Serena was diagnosed with various mental disorders; severe depression, suicidal tendencies, compulsive overeating, PTSD, borderline personality disorder, and finally with the correct diagnosis-dissociative identity disorder. Serena entered a 28-day hospital program for people suffering from dissociative issues, which turned into eight months of commitment due to her instability. As a result, she lost her three sons to foster care.
It took thirty-five years for Serena to heal and stop dissociating from stressful situations. She did it by connecting to her authentic self through the guidance of Norma Delaney, a woman who committed over twenty years to helping Serena heal. Through specific breath practices, integration, learning to stay in the moment, and differentiating between her trained mind and the truth, Serena overcame the trauma that controlled her for most of her life. She learned how to care for herself mentally, spiritually, and physically.
Serena Masterson works full-time as a lending officer and is a chamber member in her hometown. She has close contact with her sons and enjoys speaking publicly about her journey, mentoring trauma clients, painting, writing, and going on walks.
Serena-Faith Masterson lived in victim energy, entirely controlled by a belief system that had been trained into her from birth. The belief system she operated from was the MK Ultra’s top-secret mind control program created by the CIA and the satanic cult establishment she was born into. She existed unconsciously, living in a constant state of dissociation.
In 1996 she learned how to do the compassionate breath, which was the beginning of her new life. This conscious breath empowered her by connecting her to her body and Soul.
Serena had always looked outside of herself for answers, but as she was guided to go within to seek her truth, she began to connect with her Essence. Serena discovered a wise, compassionate energy dwelling within herself. It was a healing balm to her constant pain and inner turmoil. Choosing non-judgment over fear and self-hatred was the alchemy that allowed authentic transformation.
Serena had hated herself her entire life and believed she was broken. But she didn’t give up; instead, she continued to breathe and face her past with courage. Serena’s Soul did a dance of integration with the physical human. As Serena sat in the presence of her pain without resistance, it allowed it to come home, birthing her true identity. Year after year, as each choice was made, it layered itself one on top of the other, strengthening her. Serena came out of the bowels of hell to discover the brilliant, Devine human being that she is.
Serena knows she is not a victim of her experience this lifetime. Instead, she knows she is the creator of everything she endured. These are not mere words; she knows it to be true. It resonates throughout her physicality, enlivening her. The choice to wake up to the game of fear this lifetime enables Serena to be a conscious creator. When she discovers a belief that keeps her stuck, she sits with it in the compassionate breath, allowing it to open without resistance, transforming into higher consciousness.
Serena lives her life in gratitude. She mentors individuals worldwide interested in setting themselves free from their past trauma. Watching these people open to their Essence is one of her greatest joys. The wise, compassionate energy she emanates allows the person to safely let go into the embrace of their own exquisite Soul for healing.
In 1995, before her healing journey, Serena’s Soul gave her the name Serena-Faith Masterson to support her in letting go of her identity of being a victim. It means; serene faith, master of the Christ within, which she now lives fully!
Compassionate breath is pure consciousness, which empowers the individual. It is stabilizing, grounding the individual in this now moment outside of the PTSD traumatic event. It is the vehicle to move memory, and the personality (aspect), into the individual’s wholeness (Soul). Without this pivotal piece, the trauma remains stuck energetically. This is what we call Soul Integration. Integration means into the greatness of me.
All of us have had traumatic events in our life. That piece of energy is locked in our physical bodies, in space and time, which can keep us emotionally crippled. Through the breath, we transmute the event with the energy of compassion.
Compassion is truth without feeling sorry for the individual. It is seeing the brilliance of another person no matter how they are presenting themselves. Trauma can integrate through breath combined with compassion. That is the miracle of this type of compassionate breath. It overcomes anxiety, depression, self-mutilation, PTSD, grief, rage, and a myriad of emotional coping skills by grounding the individual in this reality, bringing all of their energy back into their body, and strengthening their choice to live. It brings the individual into the present moment from a place of higher consciousness.
* The compassionate breath needs to be taught from an experienced individual who uses this breath themselves.
