Why do I overreact?” is a good question to ask ourselves when we find that happening. Most of us do overreact at times. Something triggers us, and BANG! We erupt. We lose it. It’s like we have no control over our behaviour. So, what is going on?

Over millions of years of evolution, we have developed a number of survival strategies. Mostly, we are not aware of these strategies within us. Naturally, we are vulnerable to danger. To survive, animals and humans have mechanisms to protect our bodies. Whenever we feel threatened, the program kicks in, and runs automatically. This explains why we are often anxious or angry, and why we frequently overreact. But how does the program work? And can we override it?

Our survival program

Consider the story of Dolly and Marty, two German shepherds. Their owner left them in the car while he popped into a nearby shop. He left the windows partially open. Marty, an adventurous dog, wriggled out to follow his master. Dolly tried to copy Marty, but she lost control and fell, suffering a badly damaged leg.

Her leg eventually healed but her personality changed. While Marty leapt into the car the moment his master opened the door, Dolly baulked. After falling out of the window and smashing her leg, she is wary. For her, the car means danger. Instinctively, she refuses and never gets in again.

Without knowing her history, you might try to coax Dolly into a car. When she objects, you are likely to be confused. Most probably, you wonder why she is overreacting to this simple instruction.

Wild animals rely on this protective program. Frequently, their survival depends on it. But sometimes, the triggers can be mixed. Imagine a doe walking through a forest. Here, the air is thick with juniper pollen. Suddenly, the doe catches another scent, and a pack of wolves bursts from the undergrowth, lunging at her heels. Immediately, she springs into action, fleeing to safety through the woods.

Within the doe, a new mental program is created. Instinctively, she associates the pollen with the wolf attack. Sometime later, she catches a pungent whiff of juniper pollen. Now, she’ll move quickly away from the danger she senses.

The example of Mia

We are not the same as animals. Although, we may react instinctively to protect ourselves, often we try to override the program. Imagine a young girl, Mia, working in a café. Her boss follows her into the cold room, brushing closely past her and touching her breast. As well she hears his breathing next to her face. Mia is afraid and feels uncomfortable. Even though, she puts it out of her mind, her protective psyche doesn’t miss it. The program is unconsciously set. The cold room and the boss signify danger. Obviously, an animal would never return. But Mia needs to pay her rent and put food on her table. Consequently, she overrides her instincts, making excuses for any future anxiety and telling herself a little story. “I don’t like the cold, especially in the cold room, and I prefer to work alone without the boss being around.”

As time goes on, her anxiety gradually increases. Each time she enters the cold room, she checks to see if the boss is following. Perhaps the tension becomes too much, and she finds another job. But the program goes with her. Maybe, her new boss is heavy set, unconsciously reminding her of her old boss. Maybe, he asks her to fetch some milk from the cold room. Suddenly, her old anxieties flood back, and she has no idea why.

Why do I overreact?

Unless this problem is addressed, she could easily overreact in a new job, Perhaps, a male colleague surprises her in the cold room. Unexpectedly, he touches her arm while helping her with some produce. Disturbed and fearful, she reports him for sexual assault. Her colleague is confused and so are her fellow workers and bosses. The man has worked there for a decade and has always been polite and helpful. Obviously, she overreacted. Now, she is conflicted. Did her colleague assault her or not? if she recalls the original moment she in the cold room with the boss, she can unravel this mystery. That is the only way she can override the program that her psyche set up to protect her.

To complicate matters, I discover these programs can carry over from past lives. Out of the blue, something triggers us, and we overreact. Having regained our composure, we feel embarrassed, and resolve to release that trigger. When we cannot identify the source of our overreaction in our current life, a past life regression can help.

Claustrophobia program

Other times, an incident in our current life can bring past life wounds to the surface. One of my clients suffered claustrophobia, a fear of being in confined small spaces. At age four, a cousin locks her in a cupboard during a game of hide and seek. Back then, she is terrified, banging on the door and screaming to be released. Once released, everyone struggles to calm her down and thinks she is overreacting. 

Many psychologists assume this childhood incident is the source of her phobia. Although she remembers this incident, she remains afraid and overreactive to confined spaces. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy challenges irrational thinking. Unfortunately, it does not help her. Many people think her claustrophobic reactions are excessive, but only because they do not know her past life history.

Several hundred years ago, she lives as a man who behaves badly towards his betrothed. As punishment, this woman’s father locks him in a box. The box is so small he cannot sit down nor fully stand but there is a small hole. He looks out, hoping to be rescued. Unfortunately, no one comes and he eventually dies. 

During her regression, my client relives this challenging life. When, I ask the man, (my client) if he is dead, he replies that he doesn’t know. In fact, he believes he is still alive, waiting to be rescued. I explain that his body has died. Sadly, he weeps, pleading that he is too young to die. After I give him time to grieve this loss, I suggest someone is waiting to take him to a pleasant place. Now, he sees a light approaching, Soon, this light turns into an angel. Now, the angel takes his hand and he moves upwards.

Awareness is the answer

With the help of her guides, my client analyses this challenging situation. The spirit of the trapped man is stuck for hundreds of years, waiting to be saved. Although his body dies, his consciousness, which survives physical death, does not realise this. Trapped in a netherworld between life and death, his spirit, with his claustrophobic energy, bleeds into my clients psyche as soon as she is locked in the cupboard.

Releasing this past life spirit from his torment releases my client from her claustrophobia. Whenever she encounters a closed space, she is free as soon as she senses the connection between past experiences of claustrophobia and the present. That specific awareness gives her a new perspective. Now, we have a successful way of defusing our overreactions. 

Some people anger easily. Because they are constantly alert for danger, they cannot control their reactions, In fact, they are out of control. Once triggered, they react instinctively. They are programmed to access a different state of consciouses. This is like a trance. Later, when they compose themselves, they may have no memory of how they behaved.

When such people come for a regression, we often find the source of the trigger in a past life. Soon they connect their past life traumas with instances from in their current life. Being aware of these connections, defuses the trigger. Now, they can delete or modify the program. In earlier ages when life was more dangerous, these programs were useful. In modern times, many are obsolete.

Awareness is the answer to our overreactions. Accessing and resolving past life traumas, we have more power. Knowing this, I am in awe of our evolutionary programs. It seems like the whole Earth system is set up to increase our awareness, and our continued spiritual growth.