LHL HYPNOTHERAPY

TECHNIQUES FOR YOU TO TRY AT HOME OR AWAY

These may be used in succession or after the other:

Lie or sit comfortably, preferably somewhere where you cannot be disturbed. Take a full deep breath in through your nose filling up the lungs and abdomen, be sure to keep your shoulders and chest relaxed. If it helps you can imagine breathing in through your feet, just like a tree takes up it water and nutrients from the soil. Hold your in breath for the mental count of 4 and let the breath out all the way as you close your eyes down. Take another deep and comfortable breath in all the way, hold it again for the mental count of 4 and let it out really slowly (twice as long as the in breath of possible!). Repeat the second stage 5 more times. The aim is to get the out breath twice as long as your in breath. Take this exercise nice and slowly

On each and every out breath, begin mentally counting each number from 1 down to 10 and in between each number mentally say deeper relaxed. So it will go like this: Breath in, then on the out breath mentally count 1, breath in again and on the out breath mentally say deeper relaxed. Breath in, then on the out breath mentally count 2, breath in again, then on the out breath mentally say deeper relaxed… and so on until you have reached the number 10. Take this exercise nice and slowly.

With your eyes (still) closed, bring you thoughts internally now and begin to concentrate on your breath. Allowing your breathing to return to its natural rhythm and concentrate on the natural ebb and flow of your breath. Begin to imagine your mind like a beautiful still calm tranquil lake. Notice the colour of the water, the size of the lake and how there is not a single ripple in the water. With your imagination ripple the water a little and see the surface move. With your imagination allow your lake to return to its natural still calm tranquil state. Imagine dropping a smooth round stone into your lake and see it drifting all the way down. Imagine this with 2 more stones, see them one by one drifting all the way down. (If you enjoy this imagination exercise you can continue on to 10 stones seeing them one by one slowly drifting all the way down).

Imagine the air around you filled up with the most relaxing colour. See that colour as it floats around your body, reaching over to the walls, ceiling, floor…On your next in breath imagine breathing in this wonderfully relaxing colour right into the top of your head and send it all the way down to the tips of your toes. Taking your time now, use this wonderful relaxing colour to massage, calm and relax your body moving up slowly to each part: Toes and feet, ankles, shins and calves, knees, thighs, hips, pelvis and bottom, abdomen, lower back, spine and upper back, chest, shoulders, back of neck, back of head, top of head, forehead, eyes, cheek bones, jaw (just let the jaw relax loose and limp, tongue loose and relaxed, dropped down so that the tip is sitting behind your lower front teeth), mouth, chin, front of neck, shoulders, down the arms, elbows, forearms, wrists, hands and fingers