Secret life: firsthand accounts of UFO abductions (41 page)

Occasionally I use a method I call “assisted recall,” in which close and careful questioning techniques enable the abductee to remember most of the abduction without the use of hypnosis.

Disentangling “legitimate” information from unreliable memories involves techniques calculated to produce an understanding of the structure of the abduction and a recognition of anomalies within it. But this is not easy. The most systematic method is patient and thorough questioning, minutely examining every detail and going over every minor contradiction and gap in the account, no matter how irrelevant it might seem, in a second-by-second chronological order. But the problem of confused memory is complicated by the fact that not only is the abductee usually in a hypnotic trance while recalling her memories, but she was also in an altered state of consciousness during the abduction itself. Furthermore, complex mental procedures might have been executed on her that further clouded her perceptions and placed pseudo-images and “memories” in her mind.

Experience in investigating these problems makes it possible to
unweave an abduction account and have a reasonable assurance that false recall has been eliminated. Through patient and extremely cautious questioning, the researcher and the abductee can recognize that the events abductees sometimes describe might either not have happened at all or have happened in a different way than they first thought. For instance, one man talked about a beautiful young woman who was coming over to him for what he thought would be a sexual liaison. He described her as having “black hair.” Through meticulous questioning about the minute details of her actions and her appearance (“If her head is on your upper chest, can you see the top of her head?”), the false memories fell away and the abductee independently realized that it was her black eyes that he had been describing and not her hair. In fact, she had no hair at all. He also realized that the sexual encounter that he thought he was having was not, in fact, taking place, and that he had been involved with sexual imagery before a sperm sample was taken.

Uncovering abduction memories and helping people come to terms with them is not an easy task. My investigative techniques have evolved and become more sophisticated during the five years that I have been involved in this endeavor. As I learned more about the content of abductions and their effects on the victims, my questioning changed to incorporate my new knowledge. Thus, I conducted my first investigations somewhat differently from later ones. This is bound to happen in a dynamic field where the influx of information is rapid and overwhelming, and where there is no large body of precedent to guide the investigator.

The process of systematic and careful delving into abduction accounts can yield much previously unknown information. When abductees decide to do a series of hypnotic regressions on many different experiences in their lives, each session can generate both material previously known and new material never before encountered. Thus, abductees can have myriad experiences that might not be discovered with only one or two sessions. The investigation of abduction material over the course of a subject’s lifetime can provide important information about whether the abductions have changed over time and demonstrates the full scope of activity that happens to each individual. Furthermore, multiple sessions allow for the establishment
of the mutual trust that makes it easier for an abductee to reveal sensitive and sometimes embarrassing material, often sexual in nature, that might be difficult to discuss after only a few sessions.

When I started this research, some events had been known for years and were easier to understand. For instance, since 1966 researchers have known about the physical examination. In the 1980s, Budd Hopkins’s pioneering work uncovered reproductive procedures, such as egg removal, sperm collection, and baby holding.

Yet there were still many elements of abduction accounts that seemingly defied comprehension. Systematic questioning techniques and analysis have now revealed the origin of many of those incomprehensible events. Thus, some reports of extremely tall aliens might be the result of an abductee’s lying down and looking up at them, which gives them the appearance of height. Images of atomic explosions are due to visualization procedures. Scenes of alien landscapes might also have their origin in mental procedures. Published accounts of alien “councils” during which aliens discuss abductees probably reflect the abductee’s seeing aliens standing around the examining table. Even though the abductees may not understand the import of the information they are relating, I have found it to be amenable to rational explanation given enough data collected through correct questioning techniques.

I have tape-recorded each abduction account I researched and then had it transcribed. These written documents, based on oral accounts, help in comparing and analyzing the reports. The transcripts are then analyzed, divided into constituent parts based on the type of event described, and stored in a computer for more detailed analysis.

Reading the transcripts can present a problem. My questioning might sound harsh or abrupt in places, which is unavoidable when the spoken word is written down verbatim. Inflection, nuance, timing, pauses, and the like are lost in a transcript. Therefore, much of the impact of what the abductees are saying is unavoidably omitted. Rather than extensively annotating each transcript, however, I allow the abductees to speak for themselves as much as possible without
editorial comment that might interject too much of myself into the accounts.

Abductees are victims who, having gone through incredible and traumatic events without the ability to deal with them consciously, sometimes need help in overcoming the stress from the abduction events. I provide as much support as I can based on my experience, and I hold support-group sessions to allow abductees to discuss their ideas and meet others who have had the same experiences.

Some abductees find it very difficult to cope with their abductions. The tears and emotions that have emerged in many regression sessions from these often terrorized victims is a testament to the trauma they consciously confront for the first time. If a person is suffering emotionally from the effects of abductions and needs more help than I can give, it is important for them to have professional counseling from a sympathetic psychologist or psychiatrist. Dr. Stephen Greenstein in Merion, Pennsylvania, has proved to be invaluable in giving the support and therapy that some of the abductees require.

The proper methods of abduction research are still in the formative stage. Methodological and ethical protocols are being established. While this is happening, the possibility of abuse exists both from well-meaning but incompetent abduction investigators and from mental health professionals. It is extremely important for anyone seeking to examine potential abduction experiences to be certain that the person she or he consults for help in recalling the memories is well qualified for that task.

Below is a list of thirty-nine abductees with whom I investigated two or more abductions, and whose testimony appears in this book. In addition, twenty-two other individuals explored only one abduction experience with me.

After studying abductions for several years I began to realize that the procedures I was uncovering fit together into a graphic form. This matrix represents the results of my investigations into diagraming the structure of the common abduction. All of the physical, mental, and reproductive experiences are linked together through the primary, secondary and ancillary experiences. By examining this matrix, we can get a visual sense of the continuity of these remarkable events. What is extraordinary is that there is a structure, and a fairly tight one at that. The existence of this complex structure suggests a greater sense of the purposefulness in the alien abduction program, and lends support to the theory that reports of abductions have a nonpsychological origin. Although most of the abductions that I investigate verify what is already in the matrix, I expect that as researchers learn more about the abduction phenomenon, the categories will be filled in and expanded upon.

I also expect that new categories will be added that shed further light upon alien activities. We are continually learning and continually being astonished.

COMMON ABDUCTION SCENARIO MATRIX