Dr. Oz and Hypnosis and weight loss (weight management)

Tomorrow (2/7) on NBC at 2PM EST Dr. Oz is going to have a segment on hypnosis and weight loss.

Most people know that hypnosis can be used for a lot of things… like getting rid of bad habits such as smoking. It absolutly works. In fact, almost EVERYONE knows someone someone who has stopped smoking using hypnosis. 

But, can hypnosis help in losing weight? Here is an opportunity to see first hand by tuning in tomorrow. Now, I do have a caveate; one session will not necessarily be all that is necessary to a person to lose weight. You might be able to rid yourself of a particular eating habit and our relationship with food is very complex.

We use food for reward. You get a raise or promotion; what do you do? Go out to celebrate at a fine restaurant! We use food to satisfy emotional needs (after all, that’s why they call it comfort food). We use food for punishment and worst of all we do it to our kids! Johnny, if you don’t finish your peas, you won’t get any dessert!

We even have belief systems around food.  Almost everyone has the “clean plate” rule. I personally don’t know of any starving orphans that got my leftovers.

Then, we just have bad habits and excuses.  I’m too busy to eat right. I didn’t have time to pack a lunch or snack.  The list goes on.

Hypnosis is fantastic about changing our habits and excuses around food. Tune in tomorrow and see what Dr. Oz has to say.

By the way, if you are thinking of using hypnosis to change your habits regarding food, I know a good one.

Ron McKie

Related Articles

• Does Hypnosis Work for Weight Loss? (everydayhealth.com)
• Can Hypnosis Stop my Binge Eating? (brighthub.com)
• Lap Band Hypnosis: Hype Or Real Deal? (newyork.cbslocal.com)

Hypnosis and Food

 

You have a problem eating too much, or maybe, too fast. The ideal situation would be to go to a hypnotist and have him wave his hypnotic watch back and forth a few times and your eating problem will be gone. Unfortunately, that’s not how it happens.

Yipes!

We have a very complex relationship with food. We have belief systems that are food related, such as the “clean plate” rule. I’m sure that you have heard of it. Unfortunately, it is a rule that most of us have grown up with and, unconsciously, we need to follow its directives. I don’t know if you are aware of it, but a dinner plate used to be 8 – 10 inches in size. Today however, a typical dinner plate is a minimum of 10 inches and more likely 12 or maybe even 14 inches in size. If it’s heaped up with food, we obviously will eat more than we need, but, we will have a clean plate!

We use food for reward and punishment. I’m sure you remember, as a child, being told that you won’t get dessert unless you finish your dinner. Or, if you do well on that test, you’ll get an ice cream, or soda, or some other sweet reward. For some misdeeds, you may not get any dinner at all. And in today’s society which operates at a breakneck speed, we find ourselves eating way too fast because if we don’t eat fast, we don’t get to eat!

Comfort in the Eating!

We use food for emotional reasons. When we visit grandma, the dinner table is always heaped up with food, or cookies, or pie, which is her way of showing that she loves us. We may be bored and have nothing to do… so of course it makes perfect sense to eat something! We use food to mask or hide negative emotions such as anger, sadness, hurt, or guilt. We can use food for protection. If a person has low self-esteem, or feels that they have no value, they may eat until they are grossly overweight in order to validate their self-worth. After all, isn’t a person who is overweight a loser (no!)?

We may also use food for protection. A person who may have been emotionally or physically hurt as a child may use food to mask the emotions or to change their physical appearance so that the risk of further pain is greatly minimized.

As you can see, our relationship with food is complex. Hypnosis can greatly assist you in uncovering the root cause for these emotional issues, and allowing you to re-examine your values and beliefs that are food related. Hypnosis can help you to change how you relate to food at your very core.

You, and the hypnotist, work together to develop a new life strategy with regards to your relationship with food. The hypnotist then offers suggestions for your unconscious mind. As all learning, behavior, and change takes place at the unconscious level, the change can be immediate.  This is a life change, not a diet.

Remember that the way you are now, took time. Be patient with yourself.

Medical Hypnosis

Here is another video on Medical Hypnosis courtesy of ABC TV.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/AlternativeMedicine/medical-hypnosis-hypnotherapy/story?id=9400838

Gastric Bypass Hypnosis

I saw this on Good Morning America.  It shows the power of the mind.  This is a new approach to the weight management problem and it certainly makes sense to me! 

Check it out: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/gastric-mind-band-weight-loss-hypnosis-11743607

After all, there’s no surgery actually needed!

Why Hypnosis or Hypnotherapy?

The quick answer is why not? It is non-invasive, there are no drugs involved, it is relaxing, and it works! Hypnosis is very effective for changing things like smoking, weight gain/loss, anxiety, insomnia, annoying habits such as biting your fingernails or pulling your hair, phobias, snoring, etc.

Hypnosis communicates with the unconscious mind. Our unconscious mind stores and organizes all of our memories, it runs and preserves the body, uses and responds to symbols, and operates like a robot or a computer. Your unconscious mind is where all learning, behavior, and change takes place. When you give specific instructions and they are accepted by the unconscious mind, then there is a predictable outcome. For example, when you first started learning to drive a car, steering, and using the gas and brake pedals required total concentration. If someone asked you to do one more thing at the same time, there was overload and the risk of an accident. Once you learned these things (they went into your unconscious mind), you don’t think about driving at all. If something occurs that requires quick, evasive action, it is an automatic response.

The conscious mind is what you are thinking with…. right… now! It is the part of you that decides what does and does not fit for you.

I get asked the question all the time… “does hypnosis really work?” Hypnosis has been around for over 3000 years and yet today, is mostly misunderstood. It isn’t sleep; people are always in control. Unless you have a really strong desire to cluck like a chicken, I can’t make you do it. What hypnosis is, is a state of willful suspension of disbelief. During a session you actually practice and “get” or assimilate in your body the way you want to be. Consequently, when you leave the session being the way you want feels easy and natural. With hypnosis I guide you into a deep state of relaxation, and while there, focus your attention towards changing unwanted behaviors to desired outcomes.

People often say that they can’t be hypnotized and the truth is that everyone can be hypnotized. All that is required is the ability to follow instructions and to use your imagination. Some people go into trance more easily than others, and, we all go into trance. Have you ever daydreamed, or while driving, passed your exit? Or while reading a book or watching a movie, gotten so involved that people could enter and leave the room without you even knowing it? If you have experienced these phenomenon, then you already know that you weren’t asleep, but instead totally focused on the object of your attention. Welcome to the land of trance!

While most hypnotherapy clients are dealing with problems, hypnosis is also very effective for improving memory, increasing confidence, enhancing productivity, increasing stamina, instilling motivation, improving personal interactions, etc.
Our mind and body has an intimate relationship. Why not use that intimacy to create change…right now!

Hypnotherapy may just be the right answer for you!

Hello world!

Hi!  I’m Ron and I am starting this blog because I am fasinated by hypnosis and NLP and all things associated with the mind and what we can accomplish if we just know how to make the changes necessary.  I have been working with hypnosis and NLP for about 12 years now and I feel like I have just scratched the surface of what is possible.

I first got interested in hypnosis when I was about 12 or 13 years old and, thanks to a willing brother, was able to experience some of the phenomena that hypnosis is capable of producing.

I know that for many people hypnosis seems to be scary and dangerous.  And yet, we go into and out of trance every 60 to 90 minutes.  It turns out that we are wired biologically for trance, and so it is a normal and natural state that we can utilize to improve our life.

I would like to, through this blog, point out some of the ways that hypnosis and language can be valuable in improving our lives.

Thank you