I am continuing to suspend in-person hypnotherapy sessions with me in my office. However, phone, and Zoom consultations ARE and WILL REMAIN AVAILABLE!
(This blog was
originally posted on December 21, 2014)
Many years ago, Weight Watchers® ran a television
advertisement which really summed up our often-complicated relationship with
food. In it, different people were shown eating various yummy morsels while a
take on the song “If You’re
Happy” plays in the background. The lyrics covered a variety of
emotions—happiness, sadness, anger, frustration, etc.—to correspond with eating
a specific food item.
I remember thinking, this is a very clever marketing tool because it
subtly (and not-so-subtly) addresses our tendency to justify or cushion the
emotions we often associate with food, which can lead to overeating. And isn’t
that what so many of us do? The implication of this advertisement was that we
learned to associate eating with satisfying or fulfilling an emotion. In this
case, according to Hypnosis Motivation
Institute founder John
Kappas, Ph.D.’s Theory
of Mind, over time and with repeated exposure food becomes a “known” in our
subconscious
mental script. If your primary caretaker “rewarded” a good grade with your
favorite meal, or offered you a bowl of ice cream when a beloved pet died, you
likely developed a subconscious association between food and important life
events.
In a similar way, food eventually becomes a subconscious emotional “anchor”
that reminds us of comfort, nurturing and even encouragement or protection when
times get tough. As adults, we continue this pattern by going out to eat to
celebrate a promotion at work or devour a container of Ben and Jerry’s
chocolate fudge-brownie ice cream to console ourselves after breaking up with a
partner. And just like the song lyrics go, when we feel frustrated we reach
for some potato chips and crunch through the entire bag as if devouring snack
will also macerate the problem. Even if eating this way is no longer
pleasurable for you, since the behavior is known, comfortable and safe you keep doing it.
For more information about how hypnotherapy can help you change
unhealthy eating patterns and inappropriate associations with food and to take
off extra weight, contact me at (661) 433-9430 or send an e-mail to calminsensehypnosis@yahoo.com.
Sara
R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified hypnotherapist based in Southern
California. She graduated with honors from the Hypnosis Motivation Institute in 2005. Sara has been
voted the Best Hypnotherapist in Santa Clarita, California, four years in a row
(2019-2022). For more information about Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up
an appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/
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2023
