This article is all about how to reduce high blood pressure.
I hope that you all had a wonderful Easter, I know we certainly did. Though I certainly ate too much. When speaking with a friend, he told me that they were not able to partake in so much chocolate related gluttony as his father had recently had a heart attack and so they were supporting him by eating healthily throughout the extended weekend.
Those of you that read my ezine and blog regularly will know that last year my business partner Keith had a heart attack and we were incredibly worried. He has since been working hard on his physical activity and has regular visits to the hospital for his check ups and monitoring.
At that time I began researching the extent to which hypnosis can help reduce high blood pressure and a number of various other applications of hypnosis to help heart related issues. In the next couple of blog entries I’ll be offering up techniques and strategies to help with this, as a result of my own findings.
There are a number of very impressive studies that show hypnosis as a great tool for treating hypertension and helping to lower blood pressure.
Back in 1977 Friedman and Taub conducted a study entitled The use of hypnosis and biofeedback procedures for essential hypertension and was published in the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 25: 335-347 and biofeedback, hypnosis and control groups were measured for effectiveness in lowering DBP (diastolic blood pressure). Biofeedback and hypnosis only showed significant reduction in DBP, with hypnosis having the best results.
When you examine the literature, hypnosis is seen to be a technique that fairly consistently can be used to lower high blood pressure of people with hypertension.
Other interesting studies to take a look at for those interested, is that of Borckhardt (2002) entitled A case study examining the efficacy of a multi-modal psychotherapeutic intervention for hypertension again featured in the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis 50: 114-148. Also, a study by Sletvold, Jensen and Gotestam (1990) entitled The effect of specific hypnotic suggestions on blood pressure in normotensive subjects published in the Pavlovian Journal of Biological Science, 25: 20-24.
There are a number of other impressive studies too, but as I seem to write often, there are still not enough! Those of us in the hypnotherapy field would love to see more studies and research to support this kind of application of hypnosis for helping to lower blood pressure.
With this in mind, today’s technique is one using mental imagery and hypnosis to reduce high blood pressure.
Steps To Reduce Blood Pressure Using Self-Hypnosis:
Step One: Induce Hypnosis.
You can do so by any means you desire or know of. You can use the process in my Science of self-hypnosis book, use the free audio we give away on this website to practice or have a look at the following articles as and when you need them; they are basic processes to help you simply open the door of your mind:
Heavy Arm Self-Hypnosis Induction Method
Using Eye Fixation for Self-Hypnosis
The Chiasson Self-Hypnosis Method
Hand to Face Self-Hypnosis Induction
Using Magnetic Hands for Self-Hypnosis
The Coin Drop Self-Hypnosis Induction
However, with this process, an induction is potentially too much activity, so I teach my clients how to adopt a hypnotic mindset and simply have a mindset that is positive and expectant. Again, to really understand the cognitive set of the hypnotic mindset, go grab a copy of my Science of self-hypnosis book where it is explained in simple but comprehensive terms.
Once you have induced hypnosis, or just adopted the hypnotic mindset, move on to the next step.
Once you have induced hypnosis, move on to step two. I would add here though, if you know a progressive relaxation process to induce self-hypnosis, that would be a marvellous thing to do bearing in mind we are using hypnosis to relax and lower blood pressure.
Step Two: Start to engage your imagination and find yourself in a favourite place in nature. It can be somewhere you are creating right now in your mind, or somewhere you have been before, or any other favourite place outside.
Notice the sights, colours and shades of light that you can see all around you. Hear the sounds of life, notice the distance of sounds, even the sound of the breeze if there is one. Feel how safe and comfortable it is in this place, feel the temperature, the air and smell the aromas of that fresh air as it moves into your lungs through your nose.
Engage all your senses and tune into this place.
As you relax here, start to imagine that your body is relaxing as you enjoy the peacefulness and serenity all around you. Notice your muscles softening, notice that you are becoming more still as you tune in to the surroundings.
Tell yourself that you are drifting deeper into hypnosis, deeper into your mind as you continue to imagine being in this place as vividly as you can.
