Self-Hypnosis – Can It Really Help You Lose Weight?

Hypnosis, thanks to the movies, the very word conjures up the picture of a beady-eyed hypnotist swinging a watch on a chain and chanting, “You are getting sleepy.”

Use any Internet search engine and you will find several million pages devoted to the topic. Unfortunately, many websites that sell hypnosis programs make wild and crazy, unsubstantiated claims. I’ve been in the industry since 1978. So I think that I’m more than expert enough to set the record straight on weight loss hypnosis.

First of all, hypnotism is a tool, just like a scalpel is a tool. Just as different surgeons have diversified levels of skill in the use of a scalpel, different hypno-technicians have varying levels of skill in the use of hypnotism. And to complicate the matter, there are different types of hypnotism.

Here are just a few of the wild claims about weight loss hypnosis that I’ve read about on websites on the Internet, along with the the real story:

”Hypnotherapy will speed up your metabolism.” The truth is that hypnotism can’t directly speed up your metabolism. But it can be very effective at helping to program your unconscious with increased motivation to exercise. And exercise will increase your metabolic rate. Similarly, hypnotism to speed up the metabolism for quick weight loss can be effected by programming the unconscious to motivate the intake of increased amounts of protein, because that intake will step up your metabolic rate.

”Hypnotherapy will make you become thinner.” This is false. But hypnotism can be used to help clean out your appetite, so that you eat less. And eating less can help you to become thinner. The average person’s appetite and cravings for food and compulsion to eat are caused by two subconscious programs:

A. When you pair eating with any other behavior, the other behavior will trigger cravings for food and an overwhelming desire to eat. This is called a conditioned response. For example, if you eat as you talk on the phone, you will get an urge to eat each time you get on the telephone.

B. When you feel tense, you feel an urge to put something into your mouth for relaxation and pleasure. This is because of programming that you received as a baby. When you got difficult, your mom put a bottle in your mouth. You got distracted, relaxed, and probably fell asleep. Now when you get cranky (anxious or tense), you feel compelled to put something into your mouth for relaxation and pleasure.

C. There is a third unconscious program that is present for some people. It’s called emotional eating. Emotional eating takes place when an individual is motivated to make him or herself fat, because by being fat they will protect themselves in some way. For example, if an individual gets their heart broken in a relationship, their unconscious can motivate them into a behavior that would prevent them from getting their heart broken again. Example: They are motivated to gain weight to keep them out of another relationship, because that will eliminate the possibility of another broken heart.

So just how can self-hypnosis for losing weight overcome the above problems? Click here to read the remainder of this weight loss hypnosis article.

I’ve written several articles on this complex topic that available on my website. These articles illustrate some effective techniques for using hypnotherapy for emotional eating.

Alan B. Densky, CH is the developer of the Neuro-VISION Video Weight Loss Hypnosis CDs, which was granted a US Patent. He also offers Ericksonian Hypnosis & NLP CDs for appetite suppression. Visit the Neuro-VISION Weight Loss Hypnosis website and download a FREE Hypnotic Power Relaxation Program, or subscribe to one or more of the world-class hypnosis newsletters.

– Alan Densky

Effective Methods Of Treatment For Depression And Heart Failure

Congestive heart failure, or CHF, is one of the most common chronic diseases in America. Almost five million people suffer from this condition, and half a million others develop it every year. This condition may be mild, or it may become disabling and interfere with normal life.

Individuals with CHF have numerous deviations from their previous daily routines. They must take medicines to decrease water accumulation and to decrease the work performed by their heart tissue. Many of these result in depression and fatigue. These medications may also hinder physical intimacy with a life partner.

One other problem that persons with CHF encounter is the need for major dietary changes. Many must quit eating beef, stay away from foods with a lot of fat or salt, or restrict the amount of fluids they consume every day. They are encouraged to diet and work to stay as healthy as they can.

Unfortunately, however, individuals with congestive heart failure no longer possess as much energy for physical activity as before. Rather, they must watch as friends and relatives play volleyball, swim, or jog. This leads to despair and loneliness. Furthermore, many sufferers grieve their loss of physical strength and energy.

The majority of individuals who experience this and have not yet reached retirement age also have to quit working. In addition to creating financial stress and anxiety, this can increase emotions of separation and seclusion. They are completely alone. Rather than of chatting with the worker at the next desk, they stare at TV while everyone else continues their live.

At times, people take depression or anxiety medicines to cope with these losses. Alternatively, people may opt for counseling or group treatment to assist them with meeting socialization needs and processing the mourning induced through their newly changed lives.

A better way of coping with this form of depression, however, has gained recent attention and achieved practically immediate approval among individuals who have trialed it. Additionally, unlike medicines or counseling therapies, this technique is quite inexpensive. People are able to learn to use it without encountering further financial hardship.

This approach, which uses a combination of Ericksonian hypnosis and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), assists people to learn to relax and seek peace and tranquility in the midst of daily life. These therapies guide clients to accept the new restrictions in their lives while aiding them to go on living life as completely as possible. Even depressed moods that result from medicines can be easily lessened through the successful application of the techniques utilized by hypnosis and NLP. Two of these strategies are anchoring and the Flash.

Ericksonian Hypnotherapy is often known as conversational hypnosis. It offers techniques for providing post-hypnotic suggestions rooted in a conversation or metaphor. The benefit of this technique is that it eliminates the resistance to direct suggestions that is almost always encountered when using more conventional forms of hypnotherapy.

Through anchoring, hypnotists and NLP Practitioners teach people to concentrate on positive thoughts and situations from the past in which they felt calm and capable. As the client is progressively engrossed in these memories, they can experience these emotions once more. The person then learns to make a concrete anchor for these emotions by touching two fingers in contact with one another. The unconscious mind makes a link between the physical touch of these two fingers, and the positive emotions. Afterward, upon encountering an anxiety-producing or upsetting moment, an anchor is triggered through touching together the two fingers, re-creating feelings of peacefulness and tranquility.

The Flash technique is also quite helpful to people who are struggling to overcome depression. The Flash technique trains the brain to automatically utilize the negative thoughts that are creating stress and sadness, as triggers for beneficial perspectives that stimulate relaxation and happiness. With practice, clients soon become almost unable to have negative thoughts!

Summary: Individuals with congestive heart failure typically experience sadness as a result of mourning the decline of their physical healthiness and well-being. Other elements that sometimes contribute to depression are medicines and financial stresses. Both Ericksonian Hypnotherapy and NLP offer excellent techniques for assisting people to manage sadness without having to spend enormous quantities of time and money.

Alan B. Densky, CH specializes in stress and depression related symptoms as a certified hypnotherapist and NLP Practitioner. During his 30 year career he’s helped thousands of clients. He offers CDs for self hypnosis therapy for depression. Visit his Neuro-VISION self hypnosis site for the hypnosis article library, or watch his free videos on hypnosis.

– Alan B. Densky, CH