Imagine you have been carrying a load for so long that you've gotten used to it. Unaware of the burden, you struggle along, fatigued, disenchanted, tripping over obstacles, and sometimes feeling like giving up all together. When you finally realise you are encumbered with this burden, a great irony awaits you: the contents that you are carrying are no longer needed.

You may be one of the many people on the planet who are in this situation. Would you want to know so you can set down your heavy load, free up some energy, and move forward with a lighter step?

Some people carrying past life traumas in their current life are being called to set them aside. But how do you know you are one of them? Read on to consider a list of ten signs, with explanatory examples, that may indicate you are carrying an unnecessary burden. You will sense if it is time to let it go.

1. Physical pain or discomfort, especially if persistent and with no obvious cause.
   A physical problem that has been present for many years may have its genesis in a past life. Two examples of this immediately come to my mind.
   
   One client mentioned in passing she had a painful knee. Over the years she'd suffered three accidents. Each time, the only damage occurred in her left knee, and she still suffered pain. Having three accidents that damaged the same knee struck me as statistically remote. Under hypnosis, she went to the origin of the pain, accessing a past life as a child. This young girl had been locked in her room for a period as punishment. From her upper floor window, she saw a beloved relative arrive. Climbing out of the window, she fell, damaging her knee so badly she eventually died in great pain. Once my client came to terms with this unexpected death, the pain in her knee completely disappeared.
   
   Another client lamented her partner's refusal to wear a tie to their upcoming wedding. She'd also noticed he recoiled if she placed her hand near his neck. When he came for a regression, he went into a past life. Full of guilt for causing the death of another, he'd hanged himself. When he finally let go of that life, he was gracefully met by the one who'd died. His guilt was washed away with his tears of relief. And his neck sensitivity was gone, never to return.
   
   
2. Anger or negativity towards others, especially if it is strong and pervasive.
   One client strongly disliked her husband's mother and sister. Right from the first meeting, she felt that they judged her. She could see how they fooled people, pretending to be nice when actually they were greedy and nasty. She wondered why they upset her so much. During her session, she recalled a past life where she had been fooled, lost a lot of money, and became bitter. She set out to fool people herself and take their money. She found she liked cheating others. "It felt like a win," she said. "I didn’t like being a victim, so I became a perpetrator." In that life she was poisoned by someone she had betrayed.
   
   In a later life, she completely shifted after someone duped and damaged her children. "It snapped me out of it, and I didn't want my children to be like me, either." Although this was positive progress for her soul, she missed something. By turning against all charlatans, she disowned an important part of herself, the damaged scammer from the past life.
   
   Once she realised what she had learned, she mentally embraced and thanked the scammer for teaching her this lesson. The scammer was at peace, feeling redeemed and accepted. Her feelings for her in-laws changed dramatically. They no longer bothered her. She understood them. They were just at a particular stage of their soul journey.
   
   
3. Inescapable anxiety and depression.
   Although each case is unique, the following example is generally representative of those suffering anxiety, depression, or unresolved loss that is related to a past life.
   
   This client described her feelings. "I feel so stressed I could scream. I have no energy and see no hope for the future. I generally shut down, withdraw into myself and retire to my bed. Lately, I notice that the anxiety is much more constant that the depression."
   
   During the session, the client is taken back to being on this man's death bed. This time he senses his wife there with him. He opens and feels her love. "I didn't realise the depth of that love until the end. I had closed down. I hadn't realised how strongly she was with me through that life. Instead of feeling love, I shut everything out."
   
   Originally, he died alone in a state of loss, grief, isolation, and hopelessness. This emotional imprint had carried over into the client's present life. When he felt the love of his wife again, the client felt it, too. Her anxiety and depression lifted. She expressed how she felt: "I now have faith that I am loved."
   
   
4. Phobias, especially with no current life cause.
   One client reported that her baby, right from birth, screamed whenever water was placed on his head. Of course, he was too young to investigate the cause, but such behaviour is typical of a past life trauma.
   
   I have had countless clients with phobias who have died in past lives. Some, unable to swim or afraid of water, died from drowning. Others, afraid of heights, have fallen from cliffs or aircraft. Claustrophobia, needle phobia, darkness phobia, fear of death. These are some phobia clients suffered, which had their genesis in their past lives.
   
   When we investigate these cases, the person drowning is still fighting for survival, while the claustrophobic is still bricked up behind the wall. Unable to accept their death, these phobic people are still caught in their worst nightmare.
   
   Some resist their death, while many are oblivious to the fact that we survive the death of our body. Whatever consumed their focus at the end of that life creates a perceived reality, which persists in later incarnations. Rescuing these illusioned spirits is usually quick and easy, making a positive difference to clients in their current lives.
   
   
5. A pervasive sense of sadness.
   Sadness with no obvious cause can be debilitating. Other symptoms might be low energy, little motivation, or feeling weighed down while believing life is a constant struggle. In these cases, the original trauma is usually profound, unresolved loss. For example, one client was taken to a past life where she was a woman whose son had never come home from the Spanish Civil War. Even though he had probably died, the mother could not let go and accept the loss without knowing what had happened.
   
   In the regression, her spirit guide revealed his death. He was killed by one from his own side. It was a vendetta, revenge for something he'd done. The son, so shocked by his sudden death, had not passed over. Once he was freed, both the mother and son moved on.
   
