In his latest book, Hauntings: Dispelling The Ghosts Who Run Our Lives, Dr. James Hollis reminds us that our past is not truly past us. Our familial influences, life-altering traumas, and individual woundings follow us to the grave.

There are powerful stories shared in Hauntings. Many important psychological subjects such as guilt and shame, complexes and projections are also discussed.

In Hauntings Dr. Hollis writes about how our familial histories – whether good or bad or a mix – make for permanent complex charges within us. If we remain unconscious or oblivious to the power these both known or unspoken histories hold over us, we are more likely to make bad choices in our lives. Worse, we will live a life of desperation, despair or meaninglessness.

Dr. Hollis' books are consistently an invitation to explore our nature and our unconscious motivations. In Hauntings he shares some deeply touching and personal stories from his own history. He also explores the darker parts of our ego self which – if we do not claim its shadows – will torture us even somatically until we learn to acknowledge and surrender our neurotic, inflated or narcissistic personas. He offers when we examine these behaviors consciously we will be more likely to take responsibility for and manage the behaviors accordingly so we don't damage ourselves or others. He writes that these hurts can take on a generational theme of enormous agony. Dr. Hollis reiterates that while it's lovely to be “nice” it is far better to be “real.” For our wounds to be healed they must first be acknowledged.

This authentically written book encourages psychological bravery and inspires us not to remain a prisoner or a victim of what “happened to us.” This beautiful book acknowledges that none of us can avoid betrayals, hurts, pain and loss and the grieving these circumstances warrant. But, how we handle these experiences is key to our recovery from life's pain and becoming conscious. That is a hopeful message for any of us who were subjected to trauma, negligence, bullying, poverty, addictions or loss.

Dr. Hollis writes that we are stronger than we think. He believes we can have sovereignty over our life by the choices we make consciously and thoughtfully. He wants us to live a more considered life and ask ourselves the bigger questions: Who am I? Why am I here? Who are my people? How am I different from others? Deeply spiritual questions from a profoundly sagacious teacher.



Source by Mary Jane Hurley Brant