Holistic Health And Wellbeing Advice from Holistic Health Experts
stress
Stress blogs and articles on how to reduce and manage stress and anxiety by stress management experts, stress therapists and stress counsellors. Understanding stress and disease, reduction of stress, stress-busting techniques, relaxation techniques, meditation and mindfulness techniques. Stress management programs, stress management 101 program for coaches, therapists and healers.
A variety of yoga gift ideas, yoga Christmas gifts for your family or friend who loves yoga.
Aromatherapy Diffuser
Aromatherapy diffusers are a safe way to diffuse essential oils in any private or public space.
The Chi Aroma Diffuser from NYR Organics has beautiful zen like design globe diffuses up to 6 hours of calming aromatherapy mist, perfect for any meditation or yoga space. It is so nice it would look great in any yoga studio or holistic spa.
The Chi Aroma Diffuser kit contains
Mist duration of up to 6 hours with two settings
Soothing breathing light with three different breathwork practices (Balance, Release and Clarity)
Ambient relaxing light
Night mode
Remote Control
Bonus built in ‘breathwork coach’ to guide you through a series of three breathwork sequences.
Blankets and Meditation Blankets
During something like hot yoga or yoga stretches our body temperature increases.
When we begin to relax our body during more relaxing yoga such as Yoga Nidra or other meditative poses our body temperature drops.
That is why every yoga student and meditation student should have a warm comfortable yoga blanket, and yoga towel.
The organic cotton yoga blankets and organic cotton yoga towels from Ekotex Yoga are of high grade quality and make a lovely gift for yogi friend.
Candles
A beautiful candle never goes wrong with meditation and yoga lovers especially those with 100% natural fragrance with essential oils and organic wax.
Both candles are 190 grams and have approx 36 hours burning time and are made of essential oils, beeswax and plant oil.
Cushions And Yoga Bolsters
Yoga cushions and yoga bolster cushions help provide support and comfort for stretching, deep breathing and attaining certain postures.
The best yoga cushions tend to be of a very high quality cotton or organic cotton. Check out this gorgeous colours in these organic cotton yoga bolsters filled with buckwheat or spelt.
Yoga bags and yoga straps are another great yoga gift for the yoga fanatic who loves to take their yoga mat everywhere they go. These range of yoga bags are made of organic cotton, lightweight and portable designs for easy convenience.
Yoga Mat
Every yoga student needs a yoga mat. There is so many different types of yoga mats to choose from but the main things that most students look for is a yoga mat that has a good grip, is eco friendly and has good cushioning. You can choose from jute yoga mats, cork yoga mats, organic yoga rugs and those with Oeko-tex grade PVC.
Yoga Mat Refresher & Mat Cleaner
This is such a great product to make cleaning your yoga mat simple and easy. This natural mat cleaner and refresher contains 100% natural ingredients. Developed to help keep your yoga mat fresh and clean from surface stains and dirt without the nasties used in other cleaning and refresh products.
If you are a yoga lover, what would be your favourite yoga gift idea, we would LOVE to know.
Helping Clients With Sensory Processing Challenges.
Understanding the difficulties clients face with a sensory processing disorder and how you can help support and treat sensory sensitive clients in the most safest, effective and helpful way. If you are a therapist, coach, counsellor or healer.
What is a Sensory Process Disorder?
A sensory processing disorder is also known as sensory integration dysfunction it is when multisensory information is not processed in the brain properly to in relation to the pressures of the environment. Sensory processing disorders are common in those on the autistic spectrum, attention deficient hyperactivity disorder and dyspraxia.
Sensory Process Challenges
Each individual with a sensory processing disorder or sensory integration challenge will have different variations in their sensory challenges. For example some children and adults experience certain types of sensory input too little while others too much.
This can show up as everything from noise sensitivity and hyperacusis, smell, taste, tactile, balance, body awareness and internal bodily sensations.
Examples Of Sensory Processing Challenges
Heat – in relation to temperature, humidity, wind, sunburn, water, liquids
Food Taste/Texture – smooth, mushy, hard, sweet, spicy, acidic, too many tastes, too many textures, too many colours
Light – as in level of brightness, colours of light, indoor light or outdoor light, screen color,
Movement – in relation to co-ordination, balance, moving the body in specific ways, multi-tasking
Sound – level of noise, type of noise, background noise
Tactile sensitives – types of fabric, materials, liquids, foods, touch, light or heavy massage
Dysfunction In Sensory Integration
The work of occupational therapist and psychologist Ann Jayne Ayres on Sensory Integration, and Charles S Herrington has helped gives us much better understanding of “dysfunction in sensory integrative processes”
Since then work in this area has evolved in many different areas, including a lot more support and different types of therapy for sensory processing disorders in children.
My Personal Challenges With Sensory Processing Problems
Over 10 years ago, I found myself with sensory processing issues and other issues associated with complications of sepsis, especially debilitating hyperacusis and motor skill issues. That would trigger a complex movement disorder and non-epileptic seizures.
The big trigger seem to be after surviving life threatening sepsis which left with a lot of different neurological issues, including nerve damage, numbness, co-ordination and motor skill issues.
Like many adults with sensory processing issues I was given no advice, help, support, treatment or any rehabilitation after leaving hospital even though I was left with lot of nerve damage, muscle weakness and problems particularly down the right side of my body.
I was left mostly housebound due to non-epileptic seizures and movement disorders caused by vibration and noise sensitivity. Important and urgent hospital appointments would leave me ill for weeks.
Even though I had supported many clients especially children and teenagers with sensory issues over the years.
Being in the clients shoes helped me see and experience the reality, overwhelm and misunderstanding many children and clients with sensory processing issues face on a daily basis. How difficult some of the most basic tasks we tend to take for granted can be.
Supporting Clients Who Have Sensory Processing Challenges
Ask The Right Questions:
One of the most important things with supporting clients with any sensory issues is asking enough of the right questions to identify the clients specific sensory issues and to what degree it impacts their ability to function, process certain information and do certain tasks. Find out if they have specific needs for example maybe they cannot tolerate certain smells or scents like perfume, essential oils, low sounds, certain fabrics or textures.
Do A Risk Assessment
Doing a very simple stress risk assessment in your clinic or online set-up prior to a session with a sensory sensitive client can help reduce potential triggers for the client or student. Such as doing what you can do to reduce or minimise unwanted and unexpected sounds. Arranging appointments for clients during quite times in a normally busy clinic can be really helpful. Making sure you aren’t wearing strong perfumes, burning incense or diffusing essential oils.
Reducing and Manging Stressors
One of the most effective ways to help minimise and reduce sensory difficulties is supporting the client manage their anxiety and stress, soothe the nervous system. No matter how extreme the challenges are the more we can support the nervous system the better you can support the client and their challenges. Relaxation Therapy is particularly very useful and is an important aspect of many sensory integration therapy programs.
Slow Down, Don’t Rush Sessions
The last thing that a sensory challenged client needs is feel rushed, overwhelmed or pressurised. Their brain function is competing for energy and attention the last thing they need is a therapist, coach or counsellor who isn’t allowing them enough space and time to process information.
So it’s worth allowing a little more time for clients with these issues. And to recognise that clients with these problems may find that they need to pace themself more and may require more sessions to get the results other clients do.
Do what you can to help clients with sensory issues feel relaxed, there are so many powerful relaxation techniques you can teach your clients how to relax, and simple mind tools to bring into your therapy practice such as my free meditation course.
Identify how stressed you are with the Stress Thermometer provided by Stress Management Expert Eileen Burns.
