Jun 01 2010

Stress Related Health Conditions

Category: Fitness,Health & Well-Being,Quotes,Therapeutic Imageryadmin @ 3:35 pm

Andrew Weil, MD, a well-known and respected advisor on healthy living, states, “Guided imagery is especially useful in addressing stress related health conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, as well as stress associated symptoms such as skin rashes.  It may also be beneficial in treating autoimmune disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease, and can help alleviate chronic allergies, hives and asthma.”

Learn to manage stress with natural approaches. Breathing exercises and mind-body therapies such as guided imagery create a healing state and facilitate well-being.

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Feb 09 2010

Prana…the “absolute energy” that fills the spaces between atoms

Quantum physics shows that what we perceive as solid matter is actually 99.9999% empty space filled with energy.  (If one atom of the physical body were the size of an apple, the closest atom next to it would be 2000 miles away.)

This brings us to the concept of prana, the energy that fills the spaces between atoms.

In Sanskrit, prana means “absolute energy”. It is the force that pervades all being, connecting all living things and all energy matter. In the Hindu concept, prana is made from sunlight and air. As it is drawn into the etheric body, the seven atoms that compose prana separate and each travels to the chakra it nourishes. The chakras draw prana or vitality into the extended body through the solar plexus chakra, which is the hub of a 10-spoked wheel, distributing the prana color rays.

As a hypnotherapist, I use the practice of pranayama by aiding my clients in the practice of focus on the breath. By taking deep, full breaths, the amount of air that enters and flows is increased. This very action stimulates the power of healing, balance and well-being by directing maximum prana to all the chakras, resulting in healing throughout the extended body.

When there is an excess or deficiency in prana flowing through a given chakra or throughout all energy centers, an imbalance occurs. It manifests in emotional discomfort or physical disease in an area and a form reflective of the chakra which is out of harmony. Healing takes place on all levels of the extended energy body before physical well-being manifests. Remember all matter is energy.

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Feb 02 2010

Focused Breathing Lowers Blood Pressure

Category: Fitness,Health & Well-Being,Spiritual Explorationadmin @ 1:08 pm

Recent studies continue to show the benefits of focused breathing and meditation for physical and spiritual health. In Dr. Herbert Benson’s 1975 book The Relaxation Response, he stated that breathing “may be used as a new approach to aid in the treatment and perhaps prevention of diseases such as hypertension.” One of the most recent studies was conducted by Dr. Vernon A. Barnes, a physiologist at the Medical College of Georgia. It showed that teenagers at risk for having high blood pressure were able to lower their daytime blood pressures. This was done by simply practicing 15 minutes of transcendental meditation (focused and concentrated breathing) twice daily, over a period of four months.

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Nov 23 2009

Sweets or Self-Hypnosis?

 

Breaking the Emotional Eating Cycle

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. The body naturally produces endorphins. Self-hypnosis can help you to imagine your ideal self, to experience your ideal body, and to create the mind-set which will assist you in achieving that image of yourself. Like meditation, this process involves concentration on your breathing. Focused breathing 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.

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Nov 03 2009

Music: A Healing Sound

Music is more than a universal form of entertainment. Music is the soundtrack of our lives. It sets the mood. Music, like all art forms, is creative expression as well as a form of healing.        

In ancient Greece, Pythagoras, who discovered that music could be expressed in numbers and mathematical theories, founded a school where students were trained to release worry, fear, anger and sorrow through singing and playing musical instruments.    

Music is a fundamental part of all religions, from hymns to mantras to chants, because it encourages higher states of consciousness. Dr. Alfred Tomatis, known as the “Einstein of sound”, theorizes that sacred chants actually “charge” the cortex of the brain. Tomatis believes “all cranial nerves lead to the ear, which explains why soothing musical harmonics not only induce states of deep relaxation, but directly affect breathing, the voice, the heart rate and digestion.”  (Vegetarian Times, “The Sound of Healing” Suzanne Gerber, March, 1998)

Dr Mitchell Gaynor, director of medical oncology and integrative medicine at New York’s Strang Cancer Prevention Center, uses guided imagery, meditation and sound, voice and tone. Believing that breathing is critical to well-being, he states, “Besides their vibrational impact, voice and tone are just another way to get the therapeutic value of breathing.” (Vegetarian Times, “The Sound of Healing” Suzanne Gerber, March, 1998)

Our bodies are rhythmic. Our hearts beat. Our blood flows. Our lungs breathe in patterns. It comes as no surprise that our bodies respond to the rhythms of music. Pulses of sound correspond with brain-wave frequencies. The frequency of the beats affects our level of consciousness.

