About Havening

Havening Touch® is a wonderfully gentle, intuitive, self-healing process using inbuilt biological healing mechanisms. The developer of Havening, Dr Ronald Ruden, has elucidated the complete pathway by which traumatic events get ‘hard-wired’ into a part of the brain called the Amygdala. He also discovered a very rapid molecular mechanism for permanently deleting traumatic memories, which works in minutes. The key to healing trauma is to create in the brain a strong signal of safety, which activates the molecular mechanism that deletes the traumatic memory. During Havening, the brain is literally rewired to remove the effects of trauma. If you are a science geek and want to know the molecular mechanisms, you can read the scientific paper here.

The signals of safety are generated by applying very specific forms of soothing touch to the hands, upper arms and face. Neuroscientists discovered about ten years ago that we have specialised nerves in the skin with the sole purpose of detecting a soothing stroke from a warm object, such as a hand. These nerves send signals directly into the emotional centres of the brain to create a sense of deep safety and connection. These mechanisms of soothing touch have evolved in mammals and they form part of a natural mechanism for recovering from traumatic events.

The touch can be applied by the practitioner to the client, or else clients can apply the soothing touch to themselves during a session of Havening, guided by the practitioner.

Havening Touch also works very effectively via video call, so help can be given at a distance.

You will not be re-traumatised during Havening

Some of my clients have been further traumatised, during other kinds of therapy, by having to describe their most horrifying experiences. I want to reassure you that during Havening we never need to know the details of your trauma. When we are dealing with traumatic memories, we simply ask the client to recall the event very briefly, then we use distractions to divert your attention away from the trauma. A brief recall is all that is required, to activate the nerve circuits that encode the trauma, then se can precisely target the trauma delete function. The process does not take away the factual memory – it just erases the emotional and body reactions that get triggered when a traumatic memory is reactivated.

Your safety is the first priority

Where there is complex trauma (often starting in early life), the journey of healing may take unexpected twists and turns. We often use the analogy of peeling the layers off an onion. As we delete the more recent trauma, deeper layers may emerge, which are linked to more severe trauma. So symptoms can get temporarily worse.

How our body copes with trauma is to assess, at the time, if we have the emotional resources and resilience to deal with threatening life events. If we are overwhelmed, the trauma gets buried in the subconscious and stays there until we feel safe enough to address it. That’s the power of Havening, to create a profound sense of safety and to allow the hidden trauma to emerge and be healed, layer by layer. As this process unfolds, we often gain access to early life memories and the causes of trauma can be identified and healed.

With any new client, the first step is to assess the degree of emotional vulnerability and resilience. In many clients, we can step rapidly into addressing the trauma. In vulnerable clients, we may spend some time using Havening to build safety and resilience before we tackle the underlying problems. So, for instance, a recent client came to me with severe longstanding anxiety and panic attacks. She never, ever, felt safe, not even for a minute. In the first session we simply used Havening to take her to a place of complete calm and safety. The client cried tears of relief – she couldn’t believe it was ever possible to feel safe again!

My philosophy of healing practice

I tell all of my clients that they have an innate, intuitive healing wisdom. We are all highly evolved to heal trauma as a natural, biological process – it’s just that medical science focused so much on disease and treatments that it forgot to examine how the body can heal itself! The discovery of the molecular mechanism behind Havening is a very recent breakthrough.

So your intuitive, healing wisdom will govern the pace and direction of your healing journey, in a way that always keeps you safe. As a practitioner, I don’t DO any healing because it a natural mechanism that already exists within you. My job is to bring you to a place of deep safety (what we call a ‘Haven’) and to pay very close attention to what is emerging. We use a variety of techniques to deal with traumatic memories, overwhelming feelings, unhelpful beliefs, and even sometimes to cure chronic pain and other physical health problems. My belief is that the healing will unfold in the most perfect way if I bring a powerful intention and compassionate presence to the work we do together.

Some clients, who are otherwise resilient and have discrete traumatic memories, can be cured in a single session. In a selected group of clients, it may be possible to fully resolve your clients using online, guided self therapy.

Other clients may need many sessions to deal with lifelong, severe trauma, and the guidance of an experienced practitioner becomes crucial. The typical course of Havening might be four to six session. I teach all my clients how to do self-havening, so that they have a tool they can use to address stress or anxiety. You can watch my popular YouTube video on self-havening.

*Dr Robin Youngson is a Certified Havening Techniques Practitioner.

Havening Techniques is a registered trade mark of Ronald Ruden, 15 East 91st Street, New York. www.havening.org

About Dr Youngson

Dr Robin Youngson, MA MB ChB FANZCA, is a Certified Havening Practitioner and Trainer, and is an Anaesthetic Specialist with a long career in the public health service in New Zealand.

As an international campaigner, speaker and author, Robin has been the leading voice calling for humane and compassionate healthcare. Together with his wife Meredith, Robin was the founder of Hearts in Healthcare, and international social movement spanning many countries. Together, Robin and Meredith brought their work to fifteen countries and Robin’s book, ‘TIME TO CARE – How to love your patients and your job’ is translated into Dutch, German and Hungarian.

