 Everyone knows how hard it is to quit smoking. There are countless ways that people try to end their smoking habit, only to start up again days, weeks, or even months later.
The uѕе of раtсhеѕ оr gum alone іѕ nоt a solution - thеу mеrеlу mаѕk the рrоblеm. Even іf you taper оff uѕіng these рrоduсtѕ, thе psychological аѕресt оf the habit ѕtіll rеmаіnѕ. Thіѕ рѕусhоlоgісаl fасtоr of ѕmоkіng іѕ something the drugѕ аnd other рrоduсtѕ оn the mаrkеt cannot address. Yet thіѕ аѕресt of the habit is what makes реорlе revert to smoking again - еvеn аftеr thе рhуѕісаl dеѕіrе for nісоtіnе іѕ lоng gone. Smоkіng іѕ a hаbіt. It is a learned bеhаvіоr that a person repeats dау аftеr dау, уеаr after уеаr. Nicotine, аlthоugh a роwеrful drug, lеаvеѕ the system within twеlvе tо twеntу-fоur hоurѕ. It makes temporary сhаngеѕ іn thе brain, whісh аrе rереаtеd thrоugh recurring exposures. It is thuѕ more a habit than an addiction. A habit that has bееn rереаtеd time аnd tіmе again. And habits, еvеn lоng lаѕtіng hаbіtѕ, саn bе сhаngеd. This іѕ whеrе thе use оf hурnоѕіѕ is ѕо роwеrful. Inѕtеаd of just fосuѕіng оn thе рhуѕісаl aspect оf smoking, thаt іѕ, the tеmроrаrу еffесtѕ оf nicotine whісh dіѕѕіраtеs in a relatively ѕhоrt tіmе; hypnosis focuses on the habitual аѕресt оf ѕmоkіng, which, іn ѕоmе cases, nеvеr lеаvеѕ thе individual who smоkеѕ. Thеrе have bееn cases where реорlе have quіt ѕmоkіng fоr years, оnlу tо rеturn to thе hаbіt. In fасt, mаnу people who uѕеd tо ѕmоkе ѕtаtе they still sometimes have thе urgе tо lіght uр a сіgаrеttе. Bу trеаtіng ѕmоkіng аѕ a habit, a hурnоthеrаріѕt can tеасh their client to сhаngе thіѕ lеаrnеd, rереаtеd behavior. We first rеfrаmе the wау you lооk at smoking. Thеn, uѕіng hypnosis, wе іntrоduсе the subconscious mind to thе same information you learned in a nоrmаl state оf awareness. Once thе conscious mіnd аnd thе subconscious mind аrе "оn thе ѕаmе раgе" ѕо tо speak, іt mаkеѕ еndіng thе ѕmоkіng hаbіt muсh еаѕіеr to accomplish. A great deal of the compulsion to smoke cigarettes - as well as all habits for that matter - is psychological. While many methods to treat these habits focus on the physical aspect of the problem, unless the psychological factor is addressed, this is often a waste of time, effort, and money. When you think about hypnosis, you may imagine a tuxedo-clad man slowly swinging a watch in front of your face, or barking like a dog. This is a Hollywood-made myth, and certainly not the method that is used by certified hypnotherapists. Hypnotherapists are professionals who have had education, training and experience in using hypnosis to improve their clients’ health, using the power of the client’s own mind. One important point I should make is that in оrdеr fоr уоu tо stop ѕmоkіng, уоu muѕt truly want tо bесоmе a non-smoker. Thіѕ іѕ thе ѕіnglе mоѕt іmроrtаnt ѕtер. You саnnоt change thіѕ habit tо рlеаѕе a ѕроuѕе or parent оr оthеr lоvеd оnе. If you are just trуіng tо рlеаѕе someone else, your еffоrtѕ аrе dооmеd to fаіlurе. If, оn thе оthеr hаnd, you are trulу motivated tо become a nоn-ѕmоkеr, іt is a mаjоr step tо асhіеvіng that goal. Smoking is a serious, harmful, life and health-threatening, and costly, habit, but one that can be broken permanently. And, as is the case of any harmful behavior, all factors that figure into it must be addressed in order to be successful. Once all of those factors are addressed, you can then replace those harmful, unwanted habits and behaviors with new, positive, healthy habits and behaviors. Oh, and then congratulate yourself.
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 I work with many clients for sleep issues. Some clients want to reduce their dependence on sleep medications, others want to be able to easily drift to sleep and turn off the rambling in their heads, and some want help with staying asleep throughout the night. If you suffer from any of these sleep issues, you are not alone.
We all know how we feel when we fail to sleep well; we can feel cranky, we don’t think as clearly and find it hard to focus after just a few nights of poor sleep. Sleep deprivation can cause your brain to function inefficiently. You may find yourself having trouble making decisions or solving problems. When you are sleep deficient, your emotions may feel out of control; you are more likely to get angry or feel impulsive and experience mood swings. Losing sleep can increase your overall stress levels and your reaction to stress. While a certain amount of stress is a normal part of everyday life, being sleep deprived makes those normal stressors seem much worse. This can begin a vicious cycle, where you lose sleep due to stress, which increases your stress, which keeps you from sleeping. Lack of sleep has also been linked to many chronic health conditions, including heart and kidney disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. It can also increase the risk of stroke. Your body requires sleep to repair the wear and tear on your heart and blood vessels as well as the rest of your body. If you are sleep deprived, it can also interfere with insulin, the hormone that controls blood sugar. Less sleep can equal higher blood sugar, which increases the risk of diabetes. Insomnia and lack of sleep has also been linked weight gain. Sleep helps keep your hormones in balance. When you are sleep deprived, your body ends up producing more Ghrelin (which makes you hungry) and less Leptin (which makes you feel full). Getting good, restful sleep is vital, both for your body and your mind to function properly. So how can we improve our ability to sleep well naturally? The first step is to practice good sleep habits, or hygiene. Below are some sleep habits that can help:
 We all seem to know that the formula to lose weight is to eat less and be more active. So why aren't we all slim and trim?
Often, many of us have a lot of baggage in our subconscious minds weighing us down. Hypnotherapy is a tool that can help us focus on what we need to accomplish for true weight loss success. A few key factors in order for us to make the necessary changes are:
Most of us spend our lives surrounded by negative messages from the media, friends and family. People use a lot of negative self-talk and don’t practice helpful, positive thought patterns. They say, “I’ve tried everything, and diets don’t work”, or “I’ve been struggling my whole life, it’s too hard”. But hypnosis can remove the mental blocks we’ve made for ourselves. Our negative emotions mean we often eat for the wrong reasons. It’s called emotional eating. People will eat when they're sad, lonely, bored or angry – as a distraction measure, and then they'll feel guilty and beat themselves up afterwards, creating a downward spiral. This one change can make a huge difference in a person’s success at releasing excess weight, no matter how long they have struggled. Once we get on top of the negative emotions, we can break the cycle and replace our negative thoughts with positive ones. With hypnosis we bypass the critical, analytical part of the mind and go straight to the subconscious, where all of our memories, feelings, habits and behaviors are stored. We feed it with positive suggestions, and then real, lasting change begins to take place. While many people succeed in losing weight in the short term, they often have trouble keeping it off. This is where hypnotherapy can lead to success. The real key is changing the way we think about weight loss. It's not about losing weight or feeling deprived, but about getting rid of something we no longer need or want and creating a whole new relationship with food and our bodies. We focus on what we DO want. One of the most powerful messages hypnosis can get across is that we always have the power to choose. We can have that piece of chocolate cake, but we don't have to have it. Hypnosis can help create a relationship with ourselves where we are not fighting ourselves, but making the choices that we want to make.  Many people go through their lives without considering why they make the same mistakes, follow the same bad patterns, and exist in the same rut for years. They know they aren't happy with their current situation, but they seem to be unable to make any changes that last. Are you perhaps one of these people?
Maybe you have made resolutions, attended seminars, read self-help books but, in the end, fallen back into the same dysfunctional patterns you have always followed. You may wonder why it always turns out this way. We struggle in making permanent, lasting changes in our lives when we try to change only our conscious mind. Here's the problem: your conscious mind is not what directs your behaviors and belief system. To change your behaviors, you must first reprogram the hard-wired center of your mind: your subconscious mind. How the Subconscious Mind Works The subconscious is the largest part of our mind. It contains all of the messages we have received throughout our lives. Our subconscious mind holds millions upon millions of thoughts grouped into clusters that form beliefs, mindsets and character traits. The relationship between the conscious and subconscious minds is like an iceberg. The conscious mind can be characterized like the visible tip of the iceberg, while the subconscious is like the enormous lower portion of the iceberg, which is hidden from view. Although you cannot see the subconscious in action, it most definitely has a major impact on the voyage you take in your life. The subconscious is the place where all of your learned behaviors reside. Once you learn to walk, you don't need to consider how to lift and place each foot to take the next step, do you? Of course not. Your subconscious mind automatically controls your steps. Your subconscious learns behavior through repetition and practice. Just as it learned to control your footsteps when you learned to walk, it also controls your footsteps in your life's journey, based on what you've reinforced throughout your life. With hypnosis, you can reprogram your subconscious mind by inputting and reinforcing new thoughts and actions directly to the subconscious. I love to see the changes my clients make generally in a very short period of time using hypnosis to communicate directly with the subconscious.  Hypnosis for IBS involves progressive relaxation, and then suggestions of soothing imagery and sensations focused on the person’s symptoms. Deep relaxation and individual hypnotic suggestions can then be taught to IBS sufferers in order for them to learn to control their symptoms in everyday life. Contrary to popular belief, hypnosis is not a state of deep sleep or unconsciousness, but creates a hyper-attentive and hyper-responsive mental state. When a person is hypnotized, they are in an enhanced state of awareness, concentrating entirely on the hypnotherapist's voice. In this state, the conscious mind is suppressed and the subconscious mind is more open to suggestion. The hypnotherapist then suggests ideas, concepts and lifestyle changes to the person that become implanted into the subconscious mind, allowing change to happen easily. Irritable bowel syndrome, also called “IBS”, is a common disorder of the intestines that affects a large number of the population and can cause a great deal of discomfort and distress. Some of the common symptoms of IBS include constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and bloating. The cause of IBS is not known but it is well established from research that psychological stress increases the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome.
