Stay calm people – A stress free Christmas tip!

Imagine if you could go though a day in slow motion.  Life would be so much calmer.  You wouldn’t have that sense of rushing to get everything done before the 25^th December.  You will also have more patience with others.

Even on Christmas Eve and day, when relatives can be hard to handle, pause before you speak so you don’t say anything you will regret later.

So when you get that feeling of being stressed out, just think “go slow”, and it will go away and you will find that everything will get done – but without the anxiety.

Your brain can tell you to love or hate certain foods.

Isn’t it funny when you think as an adult, “I love broccoli now, but hated it as a child”.  Same for brussels sprouts, asparagus, and green beans.  Do you ever wonder why?

Well as it turns out, it is the same for any food or drink for that matter.  Think of the first time you ever tasted alcohol (whiskey, gin, vodka, jaggermister), what was the reaction?  Yuck!  Never going to drink that….

But if you try something at least 6 -7 times, you brain begins to switch your preference for it.  So, mothers should persevere with having their toddlers try vegetables over an over, even if it’s raw, blended, baked, boiled or mixed.  Just don’t mask the taste of the vegetables with sauces or other spices as you will just mask the true taste of the vegetable you are trying to encourage your child to love.   Bon appetite. 

Acceptance and support for transgender children

It is hard enough being a child and having to learn all of life’s lessons, but if you have a learning difficulty, or disability, or you do not feel your true self, it is 100% worse.

There has been a lot of attention in the media for transgender children.   They say the calls to charity counselling lines have tripled in the last 3 years (Daily Mail 13^th December).  It appears that the more support being shown to these children, it is giving other children the confidence to call in for help and support.

Can you even imagine the pressure of school, activities, puberty, “fitting in” and on top of that “feeling different” about your own sex” and “trapped in the wrong body”?  Then on top of that you feel you can’t talk to anybody about it. 

I always focus on keeping myself up to date on children’s issues, as I would hate not to be prepared on how to help them should a child confide in me  as a counselor or hypnotherapist.  One woman who started a site for her transgender son, said a very profound statement.  She wrote, “I would rather have a transgender daughter than a dead son”.  Wow – powerful.

So my advice to you is listen to them, take it seriously, ask them what you can do to support them and act on it.  There are great support lines for them to talk to counselors as well as getting a referral on the NHS.  They have a specialist team to help transgender children.   They need to hear they are still loved for who they are, not their sex orientation.  Feel free to call me if you would like more information.

The Secret returns

I read an interesting article in the Daily Mail (13^th December) in the life section.

It was about the 10-year anniversary of the release of The Secret.  If you missed it, this book promotes the power of positive thinking.  I totally believe in it and now they have brought out a second book sharing the stories of people who have put The Secret into practice in their lives. 

However, it is not just a matter of positive thinking.  It is about the way you ask the universe for what you want.  You can’t just throw it out once and hope for the best.  You have to ask in a positive open way (with the right phrasing), you have to do it regularly, and you must focus on it in a positive healthy way, i.e. using visualization techniques or vision board.

My belief is what is the harm in giving it a go, but if you do, don’t do it without actually believing it, as you will just be disappointed.  Start small and build.

Have fun!

Stroke patients brought back to life

There has been so much good press about hypnotherapy in the last two months.  This article from the Evening Standard (dated 20th October 2016) tells about a break though revolutionary operation to help victims of stroke.  It is ingenious!

They use a catheter wire (barely the breadth of a hair) to "fish out" the life-threatening blood clots in the brain.  The procedure is called mechanical thrombectomy.   

We also know we can regrow the damaged synapsis so full recovery is common for most patients.  It really never ceases to amaze me at how powerful our minds are and the creativity of people who discover these kinds of procedures!  Well done medical teams everywhere!

Hypnosis can help with the recovery process too.  We use visualisation to see the movement of the body happening so the mind can set the new pathways.  It takes some effort but it is worth it in the end to keep at it.  I remember reading stories about patients who were told they would never walk again and the person did.  Those people knew that it was achievable and now the doctors do too.

Never give up!

Hypnosis and love

In the Daily Mail on September 9th 2016 there was an interesting article about "Can hypnosis boost your love life?".

It is a good article and a reminder on how quickly you can get results if you make an effort to change.

Sometimes when relationships are failing, you get to a place of hopelessness and stop talking.  All relationships need to have good communication to be successful.  It is important that you discuss problems coming from a place of love, respect, and support.  It is equally important that you both come up with ideas for the best solution.  Then you are working together to save the relationship instead of opposite sides.

  

Think yourself fitter Metro September 1st 2016

I love this article and believe it works.  We all know how our bodies react to our thoughts but this is even more amazing and gives hope to those who want to be fitter but are restricted in their physical abilities.

Tessa Guy is a true inspiration to to the "never give up" attitude.

So get those grey cells going and get yourself fitter!!!!

Is there life after death? Proof of Heaven

Just read this book called Proof of Heaven by Dr. Eben Alexander. It is his personal story about a near death experience and his description on meeting God and being in "heaven". 

When I read a book like this I keep an open mind. I don't know what I believe is true when I read the book, but I do know I believe in a higher spirit. I believe in good karma. I believe in love, gratitude, and empathy. 

When faced with uncertainty I do pray for help. When friends and family are sick, I pray for their health. When we can't explain why things happen, I choose to look for the most positive thing to take away from it.

