Newcastle Hypnotherapy Treating Addiction ~ Nigel Hetherington

Newcastle Hypnotherapy to help you beat addiction because at one time in your life you weren’t addicted. You learned addiction. Hypnotherapy in Newcastle can help you unlearn the old habits you desperately need to change.

Addictive behaviours can be understood as the regular use of drugs like, alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, heroin, tobacco and chocolate. They can also be behavioural such as gambling, sex, pornography or running up huge credit card bills. Hypnotherapy Newcastle with Nigel Hetherington can help you change.

You know that true addictions are really hard to overcome. This is because an addiction has become an deeply ingrained habit that is both controlled and rewarded through powerful chemicals in our body and brain.

It’s not all bad news, the very neuro-plasticity that formed these ‘brain-maps’ of problematic behaviour can help addicts unlearn them and equally as important learn and adopt new more beneficial behaviours. It is possible for you to discover a new path and lead a much more rewarding and fulfilling life.

Why is it so very difficult to stop Addictive Behaviours?

All addictive behaviours are know to involve a part of the brain called the nucleus accumbens located in the basal ganglia in the telencephalon; all parts of the forebrain.

The nucleus accumbens is a neuron cluster on a primary dopamine pathway. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter and in addictions is massively responsible for the very active and attentive seeking, finding and DOING of an addictive behaviour. Think of dopamine as the ‘I WANT IT’ part of the problem behaviour. Dopamine can be thought of as motivating you to do it.

Following on from the addictive activity our brains then release serotonin which gives us that feeling of satisfaction or satiatedness. Think of serotonin as the ‘REWARD’ part of the problem which is the pleasure you feel when you have done the addictive behaviour or drug. Of course with drugs there are other chemical involved too but thinking in terms of  motivation / desire and reward / pleasure we can say it is a dopamine and serotonin combo.

The dopamine and serotonin combo is a perfectly normal cycle for example in keeping us alive and well. Looking for food, watching a sunrise, eating a meal with our friends and loved ones will have the combo activated in a normally functioning human body.

By regularly using drugs, stimulants or suppressants our brain cells actually change shape, function differently and down regulate the affects of drugs and addictive behaviours so that using them again requires more and more. In short our brains although they can respond to drugs and addictive behaviours in initially incredibly pleasurable ways, really don’t like working in those ways.

Because addictive behaviours are driven and rewarded from our internal chemistry. Even when we logically know they are not good for us we still do them. They are pleasurable in the short term and can be regarded as both coping mechanisms that help us deal with undesirable emotions and because they are deeply ingrained habits.

How can Newcastle Hypnosis help me beat my addiction?

Addictions will seem to be firstly physiological or psychological. There appears to be really no difference as to how this is experienced in the brain. The second is addictions at least initially were used to feel a certain way. For example alcohol or ecstasy will be used to feel good or socially confident or even to remove shyness. Heavy use of these drugs often has the opposite effect although initially users will still feel good. And that kind of appetite for the effect is often at the expense of feeling very different after the drug wears off.

As someone who really wants or needs to change addictive habits or behaviours you do require a commitment to the process. For example, being a cocaine addict for 15 years and hoping you will miraculously be cured in one session is probably pretty unrealistic. Sometimes really long term addictions are helped in one session but this is unusual. After our first session you are expected to do any assigned tasks and provide honest feedback to me at our agreed time. We plan any required follow up sessions based on our work and interaction together.

Newcastle hypnotherapy with Nigel Hetherington to help you become free of problematic addictions and addictive behaviours that you want to and need to change.

Stress Hypnotherapy Newcastle # Nigel Hetherington

Is hypnosis for stress a truly viable solution?

Chronic or regular episodes of stress will over time damage the cardio-vascular and immune system.  It will impact on our physical and emotional wellbeing.

In our wonderful and hi tech world we physiologically respond to every day stresses as though we were gearing up to run away form a genuinely life threatening situation such as a confrontation with a sabre toothed tiger.

Our brain responds to both instinctual and learned fear the same way. The response involves our hypothalamus, pituitary gland and amygdalae. This system produces and activates the major stress hormones ACTH and cortisol and norepinephrine preparing the body for the flight fight response.

The vast majority of stress responses are not about life threatening situations but we have learned to dramatically over react and as such our neuro-physical response is completely out of proportion.

So is hypnotherapy for stress a really good treatment?

