That Lightbulb Moment

(This blog was originally posted on May 6, 2014)

Photo courtesy of Microsoft

          According to Albert Einstein, the definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Comedian Bill Maher once told his Real Time With Bill Maher audience that some of the best decisions he ever made involved quitting a behavior or lifestyle that didn’t make him happy, including quitting smoking and leaving Catholicism. He explained that continuing to smoke cigarettes was jeopardizing his heath, and practicing a religion he didn’t believe in was making him miserable (Maher is now an atheist). The comedian realized that he needed to change or even abandon some of his previous beliefs and behaviors in order to lead a life that was more authentic for him.

But what about Thomas Edison, who famously joked that through his efforts, society now knew about 999 ways not to build a light bulb before he perfected the design on the 1,000^th or so attempt? His success was the product of hard work, dedication and perseverance as a scientist. He was able to turn disappointment into motivation and even a teachable moment. If he had stopped trying to perfect his invention on the third or 999^th attempt someone else, somewhere else, likely would have created the light bulb. Creating the light bulb was Edison’s invention, his goal to achieve, his life path to follow—and he stayed on-course until he realized this dream.

When my clients initially contact me to help them achieve a new vocational or avocational self-improvement goal through hypnotherapy, they often want to give up a habit that no longer works for them. Some people want to quit smoking; others want to lose weight (stop over-eating). Still others want to increase their self-confidence and build their self-esteem so they can truly, finally, leave an unhealthy social, work or romantic relationship. Others want to learn skills or techniques that will help them relax and follow through with a plan or persevere and finally complete a project.

According to Einstein’s logic, stopping or quitting unproductive or even potentially harmful behaviors might be construed as a sign of sanity or even genius. On the other hand, he might argue that it’s a waste of time to spend years, money and energy repeating a pattern or design that seems to never work out—except, it did. In my role as a certified hypnotherapist, I focus on the most efficient and ecologically sound ways of helping the client achieve those goals that will not harm the person or others in his or her environment. I use hypnosis and guided imagery techniques to help the person explore his or her motivations to change an undesired habit that is limiting personal growth and replace it with one(s) that will enhance and maximize that individual’s potential. You know what you want to achieve. Your conscious mind thinks it knows what you are capable of. Through hypnotherapy, you can re-program any limiting or negative mental scripts into those of self-confidence, dedication and perseverance. I trust and respect your desire to do this work so you can also live the life you want to be leading, and I look forward to helping you achieve these self-improvement goals!

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/.

© 2015

Recurring Dreams

(This blog was originally posted on June 24, 2014)

Photo courtesy of Fotolia

      Have you ever had the same dream—or a dream about a specific topic—more than one time? These are recurring dreams, and they occur when the subconscious mind is unable to release or vent the content of the dream for one reason or another. You are likely to continue dreaming about this topic until your SCM has worked through, resolved or released your subconscious attachment to that issue. If this has happened to you, don’t worry: recurring dreams are your mind’s way of letting you know that you need to let go of a behavior, emotion or attachment that is preventing or hindering your personal growth.

     In his book, Professional Hypnotism Manual, Hypnosis Motivation Institute founder John Kappas, Ph.D. observed that an individual may also have recurring dreams about a stage of development that they may have missed. He theorized that the person’s dreams repeatedly address a specific literal or symbolic representation of a conflict, whereby the subconscious mind tries to relive and work through whatever is keeping the person “stuck” in that stage. Those dreams would likely cease once the person consciously or subconsciously resolved the conflict, thus releasing him or her to enter a new stage of development.

     For example, if someone seeks hypnotherapy to “stop” his or her recurring dreams about a former partner or aspect(s) of that previous relationship, I would first help the individual to analyze those dreams. I would specifically be interested to know what his or her dream interpretation reveals. What new insights does the client have about the behavior, emotions or beliefs associated with that former partner or relationship? In other words: What are you subconsciously holding onto? What do you subconsciously not want to give up or refuse to release? Next, I would incorporate this information into the hypnotic script(s) to encourage the client to give him- or herself permission to release any remaining emotional attachment to the person/relationship that may be preventing personal growth. I would also incorporate information about the positive lessons and experiences that the person acquired through this relationship, which my client could apply in a future and more successful or rewarding relationship. Finally, I would give the person a hypnotic suggestion to release residual emotions or behavioral attachment to the former partner or relationship—specifically, to the habit of dreaming about them—in early-morning venting dreams. Such release will not only provide a resolution for the conflict(s) that the person’s SCM has been working so hard to resolve, but will also enable him or her to pursue other goals that will facilitate continuing personal growth.

    I have addressed the psychological and physiological benefits of dreams, and hypnotherapy and how to analyze dreams, in several previous blogs: Dream Therapy, Part 1; Dream Therapy, Part 2; and Dream Therapy, Part 3.

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/.

© 2015

 

Hypnotized Sharks

(This blog was originally posted on August 14, 2014)

Photo courtesy of Microsoft

According to Hypnosis Motivation Institute founder John Kappas, Ph.D., people escape or flee into hypnosis when they perceive a threat or danger.  As I learned during my hypnotherapy training at HMI: “Hypnosis is created by an overload of message units, disorganizing our inhibitory process (Critical Mind), triggering our fight-flight mechanism and ultimately resulting in a hyper-suggestible state, providing access to the subconscious mind.”

           Apparently, sharks do a similar thing.

Last year, I watched a fascinating documentary about shark behavior in a Shark Week episode titled Zombie Sharks on the Discovery Channel®. In it, Eli Martinez, a shark expert, explained a neuro-physiological phenomenon called “tonic immobility.” According to Martinez, sharks can be rendered immobile whenever they are turned over onto their backs or, in some cases, by touching an area of a shark’s face. For all intents and purposes, tonic immobility temporarily paralyzes the shark until the contact is removed and/or it may rotate its body to a normal position.

Apparently, this area of the face and down the back is loaded with sensors which can quickly become overloaded by sensory stimuli. For example, an overload of sensory stimuli would occur when a researcher places his or her hands on the animal’s face or flips the fish onto its back to subdue it when inserting a tracking device, or if a larger predator, such as an orca, catches it and turns the animal onto its back as a predatory behavior. To complete this picture, imagine the psychological stress that a shark experiences when another animal—whether it is a human or another predator(s)—is swimming and lunging with hands or an opened toothy mouth, to catch it. There would be even more stress and anxiety for its survival when the fish is cornered and caught. In some instances, as in the case of the researchers and videographers for Shark Week, there would be additional sensory stimuli from the cameras and extra lighting in the ocean. By the time the shark is subdued on its back, it has endured an incredible overload of sensory stimulation. It is no wonder that the fish zones out.

This phenomenon sounds a lot like hypnosis to me.

For more information about tonic immobility, check out the articles at the following links:

• “Tonic Immobility on Sharks”: http://www.sharkaidinternational.org/report_tonic_immobility_on_sharks.html

• “Discovery Channel’s ‘Zombie Sharks’ Explores Tonic Immobility”, Woodlands Online at  http://www.woodlandsonline.com/npps/story.cfm?nppage=53506

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/.

© 2015