This simple stress monitor is a great way to assess your stress levels throughout your day. It is a widely used and highly effective stress management tool used to recognise, manage and modify your stress symptoms worldwide.
How To Use The Stress Thermometer Monitor
Stress Thermometer Blue
Blue represents when you are in balance, you feel calm and relaxed such as meditating, on holiday, doing a relaxing hobby.
It goes from the most deepest aspects of relaxation and rest to being calm aware but not focused.
Stress Thermometer Green
Green is when you have some demands and stressors that are manageable or motivating.
This can be regarded as a bit of healthy functional stress when it feels sustainable.
This level starts at focused and active to functioning with effort.
Stress Thermometer Orange
Orange demonstrates and over reaction to stress when life’s stressors feel a bit less manageable and unsustainable.
Symptoms can include an inability to focus, an increase in heart rate, blood pressure muscle tension, digestive issues and insomnia.
Going into orange begins with feeling stressed, towards an inability to focus, going into the stages of overwhelm and overreaction which is a warning and should not be encouraged over longer periods of time.
We should only go into orange over short periods of time as it’s not sustainable for our health and wellbeing.
Stress Thermometer Red
Red is a big alarm for high levels of stress or trauma, very much in the fight, flee and fear response. It represents a critical state of stress, lack of control, shock or fear or severe stress.
How to have a happy and healthy Christmas Season and New Year. 7 tips to help you have a Healthy Christmas. How to keep the fun, joy, and magic in Christmas, with less anxiety and stress.
Trying to live up to certain types of perceived expectations associated with this time of year. The Christmas Season certainly brings up a mixture of emotions and fear. Especially when the whole message of Christmas and giving has got lost in commercial overspending and certain expectations.
But if we take a step back from the media, the adverts, your child’s long list from Santa, and even the office secret Santa. The true meaning is simply about showing up and spending time with our friends, family, and our fellow man. It is a time to forget about our opinions, our differences, and even fall out’s. And to show kindness to one other. In many ways, Christmas is just another day. But a day we get an opportunity to say thank you and appreciation to those and the world around us.
7 Top Tips For A Happy And Healthy Christmas
Give From An Open Heart
Open your heart to the wonder of giving and receiving at this beautiful time of year. Give some magic and allow in some magic. Open your heart to all sorts of miracles and blessings.
Be Grateful
Christmas is a time to be grateful for the small things as well the bigger blessings, even those Christmas challenges. Appreciate all the blessings around you, they come in all sorts of disguises. Appreciate the love, kindness, and generosity at this time of year.
The Christmas season is a time to be fully present, fully in the here and now. It is important to stop stressing about tomorrow or dwelling on the past to have a more healthy Christmas. The greatest gift you can give anyone is being fully present with them. Just spending quality time with, friends, family even strangers creates more joy and wellbeing.
Make sure you get enough sleep and rest. This is a busy time of year, where we tend to get out of our normal routine and put ourselves under extra pressure. Don’t be tempted to burn the candle at both ends with too many late nights.
Drink More Water
Water helps us flush out those extra indulgences and toxins. It can help stop us from overindulging in alcohol and food. Dehydration puts extra stress on the body. So it is important to stay hydrated through long journeys, Christmas shopping and stressful family visits.
Reduce Alcohol Intake
Alcohol consumption can not only affect our health and wellbeing, but it can also seriously reduce our ability to make healthy decisions. Under the influence of alcohol, we are more likely to get emotional, act irrationally or take risks. Just SAY NO or bring alcohol-free wine or beer to stressful work or family events.
Eat Healthy Food
It is so easy to overindulge at this time of year. To minimise those extra pounds, inches and high sugar levels. Eat more mindfully. Choose at least some of the healthier options on the menu. So you can enjoy those favourite treats with less guilt.
We at The World Of Health wish you a Happy and Healthy Christmas Season and New Year.
Women are more than twice as likely to develop Multiple Sclerosis as men. Multiple Sclerosis usually affects people between the ages of 20 and 50 years, and the average age of onset is approximately 34 years. Multiple Sclerosis can affect children and teens (pediatric MS).
I was 17 when I was diagnosed with Remitting-Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis (RRMS) in 1987. Back then MS was not very well known, and the Internet didn’t exist either, so no real way to research what MS is, other than taking the word of my Neurologist. I remember having symptoms as early as the age of 14.
I was constantly tired, and couldn’t keep up with my fellow students in gym class, running track. I slept a lot. My parents thought I was just being lazy. Because I was affected so early on in my life with MS, I knew I wanted to help others who were newly diagnosed with MS in whatever way I could. So I wrote a self-help book “Blue Fingers Brass Knuckles” full of diagrams, questions to ask your doctors, how to cope with the diagnosis through laughter, and the power of inspiration, faith, courage, and love.
In today’s world, MS is a common household word and you can Google information about MS. However; unless you’re following a teen with MS on social media to know the unique set of challenges that comes with it, you won’t know until you experience it…and even then, you’re left wondering…is this MS or just me?
Emotional Issues Of Teens With MS
There are approximately 8,000 to 10,000 Americans who have been diagnosed with MS before their 18th birthday. Although pediatric MS cases are rare, some studies estimate that 2 to 5% of all people with MS had symptom onset as a teenager or even younger. The good news is that pediatric MS specialists say teens who begin MS therapies soon after their diagnosis rarely develop disabilities before their 20th birthday and can lead a relatively symptom-free life well into adulthood.
“There’s some evidence that people who get pediatric remitting-relapsing MS move to progressive MS slower than those who are diagnosed as adults,” says Tim Lotze, MD, associate professor of child neurology at Texas Children’s Hospital at the Baylor College of Medicine. “Maybe that’s because the “lucky” ones who are diagnosed earlier start on treatment sooner.”
Different Physical Symptoms Teens With MS
But while teenagers may have fewer physical MS symptoms than adults, they can have more emotional or mental issues. Adolescence comes with all kinds of angst. Add in an MS diagnosis, and the stress can skyrocket. “You grow up fast when you’re diagnosed that young.” Here’s what I, other teens, their parents, and healthcare providers have learned about living with MS as an adolescent.
Difficulty with Diagnosis In Children With MS
The number of children diagnosed with MS seems to be holding steady in recent years, although accurate data is lacking, says Brenda Banwell, MD, chief of the Division of Neurology at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and director of the hospital’s Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Clinic. However, the awareness of pediatric MS has increased considerably among healthcare practitioners, meaning children are more likely to be diagnosed quicker.
There’s also a growing amount of research focusing on pediatric MS.
The Canadian Pediatric Demyelinating Disease Network has performed a comprehensive prospective analysis of children with a first attack of what may be MS and has published extensively on the clinical, biological, and MRI features of MS in children.
Doctors and scientists affiliated with 18 clinical centers throughout the United States have formed the Network of Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Centers to study the causes and treatment of pediatric MS. To learn more, visit usnpmsc.org.
These and other studies show that while MS symptoms are similar in teens and adults, teens may be more difficult to diagnose.
“Teenagers may have more vague symptoms like their back hurts, or they’re having headaches or migraines with blurry vision or they’re having trouble walking,” says Soe Mar, MD, director of the Pediatric Onset Demyelinating Diseases and Autoimmune Encephalitis Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital at the Washington University School of Medicine. Couple those indeterminate symptoms with normal teenage stress and Dr. Mar says some clinicians may think a teen with MS is suffering from physical symptoms that are due to psychological trauma rather than MS.