It may well be because hypnosis can be used for deep relaxation and you may also need to change certain behaviours to your advantage. Hypnotherapy can create the rest and relax cycles that promote physical and mental wellbeing though this is usually only half the story.

Our learned responses to stress such as ‘from’ other people can be unlearned. This means our interpretation to situations and events can have a huge emotional and physical impact on out life.

Additionally our own behaviours can be major stressors in our life.

I once worked with a woman who complained of stress. She ran her own business and worked seven days a week for just about every week of the year. It was common for her to work sixteen hours a day every day. Of course I advised her to work much less.

She responded well to hypnosis and relaxed in trance. I taught her self hypnosis and told her to do this once per day. For the first week she reported feeling much better. She continued to work long days.

After two weeks she stopped doing her own self hypnosis and complained she was again stressed. You will see that there is a balance required and in this case making time to relax was required and this woman chose to not do that.

Pressure is a natural and normal response to life’s challenges and adventures. Pressure is what can help us develop and go beyond current limits. We can think about our ability to cope with pressure like a container. We have a capacity to cope with pressure and when our capacity is exceeded we feel stress.

Hypnotherapy can help your both relax and learn ways to deal more affectively with stress in life. Explore hypnotherapy for stress here in Newcastle and contact me to see how I can help you.

Depression Hypnotherapy Newcastle – Nigel Hetherington

Depression can be split into two basic kinds of classification, these being reactive depression and unipolar or Clinical depression. Newcastle hypnotherapy with Nigel Hetherington can help you come to terms and move forwards in life from both reactive and clinical depression.

When people have depression many will make a return to a normal life and usual temperament on their own. Other times sufferers of depression require help in moving forwards. Help can come in various forms like medication, active exercise or talk therapies such as Newcastle hypnotherapy or CBT.

Dr. Lewis Baxter and Dr. Arthur Brody from U.C.L.A have independently shown that patients overall recovery, neurochemistry and reduction of high frontal cortex activity undergo similar changes irrespective of whether the treatment is antidepressant drugs or talk therapy such as CBT or Newcastle hypnosis.

As human beings we are emotionally wired to form attachments and bonds. Reactive depression occurs when we experience some form of loss. Loss can be the loss of a loved one when a relationship ends or a person we deeply care about dies. Loss can also be the loss of objects, like a house or car or other valued possession. We can also experience reactive depression when we feel a loss of a concept, idea or trust.

Clinical ( unipolar ) depression is regarded as a neurological disorder characterised by an imbalance of neurotransmitters in the brain and often heightened prefrontal cortex activity. Similar mechanisms seem to underlie both types of depression so treatments such as exercise and hypnotherapy Newcastle can be particularly effective ways to end the tyranny of depression in the sufferer.

In reactive depression people often transition through the loss bereavement or grief cycle defined by Kubler Ross where depression is the forth stage in the sequence. Coming out of depression people will have a general return to their general temperament start living and laughing again. When an individual does not exit the fourth stage of active depression an individual may transition into clinical depression.

Sufferers of clinical depression have prolonged and intense mood disorders, are prone to self loathing and even suicidal thoughts. Often described as a blackness of experience and disconnection from others and life. Physical pain can also be part of this dark abyss.

Many people recover and come out of depression themselves. For others coming out from depression requires professional assistance. There are many options for you to explore to assist you in your recovery from depression. Talk therapies such as Hypnotherapy, psychotherapy or CBT has been shown to be at least as effective as antidepressant drugs.

 

 

Newcastle Hypnotherapy And Neuroplasticity – Nigel Hetherington

Neuroplasticity is the term to describe how our brains at the neuronal level can plastically, physically rewire to create new behaviours and attitudes. Hypnotherapy is one proven method to facilitate personal change at the neuronal and behavioural level. Hypnotherapy Newcastle works from a fundamental principle that people can and do change both behaviourally and attitudinally.

At one time it was thought that the neurological functions of the brain, for example hearing, spatial awareness or attention are hardwired to a certain locations within the brain. This brain model of function specific areas of the brain is known as localisationism and was the model adopted by the early neuroscientists of the 19th century. Our modern neuroscience has shown that our brains and our behaviours are almost always changeable. This is witnessed in many cases where there has been brain damage or some brain pathology and functionality has been restored, undiminished or partially returned.

Many clients turn to Newcastle Hypnotherapy to make changes in problematic behaviours and attitudes they have had for a long time, sometimes several years. Now researchers are making links between the brain wave frequency of dreaming ( alpha ) and REM ( theta ) sleep, and the laying down of long term memory and learning. Brain scans of people who are in a state of hypnosis show their brain activity frequency to often be in the alpha and theta states.