   The mother's melancholy, which had been seeping into the client's current life, was now gone. All that sadness lifted.
   
   
6. Deep fear of public speaking.
   While most of us fear public speaking, some can overcome their fear by taking a practical public speaking course. Others find their dread remains. A traumatic past life could be the cause. Here is an example:
   
   In the past life, the client was a healer tortured to death by inquisitors wanting a confession with the names of associates. Although the healer didn't give anyone up, the client still felt the fear. "I feel this life is linked to me holding back, not sharing who I am and not being open. I am still terrified being found out." Coming to terms with this challenging life and horrible treatment was the beginning of the client overcoming her fear of publicly sharing her views.
   
   
7. Compulsive generosity.
   Compulsive generosity usually does not come from a previous life of poverty. More likely it comes from a need to prove we are good and worthy.
   
   One client lived a past life as the daughter of wealthy parents during the early 1930s depression. Knowing thta people were struggling to survive, she desperately wanted to help. She defied and rejected her parents to do so. Only when she died in a fire—together with poor vagrants—did she realise that her parents cared for her and would be upset. This was an epiphany to the client, who could see more clearly the nature of her compulsion to help others, both in the past life and her current life. She explained:
   
   "I think I have been trying to rescue people. There is arrogance in that. Instead, I am going accept where they are, and work with them to help themselves."
   
   Her charity wasn't coming from the heart; rather, she was trying to prove her positive worth. Genuine generosity needs no proof. It comes unconditionally and is not designed to rescue others from their soul lessons.
   
   
8. Feeling consistently disturbed over some situation.
   Sometimes we have a pet hate, or a compulsive dislike, which stirs us up emotionally. We might find ourselves angry at people who never say sorry. We might despise careless people who drink and drive. There are countless possibilities. Our strong emotional charge has a history and sometimes it involves a past life. Here is an example:
   
   A client was persistently angry at authority. He had problems submitting to instructions at work. He hated his son joining the cadets at school and having to be submissive. When his son nearly died in a motor accident, he became more open and vulnerable. He came for a regression, accessing a past life as a proud young man. Attracted to wearing a smart uniform, this young man signed up to go to war. On the battlefield in France, he felt strong and confident with a sense that he was doing the right thing. That changed soon after, when his unit was ordered to climb out of the trenches to go over the top. He was shot and, as he died, he saw his short life more clearly. "I am seeing the battlefield now, all these men dying. We have been used and tossed aside."
   
   His bitterness bled into his current life and manifested as a hatred of authority. During the regression, he realised he didn't have to go to war. He'd had other opportunities. His arrogance and pride had driven his decision to sign up. "I didn’t get the lesson, so I had to die. I could have made other choices." With this realisation, all the emotional negativity the client had felt towards authority drained away.
   
   
9. Powerful repetitive dreams.
   Past life issues can be resolved in our dreams. I personally have experienced this, as have many of my clients. Sometimes, though, the trauma in the dream is so overpowering we cannot easily resolve it ourselves. If you wake up terrified, you probably calm down by reminding yourself it was just a dream. When the dream keeps recurring, it may be related to an experience from a past life. Most probably, some incident in your current life has surfaced the issue.
   
   If you continue to feel disturbed, you may want to investigate your dream. Past life dreams are vivid, usually emotionally charged, and with a sense of reality about them. They are not Alice-in-Wonderland fantasies that couldn't happen in the real world.
   
   When we investigate dreams in the regressions, they do sometimes relate to a past life that needs to be resolved. Most people find that making sense of a puzzling or disturbing dream is a relief. When the client makes a necessary positive change in their life or attitude, the dream no longer recurs.
   
   
10. Feeling lost and filled with self-doubt.
    Nearly all of us doubt ourselves at times. We can sometimes feel confused, which is an uncomfortable state for humans because we have a body that we need to keep safe. Our need for security is especially strong when we believe our body is all we are. We know we will die, but we do not know when. This means we live our lives with a permanent undercurrent of uncertainty. How do we resolve our fear and self-doubt? Here is one example from my files.
    
    In this case, the client was taken to a past life as a child. The child had been ill and died. She refused to leave her body. Her spirit guides beckoned, telling her she was dead, but she didn't believe them. They coaxed her gently, helping to calm her. Taking her by the hand, they led her towards a light, which was shining in a midnight blue sky, peppered with twinkling stars. She still felt lost and confused. A comforting presence gathered her up and lovingly held her. They pointed out she is safe. She relaxed, knowing all is well.
    
    Her guides explained that many people, at the end of their life, fail to realise taht their physical body is dead. They are stuck, feeling lost, confused, and uncertain, not knowing where to go. The client realised that the child's self-doubt had been manifesting in her current life, intensifying any self-doubt she entertained.

Past life trauma can have a dramatic effect on our current lives. In my book, Lost Soul, Wise Soul: How Challenging Past Lives Shape Our Future, I explain why these past life emotional energies bleed through into our current lives. There is a purpose. When, however, you feel called to seek resolution of a past life issue, any purpose has already been served. The carried-over trauma is now just baggage holding you back. Once you let go, you feel lighter, more energetic, more confident in yourself and your endeavours.