What are you telling yourself? Pay attention to your thoughts and how they affect your body. If it doesn’t feel good, choose another thought.

Think about what you want. Think only in terms of the positive. It is far more powerful to be in favor of something positive rather than to be against something negative. Be “for” peace instead of “against” violence. Be “for” prosperity instead of “against” lack.

2. Praise Yourself

Eliminate negative self-talk! Appreciate your talents and gifts. Acknowledge your skills and abilities; your strengths and positive attributes. Treat yourself with the same loving respect you give to others. Love and accept yourself as you are right now.

Appreciate your body and how it serves you. Daydream and imagine yourself as the ideal…physically, emotionally, mentally. If you can see it, you can be it. The mind doesn’t know the difference between what you imagine and what you perceive as reality.

When you see yourself as healthy and successful, your mind becomes comfortable with it. Your confidence is boosted and you are able to achieve your goals.

3. Practice Gratitude

Note five things every night that you are grateful for. The essence of all you appreciate is constantly flowing into your reality. “This. I want more of this.”

Grateful people report higher levels of positive emotions, vitality and life satisfaction and lower levels of depression and stress. They tend to exercise more and feel better physically.

Robert Emmons, a psych professor at UC Davis found that a 21-day gratitude intervention produced high energy, positive moods, greater sense of feeling connected, more optimistic ratings of one’s life and better sleep duration and quality.

4. Focus on the solution, not the problem.

Einstein said that all of his most important and productive thinking was done by “combinatory play” with “images” in his mind. Thought experiments. Ask a question, Visualize a situation and perform experimental action.

Whatever you are thinking about is literally planning for the future. When you are worrying and doubtful, you are planning for and attracting something you don’t want. Life is a mirror and will reflect back to the thinker what is thought about. Choose the good thoughts.

5. Be present in the Now.

Stay focused on the present moment. Life begins now. Life is happening right now. If you are thinking about the past, you are thinking about it now. If you are thinking about the future, you are thinking about it now. The past and future exist in our thoughts.
Life exists in the moment.

Life is a series of moments. Each and every moment is an opportunity for choice.Focus on what you can do today, right now.
Breathe. All is well.

Laughter improves the mind and spirit. If we can laugh at our troubles, we can create positive biochemical changes in our body which will help reduce feelings of depression or helplessness. When we laugh, we breathe more deeply, which fills our body with oxygen and improves our immune system. Our blood pressure decreases and endorphins and other natural pain-relieving hormones are released. We create a better state of mind and when we are in a better state of mind, we are able to think more calmly and clearly. Our entire body relaxes.

In stressful situations, our body suffers. Constant stress robs us of our sense of humor. It takes the fun out of life! When we are children, we laugh on average about 400 times in a 24 hour period. As adults, we only laugh about 17 times a day! What a tragedy!

A good laugh bursts forth from the soul.

You can bring more laughter into your life. Collect books and movies that are funny and the next time you’re feeling down, bring them out and laugh. Choose to surround yourself with happy and positive people. Be more playful in your daily activities. Give yourself some “laughter therapy” whenever you’re feeling down.

As Oscar Wilde said, “Life is too important to be taken seriously!”

In my practice as a Clinical Hypnotherapist, I encourage my clients to lighten up. We focus on the positive aspects and the solutions which brings a sense of peace. Being able to laugh at yourself is an important step on the way to enlightenment…a state of acceptance and love for your true authentic self…including that part of yourself that laughs so hard, milk comes out your nose!

It is well documented that hypnosis is extremely beneficial for helping to deal with stress and coping with the problems of everyday life. Collingwood added “Hypnosis can be used very effectively as a therapy for anything that is the human condition, to change behaviour and habits and also for self improvement.”

Anger and stress are toxic substances in your body. Adrenal fatigue, and an overload of the stress hormone, cortisol, leaves your body in a state of dis-ease. If stress and anger are experienced on a continuous basis, you may experience any number of health-related issues such as a compromised immune system and inflammation in your body. Over time, you may develop high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes to name just a few. Your thoughts (subconscious mind) create your health.

Although Mel is not a role model, he is a fellow human being. And he recognizes the power of the subconscious mind to create change, acceptance and a sense of peace and well-being. May he have tremendous success!

The Los Angeles Times reports a new study about children with Tourette syndrome has been published in the Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics. By using sessions of self-hypnosis for help with their tics, 79% of the participants said their tic control had improved to a degree that they were satisfied with the technique.

Tourette syndrome is typically treated with medication. With all medication there are side effects. With pharmaceutical treatment comes the possibility of mild to severe side effects such as anxiety, weight gain and sluggishness. Teaching children relaxation techniques to create a state of self-hypnosis has no negative side effects. It does, however, have many, many positive effects. The confidence and self-esteem which results in being more in control of your behavior is priceless.

Dr. Karen Olness, author of Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy with Children, conducted an experiment involving immune systems and the subconscious mind at Rainbow Babies’ and Children’s Hospital in Cleveland. A video was shown where one puppet represented a virus; another, which looked like a policeman, represented the immune system. After viewing the video, the children were guided into a relaxed state and asked to imagine lots of policemen puppets running around inside their bodies. When saliva samples were taken, the results showed that their immunoglobulin levels had substantially increased. Their immune systems had been supercharged with their imagination and were working as though they were fighting off real infections. Dr Olness states, “It is still my view that every child with chronic illness should learn self-hypnosis, because of the sense of coping and competence it gives them.”

The mind doesn’t know the difference between what is imagined and perceived reality. The body responds to what the mind is creating. The subconscious mind is not logical or rational. It merely takes what it observes and makes it so. And so it is.

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.

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.

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.

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.

 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.