Welcome: reduce stress

Showing posts with label reduce stress. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 3, 2019

Being Mindful

(This blog was originally posted on March 26, 2016)

Photo by Microsoft/Bing

One of the most beneficial lessons I have learned is to be more “mindful” of my environment and surroundings. The first time I heard about mindfulness was during my course through the Hypnosis Motivation Institute to become certified to use hypnosis to help people deal with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. I am working on this behavior again as I complete another HMI course on using hypnosis to help care-givers take better emotional and physical care of themselves as well as the person they are looking after. Basically, this concept entails slowing down our usual rush or frenetic, day-to-day behavior of existing and increasing our awareness of the immediate surroundings to slow down and reduce stress so we can live and enjoy life.

Following is an exercise you can practice while you take a bath or shower to increase your mindfulness and awareness of your own environment. The goal of this exercise is to help you focus on the positive, interesting and good things around you, to eventually draw in that goodness to replace any negativity you have been carrying inside.

Rate your level of relaxation on a scale from 0-10, with “0” being least relaxed and “10” being most relaxed.

Draw a long, slow breath through your nose and hold it for the count of four. Release the breath through your mouth. As you exhale, say or think the word, “calm” or “relax”. Continue breathing at your own relaxed rate. When you remember to do so, think or say the word “calm” or “relax” as you continue this Mindfulness exercise.

Step into the shower/bath. Focus your attention on the sensation of the water on your skin. What does the temperature like? How does it feel to have the water droplets falling on your skin (if a shower)? What is the sensation like as the water laps against your body (if a bath) as you position yourself to sit in the tub.

Notice the smell of the soap/bubble-bath/bath salts you are using. Is there a smell? What does it smell like, if anything at all? How does it feel (texture) when the soap/bubble-bath/bath salts touch your skin?

Now take a moment to allow the water from the shower splash over your hand, or to scoop up some bath water in your hands and allow it to spill through your fingers. Notice the shape of the water droplets. Can you see any colors in the water droplets or perhaps even in the bubbles from soap or bubble-bath? What are those colors? What are those shapes?

To conclude the exercise, rate your level of relaxation again, using the same 0-10 scale. What have you noticed during this exercise about your ability to relax and how it feels to be able to focus on something outside of yourself, this way?

This is just one example of how to practice Mindfulness. I use and teach Mindfulness to my hypnotherapy clients to help them relax and to help them reduce stress and anxiety, improve self-care and more. It is a great way to relax and practice noticing things going on around you that affect yet do not necessarily have anything to do with, directly affect, or are directly affected by you.

Summer Promotion Hypnosis for weight loss series:

Let the power of your subconscious mind help you release extra weight and increase your motivation to make healthier eating/nutrition and exercise choices. Book the entire 10-week series and save $250!

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/.

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Blocks and Opportunities

Photo courtesy of Microsoft/Bing

I recently came across the following quote from One Fit Widow, which a friend had pasted onto my Facebook page: “If it doesn’t open, it’s not your door.” How many times have experienced this philosophy? I wondered.

How many times have you experienced it?

One of my favorite lines in The Sound of Music is when Maria (Julie Andrews) says, “Wherever the Lord shuts a door somewhere He opens a window.” A more recent example comes from Katy Perry’s hit song, Firework: “Maybe your reason why all the doors are closed so you could open one that leads you to the perfect road.” Both are examples of such an optimistic, encouraging and hopeful philosophy that everything will work out in the end. I completely believe that it is true; however, there are often times in our lives when we have reason to seriously doubt that our desired outcome can or will ever be achieved. What do we do, then?

When I was applying to different universities to pursue my post-graduate degree, my academic advisor told me something very important: “If one of these colleges rejects your application, it might be because they are not a good fit for you.” I invite you to think about that concept for a moment. Her words echo the common break-up platitude, “It’s not you; it’s me.” But, why shouldn’t that be true? Over the years this insight has proved to be very sage counsel in various situations.

Whether we’re trying to land that dream job, be accepted to our first-choice college or join that super-cool group of kids at school, sometimes there isn’t a comfortable fit between all parties. Furthermore, no matter how hard we work to try and fit in with a certain group or organization, there may still be friction, frustration and disappointment. Too often, our first reaction/thought when something goes wrong in or with our conscious mind’s Great Plan is to blame ourselves for the perceived failure to achieve that very-important goal. We ask ourselves over and over again, “What did I do wrong? Why doesn’t he/she like me? What else can I do to fit in?” The situation quickly embodies that proverbial attempt to fit a square peg into a round hole.

The key to finding the perfect fit is to reframe the question—“Which one of those doors is mine to walk through?”—and be able to recognize it when that opportunity presents itself to you. Hypnotherapy and therapeutic guided imagery are great tools to help you let go of goals or situations that haven’t worked for you while becoming open to the right opportunities for you that are coming your way. During your sessions, I will teach you simple breathing and relaxation exercises that you can use to reduce stress and create a personalized hypnotic script to reinforce specific suggestions for creating opportunities to achieve your goal that are perfect for you. I will also provide a recording of your hypnosis session that you can listen to and reinforce the relaxation techniques and goal-actualization strategies that we worked on during your hypnotherapy session.

And as for being able to recognize the “right” door for you… Don’t worry: You will. Because when that relationship does work—when your first-choice (or even second- or third-choice) college sends you that long-awaited acceptance letter and enrollment packet, or you are offered that “dream job”—you will notice how easily everything falls into place. Suddenly all of the details surrounding your situation look and feels indescribably right from every angle. You find that your path forward is easy and opening up more opportunities to you. The best part of this journey is noticing how you can now look back at those days, weeks or even years of waiting for that golden opportunity with affection. You may even find that you appreciate the work, patience and frustration you experienced during that time of waiting and supposed “missed opportunities” because these are what enabled that proverbial window or door to open for you.