Repetition and motivation are two key ingredients in learning any new skill, behaviour or attitude. After all no one was born anxious, depressed or over weight, these, let’s call them qualities, were learned over time. Such ‘qualities’ in Newcastle hypnotherapy can be unlearned, that is replaced with some other preferential behaviours. And in hypnosis, time is plastic, one minute of hypnosis time can be like 10 minutes, 30 minutes or an hour of real time. We know this from both our own dreams and our own experiences of time distortion. So in hypnosis, practice and rehearsal time is plastic.

Through hypnosis we are quite literally creating new mind maps of neurons that will perform and run the more desirable behaviours. The principle being that the old behaviour was at the neuronal and behavioural level the ‘best’ mind map of neurons to fire in the ‘problem situation’.

Old behaviours ( or neuronal maps ) can be thought of like a familiar route through a forest. By walking the same route, you become more and more familiar with it. Sure you will not always step in exactly the same place sometimes you will veer off the track a bit. But walk that old route enough times and you will leave a groove. Well that is like how your brain works with behaviours, good or bad. The good news is like changing your route, with some practice and motivation you can learn complementary and completely new ones with new perspectives leading you to new places.

EMI Plus : Trauma Resolution For Therapists : Nigel Hetherington

Next EMI Plus Training

Specifically for therapists and hypnotherapists in 2012 is being held in London.February 2012.

In an exciting opportunity, Nigel Hetherington, from Communicating Excellence, has agreed to come to London to present his 2 day workshop on Trauma Resolution: EMI Plus. For those who have not used EMI before, you will be taken through everything you need to know – prior knowledge is not necessary.

If you already have experience of EMI you will already know just how incredibly powerful it can be in resolving past traumas and you will find that the EMI Plus training adds new dimensions to the use of EMI, and because it is experiential in nature over a full two days, will mean that you will leave the weekend totally ready to use it in a powerful way in your practice.

I am fortunate enough recently to have been on Nigel’s training in Newcastle,  and I found that it took my confidence and competence of using EMI to a totally new level and not just for trauma.This is a way to work completely content free and is brilliant when working with children.

I was also surprised to learn how it can be used to create and generate positive states with an interesting twist on future timeline! These workshops are normally run only in Newcastle, so I am really pleased that Nigel has agreed to offer this quality training in London. You can book your place now ” – Cathy Simmons

All details and booking information can be found at Cathy Simmons:

Cathy Simmons Cognitive Hypnotherapy and NLP

And is Feburay 4-5th 2012.

All booking details can be found at the above link.

Public Speaking Confidence @ Nigel Hetherington

Today, now, more than ever before, being able to speak with a real and genuine confidence is a very necessary skill.

We must and have to, as part of our jobs, speak to groups of people and effectively communicate and share ideas, strategies and information . We often have to act in the role of a mediator or chairperson. We need to be heard, lead from top outwards and at the same time as respond to feedback we need to be open to our group input. To function effectively we actually require that public speaking is a well honed and practised skill. We need public speaking confidence.

Maybe, like you, so many people have had a bad experience of public speaking and this still dwells within. If you want to overcome this feeling and get some insights on how to improve, keep reading …

Before a public speech, many of us begin to worry and you know, worry can take many forms. Worrying about if we will come across poorly, worrying if people will not like us. Worrying if we will sound stupid. Worry, worry, worry.

Worrying like this has three very problematic effects

1. It does produce a negative feedback loop. Concentrating on what can go wrong will tend to focus our attention on what can go wrong and like any good self fulfilling prophesy is likely to amplify what it sets out to create.

2. It removes our attention from both our audience and our message. Two very unhelpful attention distractions.

3. This culminates into a negative feed-forward loop. It feed forwards in time and this will adversely effect your future presentations.

So, what are the crucial elements of a really good public speech?

1. Know your stuff. This means being familiar with our content, which does comes through practice and experience. This really is the easy part.
2. Stop worrying while you are presenting, focus on what your ARE doing. This is crucial. There will be plenty of time AFTERWARDS to evaluate your performance. And an after performance evaluation is of great use. AFTER the event.
3. Be in the moment. This is linked to [2]. Being present and being present in the full experience.

How do people repeatedly manage to screw up their presentations?

