Be empowered to discover and apply solutions that put you back in control of your life.
Addictions fall into one of two broad categories:
Substance addiction
It is possible to become addicted to substances when the brain becomes accustomed to the substance being administered whether by ingestion, inhalation or injection. The brain is initially affected by the chemicals but, over the course of time, the reaction is reduced and the person requires more of the substance in order to achieve the same reaction. Potentially, the craving causes the person to lose control of their actions while the brain drives them to seek out the next fix.
Behavioural addiction
Behavioural addictions share similar chemical effects but the chemicals are internal; produced by the body itself. Dopamine, serotonin, adrenaline and endorphins are all natural substances that have a beneficial role, preparing us for action, improving endurance or rewarding us with the feeling of satisfaction. In extreme case, however, the brain can begin to crave these chemicals too so that, for example, a person cannot feel happy unless they have run 10km today.
It is the amygdala, the primitive part of our brain, that responds to these chemical. Solution focused hypnotherapy can help in the battle against addiction because it puts the conscious, intelligent part of the brain in control.
Habits are not necessarily problematic. We all have behaviours that could be described as habits; things that we do without conscious thought. It’s likely that you have the habit of cleaning your teeth in the morning and you may find yourself, on your way to work, mentally confirming that you did, because the action was carried out on auto pilot. If you are in the habit of checking that the front door is locked before you go to bed at night, that’s a useful habit. Again, you may find yourself mentally checking that you did as you lie down to sleep, because you did it without conscious thought. Neither of these habits has a negative impact on your life.
On the other hand, if you feel the need to clean your teeth three times before you leave the house , keep a toothbrush in your bag in case you forget and another in your desk draw in case you lose the one in your bag then the habit has begun to have a negative impact. If you get to your bedroom and then feel the need to go downstairs and check the door is locked again, that’s irritating. If you spend half an hour checking each door and window in your house three times, that’s a real problem.
Other habits that can become compulsions include:
Consciously, the intelligent part of the brain knows that it doesn’t make sense to wash hands, repeat a phrase or clean the sink multiple times, for example. By giving focus to the intelligent part of the brain, solution focused hypnotherapy can help to bring the compulsive behaviour under control.
It is not unusual for clients to consult a hypnotherapist regarding physical health issues or relationship problems. This makes sense because mind and body are inextricably connected.
Physical Health
When the brain is not functioning well, the body will often experience physical symptoms. When the brain is suffering stress it is common for normal sleep patterns to be disrupted. The normal amount of sleep will be insufficient for the brain to process all of its worries so it’s likely that sleep will be disrupted and you will not wake feeling refreshed and ready to start a new day. You might even feel as though you want to retreat under the duvet.
Relationship Issues
Being unable to manage mental stress successfully can also have a negative effect on relationships. Combined with poor sleep it’s a recipe for irritability and low mood, a combination that can be disastrous to a relationship.
The deep relaxation state induced by hypnotherapy helps the brain to manage stress more effectively and improves sleep quality as a result. By cultivating a more positive mental attitude, physical health can be improved and relationship issues will often be resolved.
Solution focused hypnotherapy can help with:
These are primitive responses that served humans well when we lived in a dangerous and threatening environment. When there is a wild animal outside your cave that’s capable of killing you, it makes sense to be anxious; it will keep you alive. If it’s dark and cold outside then curling up by the fire and pulling up the blanket is a logical primitive response. Without the benefit of artificial heat and light there is little you can usefully do that will improve your chances of survival. It makes perfect sense to conserve your energy until conditions improve.
The problem arises when we continue to respond in a primitive way to circumstances we encounter in the modern world. Anxiety is not a helpful response to attending a business meeting and depression is not a helpful response to being faced with difficulty paying a bill.
We often find ourselves responding in primitive ways to modern situations, even though consciously we know it doesn’t make sense. A raised heart rate and increased blood pressure will not help your car to go further when the fuel warning light comes on. Careful driving and information about nearby fuel sources are what you need. Solution focused hypnotherapy empowers the frontal cortex, the problem solving part of the brain, to find a more appropriate modern-world solution.
Under stressful situations our brain prepares us for one of three primitive responses; flight, fight or freeze. Most people are familiar with the fight or flight response but the freeze option is less well known. In a primitive environment, there are times when “stay silent and don’t move a muscle” is a sensible survival strategy.
Faced with the challenge of delivering a presentation to a large audience or taking a potentially match-winning penalty kick, we may find ourselves overwhelmed by the challenge to the extent where we freeze and fail as a result. In today’s world, the freeze response is rarely advantageous to us. We can find ourselves lacking the confidence or motivation to do the things we really want; better not to try than to try and fail.
