Exciting News

I'm delighted to share with you some exciting news.  I will be putting on an evening Chakra Dancing Class.  It's been a long time coming, but I've finally taken the plunge!

This new class will be on a Monday evening starting on Monday 23 November from 7-8pm at Ridgewood Community Centre, 244 Station Road, Yate, BS37 4AF - £5 each pay as you go

We all experience energy blocks in the body, causing us to suffer from fatigue, low energy levels, anxiety, lack of confidence, or simply the pressures of everyday life.  Imagine allowing your body to simply release it and let it go.  

Chakra Dancing isn’t your normal type of exercise class; it’s a dance therapy, a spiritual journey of transformation for your mind, body and soul.

If you’re not sure what chakras are, they are spinning wheels of energy located all over your body. We have thousands of them but the seven main chakras are located along our spine from its base to just above the head.  Each chakra is represented by a different colour of the rainbow and is associated with a particular part of the body.  Chakra's also have a different vibration; from the root which has a heavy deep base vibration, to the crown which has a light angelic vibration.

Over time our Chakras can become blocked, causing us to feel low, run down and fatigued.  With a different piece of music relating to each of the 7 main chakra centres, this dance therapy will help you to release any blockages and leave you feeling energised and yet completely balanced within, improving your health and well-being - physically, mentally and emotionally.  

Through spontaneous free-form dancing, guided by an instructor, we can free up our natural energy flows to harmonise and balance the energy centres that run throughout the body, creating positive changes that you can really benefit from.

Best of all, there are no steps or routines to learn and no coordination is needed.  Just feel the music, let go and dance your own dance.  And because you dance your own dance, there are no expectations of you and no-one forcing you to do this or do that which makes it suitable for all ages, all fitness levels and all abilities.

Loose, layered clothing and Trainers are recommended.

You may dance in bare feet at your own risk.

Please bring drinking water with you.  

No coordination  necessary and no set routines.  

Suitable for all fitness levels and abilities.

No floor work involved!

Smoothing the Cat

We all suffer from some amount of anxiety in our lives, in fact we need a certain amount to enable our brain to understand when we might need our fight/flight/freeze mechanism to kick in.  But it's how we deal with that anxiety that makes us sink or swim.
It's about finding the right way for you to handle your stress and learning techniques that help you cope and, inevitably, move on.
Some people find simple breathing techniques help them, some like to meditate, read a book or listen to music to help them relax and de-stress.
For me it was always smoothing the cat (that's Bristolian for stroking the cat).  There's nothing nicer than a cat jumping up on your lap and as you start to smooth it, it starts to purr.  That must be one of the most calming sounds in the world.  All that cat wants is for you to make a fuss of it, nothing else matters and as it relaxes it purrs louder.  If you stop it soon lets you know that you need to start again with a little nuzzle or gentle paw.  Then you find yourself going into a little meditative state as you enjoy this little piece of relaxation with your furry friend.
At least, that's how I remember it.  Our current cat isn't bothered about fusses, except in the mornings!  The minute I sit on the toilet she comes in and jumps on my lap and because this is such a rare occasion I just sit there and enjoy it until my legs go numb!

Is Mental Health Impacting Your Business?

With 1 in 4 people suffering from mental health issues, it's a problem that businesses can no longer ignore.  Whether you are a large corporation or a small company, you're probably feeling the impact.  Not everyone suffering from a mental illness will take time off sick.  Most people will struggle on trying to act as if nothing is wrong, but their daily struggle will begin to impact on their work eventually.  Why?  When you're suffering from Anxiety you invariably worry about everything, your mind is going round and round trying to juggle your workload, your family and everything else going on in your life and everything seems like a mountain to climb, however simple or difficult a problem or task it actually is.  So when it comes to bed-time, you just can't quiet the mind and often you can't sleep.  Sleep is key to our well-being, it's where we process all our thoughts and feelings that we've had during the day, it's where we turn all our short-term memories into long-term memories and it's where we begin to heal and regenerate cells.  Without this crucial part of daily cycle our bodies become lethargic, our health begins to suffer and our memory is impacted.  

So what can we do about it?  Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can help you to start making positive changes in your life.  We start by helping you get your sleep pattern back to normal by listening to hypnotherapy CD at night.  We encourage positive thinking, small things at first and we help you to look towards a positive future and small steps you can take to move towards your better future.

If you're a business and concerned about your workforce, why not ask your local Solution Focused Hypnotherapist to come in and chat to your team about anxiety and how we can help.

 

www.afsfh.co.uk     www.julieshowering.co.uk

Press Release - FREE “Relaxation” CD helps reduce stress

A Solution Focused hypnotherapist, based in Chipping Sodbury, is offering a FREE hypnotherapy “Relaxation” CD to help new clients to reduce stress and promote feelings of well being.

The CD, which lasts for around 30 minutes, uses soothing music and language rich in imagery and texture, to help people to relax and unwind.

Voiced by hypnotherapy practitioner Julie Showering, the CD is designed to be listened to before the client goes to sleep, and can be helpful, when used in conjunction with regular sessions, in aiding in weight, sleep, and anger management issues.

The CD should not be played in the car or when operating machinery because it can be very effective!

It should be used when someone wants to completely relax for half an hour or so.

“I am delighted to offer clients a free hypnotherapy CD as part of an Initial Consultation, which really aids in their treatment”, says Julie Showering, a fully insured and qualified Solution Focused Hypnotherapy practitioner.

In our hectic world, our brains can often respond to situations we perceive to be stressful in a manner that can prove to be bad for our mental well-being and overall health.

When we start to build up a pattern of negative thinking, therapists say we are adding to our “stress bucket”.

