The Subconscious Mind: Influencing Our Lives
The mind is like a vast computer. Most input ‘processing’ occurs beyond the level of conscious awareness. The subconcious has a major and central influence on our health, happiness, & eventual longevity.
The subconscious is effectively the location of our habits, instincts, intuition, self-doubts, emotions, long-term memories, creativity, inner motivations, reminders, & other aspects of us as individuals.
The subconscious is the feeling mind; the conscious is the logical. Feelings can distort logic. Often what an individual feels subconsciously is what causes their consciously unwanted symptoms. In other words, the conscious is in disharmony with the subconscious. Hypnotherapy is about restoring harmony & balance, giving a new focus.
Each of us is unique in appearance and personality and our subconscious is our ‘software’, the ‘invisible hand’ that guides us – in effect the ‘voice within’.
Good - or bad - it weaves its web, as friend or foe.
In fact, on average we spend about 80% of our waking time in this ‘automatic-pilot’ state of mind! Quite staggering really when you think about it!! This leaves only 20% for focused thinking - that requiring significant mental effort. Usually this is when doing new things. Clearly this is the way we have evolved, with much of our ‘thinking’ being instinctive and automatic (we are an animal after all) – this preserves energy & allows a more rapid reaction (based on past experience) in responding to events.
Sometimes, however, the subconscious can dominate our thoughts and literally take on a life of its own! It can be stronger than the conscious logical thinking mind, particularly where emotions are involved. It is then that subconsciously feelings arise and cause us to do things which are, not necessarily, in our best interest. In fact, they may be inhibiting, restricting & even damaging long-term.
For example: being obsessive, over anxious without conscious cause, being depressed for no apparent reason, gambling to excess, panicking over small difficulties, worrying unnecessarily, comfort-eating, drinking alcohol to damage health, smoking to keep the lids on anxieties,…the list of negatives responses is long!
The real need is for our subconscious ‘programmes’ and motivations to be automatically guiding us towards a happier, progressive, healthier & balanced lifestyle - as individuals and as a social & economic society.
Some subconscious messages will be positive & helpful, of course. But more often than not they are over-protective, negative, inhibiting & habitual - created by emotional memories that have outlived their original purpose. The results can be symptomatic and will typically include: self-doubt, lack of confidence, low self-esteem, panic attacks, depression, and many & varied physical manifestations of internal disharmony.
This is where hypnotherapy has a considerable part to play and is known to help in over 600 conditions. There is now a sound & growing body of independent research to substantiate the effectiveness of hypnosis & hypnotherapy. It can also be successfully applied in personal development, and within a business environment.
Firstly, it is well known that we have our more creative moments when relaxed - in the bath, shower, daydreaming, even when driving on a familiar road. Then the mind is more ‘fluid’ and the memory better. Conversely, being tense & uptight puts a break on recall.
When in a relaxed state our ideas commonly flow from the subconscious into conscious awareness. We experience a moment of inspiration – a ‘wow effect’. Creative people use their subconscious to good effect and draw their best ideas when not thinking hard! They just let the mind flow. So on the same principle, even deeper creative relaxation is achieved in the state of hypnosis. Then hypno-therapy provides a refocus and reprogramme, resolving an unwanted condition – the presenting symptoms.
The subconscious is given new programmes - new “messages”. These create a happier prospective, one able to cope with challenges more easily & with greater confidence.
Generally, it is the case that the public view of hypnosis is influenced by stage hypnotist performances - where people are turned into squawking chickens, or act out daft things! Superficially, hypnosis might be viewed thus as “mind control” - with the hypnotist exercising some sort of ‘power’ over his ‘victims’. Indeed, the media often tend to encourage this mythical picture – for an exciting read!
In actual fact, hypnosis is neither mind-control, nor mystical. It is a purely natural state of mind, a resource which can improve and change the focus of lives - without drugs or medication, without side-effects – just as nature intended.
When people experience hypnosis for the first time they always say they have never felt so relaxed before - ever. Perhaps somewhat to their surprise, they also felt completely in control - focused like in a day-dream.
There is literally no one who would not benefit from hypnotherapy in some way, given reasonable time for treatment. We all have some unresolved fears, anxieties, unwanted habits, confidence or self-esteem issues, a need to change something in our life - to be free from such restrictions & inhibitions is highly desirable. There are a huge number – over 600 - applications.
Compared with other treatments, such as counselling, psychotherapy, & cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), hypnotherapy often takes fewer sessions and resolves problems more effectively. It can get to the core of a problem.
Our mainstream healthcare system has been based on medication, which can at times for certain conditions be very effective. Many ‘non-chemical’ solutions have tended to be placed on the sidelines. Some say natural remedies are scientifically unproven. In hypnotherapy, however, the independent research evidence is very sound - strongly supporting the role it can play in health, wellbeing & personal development.
Hypnotherapy is officially approved by the British Medical Association (BMA) as an effective treatment. It is now appreciated that many medical conditions begin in the mind and their development is influenced by subconscious programming.
Equally the mind can acts as nature’s aid to recovery. Positive patients tend to get better more quickly than those of a more pessimistic persuasion.
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