The frontal cortex knows that the freeze response is inappropriate. In our conscious brain we know that our audience is on our side, willing us to deliver a useful presentation. We know that the odds are in our favour when we take a penalty and we are equally aware that, even if we should miss, nobody will die. Solution focused hypnotherapy can help us regain confidence and motivation by putting the intelligent brain back in charge.
Have you ever been told that your pain is “all in your head”? When you consider that pain is the brain’s interpretation of signals sent by the nervous system, that’s a statement of the obvious; all pain is in our head, experienced by our brain. It has been known for an amputee to reach to scratch the itchy ankle that is no longer there. The nerves that previously ended at the ankle send the “itch” signal to the brain and the brain responds by instructing the hand to scratch; even though the conscious brain knows that the ankle is no longer there. An experimental subject who has been told they will experience less pain following an injection of a strong pain killer will feel less pain, whether the injection actually is a painkiller or a placebo. Clearly, it is a truism that pain is “all in our head”.
Sometimes, pain signals can be triggered by a physical injury but continue to be processed in a kind of feedback loop, even when the initial cause of the pain is no longer present. That doesn’t make the experience of pain any less real but it does mean that hypnotherapy can help.
Since pain is an experience of the brain, solution focused hypnotherapy can help with its management. Because the pain response is an automatic one, centred in the primitive brain, bringing the intelligent brain to the fore can counter it.
Hypnotherapy is very effective in helping expectant parents to be in a useful mindset for birth. Both the pregnant mother and her birthing partner can benefit.
If we approach birth feeling calm, positive, in control and prepared, we will produce all the right chemicals for labour (birthing). In this way we are less likely to need interventions. If we do decide to have interventions, however, we are better placed to make that decision as an informed choice, using our intellect, rather than panicking.
Pain also feels more acute if we feel anxious or frightened and is also accentuated when we are exhausted. Hypnotherapy can help us to avoid fear and anxiety. It can also improve sleep quality so that you are better prepared for birthing.
During our sessions you will learn:
I will also give you 2 relaxation downloads and practice hypnosis every session, so that you feel confident about using it during birth.
The session are positive, relaxing and empowering.
A fear of spiders is very common. If you live in a country where there are poisonous spiders that may be a perfectly rational fear and could even save your life. When the response is disproportional to the point where it affects our life detrimentally then a fear becomes a phobia. When we cannot leave the house after dark because we will no longer be able to see the spiders then the phobia is taking control.
Common Phobias
When you consider any of these common phobias you can see why the primitive response is one of fear. Imagine showing an aeroplane to a caveman and trying to explain that it would enable him to travel through the air safely, like a bird. Our conscious brain may be aware that, per passenger mile, an aeroplane is one of the safest ways to travel; much safer than a car or motorcycle. Our primitive brain, however, still refuses to accept that travelling at great height in something that’s heavier than air can possibly be considered safe.
Whatever your fear or phobia, solution focused hypnotherapy, with its focus on using the intelligent brain for decision making, can help us regain control.
Most smokers (almost 70% in a recent survey) want to quit smoking and more than half have tried to give up within the last year. Nicotine, the primary drug associated with smoking and vaping is not, in itself, a highly addictive substance. Smokers who are forced to abstain, while on a long-haul flight, for example, do not experience the severe withdrawal symptoms that would be associated with suddenly quitting alcohol or heroin. Nevertheless, the habit of smoking is one that people find difficult to break.
Solution focused hypnotherapy offers an approach that gives instant results. Once you have made the decision that you really want to quit, it is possible to achieve that within a double-length session that will help you to understand what drives your smoking habit, prepares you with tools that will help you to win the battle every time and allows you to leave the session as a non-smoker.
Some species have adapted to survive by producing a large number of offspring, each of which requires a small share of parental attention to reach maturity. Humans have few offspring and devote years of attention to help a child to reach maturity, so the ability to conceive and carry a baby to full term takes on additional importance. Yet one in seven couples in the UK experiences difficulty starting a family and in twenty percent of those cases there may be no discernible physical reason that could present them with an obvious treatment choice.
The jury is out on whether or not stress and the hormones it produces have a detrimental effect on fertility but what is clear is that stress can be the underlying cause of many lifestyle factors that have been shown to reduce fertility. Here are seven examples:
In most of these examples the “Goldilocks” approach comes into play. Obesity reduces fertility but so does extremely low BMI. The right amount of exercise improves fertility but too much is harmful. BSolution focused hypnotherapy can address both the stress and many of the detrimental behaviours that are often a consequence of stress, helping you to achieve the “just right” balance that improves fertility.
My name is Becky Armstrong-Corbett. I am a qualified psychotherapist and solution focused clinical hypnotherapist.
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