health

Emotions: The Thorn Of The Mind And Body

Hypnosis and similar concepts of “mind training” have become increasingly popular today. Many people have begun to realize how much their own attitudes and beliefs actually effect their behavior. A common attitude that we have problems with is our emotions and proper acceptance and display of them.

We desire happiness and we know that we deserve a life that is good. But how do we get it? How can we change our manipulative ways?

Emotional Release

Human beings are emotional creatures – no matter how “tough” or how “hard”, we all experience great emotion. Holding this emotion back is preventing us from growing as individuals, however releasing emotion in healthy ways will benefit us greatly.

Cry. Let it out. It will feel good and your whole body and mind will feel so much more relaxed and at ease with your being.

From experience…

I speak the advice a wise old friend gave me when I started to let my “thoughts” get the best of me. He explained how we tend to replay the same “scene” over and over again in our heads, like a movie. There’s a beginning, middle, and an end, and it’s because of this we are sabotaging ourselves the moment that “scene” starts. If our movie ends with tragedy, it will always end poorly. But if we begin to think of a happy ending, where we resolve conflicts in a positive manner, the end will be much more benefitial to us because we thought of the best possible ending – the true thoughts we wanted. Expect the worst and you will get the worst.

And quit beating yourself up.

Remember life is good and you deserve the best – don’t settle for less.

Another good point to mention is our constant name-calling we do to ourselves. “I’m not smart enough” “I’m fat” “I’m not good enough”.. if we keep repeating these thoughts to ourselves they begin to internalize and we begin to believe them. We must break this form of belief patterns as soon as possible. We so badly need a boost to our self esteem – we need to feel good about ourselves or we simply won’t feel good.

So what do we do to change the way we behave, the way we think?

Brain on hypnosis (Photo credit: Wikipedia

* Stay positive… avoid negativity whenever possible – it is hurting you more than you may think.

* Get happy, cheer up. Life could be worse.

* Develop a healthier life style. Eat well, exercise regularly, and maintain stable friendships with like-minded people. Cut the toxic friends off from your life, they are sucking the life out of you… literally.

Thoughts, Mind, Body, Behavior…

So what does this all have to do with hypnosis? Hypnosis is a method of beavior change that some people use in order to change their negative, unhealthy lifestyles and other bad habits. Through this approach they are able to rid themselves of the negative aspects of their lives.

Along with hypnosis goes the concept of Neuro-linguistic Programming or NLP.

NLP is not as complicated as it sounds, but will take some time to fully grasp as a concept. Quite simply it is the relationship between mind, body, and language. And as was mentioned earlier, our internal “self-talk” has a great influence on us, greater than we even perceive it to have. Perception is key in understanding these concepts. How do we see ourselves in the great big world around us?

The literature surrounding these topics mentioned is growing daily – you have much to learn, but it is worth it in order to live a long and healthy life. Don’t give up. Try some NLP techniques and begin your quest to a greater understanding of self. Just remember in the end the only one we will have left is ourselves.

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The online resources are endless. Here are a few recent articles and websites to start your research and journey towards a better life.

Filed Under: health

Conquering Addiction At The Root

You may be surprised to hear that one of the most common uses of hypnosis is to overcome addiction. The reason why hypnosis for addiction is so effective is that it tackles addiction at its root; negative thought patterns. In this article we’ll go over the basis for those negative thoughts and then discuss some ways you can use hypnosis for addiction to conquer them.

So what is addiction anyway? Lots of people are addicted to television and coffee, how come they aren’t considered addicts? Well, those sorts of addictions may be detrimental in some ways but they are in no way comparable to the effects of smoking, alcohol, and substance abuse. Though coffee may be just as addictive as smoking, coffee related deaths are far less then smoking, so it’s clear why one is socially accepted and the other frowned upon. But if you’re looking to cut down your coffee consumption then hypnosis for addiction would also work for you.

The best way to go about a discussion on hypnosis for addiction is by example, so we’re going to use smoking. The reason people have such a tough time quitting is because they get unbearable cravings. This is where the hypnosis comes in. First off you’ve got to gain control over your mental processes. So find a place that’s comfortable and free from distractions and close your eyes.

What we’re going to do is watch the breath. You’ll quickly find that you have a million thoughts surging through your head in just about every minute of the day. What I want you to do is acknowledge that the thoughts are there and then let them go, don’t pursue them any further. You’re bound to have the thought of a smoke pop into your head at some point, so do the same for this. Mastery over this step is a crucial aspect of conquering addiction.