Specific Teenage Symptoms Of Multiple Sclerosis
The onset of MS in children and youth is associated with a higher relapse rate and a higher volume of brain lesions, relative to early MS in adults. Pediatric MS occurs in the context of normal academic learning and during brain maturation. Of note, 30 to 40% of children with MS have a cognitive impairment, Dr. Banwell says. This impairment varies from mild to severe and mainly involves executive functioning, such as multitasking, organization, attention skills, processing speed, and word finding.
About a third of teens with MS have emotional issues, such as depression or anxiety or combination of both. But this mirrors the general population of teenagers, so it can be difficult to tell if MS is the culprit for mood disorders or if it’s simply being a teenager. Either way, mental health is an important facet of care for youth with MS.
When I was diagnosed at 17, I was devastated. Thinking I had something like cancer that I would die from. I was an emotional wreck. It was affecting me in every facet of my life. And because we didn’t know much about MS back then, doctors didn’t realize that mental health is an important part of “health care” for me, so I was stuck working through these emotions by myself.
That’s why I can’t emphasize enough how important is it to have partnerships with psychiatrists and psychologists for teens who have MS. These professionals can help teens and their parents sort out what’s causing depression or anxiety and how to best treat it.
Research shows that teenagers also tend to have more frequent relapses than adults, perhaps because they haven’t yet developed full nerve myelination, Dr. Lotze says. A 2014 study published in Multiple Sclerosis Related Disorders shows that children have 2.3 times more relapses than adults per year. The flip side is that children recover much better than adults from relapses,” Dr. Lotze says. “There seems to be fewer residual symptoms, maybe because myelin in children can repair faster. Or there could be something innate in the pediatric brain that can make new networks after an MS relapse.”
The Importance of Medications In Teens With MS
While MS therapies can reduce disease activity in teens, the key is persuading them to consistently take their medications. “A lot of teenagers don’t think they need medications after they recover from a relapse,” Dr. Mar says. Most teens think “I just want to be a normal kid and not have to take 20 pills a day or go in for my injections.”
Several high school students who were recently diagnosed with MS were interviewed on the importance of taking their MS medications and the response was amazing. One student says “it helped when her mom told her that MS was like having diabetes. Another student said, “If taking my medication will keep my MS symptoms away, I’m all for it…but I don’t like it.”
Early-stage Coping In Teens With MS
While an MS diagnosis can be devastating for anyone, it can be particularly difficult for teens and their families. Parents struggle to accept the diagnosis. “No one expects a child to be diagnosed with an adult disease,” Dr. Banwell says. One thing teenagers have going for them, though, is resilience.
There are many documentaries, YouTube videos, and programs on TV that tell stories of other teens with MS and how they overcame their fear. For example: there was an ESPN program on a female runner with MS. A boy who is an offensive lineman on his middle school and high school football teams approached his diagnosis like an athlete. He talked to a sports psychologist who told him that he only needed to focus on his MS for the five minutes a day he injected his medication. So, for 23 hours and 55 minutes, live life like you don’t have MS. Staying positive that MS won’t affect the rest of your life in a big way.
Freaked-out Parents Of Teens With MS
When my Mom and I walked into my neurologist’s office and were told I had MS my Mom bawled for at least 20 minutes. We looked at each other with that Mother-Daughter look knowing we had to stick together and be there for one another. Each other is all we had. This is a typical reaction for any parent as they don’t want to hear that their child has been diagnosed with an incurable disorder.
Sometimes the parents can be more of an issue for a physician than the child, due to them reading about medical journal articles and studies about MS regarding what could happen to their child. It’s terrifying! “Teenagers have a sense of invulnerability, so their MS can fade into the background. That’s not the case for the parents.” Dr. Banwell said a colleague recently completed a study showing that the impact of a child’s diagnosis with MS is so substantial for parents that they can end up using more healthcare resources than their child.
When you have a child, who has such a serious disease, you must have a strong support team. You cannot do this by yourself. Connecting with other parents of children in similar situations to ask questions to, and get support from, is invaluable.
Overcompensating Teenagers
While parental stress about their teen’s MS diagnosis is understandable, it can create additional emotional issues for the child. This is all happening while kids are at the age of trying to get independence from their parents. Teens tend to avoid talking to their parents about their disease because they don’t want to worry them.
One teen said “I look like a different person when I relapse. I look so sick, and I know that upsets my parents. I would talk to my Mom about it, but I don’t want to make her even more upset,” Napier says. “My Dad calls me constantly to see how I’m feeling. It breaks my heart to see how worried they are. I wish there was a way to let them know I’m going to be OK.”
Teenagers can also hide their feelings for other reasons. Many blame themselves when diagnosed with MS. “I was getting all this attention from my Mom because of my symptoms, and frankly I was enjoying it.” After the symptoms subsided, the initial attention from my Mom went away. I started wishing that something else would happen again so I would get more attention.” It’s sad, but true I felt this way. And then, I found out I had MS. I felt like it was my fault even though deep down I knew it wasn’t. It can take several months to stop feeling devastated that they “brought the disease upon themselves” and to admit those feelings to their family and friends.
Dr. Lotze says a key to breaking through these types of communication barriers is for parents to “not hide anything from the kid from day one. Parents need to make a plan on how to talk to their son or daughter.” A therapist can also help the whole family, including anxious or resentful siblings, open lines of communication.
School Relationships
Family relationships aren’t the only ones that suffer when teens are diagnosed with MS. Teens can face misunderstanding or even bullying about their disease. Most teens don’t want to tell their classmates about their MS diagnoses because they don’t want to be treated differently, or that rumors would be spread. They don’t want to be labeled “teachers’ pet” because of being allowed to turn in assignments late or eating lunch in the nurse’s office to rest. However; if you don’t face the truth by telling your story to stop the rumors, people will continue to say what they are going to say without knowing the truth.
The best way most teens find it helpful is to make a video so the entire school would know you have MS. You’re not looking for sympathy, you’re looking for support. Upload it to your YouTube channel, then post it on your social media. Word spreads. You can also ask the principal if they can post a link to your video for the school to see. By telling your story, the gossiping, the whispers, and the bullying will help stop this and help you make friends. MS is a lonely disease, so get out there and tell your story. You need a support system in every facet of your life.
Learning How to Be Different
It’s OK to not be OK. Being different from classmates is hard…. missing out on being excited to have your crush take you to homecoming or attending school football games with your friends. Keeping a positive mindset makes all the difference in the world, it will keep you moving forward, climbing up this hill called life, and MS is just one more thing in your backpack to make you stronger.
Perhaps being diagnosed with MS has sparked an interest to be a neurologist specializing in pediatric MS. Or being an MS advocate helping others with their meal plans and workouts. This can include becoming a health and wellness coach, specializing in helping others with MS to manage their symptoms naturally. By now, you can see the blessings of being diagnosed with MS as a teenager. You can show others that you can get through anything.
The MS Wellness Coach
Hi, I’m Jen Martin a Master Certified Wellness Coach, specializing in helping women with MS to combat fatigue, increase energy levels, and improve their overall health naturally, so that they can live life with vitality and abundance. On Facebook, I’m known as The MS Wellness Coach – empowering those living with MS and other auto-immune disorders how to manage their symptoms naturally.
Is it woo woo? Does it involve mind control? How is it different from other therapies? And, the latest evidenced-based research informing Solution Focused Hypnotherapy’s development.
How can solution focused hypnotherapy help me?
Certainly, solution focused hypnotherapy can help with a wealth of conditions, but most hypnotherapists choose a niche. For instance, I personally focus my service offer around Anxiety and related conditions. For example, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Depression, Tinnitus, and Insomnia. All of which, are often caused by or exasperated by Anxiety .
