My life as Naya

Two weeks ago, I did a past life regression with a hypnotherapist. It was my first time being hypnotized.

Before I dive into what happened during my session, I’d like to give you background on my life. I’m in my early 40s and live in North Carolina with my husband, our young daughter and our dog. We moved to North Carolina last year, just a few weeks before I quit my job (2023 was certainly a year of change!) Prior to that, we were in New York City - both of us were born and raised there.

My parents came to the US from India two years before I was born. We grew up very poor, living below the poverty line for many years. Both of my parents worked full-time, yet they struggled to make ends meet. My dad was a social worker and my mom worked the night shift at the post office’s mail sorting facility so that she could be home during the day to take care of my sister and I. She was lucky if she got 4 hours of sleep.

My parents worked very hard. Although they were grateful to be in the US and to have jobs, they operated from a place of fear. They always told my sister and I that when we get jobs, we should keep our heads down and do great work - don't ask for anything and don’t cause any trouble. This was a common strategy for immigrants as it decreased the chances of getting fired.

I was immensely shy as a child. I found it hard to speak, both to adults and to other children. I had very low self-esteem. Because I equated my poorness with my self-worth, I felt inferior to other kids for most of my childhood. But one area where I had confidence was in academics. It was one of the few things in my life that I could control so I made it a point to study hard to get good grades. I was also a gifted writer. I loved writing long letters to my friends and I aced exams that required essays. Writing came naturally to me.

I attended university on a four-year scholarship and graduated with a business degree. After graduating, I got a job working at a small law firm in Manhattan. I climbed the corporate ladder and, 10 years into my career, I went back to school to earn my MBA while maintaining a full-time career. I continued to climb the corporate ladder, making my way up to a successful career at one of the largest law firms in the world. I followed my parents’ advice - I did great work, I went above and beyond and I kept quiet.

The problem with keeping quiet is that I never stood up for myself. Not when my bosses took credit for my work, not when I had to do someone else’s work simply because they were being lazy, and not when I worked 14-hour days for years because I was hired to do the job of three people. It was the perfect recipe for a mental breakdown and it’s what led me to suddenly quit my job.

In doing so, I gave myself a gift - the gift of no longer living in fear. I gave myself permission to speak my truth, follow my heart and do what makes me feel happy and fulfilled.

Experiencing my past lives was deeply emotional and healing. It allowed me to let go of trauma that I didn’t know I had been carrying. The next few posts are dedicated to the beautiful individuals from past lives who shared the same soul as me.