then that would be proof that God/Goddess/All That Is love you? If so, rethink it.

Maybe the truth is you don’t want a ton of clients. Perhaps you'd be happier with an occasional client, here and there? If that’s true, recognize it and acknowledge it and let it be OK with you.

Maybe the form that healing takes must change for you, not the act of healing itself. You’re a healer. You wouldn't have been attracted to the craft if it weren't so. Having many clients or very few, if any, is not a standard you should use to judge your calling.

You were born to be a healer; you will heal whether in a professional setting or not. Being who and what you are, heals; this is your destiny. People who drift within your orbit will find healing and nurturing there. But, of course, if you don’t find someone to heal, you can always heal the world.

If you don’t have clients, maybe you don’t want them in the form you’re asking for. Process what you’re asking for; go deep within to find your answers. You possess the knowledge you seek.

Your negative ego holds that form will dictate whether or not you’re a healer. Your Higher Self knows it’s in the content that the healer in you lays, as well as the fulfillment and happiness it will bring you.

If you aren’t getting all the clients you need and want, it’s because you’re barring the door and not letting them in, nothing more, nothing less. Process through what it is you really want. When you discover what it is that will indeed make you happy and fulfilled, pursue it. You cannot fail at your destiny's calling; you can only dilly-dally around pursuing things of which you have little interest.

You’re a healer in some form or another. Find the form that resonates with you, and you’ll be wondrously successful at it.

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A Diamond in the Rock

7/24/2020

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When asked how he crafts such magnificent works of sculpture, Michelangelo replied, “I see the finished form, and then I simply remove the rock that hides it.”

Each of us is a brilliant diamond hidden deep with a rock of our own making. Each of us possesses a tiny voice calling out for release. You’ll hear the voice, if you listen carefully, amid the cries of loneliness and despair all about you; in the senseless acts of violence and rage playing out on our streets and in our cities. You’ll hear it if you listen ever so carefully within the fear stories each convinces themselves are real. And you’ll hear it, ever so faintly, in the actions of those who seek power and fame through mindless dogma and acts of intolerance, division, and hatred. Within the silent majority, the voice is made even more silent from terror, confusion, and the belief that the future before them is dark and hopeless.

This diamond remains imprisoned as long as we ignore it, distract ourselves from it, pretend it isn’t there, and try to make of it something that it’s not. The diamond will never be seen by us or others as long as we hide behind false and hollow images of a self we wish we were, pretend we are or convince ourselves we are. What we show to the world is a lie, a fake story, a shadow of lost dreams, visions, and hopes.

ASAT™ C.O.R.E. Counseling is not about helping others make a lie a truth; it’s not about making the rock more comfortable to carry. ASAT™ C.O.R.E. Counseling is not about painting it to make it more presentable; it’s not about hanging tiny sparkly baubles or colored strips of paper to help the rock become more attractive. ASAT™ C.O.R.E. Counseling is not about assisting others in making a bad thing better or a make-believe story real. ASAT™ C.O.R.E. is about awakening the truth in each of us and responding to the tiny, silent voices yearning to be expressed.

ASAT™ C.O.R.E. counselors, step by step, challenge the rock’s existence, and inch by inch, strip away its illusionary substance. Like Michelangelo, we chip away at false beliefs, diminishing attitudes, and weak and limiting thinking. We remove those painful and imprisoned feelings and chisel away those errant choices and decisions. We sharpen our sculpting tools by lifting our desires, honoring and awakening our imagination, and strengthening our weak and faulty expectations. We elevate our skills in crafting through the daily practice of love, gratitude, hope, discipline, courage, and self-trust. And, most of all, we dream futures and prioritize their awakening.

ASAT™ C.O.R.E. counselors are sculptors. No, we don’t make works of art; we reveal diamonds. And no, we’re not renovators. We listen for the faint voices yearning to be heard, we search amid the many make-believe stories to find the more real story glistening deep within, and we chip away, shard by shard, the rock that hides a diamond. We do this for our clients, and most of all, we do this for ourselves.

We are sculptors of futures, glorious futures, and artisans of dreams and visions yet to be.

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Happy 30th !

7/23/2020

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                                                   Happy Anniversary!

                     ASAT and ASAT C.O.R.E. Counseling are now 30 years old.

                                              Wow! What a ride!

The first certification class began in January 1990; way before most of you were born. This year, a total overhaul of the association and the certification course has taken place. Here are a few of the changes.

ASAT
ASAT is no longer open to non-certified ASAT C.O.R.E. counselors; this makes us exclusively an organization for ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselors. This will allow us to focus totally on our mission and objectives.

ASAT C.O.R.E. Counseling Certification Course
The course has been changed and streamlined to keep up with the evolution of the C.O.R.E. work. The syllabus has cut many programs to place greater emphasis on strengthening the counseling aspect. Progression/Regression Therapy has been removed as well as C.O.R.E. Energy Alignment. CEA, however, will be taught as a separate weekend training. Graduates of the class will no longer receive a certificate in Holistic Health Counseling (HHC), and a diploma in ASAT C.O.R.E. Counseling. Graduates will now receive a certificate in ASAT C.O.R.E Counseling (ACC). This move places a stronger emphasis on the C.O.R.E. counseling work and will, I believe, produce more focused and committed practitioners.

Also, there will no longer be a Home-Study format. All distant learning will now be conducted through Zoom teleconferencing.

ASAT C.O.R.E. Processing Workshops
ACP’s are a new program designed specifically for the general public. Conducted over one weekend, ACP’s will cover the basic principles of the C.O.R.E. map, and will guide participants through the steps of self-processing and programming. This will, hopefully, encourage participants to pursue not only their self-healing but the work of ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselors to guide them on issues requiring further assistance.