If you stay determined and practice the preceding step everyday you’re sure to see improvement in your concentration and overall well being, plus you’ll have better control over yourself when craving arise. An important point to remember is that a craving will only last at most for 8 minutes. This means that if you can find something to distract your attention for about 8 minutes, you’ll no longer have the craving for a smoke. The next step in using hypnosis for addiction is to use a visualization.

Once you’re in your relaxed state and you’ve been counting your breath for quite some time, you’re ready to call up a visualization. You can take two routes with this step, either a positive or a negative visualization. An example of a positive visualization would be to see how happy you and your family would be if you were to conquer your addiction. A negative visualization would be to picture all the possibilities for yourself if you were to continue down the path that you’re heading. The visualization used in conjunction with gaining control over your mind is what makes hypnosis for addiction so effective.

Using hypnosis for addiction can literally be that simple. Of course, it’s not going to happen overnight so you’ve got to stay determined and remember to give yourself credit for trying to conquer your bad habits. Hypnosis for addiction mixed with the will to succeed and a lot of determination will surely result in the demise of whatever habit you’re trying to kick.

Filed Under: health Tagged With: Conquering Addiction

Dangers Of High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure is known as the Silent Killer. Also called hypertension, the dangers of high blood pressure are numerous. One of the greatest dangers is being left untreated for many years with no signs or symptoms as it gradually does irreparable damage to the body. A great number of Americans can control their blood pressure using no medication if they simply reduce their salt intake. However, combined with other factors, such as obesity or smoking, high blood pressure is a risk indicator of more serious conditions.

High blood pressure damages the arteries over time. The high pressure of the blood flow damages arteries that are necessary for transporting oxygen and other nutrients to the cells of the body. One type of damage high blood pressure causes is called arteriosclerosis, also known as hardening of the arteries. This leads to heart problems, kidney problems, peripheral arterial disease, eye damage and aneurysm.

The heart is in danger due to high blood pressure. High blood pressure can lead to coronary artery disease, an enlarged left heart and even heart failure. The pressure on the heart to pump the blood, along with the damage that hardened arteries cause, stresses the heart over time causing serious injury and even death.

Hypertension also leads to brain damage. Every cell in the body needs the nutrients supplied by the blood through the arteries and veins of the body. The brain is susceptible to the effects of high blood pressure, loosing vital oxygen and other nutrients supplied by the blood. Strokes, impaired mental function and dementia can all be caused by hypertension.

Kidneys need a healthy blood supply in order to rid the body of extra fluid and other waste products. High blood pressure can damage the kidneys, causing scarring and eventual kidney failure. Diabetes is another stress to the kidneys, and patients with diabetes and high blood pressure have a very high risk of permanent kidney damage.

The dangers of high blood pressure and diabetes are particularly high for overweight people and smokers. Losing weight and quitting smoking are the two best things you can do for your health. A healthy balanced diet, good regular exercise, counseling, hypnosis and group therapy are helpful for overweight patients and smokers who need to adopt better lifestyles for good health.

High blood pressure can also lead to damage of the eyes. Excessive blood pressure puts stress on the delicate vessels of the eye. It also leads to the buildup of fluid behind the retina and damage to the nerves in the eyes. Diabetes also increases the risk of eye problems in patients with high blood pressure.

Both men and women can experience mild or severe sexual dysfunction due to high blood pressure. The pressure damages delicate veins and vessels necessary to maintain an erection or experience sustained sexual arousal. Often blamed on age, menopause or other factors, high blood pressure silently destroys the sex lives of many couples who go undiagnosed.

High blood pressure raises the level of calcium in urine. As the calcium is washed out of the body, bone loss occurs. This leads to osteoporosis and broken bones. Broken bones also increase the probability of developing arthritis.

About half the people who have high blood pressure also have trouble sleeping. The condition is called obstructive sleep apnea, and one of the signs is severe snoring. The loss of sleep due to sleep apnea in turn raises the blood pressure even higher.

High blood pressure can also lead to a stroke. The amount of damage caused by a stroke depends on how large it was and where it occurred in the brain; but paralysis, trouble speaking, loss of sensation and even death can result from a stroke. People who have had a stroke are at an increased risk of having another one.

Hypertension can also cause seizures in pregnant women. This is called preeclampsia or eclampsia. These conditions are serious, and are potentially fatal to both the woman and the unborn child.

Diagnosing and treating high blood pressure early is critical for preventing these conditions. If diagnosed, first, cut back on your salt intake. This lowers blood pressure automatically, and for many patients no other treatment is necessary. Second, reduce the amount of stress in your life. Learn to manage stress through counseling, meditation, exercise, breathing exercises or hypnosis. Medication is available to treat severe high blood pressure that is unresponsive to diet, exercise and quitting smoking.