While I was in Sri Lanka I became very aware of the role that meditation plays in the lives of its people. Everywhere we went there were references to it and we witnessed meditation for mindfulness practices going on many times.

Meditation involves freeing the mind completely of all thought in order to invoke calm, clarity and insight. Like hypnotherapy, the benefits of meditation are that it induces a calming state of mind and uses relaxing breathing techniques to enable this. Hypnotherapy is more focused on specific goals; to overcome fear, to feel more confident, to develop a mindful approach to eating or to achieve better sleep. However, both processes are very therapeutic and relaxing and ultimately, help us to lead happier and more fulfilled lives. They compliment each other and I encourage my clients to meditate alongside the hypnotherapy work that we do to improve their overall well-being.

Very often, we don’t become aware of the huge benefits of these practices until something negative happens in our lives and we can then feel very destabilised. Research has shown that people who use the practices of meditation, gratitude or prayer every day, are generally happier. So why is this?

Setting aside a few moments every day can make a huge difference to your health. When we create some space to relax and give our minds a holiday it switches off the overactive stress response and affects the cortisol levels in our bodies. When we endure stress for a sustained amount of time, it becomes a problem. Cortisol activates our flight or fight response, and I often see clients in this state when they first see me. This type of stress is activated by our modern day living.

We lead busy lives and there is always something to do, but prioritising yourself and practising some stillness for a few minutes in the day will have a huge impact on how you feel. This will normalise your cortisol levels, your body won’t feel like it’s under attack, everything will balance out and you will feel calmer, lighter and happier.

3/4/5 Breathing

3/4/5 breathing is how I begin every hypnotherapy session and it is very easy to do. Just make yourself comfortable, close your eyes, and then breathe in slowly through your nose and count to 3 – then hold your breath and count to 4 and then, breathe out slowly as you count to 5. Then just repeat this as many times as you like. When you breathe in let your tummy inflate with air and when you breathe out, let it deflate. This type of breathing links your mind and body. When you slow your breathing down, you create a relaxation response in your body, which then relaxes your mind. So why not give it a go and see for yourself, how calming this simple ‘mediation’ practice is.

I encourage my clients to take a holistic approach to their health and booking in for an online hypnotherapy session will enable you to achieve a complete state of relaxation. It’s extremely restorative and a lovely way to spend an hour!

If you would like to give your mind a holiday, then do get in touch with me for a free 15-minute chat to find out how hypnotherapy can help you.