Stress Management

The human brain receives messages from multiple sources, each dealing with separate types of information. Input dealing with everyday matters such as news, music, jobs, relationships, weather, etc. All of this comes from our external environment. Our own bodies provide data concerning movement, digestion, tension, pain all in the form of messages sent to the brain.

The conscious mind deals with reasoning and logic, decisions, goals, planning and conscious activity.  The unconscious mind, which includes both the subconscious and the superconscious, wields the greatest influence. It receives all messages and doesn’t evaluate the information. It either accepts or rejects the information and places in a memory bank for future use. It is the conscious mind that is critical and analyzes information.

From our ancestry, the human animal has possessed an escape mechanism that even today, under severely threatening conditions, can cause regression back to our primal instincts. Fight or Flght syndrome, which is a natural response to threatening situations, has gained tolerance through evolution with the addition of action vs. reaction and repression vs depression. Without these coping mechanisms, the natural tendency would be to move toward the denial of reality. However, the desire for social acceptance provides motivation to cope with and adapt to reality.

Nevertheless, when the conscious mind can no longer handle the messages being sent to the brain, the sub-conscious prepares us for fight or flight. The heart pumps harder and faster, blood pressure rises, super strength can be generated. BUT SOMETIMES THERE IS NOTHING THERE TO FIGHT. We can’t fight the economy. We can’t fight the environment, an accident or a bad decision. So what now?

Enter Stress and Anxiety
Unable to fight, the reaction turns to the alternative of flight, which in present day life can prove impossible. Often a state of apathy, depression and /or hyper-suggestibility ensues. Negative input finds acceptance.  Futility and melancholy develop and an overreaction to the senses develops along with a loss of tolerance. The road turns downhill.

People become overwhelmed and start to enter states of confusion, lack of energy and loss of sleep only compounds the problem. Arguments and disagreements only add to the feeling of helplessness and it seems like everything and everyone has turned against you.

A person experiencing continual stress may well be subject to such a  frenzy and in the process may develop any or several forms of stress related illness. While certain types of stress are desirable, romantic stress, job promotions, winning a lottery), stressors that produce debilitating feelings such as depression, smoking, overeating, grief, anger and similar reactions need attention or can have serious long term affects.

Stress may be a reaction to people, places, events or things. These threats can be real or imagined. Remember, the subconscious mind doesn’t analyze, an usually by the time depression appears, the conscious mind has lost its ability to cope.

What’s behind it all?
Why me? Stress victims ask the question quite often. Many factors enter the picture of possibilities. Overachievers, which are typical Type A personalities, are hyper competitive. They can be addicted to Stress. They can actually enjoy it, unless it gets out of control.  Victims can learn stress early in life from parents, teachers, relatives and others. Through early experiences, they consider stress a normal part of life because they see it all the time.

Fears, real or imagined, can also develop into signs of stress. They can expand into full grown phobias and psychiatric disorders. Unrelenting pain or worries over health situations are factors, as are repressed emotions such as hurt, anger, grief, etc. Specific incidents are frequently involved, such as the necessity to speak to a group in the course of job performance when such activity is uncomfortable.

Every individual is different in tolerance levels, coping abilities, reactions and therapeutic needs. Dealing with stress is best accomplished working with a trained hypnotherapist who can help determine causes and revaluate reactions. Learning to cope with stressors is important, but hypnotherapy can help to overcome sensitivity and develop a more beneficial response to the triggers that cause stress.
Through Coaching and Hypnotherapy, new responses can be created to help replace the devastating responses of the past. Buried emotions and feelings can be brought to the surface and released. Outside pressures can be relieved and new responses to old disturbances can be shifted with new attitudes and reactions.

We can help!
Learning to relax and release as a part of a program is key to overcoming stress. Our CVR and Personal Sessions are designed to alleviate the challenges in letting go and learning new coping mechanisms to deal with stress. You will learn to relax, sleep better and take control as you begin to manage stress with real skill sets that are useful in everyday life