What is solution focused therapy?
Importantly, “Solution-Focused” is fast becoming a buzz word of the 21st century, but what does it actually mean? To begin, solution focused brief therapy was first developed in the 1980’s by Insoo Kim Berg and Steve de Shazer. Contrarily, when we take a quick look at other therapies, we find many talking therapies are “problem focused”, they focus on unpicking the issue, re-living the issue, and real-life exposure. Granted, this can work well for some people, for many, it can cause more challenges.
Identifying exceptions
On the other hand, Solution Focused Hypnotherapy works by identifying exceptions to the rule. So, let’s say you came to me wanting to stop procrastinating, we would work together to identify when it is you are most productive. As a result, we identify when you don’t procrastinate, and these are what we call “exceptions”.
Identifying solution focused goals
In addition, as well as identifying exceptions we will go in the opposite direction to other talking therapies and instead of focusing on unpicking the problem; we will look at identifying what life looks like when the problem is no longer there for you, because this gives our brain a positive goal.
Stop ruminating
As a result, once we have a goal to work towards we can begin to move away from ruminating and stopping our only focus being on the challenges we are facing. Next, we therapists then use Solution Focused questioning to help you identify achievable goals to work on each week. Why? Because these will assist you in working towards a future where the challenges you have been facing are no longer an issue.
What if I want to talk about my problem?
So, although we are very much future-focused, and solution focused, we do acknowledge and allow you time to discuss what has been on your mind should you wish to. However, we limit this to a small section of our session so that we can focus on assisting you with moving forwards to achieve your preferred future.
What is solution focused hypnotherapy?
Above all, hypnotherapy is a form of deep relaxation. Generally, hypnotherapists use guided imagery and direct and indirect language to help you to get into a lovely relaxed state that induces trance.
What is trance?
Specifically, trance is a natural state we all go into regularly. To illustrate, have you ever been listening to someone and suddenly realised you weren’t paying any attention? Maybe you’ve read a whole page of a book and had to go back and reread it? Or perhaps you’ve driven somewhere you drive to regularly and been surprised that you hadn’t focused much on your journey? Essentially,, this is your mind going into natural trance. Yes, that’s right, you already do it!
Neuroscience and solution focused hypnotherapy
Most importantly, neuroscience research using brain scans demonstrate the same area in the brain is active during trance, as during the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) part of our sleep cycle. In addition, they also found when we’re in REM, our brain is more active than it is at any other time! So, when we’re in REM scientists believe that really important events are happening in the brain. Most importantly, they believe stressful events and memories that we have stored in our emotional brain, are being consolidated and processed to be filed away in the more narrative parts of our mind.
Have you ever regretted feeling so angry about something?
Occasionally, you may have noticed this happen to you. Maybe you were driving somewhere, and someone ‘cut-you-up’. There wasn’t an accident, but the person appeared to blame you for it. You were left feeling so angry and once home, contacted your friend and told them all about it and how frustrated you were. Your friend may have said not to let it get to you. Later though, maybe lying in bed that night, it’s still on your mind. As a result, you’re really annoyed by it.
REM sleep
However, that particular night you get some good quality REM sleep and the following day it’s not such a big deal anymore. In fact, you even chastise yourself a little and maybe even regret allowing it to get to you so much. So, what’s happened? Well, scientists believe this memory has now moved from your emotional and often irrational part of your brain, to your more rational and reflective, narrative part of your brain.
Freebie for solution focused planning!
Similarly , have you ever been really affected by a text message or voicemail out of the blue, or a car cutting-you-up suddenly, or maybe that family member that just winds you up the wrong way? Well, this might be just what you’re looking for. My little freebie crib sheet provides you with a solution focused exercise to plan your future responses. It may be really helpful to you. You can download it here.
Why do we use trance in solution focused hypnotherapy?
To clarify, we use trance in our clinic room in two different ways. Firstly, we use it to help your brain to consolidate and process all of our discussion during the first half of our session together. Secondly, we use it to speak more effectively to your subconscious mind.
What do solution focused hypnotherapists say to the subconscious mind?
During hypnosis, hypnotherapists speak to your subconscious mind using guided imagery, positive affirmations, confidence building and story metaphors that all help towards building a more confident you. So, on top of having a small achievable and solution focused goal every session, you also get the benefits of consolidating and processing that goal AND building your confidence up so that you’re even more likely to achieve your goal too. Moreover, you even get some good quality relaxation time just for you too!
Story metaphors in solution focused hypnotherapy
Furthermore, the story metaphors we use are great too. Specifically, the subconscious mind and conscious mind begin to see parallels with the story and what is going in your life. Subsequently, this helps you to move towards letting go of the past and discovering and achieving your preferred future.
What is the difference between stage hypnotism and solution focused hypnotherapy?
Granted, this is a question I’m asked often. To clarify, stage hypnotism tends to work with the hypnotist first identifying who is the most likely in the audience to do something really silly. For instance, they might do this by using phrases like “you’re not in control, I am now in control” or “no matter how hard you try, you just can’t lift up your arm”.
Is solution focused hypnotherapy mind control?
As a result, this helps them to identify who is most easily influenced and will create the best act for the audience. To illustrate, the constant use of suggestions that you are not in control almost has an effect like when you may have had alcohol. Certainly, it allows you to lower your inhibitions and act a bit silly because you’ve been given permission to. But, the truth is, that you are always in control of your mind.
More about stage hypnotism
In fact, have you ever watched a stage hypnotist ‘live’? If so, you’ll see how their selection process works. Firstly, they begin by identifying who the best person for the job will be. Then, each request gets sillier and sillier. Subsequently, more and more people will begin to “wake up”. Of course, this is because they have been aware of what’s being said but have felt like the hypnotist was in control. However, this time the hypnotist has gone a step too far and it’s not something they want to be a part of, so they immediately come out of the trance.
Solution focused hypnotherapy in a clinic setting
On the other hand, when you are placed in trance by a hypnotherapist in a clinic setting, you will be told that you are always in control, that you are safe, and that you will only pay attention and listen to what is relevant to you and matters most to you. Most importantly, hypnotherapy is about you being as relaxed and as comfortable as possible. So, don’t fret! Of course, there’ll be no funky chicken dances anywhere in sight!
Is solution focused hypnotherapy woo woo?
Certainly, some hypnotists may move towards the woo woo. However, solution focused hypnotherapy is based on the latest neuroscience research. Meaning, it’s evidenced-based practice. Furthermore, having a degree in Psychology, this was something that was really important to me. Above all, I like to be able to use science to explain what is happening and to help people, who want to know, to understand what’s going on for them. Particularly, when we find ourselves using behaviour that we’ve identified is unhelpful to us, and yet we continue in the vicious cycle of repeating the unwanted behaviour anyway.
I want to find out more about Solution Focused Hypnotherapy
In conclusion, Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is in my experience, a truly effective therapy for overcoming anxiety. For me, it changed my life when I went to a solution focused hypnotherapist for public speaking, irritable bowel syndrome, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. So, if you’re someone who struggles, you’re most welcome to get in touch. There’s lots more information on my website www.Tania-Taylor.co.uk. I also offer a free 20 minute consultation over the phone.
About the Author:
Tania is a Solution Focused Hypnotherapist & Psychotherapist practicing in Milnrow, Rochdale. She sees people for 1:1 and group sessions, both face to face and via video link worldwide. Tania has a first-class honours degree in Psychology, two hypnotherapy and psychotherapy diplomas, and keeps up to date with post qualification training. Tania also lectures for the Clinical Hypnotherapy School and for her own business, supporting other therapists with a variety of topics.
