3 Ways to Stay Calm for the Holidays

‘Tis the season and stress is everywhere! And, yes, stress can be a huge factor where high blood pressure is concerned.  So, how can you lower your blood pressure, naturally? Here are some simple and easily applied options.

Exercise

First, check with your doctor if you are not already actively exercising. If you have high blood pressure, and activity is good for you,  your doc will probably be on board.

WebMD says “You can do any activity you like, and you don’t need to go to a gym. As long as you’re moving around and making your heart beat a little faster or breathing harder. That includes brisk walking, jogging, swimmings, biking, lifting weights, or doing yard work.”

To pick an activity, two good questions to ask yourself are:

  1. What sounds like fun?
  2. Would you rather exercise in a group, or on your own?

No matter what you do, the first step is to decide to include exercise in your life and stick to it.

Eat Right

Research shows that eating foods rich in potassium, magnesium, and fiber may help control blood pressure. Fruits and vegetables are high in potassium, magnesium, and fiber, and they’re low in sodium. Stick to whole fruits and vegetables. Also, nuts, seeds, legumes, lean meats, and poultry are good sources of magnesium.

The DASH diet is often recommended for people with high blood pressure and some recent research indicates a modified DASH can be just as beneficial for lowering high blood pressure.

“In a study to be published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers at the UCSF Benioff’s Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI) found that a higher fat DASH diet lowered blood pressure to the same extent as the DASH diet, but also reduced triglycerides and did not significantly raise LDL-C.”

Your diet doesn’t have to be bland and you can’t go wrong with fresh, high-quality food. It is wise, however, to avoid canned foods, processed foods, lunch meats, and fast foods.

Hypnosis

Did you know, over 90% of cases of high blood pressure are called Primary or Essential hypertension because there is no identifiable medical cause?

Because the lifestyle and emotional factors which cause this form of high blood pressure need motivation and action on your part to change, doctors can usually only work to manage your symptoms so, for many people, this means a lifetime of medication, constant uncertainty, and concern about their future.

Working directly with your doctor, Gresham Hypnosis Center offers a one-to-one therapy between you and a specially trained Certified Hypnotension Practitioner. We can help you make changes that will help you to lower high blood pressure for good.

Together, you will address the emotional and lifestyle factors (x-factors) which contribute to your high blood pressure so that you can take back control and lower blood pressure naturally.

Your progress is carefully monitored so you get the most benefit as soon as possible, and so that you both know what is working best in your particular case.

Learn how we can help Lower High Blood Pressure or call us today at 503.319.7142

 

7 X-Factors for That Contribute to Hypertension

There are two types of hypertension; Primary hypertension and Secondary hypertension.

Only 5% of cases of hypertension are a result of a recognized medical cause, such as kidney disease, artery damage, or hormone disorder, this is called secondary hypertension. The remaining 95% of causes of hypertension is called primary hypertension and can be tied to the emotional mind of a person.

There are many reasons why a person’s emotional mind can go on red alert and stay there and here are some of the most common emotional x-factors. These are things that we at Gresham Hypnosis Center are trained to deal with and when we do, there can be a dramatic effect to lower high blood pressure.

  • Feeling lack/loss of control

This is part of the anxiety response and it’s usually about safety.  Losing control can mean something bad will happen and because of this, people stay in a heightened state of alertness.

  • Feeling burdened/responsible

To a certain degree, all of us have some level of responsibility.  This x-factor can be tied to the loss of control because responsibility without control is highly stressful.

  • Unresolved anger/hostility

Anger and hostility cause an ongoing stress response in the body and that’s because the body tries to stay ready to fight this hostility or anger. The most destructive kind of anger is self-directed anger because the emotional mind has the tools to actually cause physical harm.

  • Inner conflict

Internal conflict usually occurs when there are conflicting needs in a person when one part of us wants something and one part wants something else. This conflict activates the stress response which can ultimately lead to high blood pressure.

