Each of us is unique as a result of our genetics, our environment, our life experiences, our spirituality and perhaps other things that as of yet we are not fully aware.  As such we are very complex.  We know, however, that within us we have the ability to profoundly change the way that we perceive life around us, and how we interact with it.  Hypnosis is one of the ways by which we can achieve this change.

Through hypnosis we can tap into the subconscious part of our minds to help us control and change behavior patterns, thoughts, feelings and emotions that for whatever reason are negative or destructive in our lives.  It’s these negative that hold us back – from fulfilling our potential, our dreams of success and living rewarding lives.

Now most people are fully unaware that they actually are going into and out of altered states of consciousness every day of their lives.  That may seem a bit strange or foreign to some, but consider these common examples for a moment.

• Have you ever driven a long distance and lost track of time?
• Have you ever been engrossed in watching a movie or reading a book so much so that you didn’t hear someone calling your name?
• Have you looked out a window and stared at the sky while daydreaming, and momentarily blocked out all thoughts of your surroundings?
• Or have you ever tried to fully concentrate and “get into the zone” through visualization just prior to playing a sport.

These are all examples of putting ourselves into altered states of consciousness – all examples of hypnosis.  They can be as brief as a few minutes, or last perhaps an hour or more.  In these situations we become so focused in what we are doing that we put ourselves into a state of mind that is not entirely conscious.  It’s tapping into this ability – reaching the subconscious level of our minds – that has been the focus of many methods, from meditation, to autogenic training.  Hypnosis is one of those ways.

Better yet, hypnosis can help us with some very basic issues we face, to some of the more complex.  This has been shown and proven time and time again.

Simply put, hypnosis allows one to change thoughts and feelings in the mind, which in turn lead to positive changes in life.  There are actually a number of techniques to accomplish this, but what they all have in common is that they involve essentially re-programming thoughts from negative to positive, through selected imagery. This may sound quite simple, but it does take a skilled hypnotist and a willing subject to achieve success at overcoming issues.  Now admittedly the word re-programming may have a more sterile and un-human like connotation, but the term references what we all do on a daily basis, in that we all change perceptions of “things” in our lives based upon new information that we receive and process.   And some of these perceptions take more readily than others.

So what specifically can one achieve with hypnosis?  Well there are numerous examples – hundreds in fact – but for sake of illustration, here are a few:

• The anxiety, pain and anguish that come with separation and divorce. For those who have been through a divorce you know that the experience can be one of devastation from an emotional perspective, not to mention all of the other traumatizing aspects.  The dismantling of future expectations and planning, the feelings of failure, the heartbreak of loss, the long and often protracted period of emotional pain and anxiety, all of which take their toll.  With hypnosis one’s mind can be “re-programmed” to assuage the symptoms and to restore hope and vitality.  With hypnosis one can recover from the effects of divorce in a much shorter period of time and with far fewer stressors.

• Stress, is a perfect example of something that can relatively easily be diminished through hypnosis.  Everyone to one degree or another places undue expectations on themselves or unreasonable beliefs about their environment – both of which create tension when we cannot live up to expectations.  The result is stress, and we bring it on ourselves.  Stress can manifest itself in many ways and it can be born out of just about any situation. For some it might be a tightening of the shoulder and neck muscles, for others it might be headaches, and still for others it might show itself in other unusual symptoms some of which appear baffling as to their origin.  Through hypnosis the underlying stressors are mitigated in their effect on us, which then lowers our overall stress reaction to them.

• Self-confidence is one thing that fluctuates throughout our lives depending upon what is happening to us, what our personal and work relationships are, how we are progressing towards achieving our goals, how we are doing in our work, etc.   Some times in our lives self-confidence is in abundance and at other times it wanes.  This fluctuation can happen at any time.  With hypnosis one can literally transform the way we perceive situations that might otherwise produce low self-confidence, to thought patterns that result in long lasting positive imagery – leading to greater self- confidence.  The end result is that self-confidence is in abundance far more frequently than not.

• Fears can be greatly diminished if not completely overcome with hypnosis.  The range of fears that can be dealt with is perhaps endless, but most if not all are rooted in experiences that have happened earlier in our lives, and have created such lasting and powerful impression in our subconscious minds that they overwhelm us when we are faced with them.  Hypnosis essentially unravels the irrational or negative thinking that produces the fear and replaces it with logical, rational and positive thinking.

Other common issues that are effectively dealt with through hypnosis include, but not limited to:

• Smoking cessation
• Physical pain
• Migraines
• Improving eating habits
• Weight control
• Improving sports performance
• Improving academic performance
• Retrieving lost memories
• Addiction cessation
• Removing mental “blocks”

For more information on how hypnosis can benefit you please contact Hypnosis La Jolla at 858 242 9676.

Article copyright 2011, by Hypnosis La Jolla, and the Better Living Institute – All rights reserved.