If you want to learn how to stop overthinking and how to relax. It helps to understand why we overthink and why it is so detrimental to our health and wellbeing. And why the ability to relax is so important.
Overthinking usually refers to the act of ruminating, focusing on something for too long or too many times. In many ways, rumination is a by-product of our over-busy modern lifestyle. Especially obsessing over the negative or possible aspects of a situation, which is exhausting, unproductive and at times depressing
It is a developed part of our innate survival response, the healthy analytical mind helps us find solutions from danger. But the unhealthy ruminative mind is in a constate state of anxiety and stress. And when people suffer from chronic anxiety and chronic stress, the mind and body stops being able to relax.
How To Stop Overthinking
People who tend to worry a lot, tend to live their life in a state of fear are more likely to engage in overthinking and rumination. But the reality is most anxiety and stress is triggered by ruminating over what could go wrong. Or over what we believe will cause us pain or suffering. Because of that fear we feel the need to control as many outcomes as we can.
But when we try to control everything we are not in the flow, not living in a natural harmonious state of being. We are living in a state of resistance which actually is the source of most suffering and dis-ease. So the overthinker is not living in the moment, not trusting the moment.
I was a highly anxious overthinking child, the eldest of many siblings. Beinghighly empathic I worried a lot about the needs of others. And that impacted my mental, emotional and physical wellbeing from a young age. It took me many years to learn how to stop overthinking and how to just be.
How To Help Clients And Students Have Less Ruminative Thoughts
I spent 30 years studying many different mind, body, emotional and spiritual techniques. Yet despite studying different types of therapies, healing, mind techniques, psychotherapy. I found for myself and clients the most simple approaches were often the most effective if approached in the right order, the right way.
We all deserve to live a more calm, content and stress-less life. And I have found the most effective way IS NOT trying to change all your thoughts. There is a theory we have 40, 000 negative thoughts each day . So that is a lot of thoughts you would need to change. If we approach it from one step beyond our mindset. It is far more effective when we teach others how to reduce their attachment to our thoughts. Reduce the engagement in overthinking and help them learn how to relax and be.
4 Ways To Reduce Overthinking
Embrace The Here And Now –
The easiest way to reduce overthinking is to embrace the present moment. Stop throughout your day and notice where your thoughts and where is your attention is? Is your attention on the activity that you are doing? Is your attention fully with the people you are engaging with? Or is it in thoughts of the past, thoughts of what you have to do later in the day? We have lost appreciation and value for this moment. It is too easy to miss all the blessings that we are being given in this present moment. And when the mind, the body, emotions, and spirit and not in the moment, disjointed and out of balance. We manifest dis-harmony, dis-ease.
Meditation tools, when taught the right way, can be powerful ways to bring you into the present moment. Here in the west we are so conditioned into spending so many hours of our day doing, thinking and analysing. That most people really struggle to stop, struggle to relax especially relax properly. Now meditation helps because it encourages more space, more freedom between our thoughts. Meditation helps us connect with our own inner peace, our own inner calm, and our own inner guidance. It helps us reconnect with the self and less distracted by thoughts that are not facts. Less pulled in by the external distortion and manipulation of the world and media around us.
Develop Self-Compassion –
We can all be too hard, demanding and uncompassionate towards ourselves. Especially about decisions, we have made in the past or even in our present situation. Because we are so over-identificated with who we think we are or are supposed to be. This leaves us more empty and confused, and more likely to fall into jobs and roles that do not fill our souls. Self-compassion can teach us how to giving ourselves the same compassion and understanding we give to those around us.
Know You Are Enough –
When you know you are more than enough, it’s easier to disengage with those self-sabotaging thoughts. Our biggest self-destruction is our beliefs around who we think we need or should be. We live in a distorted society that has convinced us, that our value lies in what we do, what we earn, what we look like. The roles, status, and power we have or take on, but none of this makes us more worthy or more valued. This is a huge distortion and so far from the truth. We are all born into this world enough, all with individual unique traits, gifts, skills, abilities and what may be perceived as disabilities. But none of them define our worth.
So many people go through their day without stopping and taking a moment to stop, relax or rest. Tea breaks, lunch and afternoon breaks at work are not just about having a meal or a drink. But are there to remove yourself from your busyness and stress. When we work through our breaks and only try and switch off and relax just before going to bed or going on holiday.
The mind and body can really struggle to relax, because it is overstimulated, over-stressed. The mind and body needs periods of calm to restore balance. So breaks throughout your day, breaks at work, breaks at home, at school and college are important. If we skip time out, our mind and body forgets how to relax. It becomes more conditioned to be in the stress response instead of the relaxed response.
It is important to be aware and listen to your body, become aware of the tension in your body. When we are so in our mind, in our thoughts we are detached from our body, our emotions. It is important to be fully present with that tension without adding a story a reason why you are so tense.
Learn How To Relax And Sleep Deeply And Effectively –
The inability to relax is one of the biggest causes of physical disease, sleep problems chronic pain and tension. We are so mentally busy, so engaged in our thoughts we find it difficult to switch off or relax without any distractions.
Many people think relaxation is sitting in front of the television, or playing a game on their computer or smartphone. But these activities are not relaxing, they are distractions of the mind. That is why Relaxation Therapy is a powerful way to teach clients and students how to let go of long-term anxiety, chronic stress, and stress-related insomnia. Relaxation techniques re-teach the body how to not only relax and just be, but help reduce pain and tension.
Moving Into A State Of Being, Relaxing
As you can see how to stop overthinking and relax is very much about dis-engaging with unhealthy conditioning. It is about re-learning how to be, how to relax. A baby knows how to relax, knows how to be, knows how to appreciate the present moment. A baby usually comes into the world appreciated knowing it is enough.
Until that baby starts to become conditioned towards fear, pain, expectations, guilt, shame, other people’s ideas of what is right, wrong. A society’s idea of what is right, wrong, good, bad, expected and not expected. The more you learn how to be in the moment and detach from your conditioning and learn how to relax, relax deeply and effectively. Overthinking starts to dissolve, there is less overthinking, less anxiety, less stress and less depression.
Mental health benefits of meditation in our stressful modern world. Learn why the emotional and mental health benefits of meditation are one of the most powerful life skills you can teach a child, teenager, or adult.
Why traditional forms of meditation are becoming increasingly popular in our fast-paced world.
Meditation is all about the art of awareness, conscious awareness, and state of being. In a modern world where we are bombarded with distractions, brainwashed, and conditioned to be in a state of doing.
At a time when we are overwhelmed by information and stimulus, in toxic, plastic, manmade environments. We have become constantly overwhelmed; stressed, anxious, and confused. Disconnected from ourselves, so disconnected from nature, our natural habitat. On a conscious or unconscious level, we crave a much safer space of solitude, freedom, and spiritual connectedness. Something that meditation can give us.
Main Mental Health Benefits Of Meditation
Meditation has become a popular self-help tool to reduce many modern mental health issues it is used to help
Meditating has been demonstrated in clinical research to be highly beneficial in reducing stress. It is known to move on from the stress response, the “fight or flight response” to the relaxation response.
LOWER DEPRESSION:
Daily meditation is a helpful aid in reducing depression and other mental health issues when taught effectively. It helps reduce ruminative thinking because it helps loosen over-attachment to our monkey mind.