You may not believe in any of the above, but at the end of the day, I choose to want to think there is more that awaits us after death and we should not fear it. We should all want to enjoy the thought that life goes on, even after death. Then we would fear growing older less and enjoy those years. Just my view. Marygrace

Deepak Chopra Super Gene

We went to see Deepak Chopra speak this past weekend on his new book Super Gene's. He was amazing, inspirational, thought provoking, and mesmerising.

He also has a great sense of humour and was able to explain highly complicated scientific information and relate it to everyday life.

I wanted to share two of the activities he had us do. The first was to sit with your eyes closed and have someone ask you over and over, "who are you" until you reached a point of no response. Then they asked (again over and over) "what do you want". Both are very moving and I think you will be surprised at your answers by doing this(even by yourself). I believe this exercise, you will find the answers you give will be heartfelt.

The second, was when you are faced with a fear, problem or argument, you should: stop and pause, take 3 deep breaths, smile, observe from your prospective, the other persons perspective, other peoples perspectives who are affected, and then proceed. It will change your habit of just doing what you have always done. This is true for any habit you want to change.

But don't just take my word for it. Go and see him live next time he is in London.

Running smarter with less injury

Highly recommend this book.  It is focused on being aware of your body and running style to prevent injury and stay healthy.  Danny Dreyer takes you through a step by step explanation on proper running form and you can feel this enthusiasm coming right out of the book.  I found it helped me and I was fascinated with his mind and body formula.  As you already know, I totally know that there is a mind and body connection, but he is focused from an athletes prospective.

Enjoy your run!

For those who have lost a loved one, some comforting words.

We had this printed on the back side of my fathers funeral card.  I find peace when I read it.  I wanted to share it with others.  RIP

Changing careers

Knowledge is power!  I will never forget my dad first telling me that when I called him from my job in Washington.  I kept getting asked to do things that were not part of my role.  My dad so simply informed me that the more I learn, the more valuable I become to myself, and the company.  So, from that day forward I thrived at learning new skills. 

However, you also need to keep a balance in life so if you have too much work or you are working too many hours, get the balance back.  You need to be able to stand up for yourself and work something out with your manager.  When you are overworked or too tired, you can’t do your job properly or happily.  Happiness is a key to loving your work. 

One of the key things I want to know when someone comes to see me is do they like their jobs.  I would say that more than half want to do something else.  An excellent resource for exploring what you might want to do is a book called “Working 5 to 9” by Emma Jones.  This book is loaded with cleaver resources to help you turn your real interests or even hobbies into careers.  So begin exploring your talents and potential today and love learning.

Sharing Ten things I know about you. It's good to laugh

TEN (10) THINGS I KNOW ABOUT YOU... 

1) You are reading this. 

2) You are human.

3) You can't say the letter ''P'' without separating your lips.

4) You just attempted to do it.

6) You are laughing at yourself. 

7) You have a smile on your face and you skipped No. 5.

8) You just checked to see if there is a No. 5.

9) You laugh at this because you are a fun loving person & everyone does it too.

10) You are probably going to send this to see who else falls for it.  You have received this e-mail because I didn't want to be alone in the idiot category.

Have a great Day. Laugh, and then laugh a little more and sing "It's a Beautiful Morning" even when it seems like it's not.

"Do not regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many."

 

Positive course and things you can do to motivate yourself

I am taking a positive thinking course this month at a local yoga centre.  Not that I am not positive but to see if I can learn new things to share with my clients.  The other reason is what I tell others, you do have to make the effort to remind your self that you have a choice on how you view things that happen in your life.  

It is based on 5 points of yoga:

1.  Proper Exercise

2.  Proper Breathing

3.  Proper Relaxation

4.  Proper Diet

5.  Positive thinking and mediation.

We also learned about the 3 Gunas.  This I knew a lot about, but not the way it related to yoga.  So, to share if you are not aware of them:

Sativa - This is where you want to be.  This is your life in balance.  This is happiness. This is peace and harmony.  This is the goal.

Rajas - This is when you are living your life with too much stress and anxiety.

Tamas - This is heavy, like depression. You feel lethargic and don't want to face the changes you need to make.  

The real trouble is that when you are in Rajas and Tamas, it takes a lot of action to get out of it.  So the best thing is to set a challenge to make your self do it for 30 days.  Then once you are started, the momentum begins to take over as you feel better and better.  So start immediately!

The first two classes where really interesting.  We were given "homework" to do after each class.  The first was to work on bringing meditation and affirmations into your daily life.  I do use affirmations when I am out walking the dog, but I didn't do enough mediation.  I decided to work it into a mediation/self hypnosis.  It really lifts your spirits, and rejuvenates your mind and body.  ~Try it and you will see for yourself.  

The next homework assignment was to try not to complain about others.  OMG, that is really amazing.  I was shocked how many times I complain about others during a normal day.  I am not talking about hate, just little annoyances about people I know and didn't know.  For example, on the bus ride to Kingston, I found myself annoyed by someone talking too loud, and someone who wanted to cut in front of us to get on the bus first.  It was little things like that I found were going through my mind during the day.  It all adds up by the end of the day to be a lot.  So when I catch myself doing it, I am now saying a positive affirmation to reduce the negative thoughts.

I already feel more blessed to have learned these two simple but effective techniques to pass on to others.