In parallel with his clinical career, Robin has also an outstanding health leader as a pioneer in patient safety and quality improvement. He has been an advisor to the New Zealand Government and the World Health Organisation. In 2016, the New Zealand Medical Association gave Robin their highest prize, the Chair’s Award, for outstanding contribution to the health of New Zealand.

You can learn about Robin’s deep reflections on compassionate leadership through his TEDx talk and second book, ‘From HERO to HEALER – Awakening the Inner Activist’.

Robin and Meredith have three grown-up daughters and two grandchildren. They live happily in the small, seaside town of Ragland in the North Island of NZ. Robin is an avid landscaper, builder and restorer. Here’s a recent project shared on YouTube, restoring a wood lathe discovered in the town dump and selling it to raise funds for the local community. Having started his career as an engineer before studying medicine, Robin can turn his hand to many trades. He offers his skills by contributing to the Raglan TimeBank, offering free repairs and help especially to those who live alone. He also loves walking in the native forest and going for long cycle rides in the country around Raglan.

As a therapist, he is described by his clients as “calm, gentle, sensitive, compassionate, totally present, intuitive, creative, very safe, empathetic, nurturing, friendly and human, a delicate presence and warmth, respectful. “

One client said, “He approaches every session with such creativity, openness, hope, and trust in an individual’s ability to heal and in the incredible power of Havening.”

Robin himself describes his Havening work as the most astonishing and gratifying work in over thirty years of medical practice. He says the work is equally healing and energising for him, as it is for his clients.

My Clinic room

More information about Havening Techniques

My colleague, Catherine Yates, demonstrates self-havening techniques:

Photo credit: Catherine Yates

Want to know more?

The international organisation that developed Havening, and that oversees the training and certification of Havening Practitioners, has produced a brief guide to Havening. Here’s the official account:

HAVENING TECHNIQUES® BETTER LIVING THROUGH NEUROSCIENCE

The Havening Techniques engages our inherent biological system to permanently heal, strengthen and empower our minds and bodies. The Havening Techniques have been developed by Ronald A. Ruden M.D., Ph.D. and his brother Steven J. Ruden, D.D.S., ICF/ACC. The Havening Techniques are powerful tools that can be used to alleviate the consequences of traumatic or stressful events. Havening or Delta Techniques™ is a method which is designed to change the brain to de-traumatize the memory and remove its negative effects from both our psyche and body. These techniques were inspired by a conversation in 2001 that turned into a book “When the Past is Always Present” and became the Havening Techniques, with the first official training occurring in May 2013, London. Now we have grown and spread to all corners of the world, with practitioners in Alaska to New Zealand and hundreds in between

What is Havening?

The Havening Techniques are healing modalities designed to help individuals overcome problems that are the consequence of traumatic or stressful encoding. They belong to a larger group of methods called psychosensory therapies, which use sensory input to alter thought, mood and behavior. The system is comprised of protocols and methods that use touch as a therapeutic tool we call Havening Touch®. This touch generates a delta wave in the brain and as a consequence we also refer to Havening Techniques as Delta Techniques™. Havening can be used within a psycho-therapeutic setting with professional mental health-care clinicians who have been fully trained and certified in the Havening Techniques. These techniques can also be used by non-licensed and /or allied health care professionals as a protocol for coaching, wellness and stress reduction.

Is Havening Permanent?

It’s not possible to provide any guarantees but once Havening is successful it has shown to be permanent in most cases. This is because Havening is believed to alter the biological structure of the brain. The return of symptoms implies either the traumatic core has not yet been found or the problem has been encoded in a different way. In particular, addictive and obsessive/compulsive behaviors, certain pain syndromes and vasovagal (e.g.fainting) issues often need reinforcement or cannot be treated with the Havening Techniques at the present time. No therapy works for all problems, but Havening is demonstrating that it’s possible to successfully treat disorders that have not been resolved by western medicine. Although the Havening Techniques appear to have promising emotional, mental, and physical health benefits, they have yet to be fully researched by the Western academic, medical, and psychological communities and, therefore may be considered experimental. The Havening Techniques are self-regulated and they are considered alternative or complementary healing methods in the United States.

What Types of Problems Can Havening be Used for?

The consequences of traumatic encoding can be physical and psychological. Havening has been shown to help with:

-Phobias

-Chronic pain

-Distressing memories (broken relationships, shocking news, loss, embarrassment, etc.)

-Victims of natural disasters (hurricanes, floods, etc.) and man-made (war, fire, assault,home intrusion, etc.)

-Anger

-Fear of abandonment

-Stress

-Self Esteem

-Cravings

-PTSD

-Panic attacks

-Sexual abuse

-Performance enhancement

-Public speaking

-Sports

-Emotional eating

These are just a few, find more and review testimonials on the Havening website. For more details of the science behind the work, please visit http://havening.org/about-havening/articles. If you have any questions send inquiries to: info@havening.org

Here are some other learning resources:

A wonderful animated video about ‘How Havening Works – Neuroscience‘, created by Tam Johnson.

The recently published scientific paper establishing the mechanisms of Havening, ‘Harnessing Electroceuticals to Treat Disorders Arising From Traumatic Stress: Theoretical Considerations Using A Psychosensory Model’ by Dr Ronald Ruden.

The first published clinical trail of Havening, measuring the impact of a single session of Havening.