THE DOLPHIN WITHIN

About the Book

This book is my story with the dolphins. It is told through human stories, transcripts of videos and conversations with participants of the Dolphin Within expeditions: a research program monitoring human brain states before and after dolphin encounters. It integrates all the different ways I have used to capture the experience I call the ‘Dolphin Within’: the shared but intensely individual experiences people have when they are in close contact with wild dolphins. Years ago, very few people in the western world talked about near death experiences; it is only since collective experiences have been gathered that we are now able to conceptualize this phenomenon more widely. Following the same approach, I have collected a large number of Dolphin Within experiences over the last ten years, from the regular research trips during which I have witnessed many encounters between people and dolphins. Different patterns have emerged out of the five hundred case studies, which show the power of transformation and healing that such encounters can create. However I went further than just collecting experiences; I tested the brains of the participants before and after their Dolphin Within experiences, using an electroencephalogram (EEG) machine connected to a notebook computer. Using this method, I have found scientific evidence of and possible explanations for the changes in mind, body and spirit I have observed in people who encounter dolphins. The brainwave pattern changes, the human brain shifts into a very slow frequency called ‘theta’. It is that specific state that I call the “Dolphin Within”. That state leads human to a self-transformation process that has great potential. One can say that my scientific research demystifies the healing power of dolphins. However, the more I observe, the more I realize how much we can learn from the People of the Sea. This book explains why, since 1993, I have dedicated my live, my financial resources and my time to explore the human-dolphin connection through the creation of the Dolphin Society, a non-profit institution, and ODB Consulting, a management consulting company. Both of them are aimed at bringing Dolphin Within experiences to the general public and to the business world. As a management consultant, I have developed a new human psychology of human potential based on a dolphin model. Not only do I talk about the Corporate Dolphin way of doing business. I also bring business people to experience the Dolphin Within themselves, in order to bring change in their personal and professional lives. A Dolphin Within experience is indescribable, by definition. Each and every person coming out of a powerful experience with dolphins says the same thing: ‘There are no words’. I myself don’t even want to talk for some time after a Dolphin Within experience. So, creating a book about something that cannot be expressed in words is quite a challenge. Until we humans develop our communication systems towards those of the dolphins (who share information with each other holographically, transferring images from brain to brain using sound), the written word, pictures and sounds are the best we can use to offer a taste of the Dolphin Within experience to a wider audience. I am currently working on other ways to provide the healing and uplifting experiences dolphins can give us, without the intervention of dolphins themselves, in order to preserve their habitat and lifestyle. I hope you will soon be able to hear, while reading, the “ooh, haha whoo ha and Oh my God” which are part of any Dolphin Within experience. In 1994 we were asked by ABC Radio to put together some sounds of our trips for an interview, and we realised how much a Dolphin Within experience was about opening the heart and laughing, having the “ho ha” human sounds coming out at each dolphins jump at the bow of the boat. Much of this book was written on the sea, on a yacht, with the dolphins around me. I just had to pop

About the Author

Dr Olivia De Bergerac was born in France and grew up by the Mediterranean with her brother working for Cousteau. With a PhD in psychology and an MBA, she has worked in France, UK and USA, but since 1988 called Australia home. Founder of the Dolphin Society – a non for profit organization – Olivia researchs and develops dolphin therapy, while working as an Executive Coach through her own consulting company. Olivia, with her husband Sacha, enjoys their water baby girl, called Lilou.