  • Guilt/self-punishment

Guilt is all about self-judgment.  It’s about right and wrong, should and shouldn’t.  It’s when a person thinks they’ve done something they shouldn’t have done or hasn’t done something they should have done. Feelings of guilt cause an ongoing stress reaction which can have an impact on the sympathetic nervous system and high blood pressure.

  • Impatience/Feelings of time pressure

Impatience and time pressure can cause an ongoing stress response in the body. It’s very much like the White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland, constantly looking at his watch worried that he’s late.  This constant vigilance and worrying about time causes the emotional mind to go on red alert and activate the “Fight or Flight” response.

  • Fear of illness/death

Fear of death is something that affects all of us to some degree.  That’s because death is an unavoidable part of life. However, the fear of death can make the diagnosis of hypertension into a “significant emotional event”.  That’s because the diagnosis focuses the mind on the fact the person is ill and this links the fear of death stress response to the diagnosis.

Gresham Hypnosis Center works directly with your doctor. If you have high blood pressure call us today at 503.319.7142  and learn how we can help you lower high blood pressure naturally.

5 Important Tips To Managing Your Stress

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At one point or another, we all have to deal with some type of stress.

The important thing is to prevent it from taking over our daily life, and this can often be done by observing a few simple ways to keep emotions high and the blues at bay.

Pet your pet. For years, experts have agreed that pet owners may lead happier, healthier lives thanks to their four-legged friends. Gently stroking a cat or dog helps to lower stress and increase happiness.

Take a hike. Studies have shown that walking at least 30 minutes each day may help to significantly ease stress. It doesn’t matter whether you walk outdoors or indoors using a treadmill; the important thing is to get up, get moving and get rid of your stress.

Common scents. Many people relax to their favorite scented candles, but few know that certain scents have a calming effect that may actually reduce stress. Lavender, vanilla and other fragrances that you may find especially soothing may be just the ticket to a stress-free day.

Just breathe. There’s an old saying that recommends taking a deep breath and counting to 10 to soothe anger. Well, the same is true with stress. Breathing in rhythm may improve positive emotions as it helps to promote activity in the area of the brain that’s responsible for good thoughts. Positive thinking can lead to happiness, which is one sure way to stop stress.

Learn Self – Hypnosis.  One of the easiest ways to lower stress and anxiety is to learn self – hypnosis.  learning to relax your body and your mind while creating a pleasant space goes a long way.  At Gresham Hypnosis Center, we teach all our clients several ways to practice self – hypnosis. Check us out!  

 

Treat yourself. Whether you’re feeling a little blue or just need a quick pick-me-up, take time to be good to yourself. Have a sip of your favorite beverage, indulge in a light snack to tempt your taste buds or just take a break. When one errand runs into another and days seem to fly by so quickly that we barely even notice them, it may be time to get out of the rut and take a moment to enjoy life by treating yourself to something great.

Gresham  Hypnosis Center can help you learn to reduce your stress, call us today!

Weight Loss – 6 Tips For Staying Positive

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Staying positive throughout the weight loss process can be difficult.

A few setbacks and you may be ready to give up. Staying motivated throughout your weight loss journey requires focus on the goal and positive thinking – but what do you do when you’re feeling less than positive about your efforts?

Use these tips to help you stay positive:

1. List Your Reasons:
List your reasons for choosing to lose weight. Whether it’s for health reasons, or simply to be able to fit into your favorite dress again – list it.

Then make several copies of the list, and place them where you’ll be able to see them regularly. Keeping your goals in front of you will help you remember why you’re doing all this in the first place.

2. Never Say Diet:
Don’t use the word diet if you can possibly avoid it. This conjures up images of deprivation, and you end up feeling sorry for yourself. Instead, tell yourself (and others) that you’re not on a diet, but that you are trying to make healthier choices.

3. Don’t Use the 3 letter “F” Word:
Avoid using the word fat when describing yourself. This includes your thoughts. Thinking about how fat you are and how bad you think you look will only bring you down and stress you out. Stress often equals eating another bag of cookies.

4. Use Positive Adjectives:
Instead, use another adjective that you prefer. Heavy, voluptuous, overweight – these all have nicer connotations than “fat” and will help you to see yourself in a more positive light.