INCREASE CONCENTRATION AND FOCUS:
Meditation has been shown in different research to help increase concentration and focus—the ability to perform certain tasks more effectively.
INCREASES CONFIDENCE:
The art of meditation helps us move out of negative sabotaging thinking into a more natural authentic way of being. So we are naturally more confident.
Regular meditation encourages the body into a more natural rested state of being. Regular meditators witness an improved quality of sleep.
Health Benefits Of Meditation
IN THE REDUCTION OF HEART DISEASE: Regular meditation practice can be a helpful aid in reducing heart disease and stroke. And useful for lowering symptoms of high blood pressure.
PAIN MANAGEMENT: Daily meditation encourages the body of the inflammatory response caused by chronic stress into a relaxed response. It is a useful aid in pain management and muscle tension reduction.
Medical Research On Mental Health Benefits of Meditation
Meditation Infographic – Mental Health Benefits Of Meditation
Clinical and medical research on the benefits of meditation has been going on since the 1950s. Although, the study of meditation is a growing subdivision in neurological research. There is a variety of documented research on the physical and mental health benefits of meditation.
Benefits Of T.M Meditation
We know Transcendental Meditation has been one of the most clinically researched styles of meditation. Studies suggested that when T.M. was taught properly it not only reduced anxiety and stress it helped reduce PTSD in veterans.
Now as a meditator of over 30 years, who has studied a wide range of meditation styles including T.M. I have personally found other types of meditation alongside relaxation therapy are safer and suitable for PTSD.
But one thing is clear, meditation is a powerful life skill that I believe should be taught to everyone, taught in schools from a young age.
Meditation has been shown not only to reduce the fight or flight response but it helps to reduce inappropriate emotional reactions, a useful aid in anger management and PTSD.
Another study on the “Effect of mindfulness meditation training on anxiety, depression and sleep quality in perimenopausal women.”
Proved to be beneficial in reducing mental health issues specifically anxiety, depression, and sleep issues.
What other life skill, helps you experience inner calm, and peace amidst the chaos, sadness, and loss, in our crazy modern life?
What other skill can be as simple and cost-effective to learn? That is why the mental health benefits of meditation practice are becoming increasingly recognized.
Meditation is becoming an increasingly popular life skill and form of therapy in modern medicine. Meditation apps are becoming more popular to help with pain management and as an emotional aid for life-threatening conditions like cancer.
Chronic Anxiety Triggers That Commonly Cause Anxiety Disorders
Chronic Anxiety Triggers that are common causes of chronic anxiety disorders. Anxiety triggers that you need to address today to stop falling into the chronic anxiety cycle.
Chronic Anxiety is sadly an increasing problem. According to the Association Of Anxiety And Depress in the USA 18.1% of the american population suffer from anxiety disorders but only just over 1/3 of those suffers actually get treatment. According to the NHS 5% of the UK population suffer Generalised Anxiety Disorders ( GAD). 8.2 million cases of anxiety in the UK in 2013.
Chronic Anxiety is a big problem and something I saw greatly in my one to one clients over the last 20 years. So many who came to me for help with stress were actually suffering from disabling symptoms of chronic anxiety.
So What Is Anxiety?
Anxiety itself is something everyone experiences in their life it is the worry, the concerns, the fear and tension. Anxiety is generally viewed as a common and normal response to specific life situations. Until it becomes chronic anxiety, an anxiety disorder, a mental health disorder. Anxiety like stress is generally directly connected to our perception of a situation.
Anxiety And Stress Hormones
If you perceive something as frightening or uncomfortable, your body produces a level of stress hormones to match. A little bit of fear releases enough adrenaline and cortisol to cause low-level symptoms of anxiety. But a situation perceived as extremely frightening will create enough stress hormones to produce the fight, flight or freeze response. That is why teaching anxiety sufferers, stress management, and relaxation techniques is so important and helpful. Relaxation Therapy is highly effective at reducing chronic anxiety problems, a visit to a Relaxation therapist can be very helpful.
But there are other biological factors that can make someone more vulnerable to anxiety and stress. Hyperthyroidism and other thyroid issues can increase anxiety and stress levels. Optimal wellbeing relies on a balance of the body’s hormones. Oxytocin is another horm one that can play havoc with the body in relation to anxiety and stress. Oxytocin although known as the love and bonding hormone is also the hormone that causes you to remember those traumatic experiences. So can play a part in PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorders.Magnesium deficiencies can be a contributing factor to some mental health issues
An anxiety disorder is when anxiety overtakes your ability to function healthily and happily in your everyday life. When you suffer an anxiety disorder everyday situations become filled with feelings of fear and threat. You think and react as if you are in physical danger, you become more stressed. Anxiety disorders happen when chronic anxiety has not been addressed when daily anxiety triggers or trauma has not been healed or managed.
7 Common Anxiety Triggers That You Need To Address
Worry About Being Late:Do you get anxious about being late for work? Anxiety triggers about being late for that meeting or about getting the kids on time for school? Do you constantly rush about with a sense of urgency and drama? Worrying about being late is an everyday anxiety trigger that many people suffer from. Now for most people, the main cause of being late is poor organisation or time management issues. But for other people, no matter how early they leave home for work or that appointment they will spend most of the time ruminating over all sorts of possible scenarios in their mind. The what if’s if they are late, what if I get fired, what if I can’t get a new job, what will my partner say, what will… When we are not fully in the present moment, we give our power away to the monkey mind, the ruminating. If you do tend to run a bit little, leave things till last-minute. It’s time to get more organised, save yourself the stress and anxiety. It simply isn’t worth it.
Fear Of Conflict:A common anxiety trigger for many people especially empaths, highly sensitive people and those with self-esteem issues is fear of conflict. Not addressing relationship issues at home and work can cause not just of anxiety, but increased levels and depression. Avoiding the problem, hiding your head in the sand can often lead to other problems. Some issues if not dealt with will lead to further causes of anxiety. Working on self-worth, self-esteem and assertiveness skill can encourage healthier communication. But again when learn to be more in the moment, the thoughts that normally trigger our fear, tension or stress start to disappear.
Health Concerns:For many people health concerns about their own health or a loved one is a major cause of serious anxiety. Those with chronic anxiety disorders will often constantly worry about everyone’s’ health and wellbeing. They will often make a fuss or get irrational over the smallest symptom. Parents particularly have to be aware that their children will often pick up on their anxiety. So it is important to address and treat any anxiety issues that you have. A child who lives around a lot fear will become fearful, will become disempowered. If your health concerns are related to a previous experience or trauma. It is important to address the issue. I have found Bach Flower Essences extremely supportive in helping clients with various chronic anxiety issues. Rescue Remedy is a useful all-rounder for many things. It is useful for everyday anxiety and general anxiety disorders.
Social Situations:Socialising, all sorts of celebrations or events can trigger a great deal of anxiety for a lot of people. So many people associate certain times of the year or specific types of situations with painful or traumatising experiences. The thought of these situations can bring all sorts of anxieties up to the surface. The flower essence Start of Bethlehem which is also in Rescue Remedy. Is an extremely helpful flower essence that can help us let go of old trauma we are holding onto in our cellular body. particularly those traumas that still have a charge, that still causes a fight or flight reaction. Again it is our thoughts, the stories we tell ourselves about the situation that can be the biggest problem. In these situations, no 2 can be the biggest worry for many people. If you are highly Empathic or a HSP you mind find many social situations extremely exhausting, overwhelming, too noisy. So a practical tip is to have a backup plan to go home early or to bring an ally for extra support. But remember anxiety is not triggered by the situation but what you believe about the situation
Public Speaking:Most people hate public speaking, they hate having to do that talk or presentation. So when that job comes up at work, they will not only worry about for weeks. But will often do anything to sabotage or avoid the task in hand, which can lead to more problems. Again, if you are not organised or prepared, you are leaving room for more anxiety and pressure. And once again it’s all about your thoughts about the public speaking, the what if’s is causing your anxiety, not the actual situation.
