Can hypnosis help me lose weight? I get asked this all the time and my answer is YES! So how does it work? First, let me explain a little bit about the unconscious mind and hypnosis. Then it is important to look at weight and uniqueness. Finally, I will bring the two together.
Hypnosis is a misunderstood term. There is often a belief that the hypnotist does something to their client and then is the one in control. Nothing could be further from the truth. The client is always in control. I am a facilitator. I help each client relax or misdirect their conscious mind so that it gets out of the way.
We’ve all had the experience of zoning out. It is often when we are driving and the destination appears before we know it. In fact, we may think ‘how did I get here without thinking?’. Yet of course you were thinking – it was your unconscious doing the driving. Your conscious mind was making a list or daydreaming or having it out with your boss. In hypnosis, your unconscious mind is given the directions and it takes care of rest.
You also might have had another common zoning out experience. Have you ever meant to go somewhere and find that instead you started to make a turn or drove almost all the way to work or school or another place you go to regularly? Your unconscious was on autopilot. Happily, it was taking you where you usually go. It had become a habit that your conscious mind had to come to and go no, not that way.
Frequently this autopilot is one of the things we do when eating. How many times have I walked in and looked into the fridge? Only to shake myself and go no, I’m not hungry.
Think of the habits you have. Do you feel you have to have dessert every night? Or popcorn at the movies? What’s a hamburger without the bun or ketchup? Or perhaps like me, there are family habits. Every time we went food shopping, my mother would buy a treat. Often these were Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies. She and I would sit in the parking lot gobbling down the cookies. It became a habit for me to always buy cookies when I was at the store. I couldn’t not do it. The compulsion (habit) was that strong. This was before I knew about hypnosis. I eventually and slowly broke this habit. How much quicker it could have been.
To lose weight, it isn’t the end game that we focus on. Whether you want to lose 10lbs or 100lbs it doesn’t matter. We find the triggers, the challenges, the habits that are unique to you. I create suggestions to give you while you are deep in hypnosis. But for a minute let’s back up.
What if you truly love a particular food and don’t want to give it up. A coworker of mine who was diabetic and just recovered from a triple bypass told me he would rather die than not have pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. We all have our foods we want to hold on to. So we can select the suggestions that work for us and make changes as needed. In this case, his wife made a sugar free pie that he said was delicious.
The first steps are substitutions, these you can start yourself. Right now there are a lot of very tasty foods with fewer calories or carbs. You don’t need hypnosis for this.
What hypnosis can do is remove cravings. A suggestion that you no long want sweets can be surprisingly effective. As you shop or select food, you begin to go “I should want that, but no…”
Perhaps you live with someone who sabotages you? Often this occurs when you announce you are dieting or losing weight. The husband, wife or other suddenly shows up with donuts or other food they know you shouldn’t have. In this case, we would create unique suggestions for that. A negative hallucination happens when you don’t see something that is right there. We do it all the time by accident, why not do it on purpose. Hypnosis can create this state of mind.
When working with you to help you lose weight, I use all the tools in my toolbox. Hypnosis is primary, self hypnosis enhances effectiveness. Because everyone is unique there is not a one size fits all. It may take a few sessions for a few pounds. It may take more to change a lifetime of habits and to release a lot of weight. Most importantly is not gaining it back. I always add that focus.
I have recently decided to work on myself and lose weight. Several years ago I lost 85lbs and went from a size 26 to a 9. I find a size 12 is my set point. Since then I have gained back some, went through several surgeries (back, hip and knee) and gave myself time to get back to fully me. In December I started giving myself suggestions about sweets. I can be around them and rarely feel like I want to eat them. I have found a few workarounds for the few times I feel like a sweet. I don’t even have diet soda or other foods very often. I then focused on walking more, moving up to a daily 30-40 minute walk. And I shifted my taste buds to not crave bread or starches. I am losing weight, bought my first size 14 shorts and they are getting loose. I know it is all in my head. Food is just fuel and there are so many other things in life to enjoy.
I can help you to find the suggestions that will change your habits. I can take you into a deep state of hypnosis and from there give the suggestions that will make losing weight feel easy and comfortable. It may take time but you will be amazed at the change.