5. Focus on the Positive:
Think about all the things you like about your body, as well. If you have great hair, for example, focus on that as you attempt to lose weight. This takes the focus off of the body parts you dislike, and helps to get rid of the stress.
Instead of focusing on celebrities that are thin, find a celebrity that is larger and attractive, or one that is struggling with weight loss. This allows you to choose a realistic role model.

Positive body image can be difficult to find when you’re struggling to lose weight. Focusing on your positive mental and physical traits will help you to be comfortable in the body you have.

This allows you to work towards better health, instead of simply working to be skinnier. Overall, this is a much healthier approach to weight loss, and will help you stay positive throughout the process.

Gresham Hypnosis Center has the weight reduction program that is just right for you, check us out!

A Simple Tip For When You’re Stressed

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This is a fantastic tip from Touch For Health to help you when you’re stressed, angry, anxious or upset.

Try holding your frontal eminences. These are bumps on your forehead that many people hold instinctively when they’re upset.

For those of you who don’t do this naturally, let me help you locate them. Feel up from the middle of your eyebrows going towards your hairline. Your forehead comes outwards before it curves back in towards the hairline. Hold your forehead at the points where it is furthest out – about 3cms (1.25 inches) above the middle of each eyebrow.

While you hold these points think about the stressful event. It can be something that has already happened, something that is about to happen, or something you fear may never happen! Gradually you should find that the stress lessens.

You can use it for small things, but you can also use it for more traumatic events too. If the thoughts/images are too overwhelming initially, imagine you are watching it on a TV – you can always switch it off if becomes too stressful – you’re the one in charge. You can watch it in black and white if that feels easier too. Use it to defuse anything that you feel anxious, stressed, angry or fearful about.

You may want to do it several times covering different aspects of the problem. You can do them one after the other, or at different times, whichever feels best for you.

As you hold the points and think about/imagine the event, you will probably start to feel calmer – you may even find that you start to feel a little bored thinking about this scenario that previously stressed or angered you so much.

Why does it work?

These particular points on the forehead, known as frontal eminences, are reflex points with connections to the central meridian (involved with the brain), the stomach meridian (and your stomach often churns when you’re anxious or angry), and the bladder meridian (trips to the loo/bathroom are often necessary when we’re apprehensive).

I recently explained this self-help technique to a business colleague – an avid  mountain biker who’d had a serious bike accident at 30 miles an hour and had broken his skull and collar bone. His bones had mended, but he was now sometimes fearful of the sport he loved.

This is what he wrote to me later:

“I don’t know how to thank you enough for the technique you described to me over the phone the other day, it helped me enormously!”

The following week he sent me this message:

“Your tip worked once again last night – went out (in the pitch black with my Light&Motion ‘daylighter’ light) and did some serious single-tracking and downhilling!!! I never thought I’d be doing that again – ever! Thank you so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was brilliant!!!!!!!”

It may be hard to believe that something this simple could be effective in removing anxiety and stress, but try it and see.

Gresham Hypnosis Center can show you other ways to reduce stress in your life, check us out!

Diets And Weight Loss – 4 Tips on Losing Weight

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If you’re overweight and you are trying to lose weight, you may be thinking that you will be able to lose a lot of weight really fast.

The truth of the matter is that it takes time to lose weight and you have to be patient as you’re trying to lose weight. There are no overnight solutions and it’s going to take determination and perseverance to lose weight and to live a healthier lifestyle.

With that in mind, I want to share with you what I call “super tips” that will help you to stay focused on losing weight and will also help you to see results faster.

Tip #1 – Have a goal in mind. Set a goal for yourself of how much weight that you want to lose and set time aside each day to reach that goal. Write down your goal if you have to. Write down the dress size that you want to be able to wear if you want to. Write down what you want to be able to physically accomplish whenever you reach your goal and make your plans to do it.

Tip #2 – Forget about quick results. It’s much easier to gain weight than it is to lose weight, which I’m sure you’ve learned by now. The expectation of losing weight fast is one of the main problems that people face and it also causes many people to not reach their weight loss goals. Just keep in mind that it will take time to lose the weight, but no matter how long it takes to lose it, it will be worth it in the end.