Money Worries:Although most of us are living a more financially comfortable life than any of our ancestors ever did. A big source of anxiety for a lot of people is money and financial security. Again ruminating over the what if’s or over past situations when you financially struggled. Will keep you in a state of anxiety. If you have serious financial worries, getting the right advice from a financial advisor can help. They will often give you expert advice, to take more positive actions towards reducing the pressure you are under.
Consuming Stimulants:What are you consuming daily that is triggering or exacerbating anxiety? Caffeine, sugar, artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, nicotine are all stimulants that can trigger anxiety. Overuse of stimulants triggers the fight or flight response, which increases the likelihood of cortisol dysfunction. Daily consumption of stimulants can cause sugar imbalances, inflammation and a variety of other health issues. Reducing your caffeine or stimulant intake can help reduce your anxiety levels, can help curb the anxiety cycle.
The biggest challenge that Chronic Anxiety Sufferers have is STOPPING the chronic anxiety cycle of rumination, fear and trauma. This can be easily achieved when we treat anxiety with a holistic approach. Supporting the client towards a more balanced state of mind, body, and emotions.
Chronic Anxiety can be healed, chronic anxiety disorders are not something you just need to live with. If you suffer from GAD Generalised Anxiety Disorder, panic attacks, or any form of chronic anxiety issues. Get professional help. In my role as Stress therapist, Counsellor, and Coach I saw clients who had suffered for decades before seeking help, The longer people leave anxiety issues untreated or addressed the bigger hold it often it has over the life and sometimes can take longer to treat. But it can be treated, it can be eliminated with the right approach
When you understand your anxiety, understand your symptoms. It takes the fear out of the symptoms and helps the client become more aware of the thought patterns, the conditioning, and fears that need to be addressed. With the right stress and anxiety management tools, you become empowered, you stop suffering and start to feel free.
Eileen Burns, owner of Stress Coach Training, she is a highly qualified Stress Management Expert, therapist and Coach who has been studying holistic wellbeing and various forms of therapy for the last 28 years.
Sleep Therapy – How To Treat Insomnia The Natural And Holistic Way
Why Sleep Therapy is becoming more popular and effective at treating so many insomnia and sleep disorders today. Sleep Problems is a major problem for millions of people around the world. In the UK it has become a growing problem in not just adults but in teenagers and children.
In England alone, NHS statistics showed sleep disorder admissions for under-16s had tripled in just a few years in 2017 in-fact nearly 10,000 child admissions for sleep problems.
Why Sleep Therapy Is So Needed Today
In 2011 a survey by the Mental Health Foundation ” said that a survey of the nation’s sleep habits found that 30% are severely sleep-deprived, putting them more at risk of mental health and relationship issues.” Sleep Problems in the UK, NHS website.
According to an online survey by Chemist4U.com and a global survey by Philips in 2018. Brits roughly get approx 34.5 minutes less sleep each night than most other countries around the world. Working out at about 8.76 days of less sleep a year. One of the reasons sleep therapy is more needed than ever.
Main Causes Of Sleep Issues Today
The main cause of sleep disorders today is stress and over-stimulation. Most of us spend more time engaged in mental doing, mental ruminating, mental processing than anything else. Even children spend a large chunk of their day hooked into addictive and distracting technology, obsessive thoughts. Rather than living in a more natural state of being.
We have become so disconnected from our natural innate way of being that we are very disconnected from our body. And how our body naturally speaks to us. More and more of us are living further and further away from nature. To live and work in toxic, concrete, busy buildings, frying our brains and bodies with surges of EMF radiation, day and night. Is any wonder sleep disorders are becoming a pandemic problem in adults and children today.
Common Issues Of Sleep Disorders
We know that lack of good quality deep sleep, impacts our health and wellbeing, our mental, emotional and physical stress resilience. Adequate sleep is a necessary part of any stress management, health or wellbeing program. Poor sleep leads to a wide range of related health issues including
Low Mood and Depression
Lack Of Motivation
Lack Of Concentration and Focus
It can contribute to weight gain and obesity
Increased risk of high blood pressure and heart disease
Increased risk of diabetes and hypoglycemia
Poor performance and poor decision making at work
It can seriously impact one’s self-esteem, self-confidence
Biggest Sleep Snatchers
Some of the most popular causes of sleep disorders in the modern world is
Other common problems include bad bedtime hygiene such as watching late-night TV, spending late hours on led, computer or mobile devices. Taking homework or work or even problems to bed instead of some calming hobbies before bed.
A Sleep therapist can help you change your habits, your routine in a natural, stress-free way.
Top Tips For A Good Night Sleep
A Nice Clean And Tidy Bed and Bedroom not only makes going to sleep more pleasurable. But can really help support a more calm and relaxed mind.
Reduce Food Stimulants such as caffeine and sugar as early in the day and evening as you can. If you have a sweet tooth or love your coffee, the best times to consume these stimulants is before 3 pm during the day.
Learn to Relax, most people don’t realise how stressed, anxious and over-stimulated they are. The ability to relax and switch off is vital in helping you drift off into a deep sleep. Most Sleep or Relaxation Therapists or Sleep Therapy Program will teach you how to relax.
Exercise Early In The Evening, this not helps walk-off extra stress but improves heart rate and general wellbeing. And will, in the long run, help you have more energy. Most people today complain of fatigue or exhaustion that is caused by mental exhaustion not physical exhaustion. Unless you have a serious fatigue disorder like M.E, C.F.S or Lyme. Getting enough physical exercise during the day will, in the long run, support better sleep and better health. be honest how much time do you spend sitting, driving, watching T.V.
Switch Off Technology. Unplugging technological devices such as TV, computers, radios, mobile phones at least 30 minutes before bed is an integral part of any sleep therapy course. Electromagnetic radiation can not only affect your health and wellbeing but repair process during sleep.
Learn To Meditate. Meditation is something I suggest to everyone. Meditate throughout the day to keep your anxiety and stress levels down. The more calm and relaxed you are during your day, the more calm and relaxed you will be going to bed.
Switch To Natural Sleep Remedies. Stop relying on prescription medication. Add sleep supporting essential oils to a warm relaxing bath. Encourage your partner to give you a nice relaxing aromatherapy hand or foot massage. Essential oils that can help aid sleep include Lavender, Ylang Ylang, Clary Sage, Frankincense and Vetivert. I use Lavender with ylang-ylang, or ylang-ylang with Frankincense. Doterra has some fabulous high quality and organic essential oils ethically sourced from the best growers around the world. You can check my online shop Click Here
Are You Ready To Sleep Like A Baby?
Learn powerful sleep therapy techniques that will help you re-train your mind, body and emotions how to sleep. How to sleep like a baby again.
This Sleep Therapy Program will teach you all you need to know
Free Meditation Course by The Meditation Library. Learn how to meditate daily even if you think you can’t meditate. Learn how to build your meditation practice up in a more simple stressless way.
In this Free Meditation Course, you will not only get your own free meditation mp3 instructional track. You get a 5-day video course of free meditations to support your meditation practice. You will get daily tips on how to meditate and how not to meditate.
