Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Jon Rhodes of HypnoBusters Blog.

Hypnotherapy is a great tool for relaxation and relieving stress. It helps calm both the mind and body, giving a valuable ‘time out’. However it can be quite costly to hire a clinical hypnotherapist, and we may not always want one around when we want to de-stress. This is not a problem, as it is possible to do self hypnosis, and I will show you how.

To begin with, you will need to make sure that you will not be disturbed for at least half and hour, preferably an hour. Turn off phones, and tell family and friends not to bother you. Find a comfortable place. Somewhere that is neat and tidy, and of a comfortable temperature. Subdue the lighting if this helps you. If you wish, you could light some candles and burn some incense. You can be seated, or led down – whichever you prefer. Importantly make sure that your legs are not crossed, as you could end up going numb after half an hour.

Relaxation

1. Close your eyes and take 10 slow deep breaths – in through the nose, and out through the mouth. Say to yourself the word ‘Relax’ on each out breath.
2. Imagine yourself at the top of 10 steps, with a door at the bottom. With every slow step you take down, feel yourself becoming deeper and deeper relaxed.
3. When you get to the bottom open the door to your ideal place of relaxation. It could be a beach, a garden, anywhere. It could be somewhere real, or imagined – your own uniquely special relaxing haven.
4. Use as many senses as you can. Take a good look around. Pause and listen to any sounds. Perhaps you can hear the call of a bird, or the breeze gently blowing. Perhaps you can smell the sweet scent of flowers, or the salt in the sea? Touch objects, and make the experience as real as you possibly can.
5. Explore your relaxing haven, and enjoy it for as long as you wish.

This is a great technique to help relaxation, and your ability to relax will improve the more you do this. Most of us do not relax anywhere near enough, and this can damage our health in many ways.

Lack of relaxation can weaken our immune systems, causing us to become more prone to illness. Inadequate relaxation may also increase irritability, anxiety, and unhappiness. These problems can affect our behaviour, increasing our likelihood to overeat, smoke, drink, takes drugs etc. Even if you just do this relaxation work, you will massively improve your overall health in almost every area.

The Hypnotic State

If you are struggling with this technique, then persevere. Getting into a hypnotic state is a skill that will improve over time. Don’t expect too much, hypnosis is not the ‘magical state’ that the media often portrays at as being. You will probably still be aware of what is going on around you, and may well think ‘is this it?’ However you will notice the difference when you wake up. It may be worthwhile visiting a clinical hypnotherapist, or buying a recording at least once, in order to experience the feeling of a trance. When you have experienced a trance a few times, you will be more informed as to what state of mind you are seeking.

You will have experienced a hypnotic trance many times in your life. It is the state of mind where you are so engrossed in a book or film that you become lost in that world. It is that state of mind where you drive for miles without thinking, and you don’t realise how you managed to get to your destination. It is that state of mind where you stare into space, daydreaming about nothing in particular.

Techniques for Specific Work

You can also take this self hypnosis a little further if you wish. You can learn to give yourself specific therapy as you become more accomplished. Here are a few techniques you can use after you have reached number 5.

What the mind imagines, it believes has really happened. If you imagine something bad happening to you, you will feel the emotions as if it is really happening. This can make the mind unhappy, as it will inwardly believe that these things have really happened to you. Success breeds success, so if you visualise yourself achieving something, then it will help you to do just that. You may wish to visualise yourself slimmer, healthier or wealthier for example. Or you may wish to visualise yourself having achieved something, such as a promotion or a new job. Make the image as real as you can, use as many of your senses as you can, and do this as often.

You are only limited by your imagination. In fact you should notice that your creative powers increase the more that you use self hypnosis, as your mind becomes more accustomed to using its creative powers. Stick with it. What I sometimes find is that people will stop using hypnosis once they have made the necessary improvements that they wished to make. However this may eventually deny you the overall benefits of the increased relaxation, as things may slowly slip back to where they started. Set a specific time to do it, even if it is only once or twice a week, and stick to it. If you have specific issues that you wish to deal with, then increase this accordingly, perhaps every day for a few weeks.

I hope me sharing this technique with you will help some of you to improve your mental and physical wellbeing, and realise what a safe and powerful tool for change hypnosis is. I genuinely want to help as many people as possible to live long, healthy and happy lives, and I hope this contributes in some way. Please feel free to contact me to share your success stories, or for further advice.

About the Author

Jon Rhodes is one of the UK’s leading clinical hypnotherapists. You can find free downloads at Free Hypnosis Treatment, and find more information on his online hypnosis sessions at HypnoBusters.