Summary


This page explains the process that restores people to their full potential by undoing baseline emotions and beliefs acquired during childhood.

The process is exposure therapy, one of the safest and most effective psychiatric treatments currently known. Exposure therapy works by exposing someone to the source of their uncomfortable emotions in a safe setting. Repeated safe exposure gradually weakens those emotions.

Interacting with a picture of an imprinted parent triggers baseline emotions in a safe setting. Over time, those emotions gradually lose their intensity and are less easily triggered. As a result, the problems caused by those baseline emotions also begin to improve.

WARNING!!! DO NOT CHANGE OR STOP ANY MEDICATION OR OTHER MEDICAL TREATMENT WITHOUT THE CONSENT OF YOUR DOCTOR AND OR THERAPIST. THIS PROCESS IS NOT CURRENTLY A REPLACEMENT FOR ANY MEDICAL TREATMENT OF ANY KIND.

What you’ll need


You’ll need pictures that show the faces of the people whose faces were imprinted. If the person was an adult when their face was imprinted, like a parent, then a photo of them at any adult age will work. But if the person was a child at the time of imprinting, such as an older sibling, it may help to use a photo from when they were that age. If you have several pictures, choose the ones that bring up the strongest emotional reaction.

The process

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Talk to the picture. The goal is to emotionally connect with the person in the photo.


• Say how you feel about them, what you liked or didn’t like about how they raised you, or anything else that keeps you emotionally engaged.


• The things that feel hardest to say are usually the ones that help the most. Try to push yourself to say what feels most uncomfortable.

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Try to maintain eye contact with the person in the picture, even while you're talking.

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If that feels too intense, start by just glancing at the picture now and then. As the emotional discomfort lessens, gradually work toward making steady eye contact.

More information

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This process should never be done with the actual person. It only works when talking to a picture.


• This process typically brings up sadness, fear, or anger.

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For best results, spend five to ten minutes per day with each picture. It is not yet clear whether going longer adds any benefit.

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The speed of change depends on how many days per week you do it. Doubling the number of days per week will double the speed of change.

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If done three to four times a week, noticeable change should happen within six to nine months. After that, more change will show up every few weeks or months.

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All change is permanent.


• Sometimes strong emotion will come up in daily life that makes it feel like no progress has been made. This can last for days or even weeks. When the emotion settles, the improvement will be clear again. These periods often mean that real change is happening.

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Drugs or medications that affect emotions, such as psychiatric medications, alcohol, or marijuana, can slow or stop the process.


• Age* does not matter unless the brain is damaged by something like a stroke or Alzheimer's disease.


• This process still works even if you have no clear memory of the person. For example, if a parent whose face is imprinted died when you were two or three, looking at a photo of them will still help.

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If more than one face is imprinted, working with just one of those faces can still lead to major improvement.

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Done properly, exposure therapy does not re-traumatize people, even if they were severely traumatized.

*This process is likely to work with children as young as six to eight years old, or even younger.
 Because their baseline emotions and beliefs are still taking shape, change may happen more quickly than in adults.
 Exposure therapy in general not only works well in children but often works faster, so there is good reason to think this process might also bring faster results at younger ages.