It’s hard to hear the news of the day without wincing at least once at what might happen, as well as what has already occurred. The chaotic picture that is painted by the media is enough to test the boundaries of anyone who wishes to stay within the realm of sanity. Clients who seek healing for their mental health issues are especially triggered in tumultuous times. While being in a troubled world is especially uncomfortable for them, being triggered can offer opportunities for them to get relief. Negative emotions, much like tenacious weeds in a delicate garden, choke off our ability to experience life’s gifts, including humor, love, and joy.

There is so much talk about self-love in the mental health, wellness, and self-help spheres, and some of the things that are set leave people believing there is an easy “fix”, a magic wand of sorts, that will transform a bleak and unforgiving internal landscape into the new terrain emerges after we “find our bliss.”

While therapy, meditation, yoga, mindfulness, and other common methods of calming down the fury that lies within so many of our clients can be helpful, they can only do so much. In order for our clients to experience deep healing, it’s necessary for them to take stock of what they have growing in their inner gardens, and pull out the weeds that get in the way of their happiness.

Facing negative emotions sounds like a very unpleasant thing to do, and it can be. We all have shadows, parts of ourselves that felt they have been wronged, or that life is always unfair, or that didn’t get enough from caretakers, peers, colleagues, managers, or society. These shadows carry our darker emotions, including resentment, impatience, and yes, anger.

If these shadows were to simply exist, remain in the background, and not cause any trouble, we may never come across them. However, that isn’t what happens. Shadows, and the emotions they carry tend to grow…much like bad weeds. With each new experience that reminds us of an original wound, the negative emotions intensify, and the shadow becomes stronger. Before we know it, those shadows are running at least some part of our lives. The verbal tantrum of that angry little boy who didn’t make the soccer team might emerge from the mouth of a corporate executive in the middle of an important meeting. The little girl who feels she is never good enough might inspire the grown woman she has become to become so competitive, she becomes known by her colleagues as the one who’s not a team player.

Shadows can be far more difficult than these examples suggest, to be sure. In fact, shadows tend to grow increasingly stronger and unpredictable the longer the negative emotions are suppressed. As mental health professionals see in their practices, when emotions are not directly expressed, they often manifest as anxiety, personality disorders, relationship problems, and addictions.

What can help us vanquish the shadows within ourselves or our clients? We need to find a hero. This figure must be clever as well as strong and courageous. Attacking a shadow, informing it that all negative emotions must be forever suppressed, will only make it more furious and determined to burst out when it is least expected, or wanted. The hero must gently, lovingly, embrace the shadow, bringing it to a point where its grievances are heard. The hero must also help the shadow express the negative feelings safely and appropriately. Most important, the hero must form an alliance with the shadow. When they work together, they can be incredibly strong. Forming a Working Alli

How can the noble, moral, hero learn to embrace the most detestable shadow part? How can the resentful and unyielding shadow come to appreciate the virtue of the hero? In therapy, this can be a long and arduous process, to be sure. However, it can be made worlds easier through Heart-Centered Hypnotherapy.® This technique allows the therapist to put the client into a relaxed state where the conscious mind, where the hero lives, can connect with the world of the shadow, in the subconscious mind. The therapist then guides the client back, through age regression, to the source of the shadow’s negative feelings. The client brings the memory of the traumatic or upsetting experience forward, and is given an opportunity to safely release the negative emotions.

After the regression portion of the session, the wounded, regressed version of the client is introduced to the higher part of the Self, and given the opportunity to experience self-love. The shadow hears, perhaps for the first time, the things it needs to know in order to feel safe, calm, and supportive. The client’s more virtuous part is encouraged to learn to love this shadow part, the wounded child that got “stuck” in a fog of negative emotions. Once this is done, the client may even come to admire that shadow part’s courage, and integrate it into the personality as an ally for the hero. Heart-Centered Hypnotherapy® accelerates the process of healing for so many people, and puts a powerful tool into the hands of thousands of therapists. While it is indeed magical, Heart-Centered Hypnotherapy® is easy to learn. You can become a certified Heart-Centered Hypnotherapist® after training for less than a week! 

If you want to learn how to be a hero, and perhaps rehabilitate some of your own shadow parts, the Six Day Hypnotherapy Training and Certification Program is perfect for you. Learn hypnosis, induction, deepening, trance management, Ericksonian techniques, and titration. Dive more deeply as you learn how to conduct sessions that include age regression, emotional release, and deep healing. The program is conducted totally online with experienced live teachers. You will conduct two sessions of your own, and participate as a client and observer with your colleagues. Highly skilled certified Heart-Centered Hypnotherapists will assist you as you take your first steps on this healing journey. The Wellness Institute’s mission is to heal the healers, so that they may be clear and free to help others.

You’ll learn how hypnotherapy can be used to work with issues such as:

● codependency

● addiction

● eating disorders

● mind-body matters

● dysfunctional relationships

● childhood and developmental difficulties

The Wellness Institute offers advanced training in hypnotherapy and other modalities through our Advanced Internship, Personal Transformation Intensive Leadership, and Mentors programs. There is also a short Introduction to Hypnosis course for those who want to wade into the waters with the basics, such as induction, deepening, and hypnotic suggestions so you can teach your clients how to manage the symptoms of stress, anxiety, and even pain.

Our classes are filling fast, so go right to our website to enroll! Be a hero. Lead your clients, and yourself, on a journey toward peace, fulfillment, and self-love.

Join us for the Six Day Hypnotherapy Training and Certification Program today!