Archive for September, 2008

Obesity is a national epidemic. 58 million Americans are overweight and 80% are more than 25 lbs overweight. 70% of heart disease and 80% of all type II diabetes is directly attributed to obesity. 15% of children are obese and 70% between the ages of 6-8 believe that fast food is healthier than home cooked meals. Today s children could be the first generation whose life expectancy is less than that of their parents.

Much of the problems associated with obesity begin in childhood. We make concrete decisions about self-image, what food means to us and how active a life we will lead, very early in our lives. There are also cultural influences which can dictate the nutritional paths we take.

Another factor is the emotional and compulsive connections to food. Millions use food to feel good or to at least feel better. Food offers temporary relief from symptoms of depression, loneliness, anger and stress. Another factor is how productively our body s function which can have a major influence in how we look. A hypoactive thyroid slows down the metabolism making it next to impossible to lose excess weight.

In addition to all of this there is the problem of social hypnosis or advertising which bombards us with a never ending stream of useless, unproductive and unhealthy information 24 hours a day, everyday. To make matters worse advertisers aren t even consistent with their manipulative message. On one hand they say we need to be anorexic to be beautiful, and on the other they say that happy meals qualify as healthy nutrition.

Long term problems begin when these unhealthy patterns are repeated over time. We are creatures of habit, we are what we think. Consistently repeating patterns of unhealthy nutrition and sedentary living ensures that they will continue. It s the repetition that gets them deeply rooted in our long term memory, or subconscious mind, where they take on a life of their own.

When an individual attempts to alter the path of an established pattern conflict results. This is what a smoker goes through when trying to quit on a conscious level. They experience mood swings, cravings and palpitations. Conflict with dieting occurs when an individual eat things they really don t want to eat and does things they don t really want to do, like exercise.

When the subconscious doesn t get what it expects individuals become uncomfortable and stressed. The only way to make things right is to give the subconscious mind what it wants. Intellectually they know the changes they should make and the type of body they want to have but when this inner conflict arises the individual feels powerless and more often than not they revert to their old ways.

Hypnosis melts away the conflict. It helps uninstall old patterns and rapidly download new applications supporting new positive thoughts, actions and results. By stepping into this peaceful inner daydream world individuals have the unique opportunity to take control in way they never thought possible.
Mental imagery is one of the most powerful benefits of hypnosis. The hypnotist taps into the client s imagination which is in the subconscious. This enables clients to create powerful images of ultimate health and fitness. Then the hypnotist offers suggestions supporting how easy it would be to make a few changes if this is the reward. This establishes a linear subconscious connection between action and positive results, and by routinely reinforcing this peaceful message clients easily go from concept to reality.

Making changes on the subconscious level makes new thoughts seem automatic. It speeds up the learning curve. A good clinician will record your session so you can listen to it on your own. Repetition rules with the problems and solutions as well. It took years of repetition to create the problem but the good news is that hypnosis dramatically speeds up the process to success.

With hypnosis an individual can disconnect from patterns of compulsive or emotional eating. One method directs the client to regression back to where compulsive or emotional eating began. Usually there is a general idea of how and when such patterns began.

Then they imagine a past event is replayed and they can see and feel the stress, concern or compulsion with food begin. It s important to recreate the anxiety because then they get to make it go away.

They picture a thick glass dome being lowered over the past event and the lower it gets the more freedom and relief they experience. In moments the doom locks down into the floor completely preventing this experience from ever affecting their adult life again. Once they are free from the past they move forward and freely begin to choose new paths supporting fitness and fulfillment.

Success with hypnosis depends on how open the client is to relaxing, whether they are truly committed to creating positive change and if they give themselves the opportunity to become proficient with the process. Serious minded individuals with a strong desire to learn and grow usually do very well.

In addition to weight loss clients become more relaxed, centered and focused. They are much less affected by the day-to-day stress of life. This type of routine relaxation produces more smiles, laughter and an easy natural progression to shaping the body they were meant to have.

About the Author

Paul Gustafson RN, BSN, CH runs HealthyHypnosis.com of Burlington, Massachusetts. His 11 years of acute cardiac and hospice experience offer a solid foundation supporting his clinical approach to hypnotherapy. Visit HealthyHypnosis.com or call toll free at 888-290-3972.

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Copyright 2005 Uncommon Knowledge Ltd

Believe the hype or think for yourself

For too long hypnosis has had a bad or ‘difficult’ press. If a person doesn’t understand something they have 3 options open to them.

1) They might be sceptical and therefore save the trouble of looking further and possibly benefiting. 2) They may conclude it is dangerous and to be avoided at all costs. 3) They may spend time discovering the truth behind the hype.

If you don’t know much about a topic it’s easy to be suspicious. Some people assume hypnosis is akin to a carnival side show, others consider it mystic mumbo jumbo or ‘mind control.’ For those who look beyond the hype the truth is far more illuminating.

The most powerful tool you possess

There are potentially huge benefits for those who use hypnosis as part of everyday life. When you understand hypnosis you start to see its potential to improve human performance in the physical, emotional and intellectual realms. For me, rumour, gossip and suspicion weren’t good enough.

I determined to learn all I could about hypnosis – I learned every fact and practised every technique under the sun. I took several training courses – some good, some terrible. I invested thousands of hours of devoted study to hypnosis and discovered just what is possible. I hypnotised friends, neighbours and work colleagues. Hypnosis greatly changed things for me on a personal level.

How hypnosis helped me

I used to be shy. Thanks to hypnosis I can now talk to thousands at a time and can approach anybody calmly and confidently.

I used to have poor concentration and procrastinate; thanks to hypnosis I can instantly motivate myself.

I used to find physical work outs and exercise exhausting but because of hypnosis I am now in the best shape of my life.

Incidentally I also stopped myself blushing with hypnosis. Now if ever I have a difficult call or conversation coming up, something I may naturally feel reluctant to do (you know the kind of thing) I spontaneously self hypnotise and rehearse the upcoming situation feeling good, with myself remaining calm. In this way I habitually set my own emotional ‘blue prints’ for up coming situations. Having said that it’s naturally that some people have concerns or half digested ‘hand me down’ ideas regarding hypnosis. A common one is the one about ‘mind control.’ However what does this really mean?

Why you are more in control of yourself in hypnosis

If someone expresses concerns about being ‘controlled’ in hypnosis what they mean is they don’t want to be like a robot, an automaton that is forced to obey the every whim of the hypnotist. We can’t help but influence others but we don’t control them. To understand why you need to understand hypnosis better.

So what is hypnosis like?

Hypnosis isn’t like a coma. It’s not unconsciousness – more a subtle shifting of consciousness. In hypnosis, you can still think logically but you also have access to the ’software’ of your mind so that you can update instinctive emotional and physical responses. In fact the hypnotised subject (not the hypnotist) calls the shots. When I hypnotise someone I need to go at their speed and respond to their needs and expectations. Hypnosis will give you more control in your own life because of what it enables you to do.

How can I be so sure?

Because over the decades I’ve seen all kinds of people, all ages and from all backgrounds turn their lives around thanks to hypnosis. When you use hypnosis for yourself it improves confidence in all kinds of ways. When you use it to change other’s lives it just blows you away. This is what I mean.

When I first hypnotised someone to feel no sensation in a painful arthritic arm it was an incredible feeling. When I first cured life long phobias quickly and comfortably I was astounded. When I stopped hardened alcoholics from drinking and even got a heroin addict off the stuff and back into mainstream life again I started to feel angry that people could just associate hypnosis with entertainment.

With the aid of hypnosis I (and many people I have trained and worked with) have helped severely depressed people feel strong and positive again. The rewards and satisfactions are hard to describe. I’m going to take a stand against ignorance and short sightedness around hypnosis and here’s why.

Why you need to reclaim hypnosis for yourself

Hypnosis is your birthright. It’s nature’s optimum learning tool. In fact to learn and perform anything well you need to experience a natural focussing of attention, a natural kind of hypnosis. To be successful hypnosis needs to be your companion and friend.

Successful people use it naturally all the time because hypnosis is natural. It’s the way we learn new responses. Unlike medications its side effects are purely positive – one expectant mother I worked with to feel relaxed during child birth later reported that she was also more relaxed when flying!

Hypnosis is easy to learn and every body can benefit. Hypnosis is a safe environment to ‘try out’ new behaviours and emotional patterns before you experience them for real. So the young man can ask a woman out for a date many times in calm relaxed hypnosis so that by the time he does it for real it feels real and natural and relaxed. Sports people who use hypnosis learn new quicker and more accurately. So hypnosis gives you more control of yourself and your life, it’s natural and gives you instant benefits and it’s a way of ‘trying on’ and establishing new patterns of emotional response and behaviour, Hypnosis enables you to develop yourself as a human being.

About the author:

Mark Tyrrell is Creative Director of Uncommon Knowledge, the UK’s leading hypnotherapy school. You can learn hypnosis free from Uncommon Knowledge at: http://www.hypnosisdownloads.com/learn_hypnosis.html

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