Archive for April, 2009
Anxiety – How Hypnosis Can Help
According to WebMD, a poll taken by the American Psychological Association, there is more stress today than five years ago. Over 54% of people feel anxiety over financial issues such as rent, credit cards and paychecks. Stress and anxiety are both a state of mind. How you deal with stress and anxiety are completely up to you. Some manage anxiety well while others do not know how to manage their feelings. Learning to manage anxiety and stress can be done, but can also be difficult without help.
First you must identify what your stress and anxiety triggers are. The holidays are a good example of a stress that is not immediately thought of. One person might look at the holidays as a nice fun experience and enjoy making a large dinner for a big family. Another person might look at this same situation and have a panic attack. Other causes of stress and anxiety are obvious such as losing a job, having no money or moving.
Next you must identify what reaction you have to these triggers. Some people eat when they are stressed or nervous, while others drink or smoke. Maybe you get irritable or cry often. Whatever your reactions to high levels of anxiety are, it is important to identify them and understand why you react this way.
It is critical to learn both your triggers and lean how you respond in order to be successful. Without identifying them or learning to manage your anxiety levels, you can have serious problems. Not only does anxiety and stress cause heart attacks, high blood pressure and ulcers it can also cause other things you may not think of. For example, chronic headaches, acne, teeth grinding, and make you more prone to illness such as a cold or flu. Your personal life can be affected as well. Your abilities to manage a family crisis, reach goals and perform well are work are also diminished all because of anxiety or stress.
There are different ways of managing anxiety levels, medications, counseling and support groups are the most common. However, there is a new treatment being used on many with great success, hypnosis. Hypnosis works with the subconscious mind which will allow you to uncover hidden triggers that are not obvious or often thought of. You will also learn to manage your response to certain stresses through deep levels of relaxation.
Some people feel other more traditional approaches to anxiety treatment should be consulted first. However, medications only deal with the chemical reactions in the brain at the time of high stress levels. Counseling and support groups can be a challenge for most people and their busy lives. It is difficult to make every support group meeting and also difficult to open yourself up to a complete stranger when you are conscious. Since hypnosis does not use chemicals and works with the subconscious mind, you are able to get the full benefits of the treatment and work through your issues privately.
Those who suffer from anxiety know how difficult situations can be and how frustrating it is to suffer from this condition. You have taken then first step in your treatment, you are acknowledged you have a problem and want to fix it, now here is the most difficult part, deciding what treatment is right for you. Now it is time to get going on your research. While you are doing so, think about what is important and most nurturing for you. You want to make sure whatever treatment you go with, you are getting all you can out of it, hypnosis will allow for all of that and more.
Popularity: 15% [?]
Gastric Bypass Pros and Cons
According to Obesitysurgicalcenter.org, 127 million adults in America are over weight. Of those 60 million are obese and 9 million severely obese. Gastric bypass and other similar surgeries are among the fastest growing elective surgeries in the country, next to breast augmentation. Gastric bypass is reserved for those who are morbidly obese, and for them, the benefits are endless. According to Obesehelp.net, a web site which explains the surgery, 75% of patients can expect to lose up to 80% of their body weight, 80% will be off hypertension medications and 90% with type two diabetes will be off medication as well, just to name a few.
It is important to understand, not everyone who has this surgery is successful in weight loss for many reasons and it can be dangerous. During the surgery, a section of stomach is sealed off to reduce the amount of food which can be eaten, if the seal is broken by over eating, the results can be serious. This is why many patients have follow up care which usually includes an overview of a healthy lifestyle. It touches on food choices, diet and exercise plans. Unfortunately many clinics neglect long term post care, however there are other ways of maintaining your healthy lifestyle.
Often people become obese because they do not understand what a healthy lifestyle is and why they eat so poorly. A healthy lifestyle is easy to learn all a patient has to do is visit with a dietitian and understand better choices. The hardest part is to put the tools into action and begin making a better choice. Learning why you eat so poorly is a whole other ball game. Some people eat when they are upset or depressed and some might simply be bored. Maybe there is a happy memory associated with food which makes you crave certain foods. Many have Gastric bypass surgery and are unsuccessful because they have not addressed all their issues with food, which requires help.
Some may choose to continue following up with a physician or counselor while other choose to go a different route such as using hypnosis. Hypnosis works with the mind in many different ways. One way it works is by addressing problems or emotions attached to food. Rarely does post care touch on the emotional bond a patient might have with food. Hypnosis researches and finds out why food has taken such a hold. Another way is by combating cravings for favorite foods and replacing those cravings with better healthier options such as exercise and health foods.
Some may feel a counselor, dietitian or physician would be a better choice for post surgical care instead. A post surgical patient should by all means take these measures as part of their post operative care. However hypnosis is equally ideal for long term goals of weight loss and helping to work through food emotions. You will gain a better understanding as to why you feel the way you do towards food and how you can regain control of your life and help make your Gastric bypass surgery the best it can be in a non threatening way.
Losing weight is difficult enough without all the fad diets, gimmicks and infomercials telling you to buy their new super diet product. However, it is important to research all the new methods and diets out there before making a final decision for something extreme like surgery. If you do elect surgery, consider using hypnosis as a tool in addition to your arsenal again your battle with the bulge.
Popularity: 20% [?]
Smoking Is A Speeding Train Towards Heart Disease
Doctors have readily made information about the relationship between smoking, and heart disease, yet people still choose to ignore how seriously this could affect them. People still believe that the chance of something happening to them is slim to none; obviously these are the people that haven’t read or listened to the warnings.
There are thousands of different chemical compounds in a cigarette, with at least 60 of them being toxic. As these toxins float through your blood stream they accelerate the speed of which your arteries can potentially harden, causing the potential for coronary heart disease, as well as increasing your chances of suffering a heart attack, heart failure, and even sudden death.
Your body doesn’t care if you’ve smoked one pack of cigarettes, or three hundred, yet there are people that still ask if I smoke only two cigarettes a day am I still at risk? That’s like someone asking if I stand on the train tracks between 1pm and 2 pm am I still at risk of being hit by a speeding train.
Your doctor can’t give you a time limit on how long you will have to smoke before your arteries begin to clog, your body will take the course it chooses in due time. If you have a family history of heart disease you are more likely to suffer the consequences associated with smoking.
Each time you light a cigarette because you just have to have one you are affecting everyone around you. Second hand smoke affects the risk of heart disease for those around you too. Is it really worth lighting that cigarette to harm those people you care about? It’s like you are throwing them in front of the speeding train just as it goes by, they didn’t make the choice to smoke.
Women that take a oral contraceptives and smoke are at higher risks of heart disease than those that just smoke. Medications that suggest you do not smoke while taking them do so due to the increased chances of heart disease, and other symptoms. If the cigarette companies were made to list all toxins to the public people would be less likely to smoke after finding out what they will be putting into their bodies.
You may choose to put yourself at risk of heart disease due to your smoking, but you should also consider those closest to you when you next consider when and where you are going to light that next cigarette. Quitting smoking is the only way to free you from the potential health risks associated with the habit.
Popularity: 15% [?]