[img]560|left|Nicholas D. Pollak||no_popup[/img]”Stress is any change to which we must adjust.”
Most of us think of stressful situations as negative, the death of a friend or loved one, losing your job, dropping out of school, school finals, divorce. Situations commonly thought of as positive may produce stress also: moving to a new home, gaining a promotion, going away to college, getting married, even buying a new car.
Our stress comes from both external and internal sources. Or it may come from the environment, from the body, from thoughts and emotions.
Hypnosis is useful in reducing stress as well as providing techniques to handle stress. Other techniques, such as nutrition, time management, assertiveness training, visualization, meditation, regulated breathing, job stress management and biofeedback, may be effectively used to reduce your stress levels.
Stress has been linked to many health problems, including heart attacks and strokes. In fact, Web MD estimates that over 75 percent of doctor visits are stress-related. Being over-stressed may lead to low work performance, sleep issues, absent-mindedness, decreased interest in life, addictions, among other undesirable results.
Digest the Many Benefits
People who respond well to stress and know how to prevent unnecessary anxiety are typically peak performers.
will:
• Increase your energy and focus,
• Allow you to deal with authority, roles and limits,
• Increase your tolerance to frustration during difficult circumstances,
• Let you adapt to change and prosper from it,
• Help you to develop a sense of belonging,
• Let you show friendliness, care and love,
• Allow you to enjoy recreation,
• Permit you to relax and sleep better,
• Free your sense of humor and ability to laugh at yourself,
• Let you demonstrate a reasonable sense of independence and self-reliance.
Hypnosis will guide you through exercises that help you learn to adapt to stressful situations, solve existing anxieties and create new ways of functioning in a stress-free way.
More Evidence
In a study at Ohio State University, medical students who learned just one part of what you will experience in our hypnosis sessions were able to significantly reduce exam-time stress. Blood samples revealed that these students' immune systems became stronger the more they practiced the techniques. (SOURCE/REFERENCE: Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2001; 69: 674-682.)
Stress may also lead to panic and anxiety attacks, which, of course, creates sweaty palms, shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat and a feeling of impending death as a result of these uncomfortable yet ultimately harmless symptoms.
I recently held a seminar on stress, panic and anxiety. One lady struck me as interesting. When she entered the room I could see that she was stressed out, severely anxious. It was obvious from the way she walked, carefully with furtive, short glances in the direction she wanted to go. She had an overall mousy demeanor.
Afterward, I asked if she had gained anything from it.
She said the seminar confirmed what she already knew. I asked if she would like to make an appointment so that I could help reduce her stress while eliminating panic and anxiety. No, she said, because now that I had confirmed what she already knew, she would be better.
It was clear that she was deceiving herself. She was not going to be better without hypnotic intervention. I asked her what she was doing to fix her concern. She had been seeing a psychiatrist for 16 months. Was this helping? She still suffered frequent attacks but she had medication to calm her while she and her psychiatrist worked together to find the root cause of her problem.
The bottom line for her was she still was suffering stress, panic and anxiety. The medications merely masked her symptoms. I found that her diet was high in carbohydrates with little protein.
Previously, I have emphasized the importance of high protein and low carb diets. This ensures even blood sugar levels reducing a person’s risk of having sugar- level related stress, panic and anxiety. I asked her if her psychiatrist had talked with her about the importance of stable sugar levels. No.
Once again, the psychiatrist was not helping his client. I felt an element of prolonging her sessions to gain an income rather than suggesting that she might like to try something else.
Other seminar participants gained useful insights into their stress- and panic-related conditions. All felt the suggested diet and the breathing techniques would be beneficial.
One person said he had been suffering debilitating stress, panic and anxiety for as long as he could remember.
Now he was free of all of them after going through three sessions with a hypnotist who knew the conditions creating these attacks and how to rid the client of them.
Anyone experiencing stress, panic and anxiety, please know help is out there. These attacks can be managed and eliminated. Don’t hesitate to call or email.
A clinical hypnotherapist, handwriting analyst and expert master hypnotist, Nicholas Pollak may be contacted at nickpollak@hypnotherapy4you.net