According to Life Coach and Clinical Hypnotherapist Stacia Aashna, one of the best ways to start the New Year is with a detox of body and mind. In fact, she is offering a perfect prescription for wellness in 2018 with Hypnosis, Meditation, Booch at The Kombucha Room in Chicago in mid-January.
For those who don’t know, “booch” is the term for a fermented tea beverage that detoxifies the body and builds the immune system. It is an ideal companion for those brave souls who are ready to detox their mind of old “personal lies”– that inner dialogue of unconscious, reinforcing statements that keeps you from evolving into your best, most confident, happiest self.
Yet, drinking tea is not the only way to “clear” yourself internally in preparation for what 2018 will bring! This graduate from SWIHA’s Life Coaching and Clinical Hypnotherapy program firmly believes that hypnotherapy is one of the oldest proven detox tools available today and an incredible asset for life coaches to use with their clients. In Greek mythology, Hypnos is the god associated with sleep. Hypnos was said to be a calm and gentle god who helps mortal humans in their time of need, especially when their thoughts, worries, and doubts create restlessness, unrest, and even depression.
Being no stranger to these fitful emotions is what brought Stacia to seek out life coaching and self-hypnosis herself. She reveals that she began working with hypnosis in particular because it was so relevant to her own life: “I proactively worked for over a decade on developing a healthy relationship with myself. I have attended countless workshops, support groups, and therapy and utilized meditation, yoga, and hypnosis. I overcame extremely unhealthy codependent patterns and anxious attachment disorder and adopted a more secure and balanced relationship model. This experience totally transformed my life for the better. Now I help my clients do the same.”
Earlier this year, Stacia took part in the online summit entitled Inviting Inner Wisdom. In her insightful presentation, entitled How to Use Hypnosis as a Practical and Empowering Tool, she shared how common it is to repeat toxic patterns, including disempowered affirmations which cause us to be fixated on negative things about ourselves or our past. Her warning was that if we continuously repeat old dysfunctional statements, or even repeat things said to us by an unconscious family member, we are practicing a form of self-hypnosis. Whatever we say to ourselves over and over becomes our reality.
Once we discover the fact that we have hypnotized ourselves into unconsciousness and unproductive behaviors, we have the power to detox our thoughts using intentional self-hypnosis–or by working with a trained hypnotherapist–to re-create what we do want in our lives. Stacia finds this method of particular use with when focusing on re-developing the relationship her clients have with themselves. “The more we develop that relationship with self to be healthy and happy,” she explains, “the more that reflects in our other relationships.”
The following is a condensed guided image transcript–an alliteration of sorts—of Stacia’s summit presentation, which is similar to what she might use with someone wanting to detox in the New Year:
Self-Hypnosis Steps by Stacia (alliteration by KC Miller)
Sit up…
Straighten your spine.
Softly breathe your eyes to closed.
Sift through your thoughts, allowing those that no longer serve to slip away.
Settle in…
Sense your surroundings: the sounds, the smells, and the sensations.
Seek to create a scene in your mind.
Something soothing and safe.
Silently repeat:
Simple sounds of self-encouragement.
Start a practice of self-care,
Salted with positive sentiments which self-hypnotize.
Shake off the old– detox!
Deepen your breath in a sustainable way.
Evaluate your self-talk!
Think new self-supporting thoughts.
Observe as all shadows and shame slip away.
X-out any thought of returning to old ways and days…
Stop…
Softly count… 3… 2… 1… Awaken to a new
State of consciousness,
Strong in the knowing that you have just detoxed going into the new year.
Stacia’s hypnotherapy session consists of four essential steps:
Pre-Induction: This period is used to interview the client, which is important for developing rapport, analyzing the language model of the client, and discovering the problem to be addressed during the actual session. In addition, it is time for discussing any questions that the client may have about hypnosis.
Induction and Deepening: This is the formal hypnosis stage of the session, in which the client goes into a trance. It generally includes: the eyes closing, a progressive relaxation, and a focus on therapeutic breathing.
Therapeutic ”Heart” of the Session: This is the therapeutic portion of the session, in which the conscious mind is relaxed and the subconscious mind is more open to suggestions. We may use direct or indirect suggestions to change behavior, alter mood, or achieve a goal. Metaphorical imagery, as well as the client’s words, are incorporated into this stage.
Wakening: At the end of the session, the subject returns to a normal, conscious state. This is a gentle process. Once fully awake, we will ratify the trance suggestions.
Transforming Lives Through the Power of Suggestion
One of Stacia’s most salient stories of client transformation is of a woman who was suffering from codependency, alcoholism, and drug addiction. “We did a combination of life coaching and hypnosis sessions,” Stacia reflects. “I also directed her to local AA meetings, which she courageously committed to. This woman had tried sobriety many times before, yet it never lasted. Amazingly, after our first session, she was able to remain sober… and has stayed sober for nearly a year! Obviously, AA has played a strong role in her sobriety, yet she also credits our work, especially the hypnosis, with her transformation.”
Of course, Stacia’s life has also changed for the better as a result of her healing work. She explains, “Since becoming a certified life coach, my life has completely changed. It inspired me to look at myself on an even deeper level, which made me really challenge myself to create the best life...I was my first client!” Stacia elaborates that 2017 was a year of powerful transformation for her own life: “In this last year, I bought a brand-new car (I used to always drive ugly used cars in terrible condition), moved across the country into a fabulous apartment that I love, more than doubled my income, began dating an incredible man who I will be celebrating a year of love with in January, and developed my relationships with family and friends to be much more secure and healthy.”
For more information about Stacia, make sure to check out her life coaching and hypnotherapy website and follow her on Instagram @stacia.aashna!
