Hello all, I've been lurking on the open forums here for awhile. I'm ex-pente myself; grew up in an AoG church heavily focused on "revival." I've read all the Rules of Participation and such and definitely fit the requirements for membership here. I have two questions.
1. Is there an appropriate place here to discuss alternative medical therapies with an element of energy work? I'm thinking specifically of things like acupuncture or hypnotherapy. (I'm not selling or promoting anything, I promise!) I have a medical condition that Western medicine hasn't been able to touch. I've had some success with acupuncture and I'd like to explore other alt therapies. While I don't believe there's anything spiritually dangerous about them, sometimes I find them triggering the old emotional wounds from the spiritual abuse I went through. For instance, I'd like to add meditation and visualization to my pain management toolkit. But using popular tools like soothing music or guided meditations sometimes feels uncomfortably similar to the "spirit-led" crap I grew up in, and I get triggered. I'd love to hear from other ex-pentes who may have gone through something like this, but I'm not sure if this is the place for that. If it's not, I'd love any advice about where else to look. Or if it is, I could use some guidance on which forum would be suitable.
2. If a private forum would be appropriate, is it ok to just lurk there for awhile? If they're more intense-support-group-type places, I can understand the need for member involvement and wouldn't want to interfere with that. But personally I need to sort of feel things out before I open up about my own experiences and struggles.
I'd be happy to answer questions about myself and my story if it's needed. Just didn't want to make this longer than it already is.
Thanks in advance for any help.
1. Is there an appropriate place here to discuss alternative medical therapies with an element of energy work? I'm thinking specifically of things like acupuncture or hypnotherapy. (I'm not selling or promoting anything, I promise!) I have a medical condition that Western medicine hasn't been able to touch. I've had some success with acupuncture and I'd like to explore other alt therapies. While I don't believe there's anything spiritually dangerous about them, sometimes I find them triggering the old emotional wounds from the spiritual abuse I went through. For instance, I'd like to add meditation and visualization to my pain management toolkit. But using popular tools like soothing music or guided meditations sometimes feels uncomfortably similar to the "spirit-led" crap I grew up in, and I get triggered. I'd love to hear from other ex-pentes who may have gone through something like this, but I'm not sure if this is the place for that. If it's not, I'd love any advice about where else to look. Or if it is, I could use some guidance on which forum would be suitable.
2. If a private forum would be appropriate, is it ok to just lurk there for awhile? If they're more intense-support-group-type places, I can understand the need for member involvement and wouldn't want to interfere with that. But personally I need to sort of feel things out before I open up about my own experiences and struggles.
I'd be happy to answer questions about myself and my story if it's needed. Just didn't want to make this longer than it already is.
