Over at our Facebook group (links all over this website), there has been some discussion about seeing colours when hypnotised, and discussion about the impact or nature of colours and it has been fascinating.
I have encountered therapists who work with colours and I read the entire book on the Luscher Colour test when I was younger, but have never really studied colours therapeutically in any great depth.
The main way I have ever used colours has been in line with aiding and enhancing progressive relaxation techniques whereby you imagine the relaxation as a colour, or with the application of pain relief whereby whilst hypnotised the client imagines the pain as a colour which is then changed to another colour as a means of altering it – similar sorts of applications.
Whilst reading the discussions, I cam across a lovely process and technique championed by Dr Alman and Dr Lambrou in their book on self-hypnosis which I have been using and exploring for the past couple of weeks and have tweaked it to match my own preferences and thought I’d share it with you here today.
The aim of the process is to use colours metaphorically and in a way that helps represent facets of yourself, and then to use the colours and what they represent to create solutions and map a way forward and create positive solutions. It can be applied in a very general sense of well-being enhancement but can also be used in relation to something specific that you are working on in your life currently.
9 Steps To Use The Colours Of Your Mind:
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.
Step Two: Inside of your mind, now start to imagine you have paints, or coloured pens or that you have a computerized palet or colour software to colur, draw and create. Just gather up and imagine whatever colouring tools you enjoy using the most and assemble them there in front of you and in as much detail as is comfortable for you.
Tell yourself that every thought, every image and every movement inside your mind is taking you deeper into hypnosis, then move on to the next step.
Step Three: Get mindful of who and how you are in this moment.
So begin by heightening your awareness of your entire of your body. Scan through it, over it, around it from the top of your head, all the way down into your fingers and your toes. Get really aware of your entire body as one. Notice and become mindful of your muscles as they relax and are still while you are in this position, notice your nerves becoming quiet. Just observe the experience of your body in this moment.
By being mindful, it means that you just watch your body, you don’t try to change anything; don’t try to stop anything from changing. There is every chance that things change while you are observing them, and just do that, observe.
Be passive, a detached observer, just be contented to notice what you notice, feel what you feel.
Really tune into the sensations of your breathing. Notice the parts of your body that move when you breathe, be aware of the sensations of your breathing and really take some time to tune into your body and your breathing.
With that mindfulness developed, drifting deeper inside your mind, move on to the next step.
Step Four: With this heightened awareness of how you are in this moment, now draw, paint and create an image, a representation of yourself there in front of you.
Use whatever colours you think represent different parts of you. How would you colour your head and where it is at? How would you colour your gut and the feelings it has? How is your chest and heart best coloured? How would you colour your limbs? And they do not all have to be a single colour, they can have variety, just colour according to how you feel and what best represents you at this time.
Just create a colourful representation and image of who and how you are in this moment. Notice the shades of the colours you are using, notice the darkness and lightness of each colour you are selecting.
When you have taken all the time necessary to paint, colour and create the image of yourself in representative colours, then move on to the next step.
Step Five: Scan around and through your creation in front of you. Start at the top, work your way down and reflect upon the shades of colour.
Consider what you have created here and find yourself reflecting and thinking about the parts of you, which are darker shades and colours. By ‘darker’ I am not necessarily discussing exclusively blacks, browns and dark blues, for example, (though they may well be that) but anything that you consider is representative of something darker, or an issue or a potential problem in life of some kind.
Perhaps these are representative of facets of an issue you face currently, or represent ways in which you feel about certain aspects of your life.
Take some time to examine these darker areas and what they represent. Note the colour, shade and details of those parts and have a think about what colour, shade or detail would make it appear more agreeable – would it need to change shade and simply get lighter to appear more agreeable and create more of a progressive response to it, for example?
Consider and get in your mind an idea of what colours, textures, details and shades are required to represent a change in feeling and in your person. Then move on to the next step.
Step Six: When you know the kinds of colours and shades that re required to make the picture look, feel and seem more agreeable, happier, well and so on, then start to think of actual ways that you can bring that light, colour and detail into your real-life.
How can you actually take action, or invite a remedy into your life that will bring more of that desired colour or light or detail into your real-life?
Perhaps you require more exposure to people with a particular attitude or manner? Perhaps you require to be in certain environments more? Perhaps you seek the light of better understanding and require more information or to ask some questions for clarity on a matter?
Brainstorm within the focused mental environment of self-hypnosis, come up with a number of solutions, options and actions that will bring a colour change within your mind (a metaphorical colour change that is).
Really have a good think of a number of ways you can bring that required colour, light and texture into your actual life and then equipped with those ideas, move on to the next step.
Step Seven: With real gusto, with meaning and volition, a real sense of purpose, now use your internal dialogue and tell yourself of the colours you are going to bring into your life and how you are going to do it. Word your affirmations in the present tense, and really get some belief installed in your mind. For example:
“I bring lighter shades of blue into my life by spending more time with my positive friends at my running club”
“I welcome the deeper red into my life by engaging in (name activity here that gets you more passionate)”
“I eat more vegetables to bring more sustenance and bright green into my body”
“By getting more fresh air, I bring more yellow into my head area”
These are basic examples, they are generic and non-specific; to get you thinking and considering – create and construct the affirmation and repeat it over and over until you get a sense of determined belief in it. Then move on to the next step.
Step Eight: Finally, engage in some mental rehearsal of the action you are going to take. Imagine being in that place, doing that thing, see the sights of the place, hear the sounds, enjoy the feelings you derive from being there taking that action. Reply a future memory and mentally rehearse that progressive action in detail in your mind.
Having done that, still imagining your mental creatively coloured image of yourself in front of you, see the colours being updated in your mental image as a result of doing that action. Notice the colours, shades and details being updated, with new colours, that represent you feeling better, happier and healthier.
Keep that image strong in your mind and then move on to the final step.
Step Nine: Exit hypnosis and this session. Take a couple of nice energising breaths, wiggle your toes and fingers and open your eyes.
Make sure you go take that image and feel the colours of your mind being updated.
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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?
Coaching with Adam Eason Or Hypnotherapy with Adam Eason
2. Would you like a satisfying and meaningful career as a hypnotherapist helping others? Are you a hypnotherapist looking for stimulating and career enhancing continued professional development and advanced studies?
Adam Eason’s Anglo European training college.
3. Are you a hypnotherapist looking to fulfil your ambitions or advance your career?
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.
