Trick or Treat . . . it's Halloween!!!

As you walk through the crispy rustle of Autumn leaves, that sharp breeze goes through you . . . maybe you can even sense there's someone behind you . . . and when you turn around there's no-one really there . . . or is there!!! The tiny hairs on the back of your neck begin to stand up . . . sending a shiver down your spine . . . you start to walk faster . . . your heart beating like mad . . . your imagination soars . . . you must get back home . . . forgetting yourself you start running . . . you ask yourself "Why is it I get spooked like this?" . . . the answers all lie within.

So, what is it about Halloween that makes it okay for us to scare the life out of each other . . . or even worse out of little children.
Why is that type of FEAR acceptable and okay, when other fears are not?
Why would you even want to put yourself through yet another viewing of Nightmare on Elm Street or Halloween?
Do they still give you nightmares now?
For some people the scarier the movie the better!

For me, I quite like my heart beating naturally, just as it should be . . . maybe because I can jump at the slightest thing . . . my best example of that is watching Jaws the movie (any of them) ~ my rational logical adult mind knows that it is a plastic/rubber shark and that when the spooky music comes on it builds up the anticipation that Jaws is about to appear ~ never-the-less I could still jump out of my skin every single time! So I made a decision, because I like my heart and mind to feel more peaceful that I have no need or desire to watch spooky/scary/jumpy things anymore (where at all possible). Am I hiding away from my fears or am I understanding that there is enough 'real' life fears in the world that I don't need to create any more than needed.

Enjoy Halloween, but keep it lighthearted . . . after all it is supposed to be simple childish fun.

My recommendation today is that if it really scares you then STOP! Do something different, something positive and lighthearted instead. You will feel much safer, much more secure in yourself. Your unconscious mind will always step in when you are scared, whether it's Halloween fear or other fear ~ your sympathetic nervous system will kick into play, stimulating our natural fight or flight instincts, causing the heart to race, the breathing to become quicker, all that adrenaline firing up so we can get as much oxygen and blood flow to our muscles to run away form the fear as quick as it can.
So if you really want to run away from your sofa during a movie tonight, now you know why. Your body and mind are trying to protect you as it can't work out whether that fear is real or just on T.V. ~ all it knows is what it sees it thinks is real . . . what it hears it thinks is real . . . what it feels (scared) it thinks is real ~ so do yourself a favour and consider letting your body and mind have a peaceful calm night tonight instead!

To find out more how Cognitive Hypnotherapy can help overcome fear in your life (whether real or imaginary) then visit www.mindbodywellbeing.co.uk

Uptight,Feeling Stressed & Anxious?

A lot has been written in the press of late about the negative effects of feeling stressed and anxious both on the mental body and the physical, manifesting itself in many different and often unpleasant ways (see the Times Mind Body & Soul March 2.) Here are 5 simple tips that any one can do to help reduce those feelings

1.Take 4 or 5 deep breaths with the full capacity of your lungs using the diaphragm just like a baby breathes!

2.Tense all the muscles in the body....... hold that tension for a 2nd or two.... and then relax repeat the process 4 or 5 times

3.Sitting upright in a chair focusing the eyes straight in front imagine the points on a clock face, starting at 12 oclock move the eyes only round clockwise to 1 oclock, 2 oclock, 3oclock, till 12 oclock is reached then reverse the process anti clock wise breathing steadily all of the time repeat this process 4 or 5 times.

4. Go for a short walk,walking steadily and rhythmically again taking notice of the breath.

5.Place a pen or pencil width ways in the mouth gripping gently in the teeth then making an eeeeeh sound..... smile and hold that for a few 2nds... then repeat again 4 or 5 times (this is best done in private in front of a mirror for obvious reasons!!)