1. Taking to themselves during their presentation. Usually in a negative and unhelpful way.
2. Over practising.
3. Pre-performance; Getting into negative states. This is the worry cycle [ what if ... ].
4. Being in the wrong state prior to giving a public address.

What can you do to give a really congruent and well received speech?

The best way, as far as I can understand is essentially two fold. And it goes like this.

Firstly, knowing you content, you must BELIEVE in what you are sharing with your group. This really does mean speaking from your heart. I mean this both physically and literally. Speaking from your heart means an honest and congruent commitment from you in terms of having a genuine affection for the messages you will be delivering. This means understanding the value of what you are sharing. This means being connected with the real purpose, your audience and anticipating the intended affects of what you say.

Secondly, and by way of the first, your body, your voice, your attitude will be congruent and really aligned with the messages you are going to deliver. There is no more simple way to put this. You are the messenger, so walk your talk.

All this can come, quite succinctly, from speaking from your heart and … having the real state that supports your outcome. And your state is KEY to YOUR SUCCESS.

The real big and powerful secret that will drive this to your success is ultimately your state.

Now, your state and a powerful engaging purpose are two things I can really assist you with for public speaking.

This means developing an attitude that promotes your confidence and your message. Being confident and congruent with your message will promote your confidence, this is a powerful loop. Using aspects of Hypnotherapy and NLP, I can help you address the blocks from your past which are holding you back and really assist you in uncovering and developing a powerful driving purpose that is your foundation for success.

Before you contact me I want to make two things clear. These two things are crucial for your success. These are very, very important. make absolutely sure you are:

1. Deeply committed to making this change. This is not necessarily about a one session ‘fix’ where the onus in on me to change you. My clients who get the very best results are the one’s, who not only engage in the process, they are the ones who commit to pre and post session tasks. Be sure you are totally committed to making a lasting change before you contact me.

2. Totally willing and committed to do whatever it takes to get to the place where public speaking is more than OK.

If this is you … Get in contact right away to make the changes you want in your life now.

Trauma And Intrusive Memories Hypnotherapy Newcastle

One of the most effective and content free ways I know to assist clients over and through a personal trauma and / or  intrusive memories is Eye Movement Integration ( EMI ). EMI is developed by Steve and Connirae Andreas.

Content free, very simply means, your clients, my clients don’t need to discuss ( talk about ) and re-live a seriously traumatic episode for you to assist them in making deep psychological and neurological change. Most client’s don’t want to share the intimate and painful details of a trauma, having to re-live it day in day out is enough.

This is a short video of me teaching aspects of EMI on one of my NLP Practitioner trainings. EMI is as far as I am concerned one of the most important tools in the toolbox of a professional change worker. I run regular workshops in EMI for change professionals.

If you want to see EMI in action with a real participant check out this link.

 

Anxiety Hypnotherapy Newcastle – Nigel Hetherington

Trapped #1

Image by waltimo via Flickr

Anxiety really can be a terrible and consuming thing to experience. Another word for anxiety is WORRY. Newcastle Hypnotherapy with Nigel Hetherington can be a real solution for you.

Anxiety will often reduce your capacity to respond as well as act in the ways you truly want to experience life. Another word for anxiety is worry. Worrying about how things can go wrong or how events can all turn out bad. How would it be when you can set yourself free?

Anxiety or worry is not a disease, it is not a pathology. Many so called counsellors or therapists would have you believe this. This is not true.

Anxiety its a way, a learned way of thinking about the future. Think about this, no one as far as I know was born anxious, it was a learned behaviour. This learned behaviour is all about how to cope and deal with physical / emotional feelings.

Anxiety is a behaviour, it is not a pathology and as such does not need to be suppressed with medication. This means there is no physical disease associated with anxious behaviour. There is of course neurological activity ( ways of thinking ) that are associated with anxiety. You don’t require drugs or medication to change thought patterns. At best drugs will suppress anxiety, they will likely suppress other things too.

If anxiety is really is screwing up your life, you are worrying and worrying and as a result suffering … I can most likely help you change your behaviour. I can assist you in turning your though patterns around. The purpose being to stop worrying and start living a more satisfying and meaningful life.

Cyclic negative, anxiety producing thought patterns tend to go like this.

“What if … but then what, if I don’t … and then What if … but what if …”

So the real key here is to STOP that thought pattern and engage in a better one right …

People who behave anxiously are never anxious about some general things. You are anxious about something specific and worst of all it has not happened. Anxiety is all about thinking about the future and creating, almost always, the worst possible outcome for yourself and others. Think about it, how could it be different if you started habitually thinking about better outcomes in the future?

