Book summary · about a 6-minute read
Mental and Emotional Release
By Dr. Matt James, with Tris Thorp · Summarized by KPC Healing
Introduction
Most of us carry a few emotional reactions that feel bigger than the moment calls for: a flash of anger, an old sting of hurt, or a familiar guilt that shows up out of nowhere. Mental and Emotional Release, by Dr. Matt James with Tris Thorp, is about one way of working with those reactions.
Dr. Matt James is a longtime trainer in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and hypnosis. MER builds on an earlier NLP method called Time Line Therapy®, developed by Tad James. The book explains the ideas behind MER, shares stories from practitioners who use it, and walks through the steps of the process, including a caution about using it on yourself and especially on others.
One honest note before you read on: the book makes much bigger promises than the research can support right now. We explain that below. We've summarized the book because many readers find its core ideas useful for reflection, not because we endorse every claim in it. If you'd like to try the process, our step-by-step guide to the MER time line process walks through it in plain words, with safety stops at every step.
Key ideas
Emotions as "energy in motion"
The book describes emotions as energy that is meant to move through us. When a strong emotion gets stuck to a memory, it can keep showing up long after the event. The authors also talk about "limiting decisions," beliefs like "I'm not good enough" that we may have decided early in life.
For example: Someone who felt humiliated in front of a class as a child might still freeze up whenever they have to speak in a meeting.
Five emotions, in order
MER focuses on five emotions the authors consider the main ones to work with, and goes through them in a set order: anger, sadness, fear, hurt, and guilt. Each one is taken through the same process before moving on to the next.
The first time sets the pattern
A central idea in the book is that the first time we felt a particular emotion strongly can set a kind of template, and later experiences of that emotion link back to it like beads on a string. In MER, a person lets their mind go back to that first time, on the idea that the later moments may soften along with it. This is the book's model, not something research has confirmed.
Your personal time line
MER uses the idea that each of us stores memories in a kind of mental line, with the past in one direction and the future in another. People picture it in different ways, and there's no wrong way. In the process, a person imagines floating above that line, so they can see past events from a distance instead of reliving them.
For example: Some people see the past stretching out behind them and the future ahead. Others see it run left to right, like a timeline in a history book.
Distance, not reliving
One of the book's main points is that you don't have to re-experience a painful event in full detail to see it differently. Viewing it from a calm, "above it" perspective is central to the method. The process also places the person just before the event on the time line, looking at it from above, while things were still calm.
Keep the learnings
Before letting go of an old emotional charge, MER asks the person to notice what that experience taught them, so the wisdom stays even as the emotion softens.
For example: A memory of being left out at school might hold the learning "I know how much it means to include people."
Working with the unconscious mind
Drawing on NLP, the book teaches that much of our emotional life runs below conscious awareness. In MER, the person asks that deeper part of the mind for the lessons and for permission to let the emotion go, gently and respectfully, rather than forcing anything.
Responsibility and choice
The book borrows an NLP idea that we can be "at cause" in our lives rather than only at the effect of what happens to us. Read gently, this is an invitation to notice the choices we have now. It doesn't mean people are to blame for things that were done to them.
Big claims
Later chapters describe practitioners using MER for a wide range of mental health concerns, physical symptoms, and goals in health, career, and relationships.
The book's author, Dr. Matt James, reports that practitioners have used MER with fears, phobias, painful memories, and even PTSD. These are the author's own accounts, and independent research hasn't confirmed them. KPC Healing makes no claim that MER, this summary, or our services treat or cure any condition.
The book shares stories from practitioners who say their clients felt relief quickly. These are the author's accounts; they haven't been independently verified, and they aren't typical-results claims.
This is where the book's claims go well beyond the evidence (see below). The book also includes a chapter cautioning about doing this work on yourself and especially on others.
Working with Kids
We don't recommend using the time line process with children. Going back through memories is a lot to ask of a young mind, and children's painful experiences deserve care from a pediatrician or a licensed professional. A few of the book's gentler ideas do translate to everyday parenting:
- Distance helps. When a child is upset about something small, like a lost game, you might say, "Let's pretend we're watching it on TV from far away. What do you notice?"
- Look for the lesson. "What did you learn from that, that might help next time?"
- Name the feeling. Anger, sadness, fear, hurt, and guilt are good first words to teach.
Try this
Notice your big five
For a week, jot down when you feel anger, sadness, fear, hurt, or guilt, and what set it off.
Picture your time line
Without going into any memories, just notice which way your past and future seem to run.
The "from above" view
Next time a small, everyday moment bugs you, picture it from far above, like a scene on a distant screen, and see what shifts.
Keep one lesson
For one small, recent upset, write down one thing it taught you that you want to keep.
Repair first
If something you feel guilty about can be made right, do that before any reflection.
What the research says
Limited evidence
The book presents MER as research-based. The studies we could find were small, were run or reported by MER practitioners, and were not independent, randomized, controlled trials. Claims of fast, lasting results for serious mental health and medical concerns have not been confirmed by independent research.
NLP in general
Reviews of NLP have found weak scientific support for many of its claims. Time Line Therapy and MER haven't been studied enough to know how well they work or for whom.
Some overlap with research
Looking at a painful memory from a more distant, observer's point of view, sometimes called self-distancing, has been linked in studies to calmer reflection. Naming emotions and making meaning from hard experiences can also help people process them. These overlaps don't confirm MER itself.
Painful experiences are real
Deeply painful experiences can affect people for a long time, and that is well documented. An imagery exercise isn't a substitute for care from a licensed professional, and no one should feel they've failed if a technique doesn't make old pain go away.
Spiritual content
The book draws on several traditions, including meditation and Hawaiian teachings that Dr. Matt James teaches. Some time-line practices also ask about times before birth or past generations. Our guide leaves those parts out.
Closing
Mental and Emotional Release offers a few ideas many people find helpful: stepping back from a feeling instead of drowning in it, keeping the lessons of hard moments, and remembering that we have choices now. Read it with an open mind and a healthy dose of caution about its bigger claims.
If old memories, panic, or strong distress come up while you reflect, stop, ground yourself, and bring those memories to a licensed professional instead of working through them alone.
People of many faiths and none use reflection like this. If faith is part of your life, you might pair it with prayer, asking for peace and wisdom as you look back. That's one optional lens, and the reflection works either way.
Note: KPC Healing is not affiliated with or endorsed by Dr. Matt James or his organizations. "Mental and Emotional Release" and "Time Line Therapy" are trademarks of their respective owners.
A gentle note
This summary is written by KPC Healing in our own words for education and reflection. It isn't therapy, and it doesn't replace the book itself, which is well worth reading in full. If something in this book feels heavy right now, you don't have to work it out alone. Please reach out to someone you trust or a licensed counselor.
Credit: Dr. Matt James with Tris Thorp, Mental and Emotional Release. Published by Balboa Press (a division of Hay House), October 2017.