Tip #3 – Prepare yourself mentally and emotionally. Losing weight just may be one of the toughest things that you will ever do in your life. You will have to constantly battle with urges to eat some of your favorite foods. You’ll constantly have to battle with the temptation to quit exercising. You will not want to change your eating habits. You are going to enter into a battle of will and you have to prepare yourself to win the battle to lose weight and to reach your goals. This really is a case of “easier said than done”.

Tip #4 – Surround yourself with support. Yes, it will be hard to do, but if you surround yourself with people that want to help you reach your goals or people that have accomplished what you are trying to do, then losing weight will not be as difficult for you as it is for other people.

So, there you have it. Maybe you were expecting a list of exercises you should perform or a list of foods you should avoid. Yes, those are important, but you’ll find that losing weight is a test of will and not of exercise or food and the person that knows this in their mind will be the victor.

Gresham Hypnosis Center has a weight reduction program that is just right for you, check us out!

Positive Imaging for Weight Loss Through Self-Hypnosis

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Visualization through Self-Hypnosis can play an important part in losing weight and maintaining a healthy lifestyle that keeps it off.

Losing weight can be difficult for many people who use fad diets and pills to achieve their weight loss goals without letting their mind help in the process.

Self-Hypnosis is a powerful technique that can help you make lasting lifestyle changes. Just by “day dreaming”, you can significantly improve your chances in achieving your goals.

Self-Hypnosis is a great weight loss tool and its as simple as visualizing your body as you want your body to look like. This mental image of yourself is then transferred to your subconscious mind, which in turn starts to work on your body, shaping it in accordance with your mental image thus reducing your weight.

This means that if you program your subconscious with a mental image of yourself as a slimmer person, through persistence your mind will accept this and aid your body to conform to this mental image.

Once your mind is programmed with the proper mental images, it will start to work in assisting you to losing weight. I can’t stress enough how important it is for you to believe in your visualization goals.

You have to let go of past dieting failures and refuse to entertain any negative images that come into your mind.

If you can visualize your body at its perfect weight and proportions, the subconscious mind will work to make it become a reality. It will then begin to positively reinforce your body into aiding the metabolism and eating habits. Programming your mind into believing that you can lose weight, and to visualize yourself at your ideal weight is of the greatest importance.

Try to think of a different image of yourself, then let your subconscious do the work for you.

If you think of your own body fat and being out of shape all the time, then the subconscious mind will find ways to make it so.

The subconscious looks after all of all your vital functions, it is the cause of all your good and bad habits, and also regulates muscle (the muscles are controlled by the subconscious) and body-fat composition on the body, and the latter is the one we are most interested in.

So please try to visualize your body as lean as you would like, and your mind will work on that image. The mind can be a great partner in losing weight.
Getting Rid of Bad Nutritional Habits

A bad habit is like second nature and is acquired over a long period of time. Bad habits are programmed into the subconscious and “will power” alone will not get rid of it. Many try using all sorts of different ways to break it but without success.

Obesity is the result of bad nutritional habits and some of the causes are boredom, stress, tension and different complexes.

Food becomes the substitution for these causes and before too long, obesity sets in. Most people become concerned that they’re obese, eat more and a vicious cycle is established.

The only way for lasting permanent weight loss is to break these bad habits and replace them with positive new ones, and the only way to do this is with visualization. Visualization puts you in charge of your subconscious where all these bad programs are stored.

All the will power in the world is not going to break these bad habits unless one has the help of their subconscious.
Relaxation

Relaxation the best way to reach the subconscious and will slow down the mind, turn off the exterior world so as to tune in to one’s inner self. The best times for these sessions are in the morning and late at night right, just before going to sleep.

Try performing two sessions, one in the afternoon (primary) and the other before going to sleep (secondary) but once a day is quite sufficient. Sessions usually last 20 minutes, which isn’t time consuming especially when taking in the benefits received.