IBS is often treated with medication, changes in diet, and stress reduction. Many IBS sufferers report that stressful situations cause their symptoms of IBS to become more severe. Although there is no cure for IBS at this time, hypnosis has been shown to reduce stress and improve the symptoms of IBS in both the short-term and long-term. Research on the long-term follow up of those who have benefited from hypnosis for IBS shows that after a period of between 1 and 5 years, most remain well, with many requiring no further medication at all. The Secret to Removing Negative Thoughts and Limiting Beliefs
Many people go through their lives without understanding why they make the same mistakes, follow the same patterns, and live in the same rut, year after year. They aren't happy with their present situation, but they seem to be unable to make any lasting changes. Are you one of these people? Perhaps you've attend seminars, read books, and taken courses, but, in the end, fallen back into the same dysfunctional patterns you've always followed. Do you wonder why it repeatedly turns out this way? We struggle to make permanent changes in our lives when we input information only into our conscious mind. That’s where the problem lies, because your conscious mind is not what directs your behaviors and belief system. To change your behaviors, you must first re-program the hardwired center of your mind - the subconscious mind. How Does Your Subconscious Mind Work? The subconscious is the largest part of our mind. It contains all of the messages we've received throughout our lives. It holds millions and millions of thoughts grouped into clusters that form beliefs, mindsets and character traits. The relationship between the conscious and subconscious mind is like an iceberg. The conscious mind is represented by the visible tip of the iceberg, while the subconscious is represented by the gigantic lower portion of the iceberg hidden from view. You can't see the subconscious in action, but it unquestionably has a major impact on the voyage you take in your life. The subconscious is the place where all of your learned behaviors reside. Once you learn to walk, you don't need to consider how to lift and place each foot to take the next step, do you? Of course not. Your subconscious mind automatically controls your steps. Your subconscious learns behavior through repetition and practice. Just as it learned to control your footsteps when you learned to walk, it also controls your footsteps in your life's journey based on what you've reinforced throughout your life. The good news is that you can re-program your subconscious mind by inputting and reinforcing new thoughts and actions. The most effective and easiest way to do this is through hypnosis. Hypnosis works directly with the subconscious mind. It works by easing you into a state of extreme relaxation. Once you're in this state, the conscious mind releases its grip, and the subconscious mind is easier to access. While under hypnosis, it's much easier to re-program the subconscious into accepting new thoughts as reality. When you re-program your subconscious mind like this, you can remove the burden of the negative thoughts and limiting beliefs buried there. Your mind is then released from negative programming, allowing you to excel and succeed throughout your life. Imagine the freedom of living your life without the automatic dysfunctional behaviors you've had driving you for years! Here's to wishing you that freedom, success and happiness in 2015! |
AuthorLaura Rude, Certified Hypnotherapist Archives
June 2024
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The information on this website is for educational purposes only. Hypnotherapy is not intended to replace your mental or health care practitioners, rather to be used as an adjunct for any medical or other program you are following. I do not diagnose, prescribe for, or treat any physical, mental or psychological ailment.
HealthWise Hypnosis proudly serves clients online across the US, as well as Issaquah and the following communities around King County: Sammamish, Bellevue, Renton, North Bend, Snoqualmie, Preston, Maple Valley, Mercer Island, Newcastle, Kent, Redmond, Kirkland, Auburn, Seatac, Seattle, King County, Tacoma, Lynnwood, Woodinville, Federal Way, and Carnation.
The information on this website is for educational purposes only. Hypnotherapy is not intended to replace your mental or health care practitioners, rather to be used as an adjunct for any medical or other program you are following. I do not diagnose, prescribe for, or treat any physical, mental or psychological ailment.
HealthWise Hypnosis proudly serves clients online across the US, as well as Issaquah and the following communities around King County: Sammamish, Bellevue, Renton, North Bend, Snoqualmie, Preston, Maple Valley, Mercer Island, Newcastle, Kent, Redmond, Kirkland, Auburn, Seatac, Seattle, King County, Tacoma, Lynnwood, Woodinville, Federal Way, and Carnation.
