Nov 02 2009

The Beauty of Self-Esteem

Category: Fitness,Health & Wellness,Hypnotherapy,Therapeutic ImageryPatricia @ 5:15 pm

beau·ty (by›“t¶) n., pl. beau·ties. 1. A delightful quality associated with harmony of form or color, excellence of craftsmanship, truthfulness, originality, or another property.

              Beauty is an elusive concept, considering “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. The American Heritage Dictionary defines beauty by its attributes. “Harmony of form” is important, but that is a matter of perception. “Truthfulness” and “originality”, which are also defined as “authenticity”, are equally important. Perhaps most important, is “another property”. Is this “property” the elusive quality that emanates from “beautiful” people? Is this “property” the intangible quality of self-esteem?

               Every beauty kit should contain a smile and a sense of well-being. It should be packed with self-acceptance and self-confidence. When you feel good, you look good.

               Body image and perception can change with your moods. While experiencing a difficult day, you may engage in negative self-talk. It may be “a bad hair day”, or you may think, “these pants make me look fat” or “my nose is too big”. These, or other negative comments, are the result of years of repetitive subconscious programming. Where did you learn to measure your value in terms of your physical body? What is another way to acknowledge your self? Letting go of judgment allows you to listen to the needs of your body and spirit. Become aware of thought patterns and negative self-talk about your body.

               When you accept yourself as you are, you respect your thoughts and emotions. You develop a sense of pride and self-worth. When you accept yourself with grace and ease, you develop your confidence, your talents and your abilities. When you accept yourself, you develop an appreciation and respect for your physical body. You become less critical and more gentle with yourself. When you accept yourself, you experience self-love. You emanate the beauty of your spirit.

              “Self-Esteem” by Matthew McKay and Patrick Fanning (Third Edition, New Harbinger Publications, 2000) regards hypnosis and visualization as effective tools for building and maintaining self-acceptance. Hypnotherapy can help you set goals and provide motivation to achieve those goals. When goals are met, you nourish a belief in yourself and benefit from an increase in self-confidence. Imagery can help you to visualize your ideal self, reinforcing the positive qualities you possess, while enhancing behaviors that help to achieve your goals.

               Using the power of your subconscious mind can increase your self-awareness. A Certified Hypnotherapist can help you to access that power. Your subconscious mind, the 88% of your mind that controls your behavior, is available to you through hypnotic techniques. Hypnotherapy can also help you control unwanted habits that affect your self-esteem, and aid in the elimination of negative behaviors such as pessimism or worry. It can help you to achieve self-mastery.

                When you possess self-love and acceptance, you are “beautiful”, in every sense of the word. You have the power.

Tags: , , ,

Oct 29 2009

Change Your Mind. Change Your Body.

Category: Fitness,Health & WellnessPatricia @ 11:21 am

“The key to permanent weight loss is changing the attitudes, feelings and habits that determine what, when, why, how often and how much you eat.” (“You Can Think Yourself Thin” by Dianne Hales, Parade Magazine, January, 2005).

 Dr. Dean Ornish, author of Eat More, Weigh Less, says, “People don’t overeat because they’re hungry, but as a way of meeting their emotional needs and making it through the day.”

 Behavioral techniques such as visualization and affirmations are very useful tools to change your thinking. Visualization can break the habit of emotional eating. When you imagine yourself as slender and physically fit, you’re less likely to reach for an unhealthy snack to make yourself feel better. You are also more likely to exercise to maintain the visualized level of fitness. In addition, decades of psychological research has shown affirmations (positive, motivational phrases) can serve as an effective tool and create a positive mind-set, which is the key to creating change.

 Would you like to discover how to identify and feed your emotional needs?  Would you like to learn to nourish yourself in a loving and healthy way? Are you ready to make changes in the way you think about food? Would you like to love and accept your body? Hypnosis can help you to visualize your ideal self. Behavior modification can help you to make the right choices. Are you ready to help yourself change?

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Oct 29 2009

Emotions Can Make You Fat

Category: Fitness,Health & Wellness,HypnotherapyPatricia @ 11:19 am

Are you reaching for cookies or ice cream when you feel lonely, stressed or upset? There is a biological reason we reach for sweets when we’re feeling low. Elizabeth Somer, R.D., in her book Food & Mood says “The very taste of something sweet on the tongue immediately releases endorphins, our body’s natural morphine like chemicals that can produce feelings of euphoria and satisfaction.”

 In Calm Energy: How People Regulate Mood with Food and Exercise, Robert Thayer, PhD., a psychology professor at CSU Long Beach, says he believes the key to breaking the emotional eating cycle is finding some way to deal with stress.

 Self-hypnosis may be the answer. When you are in the hypnotic state, you experience a sense of calm and well being and the body naturally produces endorphins. Self-hypnosis can help you to imagine your ideal self, your ideal body, and create the mind-set which will help you to achieve that image of yourself. This process involves concentration on your breathing, which has a stronger effect on emotional change than any other function of your body.

 Like any new skill, the degree of success one achieves with self-hypnosis conditioning is determined by the amount of practice time involved. I have found that once a person is conditioned to the hypnotic state through hetero-hypnosis (induction by another person), it is far easier to achieve the self-hypnotic state.

 If you would like to learn self-hypnosis techniques to achieve your ideal body or your ideal life, I can help.

Tags: ,

« Previous Page