You may want to try just one of these techniques or any of them in combination. Hypnosis and Timeline therapy are excellant interventions for helping to "get to the bottom" of what is the underlying reason for feeling this way.
Best Wishes
Edd

Hypnosis and relaxation

Sitting in my office in Northamptonshire in the Midlands having completed a hypnosis session with a client who calls me her hypnotist not hypnotherapist,some clients still insist in calling us hypnotists rather than hypnotherapists in the profession of hypnosis there is a very distinct difference
A recent article brought to my attention in the independent newspaper www.independant.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families Advising that relaxation is key to good health and well being advice which has been known by practitioners of yoga and meditation alike for thousands of years
Its only recently that science has been able to provide "hard" evidence that relaxation methods used by long term practitioners of yoga and meditation have indeed increased disease fighting genes, those who practised no form of relaxation at all were found to have very few of these beneficial genes at all.
Professor Herbert Benson who lead the research at the Harvard medical school reported "we found that a range of disease-fighting genes were active in the relaxation practitioners that were not active in the control group" they describe the protective genes that control disorders such as pain,infertility,high blood pressure,and even rheumatoid arthritis as "switched on" or "induced" by what was described as the relaxation effect.
Hypnosis is seen as a particularly effective method of deeply relaxing. By deeply relaxing we are able to reduce the negative effects of the stress hormones adrenalin and cortisol, which raise the heart rate and blood pressure, weaken the immune system and can lower fertility, by deeply relaxing we are able to counter stress which is linked to the sympathetic nervous system or the "flight or fight syndrome" and instead introduce higher levels of feel good chemicals hormones such as serotonin and growth hormone which promote the repair of cells and tissues. When we are in a state of "flight or fight" or stress, muscles which are useful to be used for danger tighten and contract and processes which are deemed as non essential like the immune system and digestion are ignored.
One can use hypnosis as a very effective technique to switch on the parasympathetic nervous system which operates when we are relaxed to promote health and well being . To gain full benefit from relaxation techniques including hypnosis it is important to practice them regularly on a daily basis for a minimum of 15 minutes.As part of our service to our clients we are on request able to teach them self hypnosis to enable them to fully benefit from our hypnotherapeutic sessions, and continue to practice hypnotic states as part of their strategy to help them relax.
Best Wishes
Edd

weight loss

At our hynotherapy practice in Northamptonshire in the Midlands we have a very succesful track record with clients who want to control their weight with hypnotic techniques or hypnosis
Its at this time of the year with the holiday season almost upon us that we perhaps begin to look more closely at our image or more precisely our body image, how others see us and how we feel about that. The media are constantly bombarding us with the perfect size, the perfect shape , the perfect dress size , the perfect waist measurement, bronze tanned bodys , the perfect pecs, the perfect muscle toned body ect ect .
Unconsciously we judge ourselves by what we see , read , and watch in the media. At this level we are constantly comparing and contrasting ourselves with what and who we see around us and what we are lead to believe is "normal".
Over time this inner dialogue at an unconscious (and sometimes conscious level)can be very unhealthy and destructive both emotionally and physically.This can manifest its self in many ways with general anxiety and stress about body image or even worse!
Its quite common for people to feel helpless about their situation perhaps lacking in the confidence and motivation to know that they can feel differently about how they percieve themselves. At Sahasrara we dont believe in a "one cap fits all aproach" instead we believe we are able to offer the perfect blend of therapys to suit the individual and enable them to think differently about themselves using Hypnothrapy Hypnosis,NLP, Timeline Therapy, and Thought Field Therapy.
Best Wishes
Edd & Lori

What do you dream about?

The ancient Egyptians certainly knew the value of dreams, they were credited with creating "dream rooms" performing what we now know as hypnosis. At Sahasrara at our therapy room in Norhamptonshire we believe that hypnosis is a very valuable "tool" in allowing you to realise your dreams or using hypnosis to rid yourself of nightmares for good!
Hypnosis as a therapy which can be used in many situations from improving your golf swing to learning how to relax effectively. Hypnotherapy at Sahasrara in Northants is a relaxing stress free experiance!
Edd & Lori