Pioneer of Children’s Past-Life Research · Author · Regression Therapist
Founder of the Past Life Forum (ReincarnationForum.com) — one of the oldest continuous online communities dedicated to reincarnation and past-life memory research.
Who Is Carol Bowman?
Carol Bowman is a leading researcher, author, and counselor whose work brought the study of children’s spontaneous past-life memories into mainstream awareness. Her interest began in the late 1980s when her young son Chase developed an intense phobia of loud, booming sounds. After a therapist guided him through what appeared to be a spontaneous memory of dying as a Civil War soldier, his phobia and related physical symptoms resolved — prompting her lifelong career researching how past-life memories manifest, and heal, in the present.
Carol Bowman on The Telepathy Tapes
Carol Bowman is featured on The Telepathy Tapes, the acclaimed podcast exploring consciousness, non-verbal communication, and phenomena at the edge of mainstream science. As administrators of ReincarnationForum.com, we are proud to spotlight her contribution and connect listeners with the deeper body of research behind her work.
Clinical & Academic Background
- Undergraduate degree from Simmons College, Boston.
- Master of Science in Counseling from Villanova University, combining traditional psychological training with past-life regression therapy.
- Studied directly under foundational past-life regression pioneers Dr. Morris Netherton and Dr. Roger Woolger, later establishing professional training programs for practicing therapists.
- Met and was encouraged by Dr. Ian Stevenson, who shared his two-volume research work on reincarnation and biology with her.
Groundbreaking Books
Children’s Past Lives (1997)
How Past Life Memories Affect Your Child. A seminal work and practical guide for parents and researchers navigating spontaneous memories in toddlers and young children (typically ages 2–6), who recall past lives spontaneously — without hypnosis or altered states.
Return from Heaven (2001)
An exploration of “family return” — reincarnation within the same family, such as grandparents returning as grandchildren, or the same child returning to the same mother. Includes a Western perspective on karma and the intermediate state.
Notable Cases
James Leininger — The WWII Pilot
From the youngest age, James Leininger was obsessed with airplanes and possessed uncanny technical knowledge — correcting his mother that a shape underneath a model plane was a “drop tank.” After his grandmother sent the family a copy of Children’s Past Lives, James’s mother Andrea reached out to Carol Bowman for guidance on handling his recurring nightmares.
Sam / Bobby Hodges — “U-Turn in the Womb”
In a chapter of Return from Heaven, a boy Bowman calls “Sam” described the intermediate state and a miscarriage before his birth — recounting how hard he worked to be born into his family. His first word was “cousins,” and he was fascinated by them from infancy. (Return from Heaven, pp. 161, 174–175)
Christian Haupt — The Boy Who Knew Too Much
A young baseball prodigy who, from age two, insisted on wearing only baseball uniforms and later identified himself with a 1927 Yankees player. Following Bowman’s advice to present photos without prompting, his mother Cathy Byrd documented his recognition of teammates. (Cathy Byrd, The Boy Who Knew Too Much, 2017, p. 47)
Chanai Choomalaiwong — The Birthmark Case
A Thai boy born with two birthmarks corresponding to the small entry and large exit wounds of a bullet, who recalled a prior life as a murdered schoolteacher. Documented by Dr. Ian Stevenson and referenced in Bowman’s work. (Stevenson, Where Reincarnation and Biology Intersect, 1997, pp. 38–41; Return from Heaven, 2001, pp. 62–66)
Chase — Same-Family Return
A case of a child returning to the same mother, with birthmarks and a limp corresponding to a prior-life illness and surgery — a central example of the family-return phenomenon explored throughout Return from Heaven.
The Past Life Forum (ReincarnationForum.com)
Founded by Carol Bowman in 1997 shortly after publishing her first book, the forum is one of the earliest and longest-running continuous online communities dedicated to reincarnation, past-life memories, and regression. Originally Carol Bowman’s Past Life Forum, it was later rebranded ReincarnationForum.com and has migrated across multiple generations of forum software while preserving its historical archives.
- Incubator for high-profile cases: The James Leininger family posted on the forum in 2004–2005 during their early investigation.
- The FDNY / 9-11 “BabyRN” thread: A mother documented her son’s vivid memories of dying as a NYC firefighter in the North Tower on September 11 — a thread spanning years and later featured in books and media.
- Bridge to academic research: Families sharing detailed accounts have connected with researchers at the University of Virginia’s Division of Perceptual Studies (DOPS), including Dr. Jim B. Tucker, and have participated in legitimate academic studies.
- Support-oriented moderation: Rather than a debate board, the forum offers non-judgmental guidance and parenting strategies for families experiencing spontaneous past-life memories, xenoglossy, or unexplained phobias.
Media & Educational Advocacy
Carol Bowman has helped bring the study of children’s reincarnation cases into mainstream consciousness through appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Good Morning America, Unsolved Mysteries, and documentaries for the BBC, Discovery Channel, and A&E — while lecturing internationally at institutions such as the Omega Institute and the Edgar Cayce Foundation.
Explore Further
- Visit the Past Life Forum (ReincarnationForum.com) to read historical threads and share your own experience.
- Read Children’s Past Lives (1997) and Return from Heaven (2001).
- Listen to Carol Bowman on YouTube