Hypnosis! Doesn’t the word fascinate? What is hypnosis? Can a person actually remember forgotten things, under its influence? Is it a sort of magic? Is it a faith? Seemingly innocent questions that leave you perplexed and bewildered. The answers are surprisingly simple.
What is hypnosis?
Hypnosis is a state of deep relaxation or a state of heightened awareness, combined with a feeling of calm lethargy. It can be best described as similar to that state between sleep and wakefulness when you are aware of your surroundings and are willing to move. The characteristics of hypnosis include a heightened susceptibility to beneficial suggestions and a much-improved memory with access to forgotten or repressed memories stored in the unconscious mind. In itself the hypnotic state is very pleasant, but nothing more than that. It is very similar to the mental state achieved during meditation and yoga. In fact, hypnosis is a deep relaxation technique and is successful at relieving stress and anxiety.
If you were to see an electroencephalogram (EEG) of a person who was hypnotized, you would find the brainwaves to be different from those of a person in normal sleep, but nearly identical to the brainwaves of a person in a state of ordinary wakefulness.
The Power of Hypnosis
Although clever entertainers have often exaggerated the power of hypnosis, there is no question that hypnosis makes people more responsive to certain kinds of suggestions. For instance, if those having severe burns are hypnotized and told that their pain will be more tolerable, they may experience some relief. Scientists are unable to explain this though one theory is that hypnosis enables the patient to block the perceptions of pain, though the pain is still present.
Can you be hypnotized?
Susceptibility to hypnotism is related to your ability to concentrate your complete energy and attention on something or to deeply immerse yourself in the world of make believe. For example, if you can readily don the garb of a character in a book or movie, you are more vulnerable to being hypnotized. Do you know that in earlier days, hypnosis was used as an anaesthetic? However, today hypnosis is almost forgotten. In fact, the probe into the past is not only scary but also scoffed at by sceptics. However, hypnosis can be used as a technique of relaxation. This technique can be learnt and done on the self. This is known as self-hypnosis.
Whether you are a sceptic or a believer use self-hypnosis for relaxation and not to dig into the past.
Uncategorized | 15.07.2008 15:54 | Comments Off
Suffering from insomnia? Can’t get enough sleep and keep tossing and turning at night? It’s probably because of excessive stress both at home and at the workplace. So what do you do? Pop in a sleeping pill or drink a glass of hot milk? Now try Reiki, the hands on healing technique to cure your sleep problems.
Reiki has a number of exercises that can help you regain your energies and of course the lost sleep too. If you are doing or have done the First degree in Reiki then you will be familiar with this exercise. However, even if you are a newcomer to Reiki you can go ahead and do it yourself!
TO REPLENISH YOUR ENERGY
All that you need is a few minutes at any time of the day. Any place will do, so charge your energy with this new refreshment.
STEP 1
You can do this sitting or lying down. Just find a comfortable place. Now close your eyes and relax.
STEP 2
Now feel the tension in you ’solar plexus chakra’ or the ‘third chakra’ or in simple terms the ’stomach’. Place your one hand just above the stomach or over the chakra.
STEP 3
Now place your other hand just below the first one. Thus it should fall on the stomach and just below the solar plexus chakra.
STEP 4
Now all you need to do is relax your hands and fingers. Let your mind rest or drift, as it wants to.
STEP 5
Stay in this position for 10 - 15 minutes.
You might even drift into a semi sleep state.
Open your eyes slowly and stretch yourself.
When you get up you will feel full of energy and revitalized. You can now go ahead with your work with new found zeal and energy.
FOR BETTER SLEEP
If you have problems sleeping, then this is an ideal self-help exercise for you.
STEP 1
Whether it is your afternoon siesta or night sleep lie down on your back or on your side whichever is comfortable.
STEP 2
Now place one hand on your forehead and one on your stomach.
Feel yourself breathing in and out.
Notice your stomach rise up and go down, swelling up with your breath and then emptying.
STEP 3
Stay in this position for at least 10 minutes and more if you wish to.
You will soon find yourself drifting off to a deep sleep with a relaxed feeling.
If you do this exercise regularly, you will find that it is very effective in helping you get a good night’s sleep. So take some time out and make these exercises a part of your daily routine.
Uncategorized | 15.07.2008 15:53 | Comments Off
It’s Monday morning. Sanjay is edgy and worried. He has to make an important presentation in front of the top management team, for which he has been working through the weekend. He says to himself: “I am dreading this. What should I do? Will the top brass rip apart my presentation? Will I be able to answer their questions or not? May be they won?t like my presentation.”
Sanjay is definitely making things difficult for himself by harbouring negative thoughts in his mind. To make himself feel better all he has to do is some positive thinking. He should say to himself: “This presentation is going to go off well. I have worked hard on this and I know it is good. I know my work and I will be able to keep them interested.”
Thinking positively will change your attitude and make you positive. It will help you cope with the pressure and the stress that is taking the toil on your body due to the constant reminder that you find a task difficult and you won?t be able to do it. You can become positive by constantly talking to yourself and motivating yourself. This is known as self-talk.
Self-Talk
This is a process of endless monologue, which you carry inside your head. It influences the way you perceive things and the message that you give to yourself. Self-talk can either be positive or negative. There are two ways at looking at every situation.
For Example:
* Car problem on the way to office
” Damn this old car. I’ll miss all my meetings. It’s hopeless”. You can change this to: ” Bad time for a problem. Maybe if I call office and let someone know, they can start the meeting and I will join in as soon as possible.”
* Anticipation of a presentation
” What if I blow it? What if nobody laughs at the opening joke? What if they ask about?. I hate talking to groups.” You can change this to: ” This ought to be a challenge. I’ll take a deep breath and relax. I am sure they will enjoy it. Each presentation goes a bit better. I know I am good and I can do it.”
It is important to pay attention to the quality of your thoughts, because they determine how you feel during the day, how well you perform and how well you sleep at night. What positive thinking can do is to get you into the right frame of mind, to demonstrate your skills to the best of your advantage while you stay calm and focused. When you are relaxed you are likely to deal with problems more effectively and constructively. So a positive outlook is a must. When you think and tell yourself that you can, you will, and you must, notice the marked difference it will make in the job that you undertake.
Positive thoughts: Once you undertake a task tell yourself positive thoughts about:
You as a person:
* I am good
* I can cope
* I am better than a whole lot of people
* I can do this
* Its not that bad after all
* I have done more difficult things before
* Use mental mantra’s ” I will , I can ”
* I am the best and I will achieve it
* I can influence my destiny
* I look and feel good
* I enjoy my own company
* I can succeed
About specific events:
* I will succeed in this presentation
* People will listen to me in this meeting
* I am a little nervous, but I will relax
* I can make a difference
* I will achieve the result I want
* I can win
Now get working and see the difference it will make in your life and work. Start now and get results today, for tomorrow might be too late.
Uncategorized | 15.07.2008 15:51 | Comments Off