Unwind your mind for a happier life

Some people are generally happy, only feeling unhappy or sad as a natural reaction to an event or situation. Other people often feel down or depressed with only fleeting glimpses of happiness.  Why is this? What can we do about it? Research tells us that `our income and environment contribute only about 10% to our tendency for personal happiness, whereas our genes and upbringing influence about 50%. The good news is that a whopping 40% is accounted for by our daily activities and the choices we make. The Dalai Lama said: "Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions."

Hypnotherapy combined with neuro-linguistic programming techniques can help people achieve their goals, manage their stress levels, melt away those extra pounds or work on whatever unhelpful habits are preventing them from reaching their potential. Knowledge is power so in my sessions there is a strong focus on understanding how the brain works, why we behave as we do and how we can make positive changes.

We talk about the intellectual brain and emotional, primitive brain. When we operate from the intellectual brain we generally get things right, make good choices and feel happier. It is the primitive brain that contributes most to our unhappiness. The primitive brain takes control when there is an overload of stress and this results in anger, anxiety and/or depression. So how do we create this overload which moves us from the intellectual part of the brain which has sensible responses, into the primitive part?  One of the major causes of anxiety is our own negative thoughts. Every negative thought, big or small is converted into anxiety. We may negatively forecast the future or ruminate about the past. Positive thinking will change your life but can also be difficult to achieve. Hypnosis can really help people use their minds in a fundamentally different way in relation to what they want to change. 

Hypnosis is focused attention similar to meditation or mindfulness which helps reduce stress and negative thoughts, making it easier to empower the intellectual brain. 

Hypnosis opens up the mind and provides a context to rethink negative patterns of thought and behaviour from the past, in line with what a person wants to do in the future. 

Hypnosis uses helpful positive words to create associations and paint pictures in the mind; this stimulates the unconscious, and if we create a change in the unconscious we create lasting change.

If we want to be happy it is important to reduce stress. We know that sleep, and specifically Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep is crucial in reducing stress.  We are all familiar with how REM works; if somebody upsets us during the day and we can’t resolve it, we can decide to just sleep on it.  When we wake up in the morning we may have forgotten about the issue, know how to deal with it or have decided that it really wasn’t important after all. Hypnosis is like a period of simulated REM making it easier to empower the intellectual brain. It is also essential to find ways of preventing the build-up of stress. Many studies have shown that living a life rich in positive action and positive interaction can really make a difference. If a person has difficulty with these, I can help and encourage them to take small steps towards achieving their goals.     

If you enjoyed this article, follow Mary Lovell Hypnotherapy on Facebook and visit my website marylovellhypnotherapy.co.uk.  If you would like to make an appointment, call 07514 055512 or email marymyhypnotherapist@gmail.com for your FREE initial consultation.