Treatment should begin with teaching the client the compassionate breath. When dealing with a severely traumatized human being, their daily routine is controlled by their need to survive. Even if they have been out of the trauma for years, they might not realize it due to PTSD.
Norma began by teaching me how to breathe. I breathed backward, which means that my belly went in when I inhaled, and when I exhaled, my stomach went out. I was in a constant state of hysteria and anxiety, and she invited me to practice this new way of breathing throughout the day.
I had tremendous anxiety all the time, and I used this specialized breath to help me cope. I would watch my hand go up and down with the movement of my stomach until the anxiety would lessen. Sometimes it took over a half hour before I began to feel better.
Physical and eye movement exercises to reroute the neural pathways in my brain, which were directed by my Soul.
I would be traumatized by memory, and Norma would invite me to look around the room while asking me if it was happening now. I was gripped in memory so completely, I believed it was happening now. She would have me rub the couch, feeling the upholstery’s fabric underneath my fingertips. She would speak to me, telling me to look around the room; asking me what I saw. Still feeing panicked, I would speak out loud, describing the room in detail, which helped me to come back into this reality. She helped me grasp that it was memory and not happening now. This was crucial for my recovery.
I came off all medication because it was not helping me. I stopped using Klonopin, Prozac, and Ambien because it clouded my ability to feel.
Norma never saw me as broken; instead, she saw the brilliance of my Soul that kept me alive and sane in unimaginable circumstances. She never had a plan to help me; she allowed her inner wisdom to guide her.
We disassembled my belief system. My parents, she said, could not love me because they could not love, period; neither of them knew what love was. That one lesson took many times of us speaking about it before I fully understood. I had hundreds of beliefs.
“I want you to play with me; take out your notebook and draw a line down the middle of the page. On the right side of the page, write what your mind is saying, and on the left side write what your Soul is saying.”
Retrieving my notebook, I draw a line down the middle of a page.
“Alright. What is your mind saying right now?” Mom prompts.
Writing quickly because the words are coming fast, I relay, “My mind hates you, and says that this is a bunch of lies!”
“Yes. Notice how threatened your mind is by what we are talking about. That is aspect memory, trained to keep you stuck. Now, listen to your Soul and write her words.”
Unlike mind, my Soul’s words are calm and unhurried. “I’m proud of you. You’re doing wonderfully. It takes courage to keep facing the truth. The words of your mind are intended to shut out fear, but it does the opposite by making fear grow. Can you trust me to lead you?”
Noticing that I feel good as I write these words, I read them aloud.
“Can you feel the difference in your Soul’s words? Which ones do you want to listen to?”
“I like the words of my Soul,” I genuinely answer.
“Good. Then will you practice writing down the words from both your mind and your Soul, so you can become more conscious?”
“Yes, I can do this!”
“Remember, Serena, we are the Oreo cookie. Nothing has changed. I’m proud of you. If you didn’t continue to grow, I would have stopped working with you long ago.”
Feeling inspired, I exclaim, “Thank you for this! I’ll write down the words from both my Soul and my mind, so that I can be more aware. I know this will help me!”
“It can, if you will let it,” Mom calmly states. “Then you will be able to make conscious choices that can help you.”
Smiling at me, Mom quickly adds, “I’ve been meaning to ask you if you know what Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is?”
“Doctor Barnes told me I had it, but he called it PTSD. He said that’s why I switched all the time. I used to hysterically scream when someone would come into a room, even though I knew they were coming. He said that my PTSD was the reason why I got triggered so easily.”
“Yes,” Mom replies. “Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is what happens when people have extended periods of trauma. They’re in a cycle of memory, stuck in a loop, where the slightest provocation causes them to be triggered. The work that we’ve done has allowed you to truly integrate, which is why Soul and I could trust that you could begin driving today. Your PTSD has truly been healed.” Raising her voice in sincerity, she asks, “Do you get what a miracle you are?”
Realizing how much I’ve changed, I reply, “Yes, Mom. I feel it. It’s not just words for me anymore.”