Hypnotherapy can be a powerful tool for stopping smoking and alcoholism because of its long-term benefits and ability to change a person’s mindset about addiction. Hypnotherapy used as a part of a larger treatment method is known to have a remarkable effect on a person’s ability to stop smoking and alcoholism. Hypnotherapy allows the mind to enter a state of complete relaxation without tension or stress, creating a mental environment that is conducive to receiving and processing suggestions and cues about shifts in behavior that a conscious and critical mind might ignore or refute.
Addiction can be a very hard thing to deal with in anyone’s life. The mind and body forms a dependence on the chemical properties and high that come from smoking and drinking. Smoking and drinking can be used as a means to relax, as a social lubricant, to cope with bigger problems, as a means to pass time and many more reasons based on each person’s lifestyle and environment. The main similarity is that smoking and drinking and addictive activities that are both harmful to the body. Addicts who have made the decision to stop drinking or smoking and are committed to a long-term, life change will often turn to hypnotherapy as a means to stop smoking and alcoholism.
Hypnotherapy sessions with a professional hypnotherapist should be used in conjunction with other methods of quitting for the best results. Smoking substitutes and drinking substitutes will quell short-term desires, whereas hypnotherapy will deal with the long-term motivation and commitment to stay sober and stop smoking. It is important to note that hypnotherapy is not a cure-all for any type of addiction, but rather a helping mechanism that can aid in and speed up the road to recovery.
A typical hypnotherapy session for stopping smoking and alcoholism will include a brief relaxation exercise to prepare the mind for being hypnotized and make the body comfortable. For hypnotherapy to be successful, the person being hypnotized must be willing to be hypnotized, believe that the hypnosis will work and help them, and be completely comfortable. Hypnotherapy sessions begin with a hypnotic induction that creates a calm and clear mind.
After the mind and body are completely relaxed, the hypnotherapist will begin a series of mental exercises that include positive affirmations and suggestions. Using visualization and imagery to create a scene that involves a healthy lifestyle, control over habits and motivation to stay committed to sobriety and health are all parts of a hypnotherapy session to stop smoking and alcoholism. Hypnotherapy will also deal with any residual issues that are lingering in the mind that may have pushed a person to begin smoking or drinking. These past memories, traumas or events are often hidden deep in the subconscious. A hypnotherapist will help dig out these memories to deal with them in a new, positive way and retrain the mind to block out these memories when they surface at later times. Dealing with past memories and issues is an important component to long-term recovery because the mind will no longer go to those dark spots when justifying an addiction.
Positive affirmations in hypnotherapy also develop intrinsic motivation to stop smoking and drinking, and stop for good. Affirmations such as “I can take control of my life” and “I can be a healthy person, void of addiction” are repeated until they are set within the subconscious mind. These positive affirmations build up a sense of self-love and worth within an addict and give them hope that they are a worthy and good person who deserves to be free from addiction. When combined with other treatment methods, hypnotherapy can be one of the most useful means for stopping smoking and alcoholism.