The ASAT Website
The website has been re-written to reflect the changes to the organization and its training.

ASAT Blogs
I will now post articles regularly to keep members connected and informed. Also, it will help in connecting both you and your client’s growth issues with the changing whispers and shouts of the times we’re experiencing. Hopefully, it will make our journey forward more elegant and magical.

Two New Books
I’ve written and published two additional books. One is currently available in both eBook and paperback formats and can be ordered from Amazon or any bookstore. They both are available through ASAT Press on our website. The latest book is currently in production and will be available around Labor Day. It, too, is in both eBook and paperback formats.

The first book, The Magic of the Scented Flowers, is a companion book to my collection of tales found in The Scented Flowers of Sinjin-Ka. It’s an oracle book that provides clients and counselors a fun and magical way to process issues surfacing in their lives. Each story in the Scented Flowers has written commentary in the Magic book addressing key points presented in the tale. By randomly selecting a number from one to ninety-one, and working with the analysis found in the Magic of the Scented Flowers, the reader can open a line of communication directly with his or her Higher Self to address surfacing issues. The ninety-one commentaries cover all elements of the C.O.R.E. map.

And, finally, the ASAT C.O.R.E. book is completed. The C.O.R.E. Principles is a beautiful introduction to our work and practice. It will provide your clients and potential clients with insights, knowledge, and techniques that will help them understand and respond most effectively to your C.O.R.E. work.

Advanced Training
For now, all future Advanced Trainings will be conducted via Zoom. When the pandemic ends, we’ll consider conducting live trainings again; since I miss you all very much.

So, my friends, the months have been jam-packed and very productive thanks to Covid-19. I hope all of you are well, safe, and moving elegantly forward.

Be well, my friends. Live long and prosper (I had to get a little Star Trek in there, sorry)

Martin

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The Work of the ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselor

7/22/2020

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The work of the ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselor is not limited to the time spent working with clients or the time spent taking classes, developing marketing strategies, or anything else for that matter.

Many ASAT counselors do not work with clients directly; they do not have offices, signs in front of the door, or a fancy marketing plan. Yet, they're ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselors.

'Counselor' was the title given to you upon completion of a course of study. You've completed the course; you've earned the title. But the title is just a word, nothing more. 'ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselor' doesn't mean anything until you give it meaning and value in yourself. No, it doesn't mean you're required to be an active participant in a distinct profession, but it does mean you're an individual with a different calling. You were called once to the game of healing, and you are again. You don't have to get into the game; you are the game.

You were drawn to this C.O.R.E. perspective, whether you make it a profession or not. You were brought to this unique calling of healing, whether you answer the call or not. But beyond the call to become a healer, to enter a profession, you were asked to challenge yourself, to surpass, and to supersede yourself. Are you?

It doesn't matter why you answered the call, why you took the class; all that matters is that you were called; not everybody is. This "answering" in no way makes you special or better than; it just says you're unique, whether your focus is on a particular profession, or on helping others through your day-to-day interaction with them, or changing the world by your being in it. You're an ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselor because you're a magician, a map-maker, a healer. And what is the work of a magician? A magician's work is to love, to dream, to heal, and to work magic. Are you?

No, doing the work of an ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselor is not limited to a fifty-minute session, setting appointments, or bantering about words like conscious, own, release, and engage. It's not limited by anything you do or say. It's shown in the workings of your life, it's reflected in your dreams, love, healing of self and others, and in the magic you craft, and in the magic you allow, and it shines in the brightness, or dimness, of what you're allowing your life to become. You are the healing game you play in, and you are the one who chooses to win or lose at the playing of it.

You're being called once again, this time by a world desperately in need of love, desperately in need of dreams, desperately in need of healing, and desperately in need of magic. Are you going to answer the call? Are you going to step up and stand out? Are you going to get into the game you're called to play? Are you?

No, you're not being asked to work with clients. No, you're not being asked to save the world; there's nothing from which the world needs saving. You're being asked to love, to heal, to dream new dreams of futures yet to come, and to work a little magic now and again. You're being called to do the work of the ASAT C.O.R.E. counselor, the real work of the ASAT C.O.R.E. counselor. You're being called to counsel yourself: your younger, less developed selves. It's your younger selves and your dark counselors who call out to you amidst the frenzy, turmoil, and chaos of the changing times we're in. It's in the callings of their desperate fear that, to you, their lives don't matter. It's in their calls from the quarantine you've forced them in that they seek release and freedom to grow and prosper; it's through their raging shouts, and it's by their destructive frenzy to pull down your iron monuments to past memories and faded glories that they seek to get your attention. And it's in the calls from their isolation that they ask to be discovered.

Go within, find them, respond to them, dream dreams with them, work your healing magic with them, and love them. ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselors only have one client in life, themselves. Remember, always, "Nothing changes until you do." Are you?

Now is the time to see what you're made of.

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Dr. Martin Hart

President: American Society of Alternative Therapist (ASAT™)

Teacher: Architect and principle instructor of ASAT™ C.O.R.E. Counseling

Author: The C.O.R.E. Principles, The Scented Flowers of Sinjin-Ka, The Magic of the Scented Flowers, and The Best Meditations on the Planet (with co-author, Skye Alexander)

Tap the Volcano

Why Are You Blocking the Door?

A Diamond in the Rock

Happy 30th !

The Work of the ASAT C.O.R.E. Counselor

More Posts Coming Soon. Stay Tuned!

Dr. Martin Hart

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