We will also help clear up some common myths and misunderstandings surrounding meditation like those below. Many misconceptions around meditation can leave beginners of meditation more stressed and frustrated than calm and relaxed. This course is designed to make meditation more simple, less confusing and more easy to apply to your daily routine.
Understanding Meditation
So what is meditation? Meditation is a skill that is used to bring us into present moment awareness. Meditation techniques usually use one object or sense as its point of focus. In any breathing meditation, the point of focus is your breath. In a Mantra Meditation your point of awareness is on the Mantra
Common Myths Around Meditation
Meditation Is About Controlling Your Thoughts- Wrong
This is a common myth about meditation. A by-product of meditation is you start to have more space between your thoughts, you lose attachment to your thoughts. You will become more disentangled by your thoughts when you start to make this free meditation technique part of your daily life. You become more of a witness an observer to your thoughts instead of getting carried with your thoughts. That is why meditation can be very helpful in reducing symptoms of anxiety, stress, and depression. But meditation is not about trying to control or stop your thoughts.
Meditation Is A Religious Or Spiritual Practice – Not Necessarily
Although different forms of meditation are used in some spiritual or religious practice and most meditation practice has originated from eastern Hinduism and Buddhism. Meditation today is most commonly used in the west as a stress management tool or aid for health and wellbeing. To meditate does not mean you follow any religious concept.
You Need To Sit Like A Yogi To Meditate – Wrong
No no-one needs to meditate like a yogi. You don’t need to sit in the Lotus, Half Lotus or Burmese position to meditate effectively. I have meditated for about 30 years and I usually meditate on a chair. As long as you are sitting upright with your back reasonably straight not slouched or lying down you can meditate.
Meditation Is A Way To Sleep – Not Technically True
When you meditate you are attentively aware, you feel more relaxed and at peace. But traditional meditation is about being fully present, conscious or even super-conscious. Many people confuse meditation with guided meditations that are really more guided visualisations. This is where a therapist will take you on a guided journey evoking different senses, especially imagery.
This often has a very different purpose from what most of us would say is the art of meditation. Some guided visualisations ( known as guided meditation) are designed to help one drift off to sleep. But traditionally meditation is about being fully conscious and about supporting us to let go of the stories. Rather than create a story in our mind what often a guided visualisation will do.
Meditation Is Difficult – It Doesn’t Have To Be
Some people come into meditation with high expectations, expecting all sorts of shifts or expectations in a short period of time. They often put pressure on themselves to achieve or experience something. Meditation is the art of full being, not about an end result. In a way meditation is a journey, not about a mere destination. You will get many benefits of meditation the more you practice meditation. But it is not a process that should be judged, compared or analysed.
Meditation Is Boring – It Doesn’t Have To Be
Again many people come to meditation with very distorted perceptions and expectations around meditation. If you are used to a very active and busy, fun or high adrenaline-packed life. Meditation can take a little bit of adjusting. In a modern world that has deluded us to believe we must do this, be this, have this at the push of an app. We are so used to doing, thinking we have forgotten how to just be. Something that as babies and young children we do so easily.
Meditation Has To Be Long – Wrong
Although generally the more time we spend in a meditative state the more it increases our mental, physical and emotional wellbeing. You don’t need to practice a traditional 20-minute meditation twice a day to reduce your anxiety and stress levels. It can be much easier and beneficial for many people to meditate in short bursts throughout your day. Now, technically in many ways, you can go through your day in meditation. Your day in conscious awareness but this is something that usually takes a lot of discipline and practice. to master. So that is why my Free Meditation Program For Beginners can really help you begin to slow down, be more in the moment.
Why Negative Stress Increases Your Risk of Disease, Illness, and Unhappiness.
Stress and disease. Why stress causes dis-ease, increases inflammation and reduces our immune system. Why stress is a modern-day killer.
The body’s stress response is our body’s innate life-saving system that effectively responds to dangerous and life-threatening situations. That is why it is known as the survival response or fight or flight response.
When you are in a state of stress. Your hypothalamus stimulates the release of stress hormones, especially adrenaline and cortisol. Now, this rush of hormones will increase your heart rate, respiration rate, blood pressure, and muscle energy. This will help you react quickly and effectively (fight or flee) in a life-threatening or emergency situation.
Now, the stress response is supposed to be an occasional response. So, after the stress response, your body is designed to naturally go back into a relaxed state of being.
But today for too many people the stress response, has become their more normal everyday way of being. They are now in a state of chronic stress and disease. When your mind and body become habitually exposed to high levels of stress hormones. Your body then finds itself in a state of dis-ease, a state of imbalance.
Stress And Disease
Too many believe Chronic Stress is something you just live with, that it is a necessary by-product of modern life. But that is so not true, no-one needs to live with chronic long-term stress.
If you find it difficult to switch off, you cannot relax and find you always need to be busy. You are probably suffering from long-term or chronic stress.
Long-term stress sufferers find themselves in a constant state of hyperarousal or hypervigilance. They become constantly alert to the threat of possible danger and they are at increased risk of developing ananxiety disorder.
This chronic state of overstimulation can lead to a variety of physical, mental, and emotional health issues. The Immune System, for example, is a connection of systems, processes, cells, tissues, and organs. They all need to be working in harmony to protect the body against “foreign attack of viruses, bacteria anything that causes disease.
“Inflammation is partly regulated by the hormone cortisol and when cortisol is not allowed to serve this function, inflammation can get out of control,” said Cohen, the Robert E. Doherty Professor of Psychology within CMU’s Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences – ScienceDaily.Com
Cortisol stops and slows down unnecessary essential body functions during emergency situations ( the fight or flight stress response) so when we are regularly overexposed to cortisol. Certain body functions are impacted especially the digestive and immune system, growth, and reproductive system.
Adrenaline increases heart rate and blood pressure. So in long-term stress, there is a higher risk of heart disease and high blood pressure. That is why stress and disease is so interconnected.
Long-Term Stress And Disease
Here are just some examples of how much long-term stress wreaks havoc with your mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing.
Many factors can increase our stress exposure and many variables that can make us more stress resilient.
Present Health Challenges
Genetics, Hereditary Factors
Personality Types and Traits
Life Experiences and Life Challenges
Life Skills, Communication Skills
Location
The above can all increase our risk of stress and disease. But fundamentally most modern STRESS is triggered by our beliefs. By what we Fear or Resist persists.
Most chronic and long-term stress can be eliminated and reduced when we learn how to let go of and manage our stress.
Stress Management Advice
Learning how to manage, reduce, and let go of stress is key to making you more resilient to life’s challenges.
Learn To Relax – Relaxation Techniques are a powerful way to move the body off the stress response into the relaxed response.
Live In The Moment – Learn how to stop be in the moment, and be more mindful, meditation and mindfulness can be extremely helpful.
Live A Balanced Life – A more balanced life leads to a more balanced mind, body, and emotions.-
Reduce Stimulants – Internal and external stimulants cause havoc on the body from caffeine, sugar, drugs, and nicotine too much EMF’s, noise and technology.
Eat Healthily – Fueling and flooding your bodies with healthy nutrients will help cushion your body system from the free radicals and disharmony that stress causes.
Healthy Communication- Healthy communication and assertiveness skills are extremely helpful in having healthy relationships. Making healthier decisions, asking for help, delegating, and creating healthy boundaries.
Purpose And Passions – Purpose and passions give people the optimum motivation to make healthier choices to live a more stressless life.
Would You Love To Learn How To Manage Your Anxiety And Stress More Effectively?
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