Why Practice Meditation and Self-Hypnosis?
By Sunny Massad Ph.D.
There are two hemispheres in the brain: the left and the right. Humans engage the left hemisphere more now than ever.
Left-brain activity includes verbal, analytical and intellectual thought. Activities include thinking, solving problems and organizing. An over-active left-brain, however, can often result in insomnia, fatigue, incessant mental activity and even high blood pressure.
Right brain activity is emotional and intuitive. It is the side of the brain that is in charge of behavior. Self-hypnosis and meditation stimulate right brain activity. The more you practice right brain activities, the more at peace you will feel emotionally.
Meditation practice results in the ability to induce states of deep relaxation, which translates into rejuvenation of the body/mind almost like rebooting a computer.
<< MEDITATION 101: DEVELOPING A PRACTICE
<< THE 21 DAY MEDITATION CHALLENGE: HOW IT CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE!
By becoming a quiet observer of the thoughts of the mind, the very act of witnessing from an objective distance can alleviate negative thoughts and emotions.
Research about meditation indicates that regular meditation practice can dissolve feelings of separation, facilitate liberation from identification with past personal history and enhance feelings of empathy both for oneself and others.
Meditation and self-hypnosis differ in one essential way. Meditation is simply non-doing. It is the act of sitting quietly, listening, feeling, seeing, experiencing everything happening inside your body and mind as it relates to the sounds and other energetic stimuli that surrounds you at any given moment.
Self-hypnosis, on the other hand directs the mind to imagine new beliefs or behaviors. You can re-educate your unconscious mind to replace unwanted behaviors with new and different behaviors that align with your natural values.
It requires imagination of a positive state one aspires to attain. Self-hypnosis is not only relaxing, it is the key factor in motivation and attitude shifts.
We regularly and unconsciously hypnotize ourselves all the time. Every time you say, "I could never do that" or "I am always (fill in the blank)," you are hypnotizing yourself into a limited and finite identity.
<< LOOK MORE BEAUTIFUL AS YOU AGE WITH AYURVEDA SKIN CARE
<< FIGHT INFLAMMATION WITH FOOD SYNERGY
Meditation Technique
Imagine a string pulling on top of your head holding your spine erect. Bring awareness to the sounds all around you, to the rhythm of your breath, the coolness of the air as you breathe in, to the warmth of the air as you breathe out.
Release the tension in your muscles. Focus on sounds, your breath or the rise and fall of your belly. When the mind begins to think, bring the focus back to that sensory component. Allow yourself to stop and simply BE.
Observe through your five senses, non-judgmentally.
Invite yourself to relax into the present. Just there, in the center of the all the activity, is a profound place of peace and calm.
<< SIMPLE TIPS FOR GREENING YOUR KITCHEN
<< AYURVEDIC REMEDIES FOR ALLERGY SEASON
Self-Hypnosis Technique
Relax the entire body from the feet up through the legs, hips, torso, the shoulders, down the arms and into the hands. The more your hands relax, the more relaxed your neck and jaw become.
Continue to relax the mouth, cheeks, nose, muscles around the eyes, eyelids, eyebrows, forehead and scalp. Imagine a staircase with ten steps leading downward to a door that opens into a comforting environment.
Walk down each step counting from one to ten, relaxing deeper with each count. At the final count of ten imagine you already are, already do and already have everything that you want in your life.
Feel the emotions attached to these desires and embed them into your subconscious. Imagine how you look, sound, move, how you talk to yourself and others and how you behave when you are functioning optimally.
When you feel satisfied, take yourself back up the stairs from ten to one feeling more and more energized and awake with each step until your eyes open and you feel refreshed at the count of one.
Video: Meditation and Self-Hypnosis
Sunny Massad, Ph.D. is the Founder and President of the Hawaii Wellness Institute and author of UnTherapy: A Positive Psychology for Enlightened Living.
More from ecomii:
