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Watch Carol's full lecture on children's past lives (sponsored by MUFON) YouTube. 

Children's Past Lives

A Natural Phenomenon

Many children remember their past lives spontaneously, without hypnosis or prompting. Some as young as two and still in diapers blurt out, "I remember when I died before" or "My other mommy had curly hair". They often describe details that they had no way of learning in this life.  Some remember startling personal details of relatives who died before they were born.

Only recently here in the West have children's past life memories been researched and documented. These memories have long been accepted in other cultures. Now we know that these memories happen naturally to young children in all countries of the world, regardless of the beliefs of their parents.  They can happen any time to any very young child, but parents often don't notice because they don't know it's possible or don't know what to look for.

The vividness and emotional maturity with which toddlers relate facts from adult lives—and even tell of their deaths—signals that something extraorindary is happening.  These children have much to teach us.  Children’s past life memories is a phenomenon with far-reaching implications for every person who is curious about the truth of reincarnation and wonders about their own past lives.

Learn about Children's Past Lives

This section of the Past Life Center is dedicated solely to children’s past lives.  It’s where parents, researchers, spiritual seekers, and the intellectually curious can learn and share about the phenomenon of children’s past life memories.

Why It's important to understand children’s past life memories

• Children’s spontaneous memories offer the best evidence yet for the continuation of a personal consciousness after death

• Parents (and grandparents) of young children who are familiar with the signs can recognize the memories when they happen in their own children.

• So that everyone, whether parents or not, will see children differently, as experienced souls who have come to us for a reason.

• Because children’s memories resonate and legitimize adults’ experiences in past life regression therapy.

What This Section Offers

I began researching children’s past life memories more than thirty years ago.  Here you will find all the tools I wish I had when my children expressed their past life memories.  You will find introductory books for laymen and academics alike, guidance for parents, and a library of material you won’t find anywhere else.

Children’s Past Lives—the first book of its kind

My book, Children’s Past Lives, was the first book written for the general public to describe and explain children's past lives.  It’s really two books in one:  a memoir and a guidebook for parents.  I tell the story of how my own two children led me to discover children's past lives.  Then through cases of other children I describe the practical aspects of these memories: what they look and sound like, how to distinguish between genuine past life memories and fantasy, how they are triggered, how they affect dreams, and how adults should respond.

Children's Past Lives was first published in 1997 by Bantam Books and is still in print.  It’s an international classic and has been published in 22 foreign editions.

To learn more about the book and the story behind it, and to read excerpts from each chapter, go to the  Children's Past Lives book page.

Return from Heaven—same-family reincarnation

Return from Heaven was published by HarperCollins in 2001.  Return from Heaven is the first book to explore the phenomenon of reincarnation in the same family.  Most people don't know that same-family reincarnation is possible, let alone how common it really is.  This book is changing that perception.  It is alive with true stories of very young children who remember the lives off recently deceased relatives.  It's a totally fresh look at reincarnation as a practical matter that literally hits home.

Return from Heaven documents how a child's past life memory profoundly affects different members of the family. It draws out the spiritual implications for everyone who witnesses it.  And it touches on related questions, such as how we choose our parents, announcing dreams, and miscarriage and abortion.

Go to the Return from Heaven book page for more.

Dr. Ian Stevenson, Reincarnation Pioneer

I’m pleased to offer a full introduction to the pioneering work of Dr. Ian Stevenson, who provides the academic underpinnings for the entire field.  Dr. Stevenson spent forty years researching and meticulously documenting more than 2600 cases of children’s past life memories that give undeniable evidence for the truth of children's past life memories.  Dr. Stevenson was truly the first.  His work is extremely valuable, and not yet fully understood or explored.  All researchers in the field, myself included, are indebted to Dr. Stevenson.

Dr. Ian Stevenson’s work is so important, I’ve devoted a whole section to sample cases, interviews, and a survey of his books.  See the Dr. Ian Stevenson page.

If You Know a Child Who Remembers a Past Life

If you are a parent or grandparent desperate to know if your toddler is talking about a past life, you’ve come to the right place.  The Past Life Center is the only place on the Internet where parents of children with active past life memories can share their stories and get knowledgeable advice.  More information about how to share cases is here, or go directly to the Past Life Forum, which is also a good place to start.

Past Life Forum

The first mission of the Past Life Forum, and the reason I founded it in 1997, is to create a safe place where parents can share their questions and discoveries concerning their own children’s past life memories.  It is also a site where anyone curious about the phenomenon of children’s past lives can discuss, explore, and learn.

Over the years the Forum has grown to be much more.  There you will find discussions on any and all aspects of reincarnation and past lives, from the scientific to the deeply personal.

We’ve worked hard to keep the quality of discussion high.  Our hard-working, wise, and friendly moderating team keeps the tone of the discussions on track and free of spam, commercial messages, flames, and off-topic controversy.  It’s free and all are welcome. Get more information and direct links at Past Life Forum.

Past Life Library

The Past Life Library includes links to children’s cases that didn’t make it into either book for one reason or another.  It also indexes all of the articles from all areas of the Past Life Center.

Does Carol Regress Children?

My past life regression therapy practice—my ‘day job’— is with adults, not children.

My research, and my books, chronicle the spontaneous past life recall of very young children, most under the age of five.  No hypnotherapy or regression is ever involved, since these memories are coming up spontaneously.

I occasionally counsel parents of young children as part of my practice, and I have regressed children over the age of twelve.  But these are rare exceptions.  Call me if you think you have the exceptional need for such counseling.

Beginning in late adolescence, children do become good subjects for past life regression.  If you know a teenager who might benefit from a regression, call me and we'll decide together if it's truly appropriate.