Newcastle Hypnotherapy for Anxiety combines NLP, Hypnosis and Humour in a way that will really help you move through your old thought patterns and into a whole new way of thinking.

If you have tried counselling and it really hasn’t worked after lots of session and you are totally committed to making the changes in your life you honestly want … act now …

For a completely confidential and solution orientated approach for you to help getting yourself out of anxiety and worry and Getting on with your life, contact me right away, [ after all being anxious and a worrier what's the worst that can happen ;-) ] call now.

nigel@nigelhetherington .co .uk

0770 481 8467

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Hypnotherapy Depression Newcastle

Great Depression

Image by Koshyk via Flickr

An interesting article from the BBC website 7th April is suggesting that there is currently a fuelled rise in depression in England that is caused by money worries. Depression is on the rise and if you had shares in it or the related drug indistries you would be doing well. I will offer some information, as a professional hypnotherapist, on what sufferers can do now to help yourself.

Depression can be described as a very generalist way of worrying about or ‘coping’ with problems. There is a tendency to be thinking about the past and with this reliving the most painful memories, either emotional or physical. People exhibiting ‘depression’ may seem a little withdrawn from the outside work and feel they are powerless to make positive changes in their life.

One of the major researchers into the field of depression, Martin Seligman, has described depression as “Learned Pessimism.” Seligman is describing a way of thinking, which really means the way in which we have learned to experience the world. The way we think can make us have a bias to being either a pessimist or an optimist. A depressive has learned to behave in such a ways that is described as learned helplessness. What is extremely important here is it is very possible to learn to think in different ways.

Seeking professional help can be a very good option, if you get a change consultant who will stay outcome or solution orientated. It can also cause more problems and reinforce depression if the counsellor invites their client into discovering child hood issues, raking up the past and finding the cause of the depression.

The change process is far more likely to aid someone suffering from depression if the change consultant is geared towards and directed to specific solutions with an emphasis in the future. And facilitating different strategies or ways to think that will promote a learned optimism style of how to cope differently.

There are statically many more people depressed now than one hundred years ago. It can be a depressing thought that at any time over 25% of people in America would fit the description of depression. In many but not all cases I don’t believe medications and drugs are the answer. Why? Because they do not change thinking patterns and they do not help depressives adopt new strategies to become more able to adapt and thrive in life’s problematic situations.

Some good news is research shows that one year on from a diagnosis of a major depressive episode 20% of people will be better and still have some symptoms and 40% of people are fully recuperated with no signs of depression.

What you can do to help yourself:

  • Exercise. Go for a 15 minute run. Research shows that a 15 minute run can stop depression for 8 hours.
  • Laugh. Go to comedy shows, watch very funny videos, hang out with people who laugh lots.
  • Pay attention to specific things that are working in your life and celebrate them.
  • Each morning make a list of three things your are looking forward to this day.
  • Each evening make a list of three things you are looking forward to the following week.

For completely confidential and solution orientated help getting yourself out of depression and Getting on with your life, contact me

nigel@nigelhetherington .co .uk

0770 481 8467

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Hypnotherapy For Guilt And Shame

Guilt and shame are two emotions that can cause suffering and stop you leading a full life. Both of these emotions are about not living up to values. These values can be your own or other peoples. Values are the kinds of experiences and behaviours that are important to both ourselves and to others.

If your behaviour or lack of it, in some way disrespects another persons values, you may well feel shame. Shame can also be imposed on you by another, such as by their public disapproval of your actions or even of you.

Guilt is about your response to how you are living up to and in accordance with your own values. How you behave or do not behave in relation to your own values can create the emotion we call guilt.

Both guilt and shame are emotions that are firmly located in the past. Guilt and shame are about past events and because there has been some perceived transgression of values, for some, those memories are replayed again and again and so can go on generate more guilt or shame.

Hypnotherapy and NLP can be very successfully used to stop most people feeling these negative emotions, for a specific event, in just one session. What is even more important to do after the feeling of guilt or shame is gone, is to re-evaluate the event and create strategies so that in any future situations that are similar, you will act much more in line with the values you want to honour.

For completely compassionate, confidential and non judgemental help dealing with Guilt and Shame and Getting on with your life

Contact Nigel Hetherington

nigel@nigelhetherington .co .uk

0770 481 8467