Once you have noticed that you are still, relaxed and tuned into this place in nature, then move on to the next step.
Step Three: Start to notice the plants in more detail around you. Start to notice the flowers and the shrubs – you decide to water them to help them enjoy being healthy in this place in nature.
Imagine somewhere nearby is a hosepipe of your mind, that starts at a nearby lake, and serves as part of the irrigation system for this beautiful place in nature in your mind. You pick it up and with your thoughts of watering and spraying the plants around you, the water begins to emerge from the hosepipe.
It begins to come out of the hosepipe faster and stronger and becomes tough to handle and keep a hold of, in fact, it wriggles out of your grip and sprays harder and faster and its bolts of fast water knock some of the shrubs over as it sprays.
Watch it firing water uncontrollably all over the area for a few moments, tell yourself you are going deeper inside of your mind as it happens and then move on to the next step.
Step Four: You calmly, positively and easily take a comfortable hold of the hosepipe and you instinctively start to breathe gently, deeply and purposefully.
As you do so, the water stream starts to react and respond to your thoughts, your intention and your level of control. The water stream starts to respond to the rate of your breathing and your thoughts of calmness and the flow of water becomes manageable, and easy and gentle…
Just watch as the stream of water flows gently and easily… And you go deeper inside your mind and you relax more as you watch it. Take some time to do this step and then start to water all the plants and flowers around you, nurturing them, watering them and get a sense of the landscape really benefiting from this sense of comfort, easiness and the gentle flow of the water coming out of the hosepipe. Flowing freely and with just the right pressure that is steady, even and has a really healthy rhythm to it.
The surroundings start to react and respond and the entire place starts to feel relaxed, calm and gentle again… The sounds, sights and feelings all tell you that everything is relaxed, calm and flowing with healthiness and vitality.
When you have enjoyed this for a while, move on to the next step.
Step Five: Now set the hosepipe at this healthy level of flow, to keep the area healthy and well and you sit back and just watch it happening around you.
As you do so, you breathe naturally and enjoy the fresh air. With each breath that you breathe you start to notice your own body beginning to synchronise with your surroundings… You can sense the flow of blood around your body adjusting itself to the correct and healthiest levels… Take some time and imagine that happening within you as you enjoy breathing the clean fresh healthy air…
Notice the easy, gentle rhythm of life flowing through you, imagine all the systems of your body joining in with the nature around you, setting itself to that way that is optimal for you… As you enjoy the scenery, breathing gently, letting the flow happen in a controllable and easily way before you.
Enjoy this for as long as you like, getting your body in sync with nature, knowing its healthiest levels and then move on to the final step.
Step Six: Tell yourself that this sessions works better each time you practice it, and commit to practicing it regularly. As you imagine the comfortable, soothing flow of life within yourself, bring all that balance and easiness with you as you wiggle your toes and fingers, take a couple of deeper, energising breaths, and then open your eyes.
Do practice this process, the more you practice it, the more beneficial the results will be for you as you lower your blood pressure using hypnosis.
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Have some of themes here resonated with you? Then have a read of these pages:
1. Do you need help or support in a particular area of your life? Want help to take responsibility of your life? Want to reduce high blood pressure?
Coaching with Adam Eason Or Hypnotherapy with Adam Eason
2. Would you like a satisfying and meaningful career as a hypnotherapist helping others to take responsibility of their lives? Are you a hypnotherapist looking for stimulating and career enhancing continued professional development and advanced studies? Want to help others reduce high blood pressure?
Adam Eason’s Anglo European training college.
3. Are you a hypnotherapist looking to fulfil your ambitions or advance your career? Take responsibility with this link…
Hypnotherapist Mentoring with Adam Eason.
Likewise, if you’d like to learn more about self-hypnosis, understand the evidence based principles of it from a scientific perspective and learn how to apply it to many areas of your life while having fun and in a safe environment and have the opportunity to test everything you learn, then come and join me for my one day seminar which does all that and more, have a read here: The Science of Self-Hypnosis Seminar. Alternatively, go grab a copy of my Science of self-hypnosis book. Self-hypnosis can help to lower high blood pressure.