It has been stated that one of these sessions is equivalent to 2 hours of deep sleep and upon waking you will feel revitalized and full of energy. Believe me instead of worrying about time constraints; you will be looking forward to the next session.

When you begin your relaxation sessions, make sure you won’t be disturbed – lock the door, take the phone off the hook and loosen all clothing.

Now find a comfortable position, whether it is lying down or sitting in a comfortable chair.

Sitting may be preferable as you may fall asleep if you become too comfortable. You want to be conscious and not asleep in order to tap into your sub-conscious mind.

Try to exhale all the air from your lungs completely and then breathing in through the nose. Take ten seconds to fill the lungs with air (not to capacity, but comfortable) hold for ten seconds and then exhale slowly through the nose for another ten seconds.

Each one of these breathing cycles should last for 30 seconds, complete five cycles and after each cycle you will be feeling more and more relaxed.

If you are sitting, open your eyes and look straight ahead. If you are lying down, open your eyes and stare at the ceiling. After a few minutes, slowly close your eyes.

Having reaching this calm relaxed state start your visualizations. Put together images that power your emotions. Make them alive and colourful.

Make the scenes as real as possible and imagine yourself as slim and toned the way you will look after successful weight loss.

Picture yourself ten weeks from now on the beach, walking briskly and confidently to your favourite spot, your breathing is normal and relaxed. You smile to yourself; you could keep walking like this for miles without feeling fatigued.

You lay your towel out and begin to take your clothes off revealing a firm, toned, well conditioned body.

You have just bought a brand new swimming suit which just weeks before would have been lying in your closet waiting to be used.

Glancing around you notice the beach is busy, you catch the eye of someone of the opposite sex, they smile at you and you smile back. You walk confidently to the water and swim a couple of hundred yards with no problem or fatigue.

Or try this:

Visualize your family and friends complimenting you about how good your body looks and how slim you look. Try to view the scene as it is happening this instant – in the present, not in the future.

Using these visualizations you can construct in your mind any scene that desire. See yourself exercising, socializing, in the company of friends. Try and hear people complimenting you about your slim new body, and watch their admiring glances.

Make the mental image as real as possible.

  • Remember set a goal for your ideal weight
  • You must want to lose weight
  • Visualize yourself at your ideal weight
  • Use positive images at every opportunity

Practice these Self-hypnosis sessions on a daily basis and over a period of ten weeks you’ll be on your way to become more fulfilled, happier and leaner.  At Gresham Hypnosis Center, we teach all our clients Self-Hypnosis.  Check us out!

What’s the Connection…Weight and Diabetes

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Excellent health requires proper care and nurturing.

A fit and trim body gives inner and outer confidence whereas an obese physique makes you dull and pessimistic. Obesity breeds other diseases and makes our existence uncomfortable and unpleasant.

It also results in emotional suffering which is one of the most painful parts of obesity.

Obesity is not just a cosmetic problem. It’s a health hazard. Someone who is grossly overweight is twice as likely to die prematurely as compared to an average-weight person.

This is because obesity has been linked to several serious medical conditions such as diabetes and strokes.

A weight increase of 11-18 pounds doubles the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in comparison to individuals who have not gained weight. According to studies, over 80 percent of people with diabetes are overweight or obese.

This may account for the newly invented word, diabesity, which signifies the close association between obesity and diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes, one of most prominent ailment found in obese people reduces body’s ability to control blood sugar. It is a major cause of early death, heart disease, stroke, and blindness.

Overweight people are twice as likely to develop type 2 diabetes compared to normal weight people. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. In type 2 diabetes, either the body does not produce enough insulin or the cells ignore the insulin. Insulin is necessary for the body to be able to use sugar.

Sugar is the basic fuel for the cells in the body, and insulin takes the sugar from the blood into the cells.

The chances of its occurrence can be reduced by losing weight and exercising more. If you have type 2 diabetes, losing weight and becoming more physically active can help control your blood sugar levels.

Increasing your physical activity may also allow you to reduce the amount of diabetes medication intake. Losing a small amount of weight can also reduce your chances of developing heart disease or a stroke and make your body ailment free.

