How useful are self help books in getting rid of mind blocks?

The traditional British outlook is to dismiss self help books and to struggle alone.  Of course not everyone has that attitude and there are numerous self help books available to address every situation you can think of - and possibly even some you hadn't thought of.

There are some very useful books available but often people turn to them looking for a quick fix and the complete solution to all their problems.  The solutions they offer usually require a little time and some changes to your attitude or behaviour.  

Because of that the books are often put to one side after a couple of chapters and the changes never happen.

Some books describe a life that seems unrealistic because it is too far from where the reader is at that time.  Others are too wordy and the process of change seems too complicated.

You will get the best help from a self help book by putting aside some time every day to read it and put into practice what it recommends.  If there is someone you can discuss it with, that can often help you to be more focused.  Give yourself a realistic timeframe to allow the changes to take place.

If the advice seems too difficult then see if there is a way you can adopt it in a way that is easier for you to follow.  This might be slowing down the rate of change or aiming for a lower goal initially and then setting your goal higher once you have reached your first one.

If you are struggling with anxiety about making changes or you are finding it difficult to maintain the changes you want to make then hypnotherapy might give you the right mindset to make it easier.

Photograph courtesy of Michał Koralewski

No Smoking Day 2012 - A good time to stop smoking

Often people want to stop smoking but just carry on day by day, thinking they will stop tomorrow, or at the weekend, or at the end of the month.  No Smoking Day is a good target date as there will be plenty of encouragement and resources to help you, plus lots of other people who have also decided to stop.

Often people put off becoming a non-smoker because they think it will be hard.  But a lot of my clients have told me that if they'd known it would be as easy as they found it then they would have stopped years ago.

Hypnotherapy is a good way to help you change your mindset and become a non-smoker.  In my stop smoking sessions I also cover some practical approaches that will make becoming a non-smoker easier  If you would like to know what they are then contact me for your free report.

Find out more about using hypnotherapy to stop smoking.
 

Photograph courtesy of Adrian van Leen

Hypnosis to reduce alcohol consumption

Hypnosis has been used recently in India to help police officers to reduce their acohol intake as some people had been reported to be drunk on duty. It's encouraging to see that hypnosis has been recognised as a way of dealing with this problem.

Most of the people I have seen who wanted to reduce their dependence on alcohol found that it didn't dominate their life, but it had become very important.  Evenings didn't seem right without a bottle or two of wine; a couple of drinks were essential to gain the confidence to enjoy an evening out; nights out were one long binge.

These people didn't want to - nor did they need to - stop drinking completely.  They simply wanted to feel they had control over alcohol again.  They could choose if and when they drank rather than it feel necessary.

Sometimes a single session has been enough to create that change.  Other times several sessions are needed.  Sometimes the drinking can simply be a habit and on other occasions it is used as an emotional crutch.  If that is the case then it is important to address those emotions and to find other ways of reducing their impact.  Then there is no need to drink to reduce the emotions and it can become a choice which the person has control over.

Find out more about using hypnosis to reduce your drinking

Photograph courtesy of engindeniz

Hypnosis for anaesthesia

Recently there was an article in the Guardian about using hypnosis instead of chemical anaesthetic during an operation.  This may sound far fetched to a lot of people but it is perfectly possible.

John Butler, the person in the article is one of the experts I have trained with.  He is very experienced in using hypnosis for pain management and anaethesia.  As well as using it himself he has prepared his clients for surgery and using hypnosis for pain relief. 

Using hypnosis for anaesthesia has a long history.  It was one of the only options before reliable chemical anaesthetics became widely available.  At that time, the shock of the surgery itself could be fatal, even if the actual surgical procedure was successful.  Using hypnosis however greatly increased the survival rates of the surgical patients.  But hypnotism wasn't really understood and chemical anaesthetics were considered easier to use, so they took over from hypnosis.

For some people, using only hypnosis during an operation is a step too far but even so, learning how to use hypnosis both before and after an operation can help to reduce the amount of medication you need and also improve healing time.

World Hypnotism Day

Each year World Hypnotism Day is recognised on January 4th.  Unfortunately in the UK it doesn't get much publicity because beforehand everyone is focused on Christmas and New Year and on the day itself people are often caught up in the return to normality.


But if you are interested in finding out more about hypnosis or hypnotherapy then it is worth looking to see if there are any special events in your area.

My gift for World Hypnotism Day is a free download of my short relaxation MP3.  Email me between 3-5 January and I will send you a link to the download.

Reduce your technological stress

There was a recent article about the increase of technology increasing stress. 

For people who are in a working environment with emails and mobile phones it can be difficult to escape the increased pressure to always be available and to respond as quickly as possible. 


For others it can be an increase in anxiety because a text message hasn't been replied to or a friend has posted an ambiguous message on a social networking site.

Some of these stresses are possible to reduce simply by not being so reliant on them.  Can you make them part of your day, rather than your day revolving around them?

In some cases that isn't possible.  So, make a list of the things that stress you so that you can help to reduce the impact they have on you.  Be aware of them so that you can attempt to balance your stress with something more relaxing.  That might be taking regular breaks, ticking off completed tasks or using hypnotherapy or relaxation CDs.

Review your list regularly.  Is there anything you can change?  For instance is it absolutely necessary to answer every email the second it arrives or would it be OK to check emails every couple of hours?  Is it essential to take your phone with you when you nip out to the shops or would it be OK to leave it behind and respond later if someone has left a message?  Do you have to offer to do everything everyone asks you to do?

Are you being too hard on yourself?  Do you set yourself higher standards than you would expect from other people?  If so, then relax them a little.  By being less stressed you will actually be more productive and much happier.

Hypnotherapy after a miscarriage

It is Baby Loss Awareness Day this Saturday which prompted me to write about using hypnotherapy to help to deal with the emotions around a miscarriage.

Being hypnotised isn't going to make you forget you've had a miscarriage but it can help to reduce emotions such as grief, anger, sadness, hopelessness, guilt or frustration that you may be experiencing. It can help to make emotions more manageable so you can still go through the grieving process but also move forward into the future.

A number of women have come to me for hypnotherapy after a miscarriage, for a variety of reasons. Often there was a fear that they would never be able to have a successful pregnancy, especially if they had had more than one miscarriage. Sometimes they thought they had dealt with it through counselling or the passage of time - and on a rational level they had - but emotionally there was still "unfinished businesss".

Sometimes, as in many other issues, they booked the session to address something else, such as negative thinking or difficulty in becoming pregnant and the miscarriage was one of the things that became important in the session.

Feeling calm and positive can help if you are trying to become pregnant. It isn't guaranteed to make you pregnant but it does cause less stress on your body, your relationship and your emotions. Research has shown that stress reduces fertility so the more you can understand how to reduce that stress the better.

Read more about hypnosis for pregnancy

Photograph courtesy of Sanja Gjenero