We are driven to express ourselves and elevate our consciousness through the arts. It is a powerful and compelling need. The people of Sarajevo proved this when despite constant shelling and sniper fire, “they held concerts, maintained orchestras and choirs, and at one point, turned a destroyed theater into an exhibition space for art created out of materials from the city’s destruction.” (Cathy Malchiodi, “The Art Therapy Sourcebook” Lowell House, 1998)

Art helps us to transcend daily life. It brings wholeness and personal satisfaction to our lives. Creative outlets help you develop and better understand yourself. Art is a way of sharing your self with others, a way of sharing your truth.

If you are feeling “out of sync”, unable to keep up with the pressures of your busy lifestyle, consider the healing benefits of expressing yourself through the arts. Being creative is not just for artists, musicians or writers. Everyone has the potential to do things in a new way.

Your subconscious mind, the 88% of your mind that controls your behavior, can provide you with new insights. Hypnotherapy can help you to access your creative spirit.  It can help you move to a whole new beat. When you listen to your inner voice, your heart will sing.

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Oct 29 2009

Align Your Thought Field

Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) (see www.emofree.com) is an unconventional method which offers remarkable results. It can be used to release negative thoughts and emotions and reinforce positive affirmations and beliefs. You can let go of limiting beliefs that keep you from living the life you want. EFT can be used to focus and choose positive thoughts by affirming what you want. Since you are only able to process one emotion at a time, you must make a choice. EFT helps you to make that choice energetically.

 EFT is a form of Energy Psychology, Meridian Therapy, or Thought Field Therapy. It is an obvious extension of Einstein’s discovery that ALL matter, including the human body, is composed of energy. When we experience a negative emotion or physical discomfort or pain, it is because there has been a disruption in our energy system. The thought energy affects the emotional energy which affects the physical energy. EFT works by tapping on a series of points on the body which correspond to acupuncture points in the energy meridian system. Tapping on the conduits between the energy body and the physical body releases blockages and limitations and enhances the well-being and functioning of the individual. EFT is an emotional version of acupuncture, except you stimulate the meridian points by tapping on them with your fingertips. Tuning into a problem or a limiting belief can be done by simply thinking bout it. Thinking will bring about the energy disruptions involved which then …and only then… can be balanced by tapping the 9-Step Sequence.

 To release negative emotions, rate each of the negative beliefs or experiences using a number scale from 1 to 10, giving each a rating about how bad it makes you feel – a subjective unit of discomfort (SUD). Take a deep breath, focus on your issue and create a set-up phrase, which identifies the problem.

 “Even though I have …this problem… I deeply and completely accept myself.”

 Examples of “this problem” may be something like:

 “Even though my father told me I was lazy…”

“Even though I’ve failed before…”

“Even though I’m overweight…”

“Even though I’m unworthy…”

“Even though I’m really angry with my husband…”

 Using two fingers begin by tapping on the first spot. Either tap on the thymus gland located at the center of the breastbone, or tap on the side of the hand at the karate chop point. While tapping, focus on your issue and breathe deeply. Do this while repeating the set-up phrase three times. It doesn’t matter if you tap on either your right or left side. Or you can use both hands while tapping through the 9-Step Sequence; tapping on both sides of the body at the same time.

 Now, while saying “releasing this problem”…”don’t need this problem”…” letting go of this problem”, tap on the remaining spots of the 9-Step Sequence: 

2. inner eyebrow

3. outer eyebrow

4. under eye

5. under nose

6. chin

7. collarbone

8. under arm

9. crown of head.

 For a particularly intense issue, continue tapping on the outer side of the thumb, pointer, middle and little fingers, as well as the karate chop point on the side of the hand. Evaluate your SUD and continue the process until you have reached a level of comfort. You may also use the 9-Step Sequence to release any unwanted emotions at the time you are experiencing the feeling. It is not necessary to verbally express and identify the emotions…just tap. To reinforce and choose positive behaviors and affirmations, use the 9-Step Sequence to tap as you focus on your choices. For example, after you have “released anxiety” you can then “choose to be calm”. You can also choose confidence, focus, motivation, joy, freedom, empowerment or any other positive emotion. After you have written your affirmations, take a moment to tap through the 9-Step Sequence while you read and focus on your affirmation. Notice if you are energetically aligned with your desires. If not, take the opportunity to tap away any limitations.

 There are many ways to fine tune the procedure. The set-up phrase, identifying the problem or formulating the affirmation or choice, is a very important factor. Please contact a Certified EFT Practitioner for assistance. Belief in the process is unnecessary. EFT is like gravity or electricity. It works whether you believe in it or not. In order to achieve results, you just have to do it. Persistently and consistently.

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