Thursday, April 26, 2018

Suggestions of a Scent


(This blog was originally posted on February 3, 2015)


Photo by Rick Hustead



After the New Year I typically do an early “Spring Cleaning” in which I donate clothes or other items that I no longer use to make room for new items I received as gifts over the holidays. When I started sorting this year I came across some old bottles of perfume that I hadn’t worn in ages. Curious, I spritzed one of my favorites into the air and inhaled deeply. Of course the composition of those scents had degraded by now; in their less pure form they were actually more intense. Equally intense was the power of my memories of the emotions I felt back when I used to wear that brand of perfume.

Good days, not-so-good days—it all came flooding back in a rush. I remembered the friend who introduced me to my former signature scent. Then that recollection reminded me where I was at that time: I was living in a suburb of London and had just started working on my post-graduate degree. In January, it would have been much colder and wetter in London than the current weather in Southern California. In fact, around this time twenty-four years ago, snow fell in Southeast London and blanketed the rooftops and pavements in neighborhood for several days….

That unexpected trek down memory lane served as a powerful reminder of why I do not wear perfume or use scented candles or incense when I work with hypnotherapy clients. Olfaction (sense of smell) is one of the most powerful triggers of memory and strong, pervasive emotional associations. As I explained in my previous blog titled Anchors, the mind creates a subconscious link or “anchor” between the scent a person perceives and whatever is going on in his or her life at that moment. Even though the details of a specific event will likely fade from the conscious mind over time, exposure to a scent or odor can trigger an unexpected memory that the subconscious mind associates with that moment in time.

Part of my work as their hypnotherapist entails helping my clients to create new, positive associations that will facilitate the achievement of their self-improvement goals. Therefore, it is important that minimize the possibility that something about me will unintentionally create or trigger a subconscious association between me and a previous, unwanted behavior that could impede the therapeutic process.



Sara R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified hypnotherapist based in Southern California. She graduated with honors from the Hypnosis Motivation Institute in 2005. For more information about Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up an appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/.
© 2018

Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Suggested Reading

(This blog was originally posted on January 13, 2015)






Long before I began my hypnotherapy training at the Hypnosis Motivation Institute in 2004, I found several “self-help” authors whose philosophies really resonated with me. I loved the way Dr. Susan Jeffers encouraged people to push themselves just that little bit further than they thought (believed) they could go to achieve their goal. She even provided practical tips and exercises to help them “chunk down” a potentially daunting task into more manageable and achievable steps to encourage the person to keep striving toward success.

My first introduction to the Law of Attraction I was reading the affirmations of Frances Scovel Shinn, a 20th Century artist and metaphysics teacher. Her books, especially The Game of Life (and How to Play It) and Your Word is Your Wand, had a profound effect on me: they taught me how my thoughts and attitudes could transform events that transpired in my life. By the time I learned about HMI founder John Kappas, Ph.D.’s Mental Bank Concept I was well-versed in the various ways my beliefs could attract or even repel opportunities for prosperity.

When it comes to philosophies about riding and training horses, Monty Roberts’ teachings have had the most profound effect on me. I love the way he always puts the horse first: his interactions with these animals are gentle, subtle and respectful. When I learned that he had written a book about the ways his Join-Up Technique could be successfully applied to support and fortify relationships between humans, I rushed to buy and read it. To my delight, this model is a wonderful complement to Dr. Kappas’s model of Emotional and Physical (sexual) personalities and how E and P characteristics interact to create a successful or unsuccessful relationship.
Finally, M.J. Ryan’s book about patience taught me that taking the time (and a deep breath) to allow things to occur naturally is more likely to yield that productive, desired outcome than rushing to finish that project.
I hope you enjoy reading these books as much as I have. I look forward to reading your feedback about them and/or recommendations about other self-improvement books that you have enjoyed reading and influenced you in some way.


  • Jeffers, Ph.D., Susan. (1991) Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway London: Arrow Books

  • Jeffers, Ph.D., Susan. (1996) End the Struggle and Dance With Life Great Britain: Hodder and Stoughton

  • Kappas, Ph.D., John G. (1987) Success Is not an Accident: The Mental Bank Concept. Van Nuys, CA: Panorama Publishing Company

  • Kappas, Ph.D., John G. (1992) Relationship Strategies: The E & P Attraction. Van Nuys, CA: Panorama Publishing Company

  • Roberts, Monty. (2003) Horse Sense for People: Using the Gentle Wisdom of the Join-Up Technique to Enrich Our Relationships at Home and at Work. Canada: Alfred A. Knopf

  • Ryan, M.J. (2003) The Power of Patience: How to Slow the Rush and Enjoy More Happiness, Success, and Peace of Mind Every Day. Broadway Books

  • Scovel-Shinn, Florence. (1925) The Game of Life and How to Play It. Bridgend, England: L.N. Fowler & Co. Ltd.

  • Scovel-Shinn, Florence. (1928) Your Word Is Your Wand. Romford, England: L.N. Fowler & Co. Ltd.

  • Scovel-Shinn, Florence. (?) The Secret Door to Success. Romford, England: L.N. Fowler & Co. Ltd.


               


Sara R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified hypnotherapist based in Southern California. She graduated with honors from the Hypnosis Motivation Institute in 2005. For more information about Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up an appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/.
© 2018