Studies show that you can improve your health by losing as little as 10 to 20 pounds.

Weight reduction can decrease your chance of developing several fatal ailments like heart disease, blood pressure, and levels of blood cholesterol and triglycerides. So take your first step towards weight loss and make your life a healthy and energetic one.

Overweight? Watch out!

 

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A new study shows that being overweight in mid-life substantially increased the risk of dying of heart disease later when they get older.

This finding is based on a research by Northwestern University as result of tracking 17,643 patients for 3 decades. Even people with healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels when the study began are not safer.

Overweight people are more likely to have heart disease, as they are more likely to have a higher blood pressure and cholesterol. Both hike the risk of heart disease. Statistics shows obesity can cause heart attacks, strokes and diabetes.

So if your weight is above normal level, you need to shed a few pounds for the sake of your health.

How do you know for sure if you are overweight or not? You can tell that by your Body Mass Index, BMI for short. Generally speaking, a person whose BMI index is above 25 is considered overweight.

BMI Weight Status
Below 18.5 Underweight
18.5 to 24.9 Normal
25.0 to 29.9 Overweight
30.0 and Above Obese

You can calculate your BMI by the following formula:

English Formula
BMI= weight in pounds/(height in inches x height in inches) x 703

Metric Formula
BMI= weight in kilograms/(height in meters x height in meters)

Even if you don’t quite mind being overweight, it’s better to keep your weight at normal level for your health.

Visit Gresham Hypnosis Center, we’ve got a weight reduction program that’s just right for you!

2 Simple Steps, No More Excuses

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Success in any endeavor, including health and fitness, begins with the thoughts that you want to attain something.

Your desire needs to be strong enough and clearly defined before you will begin to take action. Before you begin to successfully lose weight you need to make the necessary changes, and seek out the ways and means to reach your desired goal. You have to adopt a “no excuse” attitude and stay focused on your goals.
Do these excuses sound familiar? “If I just had more time, I would be exercising regularly.” “I tried to eat low-fat today but my kids wanted pizza.” “Every time I plan to exercise or eat healthy, something always comes up.” “Eating healthy is too expensive.” If we continue to blame outside factors, we will continue to get the same results. Many truly believe these excuses are something totally out of our control preventing us from reaching our goals.

We think that something, or someone else, is responsible.

The number one and most important step to losing weight successfully is to take 100% responsibility for your actions, which means, you are fully responsible for everything you put into your mouth. Everything you eat is a decision you make. Decisions like whether or not to eat that chocolate cake. Each decision you make you are accountable for. This may sound harsh, but it is a truism.
You’ve heard the buzzword used by motivational speakers, Proactive. It means more than just taking initiative. It means that we have the responsibility (response-ability) for our own lives. Highly proactive people don’t blame others or circumstances for their behavior. Their behavior is a product of their own conscious choice and willpower.

Next time you’re faced with an excuse outside of you, change the way you think and develop a strategy to tell yourself that you can do it.

Once you realize the power you already have inside of you, overcoming obstacles will be easier. A few successes will build your confidence and help you grow and be able to commit to something you want to do or have. Self-talk can make us or break us. Allow your self-talk to help you be proactive toward your health and fitness goals. You already have, inside of you, what it takes to succeed.
When I work with clients on behavioral modification, we use tools to help them achieve their goals. Two successful tools are a food journal and appointment scheduling.

1. The food journal is used to write down everything you eat. You will think twice before you eat knowing you have to write it down.

Then you can look at your journal to see how the extra calories sneak up. A weight loss coach is also a good strategy to help you become accountable and learn about healthy eating.

2. Schedule your exercise time just like scheduling a meeting or doctor’s appointment. Many clients are successful with their fitness goals working with a personal trainer because they have the appointment scheduled and are less likely to blow it off because of the appointment. Discipline yourself with regularly scheduled exercise time. This will increase your consistency and help you get to your goal.

You have the power to control your life and behavior. Recognize the excuses and take the action, now! For more information, contact Gresham Hypnosis Center.  We’ve got a Weight Loss Program that’s right for you, check us out!