When our “stress bucket” overflows, we may discover issues start to invade our lives and manifest themselves in a variety of ways, from anxiety and stress-related illnesses through to eating issues or anger.

Rapid Eye Movement (REM), which is a natural part of our sleeping cycle, helps to reduce our “stress bucket” levels. REM is limited and if there is a lot in our “stress bucket”, we can find ourselves waking up early (or not being able to sleep at all).

This response, in turn, makes the negative thinking worse, which adds to the “stress bucket” and the negative responses become further enforced.

The free CD, in conjunction with Solution Focused Hypnotherapy sessions with Julie, are designed to aid relaxation by focusing on positive solutions and then replicating REM in a trance state – which is a safe and effective way to alleviate stress.

“We find that after a number of sessions, many clients, who have been using the CD on a regular basis in-between coming to see us, will often say that they are feeling more relaxed and that they are seeing benefits to aspects of their lives.”

Julie says that the CD and sessions combined together are designed to focus the brain into finding solutions in the client’s life, which means that the therapy does not delve into past events, or issues, the client may have experienced.

Julie Showering is a member of the Association for Solution Focused Hypnotherapy (AfSFH) which sets out to ensure its members adhere to its high standards and code of conduct.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can also be used to help with minor phobias and can be of assistance in helping someone stop smoking in one simple session.

Back To School Means Time for You

So, it's only a week left before the kids go back to school and suddenly you realise they've had a growing spurt and that new uniform you bought them doesn't fit or their shoes are now too tight. Or you're wondering what on earth are you going to do with all that free time you're going to have.
However you feel about the kids going back to school, it's actually a time when you can think about yourself for a change - even if it's just for 10 mintues!
Yes, I really do mean 10 minutes. And realistically we can all find 10 minutes for ourselves - even if its when we are sat on the loo!
In 10 minutes you can embark upon the wonders that meditation can bring to your daily life.  You can do a Guided Meditation or a Mindfulness Meditation, whichever suits you best, but they both take practice and discipline to master, so don't give up.
Of course you take the Dr David Hamilton approach and stand in a power stance for 3 minutes every day, like a superhero with hands on hips and chest out.  He swears by it because by standing in that way you're brain thinks you are powerful and strong and will start to produce those wonderful chemicals such as serotonin which make us happy and brave and able to cope with whatever the world throws at us.

Press Release - Helping to reduce the “Autumn Blues”

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy: Helping to reduce the “Autumn Blues”

As we start to get ready to go back to work towards the end of the holiday season, and the children are getting their uniforms sorted out, then people’s perceptions of stress may start to increase.
With the start of autumn just a few weeks away, and with the prospect of the nights beginning to draw in, this time of the year can prove itself to be a little daunting.
A possible change in the weather from sunny summery days into a more autumnal outlook can, for some people, also prove to be a little unsettling.
Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can really help people who may find they need help to manage the change of seasons combined with the return to work.
Julie Showering, a fully insured and qualified Solution Focused Hypnotherapy practitioner, based in Chipping Sodbury, says, “September can be a tough time for some people as they start to try to settle back into a routine of deadlines and meetings.
“Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can really help to reduce stress and promote a calm and relaxed approach to work and life as a whole.”
Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is a safe and effective treatment which uses science and psychology to utilise the mind into its most positive state.
Sessions last for an hour and a client may see their practitioner over a number of appointments to gain the most from the therapy itself.
“It really is amazing”, says Julie. “We see people whose ‘stress buckets’ might be overflowing when they initially come to us, and it’s wonderful to see the transformation over a number of appointments as they become noticeably more relaxed in their approach to life.”
Julie gained the Hypnotherapy Practitioner’s Diploma (HPD) in 2012 and is a member of the Association for Solution Focused Hypnotherapy (AfSFH), which sets out to ensure its members adhere to its high standards and code of conduct.
Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can also be used to help improve confidence, aid in sleep, ease anger and anxiety-based issues, help with weight management, and also in focusing someone’s mind on stopping smoking in a single session.

I ♥ Me

If you haven't come across Dr David Hamilton and his many books, I strongly recommend that you get his new book I♥Me.
I have to admit that I'd never heard of him until a few weeks ago when a colleague said she was reading this book. Then literally 2 days later I received an email with an invite to go and see him talk, so I did.
It was all a bit of rush that day.  My original meeting that evening had been cancelled and I was feeling a little annoyed as I usually go to aerobics which I'd had to cancel. So I decided to be spontaneous and found myself booking to see David Hamilton in Cheltenham.  I suddenly realised that it would take me an hour to get there and if I was going to make it I'd have to have an early tea.  So I rustled up something quick in the kitchen and literally walked out the door and hubby was coming home!
I drove up to Cheltenham and as I pulled into a nearby car park so did another lady and I just knew she was going to the same event as me - so I asked her.  Yes, she said, which was great as I had no idea where the venue actually was!  So not only did I get see an amazingly talented man tell us his story up on stage, I made a new friend too.  If you ever get the chance to go and see him, go, he is a real inspiration.

I've now signed up for his regular newsletter and this week he wrote this which I thought was really interesting
"In June, I was part of an experiment where a group of people 'sent' loving-kindness to a person who was in a different room, and that person's heart rhythms changed at the precise moment the loving-kindness was sent."
Isn't that just amazing? I've always known about the power of healing and distant healing whether it's spiritual or reiki, but to have it proven in an experiment just really confirms that there is so much more going on that we can really know or even understand.
And, more importantly, if sending positive thoughts to someone can have such a positive effect on that person, then we must assume that sending negativity can have the opposite effect and could actually cause them harm.
So be really careful with you thoughts and as soon as any negative one start to creep in, stop them immediately and start thinking of something much more positive!