The Edinburgh Reporter’s Mike Smith is a qualified hypnotherapist. In the latest of a series of articles, Mike dispels some of the myths about hypnotherapy and describes how you can lose weight and relax at the same time.
As we say in Scotland in September, the nights are fair drawing in. Summer – what there was of it – is all but at an end. Autumn is upon us and – believe me, I don’t say this lightly – the countdown to Christmas has begun. It certainly has if you browse in any card shops where Santa Clause is already present beaming back at unsuspecting shoppers…
If you are one of thousands of people looking to lose weight, are you saying to yourself ‘ach, it will be Christmas soon, I’ll wait until the New Year’? Aha, I thought as much! But what if I said to you that weight loss is possible without going on a strict diet? ‘Hmm, tell me more’ I hear you cry…
Hypnotherapy can help you lose weight by getting you to think differently about not so much what you eat but when and where. When I said this to someone the other week they told me they go to Weight Watchers as ‘it was less scary’. This underlined the misconception many people have that hypnotherapy is involves someone dangling a gold watch in front of your eyes, making you go to sleep and getting you to dance around the room thinking you’re a chicken. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Hypnotherapy is really a simple process. If you really want to lose weight, for example, your first step is to contact a fully qualified hypnotherapist. We then meet for an initial consultation to discuss the benefits of hypnotherapy and what it can do for you. At this stage, I get a little information about you – your favourite pastime, your favourite place to go on holiday, favourite music and colours. In short everything that adds up to a bespoke script which will bring you to a feeling of being totally relaxed.
The consultation is FREE and you are under no obligation to return. But if you feel – as most of my clients have – that you want to give it a try we would then arrange a suitable date and time for you to return. Think about having a whole hour just for you – away from the hustle and bustle and stresses and demands of everyday life. Doesn’t that sound wonderful?
If, as an example, your favourite holiday is lying on a warm beach. I would start our session by asking you to sit back, make yourself comfortable, close your eyes and imagine you are lying on a golden, sun-kissed beach. My script carries on, asking you to imagine doing your favourite things, perhaps with your family or friends or perhaps on your own – it really is up to you.
I will not put you to sleep. You will be awake and fully conscious. What you will be is in a wholly relaxed state, imagining you are in your ideal place, doing what you really enjoy and feeling like you want to be in this state for ever. All you will hear is the sound of my voice – but you will be in total control and can stop this process at any time.
Once you are in such a wholly relaxed state, I will speak to your subconscious mind about why you want to lose weight and how I can help you change your eating habits. For example, do you snack during the day while at work? Or do you comfort eat at times of stress and anxiety? I encourage you to do some other activity rather than snack. I also ask you to imagine yourself at the weight you want to be and to create an image of you looking slimmer. This is the image that will be constant during how may sessions it takes for you to achieve your goals.
If you still need to be convinced about the benefits of hypnotherapy, let me give you the example of one of my clients. He contacted me about losing weight about three months ago. He was prone to ordering takeaway meals, particularly after a tough day at work. He had lapsed into the habit of eating convenience foods. Worse still, he was doing so even when he wasn’t hungry. Now, three months on, his thought process has been retrained so he thinks about food differently. He no longer eats when he isn’t hungry. Occasionally, he is tempted to order a takeaway. But whereas before his habit was to automatically dial the local chip shop, Chinese or Indian takeaway, now his habit is to eat something far more healthy. He is now thinking differently about food to the extent that even when he is out with friends for a meal he stops eating when he is no longer hungry. In fact, he now takes great pride in not having that dessert while his friends all gorge into their pudding. And it’s not as if he is depriving himself of this sweet – it’s just his mind doesn’t want to eat just for the sake of it.
Has he lost weight? He certainly has and he is now wearing clothes he couldn’t get into a few months ago. He admitted to me that he was cynical about what hypnotherapy could do for him but he is now a huge fan – he is continuing with our sessions because he really feels it had worked for him. It has – and it could work for you too…
Do you want to be like him?
If you want to lose weight and would like a holistic approach to help you address this issue, please contact me today to arrange a FREE consultation.
Mind Generating Success is a hypnotherapy practice based in Edinburgh city centre at 14-18 Hill Street (just off North Castle Street and a two minute walk from Princes Street)
Take that important step towards improving your life – contact me today!
Mike Smith Hyp CS
Mind Generating Success
Office Space Scotland
14-18 Hill Street
Edinburgh EH2 3JZ
Tel: 07521 353 787 (24 hours)
email: mike.smith@mgs-hypnotherapy-services.co.uk
web: www.mgs-hypnotherapy-services.co.uk
Author of The Team for Me - 50 Years of Following Hearts. Runs Mind Generating Success, a successful therapy practice in Edinburgh. Contact me if you want rid of any unwanted habits. Twitter @Mike1874
