Happy New Year’s Resolutions
How are those Resolutions going? Have you given up smoking/nail-biting/cake, been to the gym/swimming/running? If you have then well done, but on a dark cold winter’s evening, it’s easy to slip and find yourself back where you started – on the couch with a large glass of wine and a takeaway.
So why is it so difficult to change our habits?
Well it’s because the brain is in a bit of battle with itself. Our conscious mind knows that these changes are good for us. Unfortunately the subconscious part of our brain responsible for our survival doesn’t like change and will encourage us to simply repeat past patterns as we’ve survived thus far by doing just this. And paradoxically that includes continuing bad habits which may be damaging our long term health and wellbeing.
So how do we get our conscious mind to take control and help those resolutions to stick?
- Take small positive actions which move you towards your ultimate goal, and take the time to really notice your achievements. This in itself triggers a chemical response in the brain which promotes a feeling of confidence and control.
- Enlist the support of people around you. Positive interaction with others also creates that chemical response which helps us to feel good and keeps our conscious mind in control.
- Don’t try to change too much at once. The subconscious is more likely to dig it’s metaphorical heels in – one of the symptoms of which can be a feeling of anxiety which persuades you to you return to the old “safe” patterns. Recognising this and rationalising it can help you to overcome the urge to regress.
And this is where hypnotherapy can help. In hypnotherapy we use trance – a state in which we can bring the conscious and subconscious mind together to focus on the positive change you would like to achieve. In this state we can work to resolve the battle and take back control for the conscious mind, helping you to make that New Year’s Resolution a reality.