Hypnotherapy for Compulsive Habits

Hypnotherapy for CompulsiveĀ Behaviours.

Time To Quit SmokingMany people find that the initial motivation to stop a compulsive behaviour such as smoking or gambling can become reduced over time and they give in to that ‘one’ cigarette or equivalent.

Each action in our lives is a result of an impulse which gives way to a reaction. Compulsion arises when the impulse causes us to take a course of action which we no longer desire to take, but lack the motivation to control.

With compulsion these responses have become an ingrained habit on which we have placed some perceived value or use. The habit is maintained by holding on to this perceived benefit despite the evidence against it.

The smoker may believe that they need a cigarette to manage stress, others may be chasing a perceived high, the gambler may be chasing that big win, but they all build up a positive expectation and anticipation that the habit will achieve. It is very rare that we will maintain a habit without anticipation of positive reward, even if this positive reward is very infrequent. It is interesting to note that damage to a certain part of the brain which is believed to be connected to the ability to anticipate certain emotional states, ceases any previous compulsion.

The impulses to indulge in certain activities can be triggered by various thoughts (including emotions), behaviours or environments and this forms a conditioned response to the habit.

When we first give up a habit our motivation is high and this can be elevated and embedded in the subconscious by hypnosis, but as time passes we may lose sight of our motivation and when faced with a behaviour trigger the person may slip up.

It is important, therefore to be aware of your personal triggers and to strengthen your motivations prior to being faced with them. You may choose to remind yourself each day/week using affirmations, or many people find that their resolve to quit the habit is increased when they see another person out of control with their own compulsions. Some choose to attend meetings. Each day a person breaks the habit, new neural pathways are strengthened and feelings of personal efficacy are heightened.

If a slip up occurs you must not attribute this to personal negative attributes such as ā€˜I am no good at thisā€™, ā€˜it is too hard for meā€™, ā€˜I am a failureā€™ or any other personally damming statements.

One slip does not equal failure, only that you were not prepared for that trigger and you need to plan for future obstacles. You are on the pathway of stopping and you must remember that each journey has its obstacles and pot holes which need to be overcome, you do not need to run back to the beginning and start again!

Hypnotherapy can increase motivation and decrease desire, working with both conscious and subconscious patterns of thoughts, beliefs and behaviour.

Hypnotherapy for Fear and Phobias

Hypnotherapy for fear and phobias.

Hypnotherapy can be a very effective tool in the treatment of fear related conditions. Fear is a natural emotion, designed to protect us from danger, but when this is attached to illogical or irrational triggers, the effect can be very disruptive to your life.

It is important that we remember what makes us frightened, since if we were still living in the wild, our immediate response to any sign of danger could be the difference between life and death (standing around trying to remember if you should find a lion a threat would not be a good idea.)

Any memory embedded with fear is recalled faster and with more strength to ensure we react to the trigger and if these memories are created as a small child, a child will react to how they ‘feel’ without question. For example, a child may not like the look of a clown, if that clown then comes up to the child and shouts BOO!!, causing them to jump, you have the seeding of a clown phobia. The child will now feel fear every time they see a clown and this neurological pathway becomesĀ embeddedĀ  The adult realises that the fear is irrational, but since this response has grown over time in the subconscious mind, they are not able to simply stop the immediate fear reaction.

Hypnosis works by allowing the mind to reevaluate the response on all levels, freeing the person from the conditioned response and breaking the pattern of behaviour.

This process is successful for any fear related condition, such as fear embedded through watching a scary film at a young age, Ā fear related panic attacks, or any phobic response.

The treatment takes around 4 sessions depending on the individual and appointments are available week days, evenings and weekends.

Bunny Besley

Tel Ā : 07748647489