Take a minute to think about it. What are your best hopes? – For the next week, for the next month or two, for the next year, or even beyond that. What would you like to happen?
And for those of you who answered, “I’d win the lottery” – think again. Yes, it would be nice to win the lottery, but let’s keep it real. Go back and answer the question, “What are your best hopes?” with something that, with a fair wind, you might actually achieve.
You see, when your mind is focused on what you want, it’s not focused on your anxiety, your stresses or your other problems. The more often you spend time focusing on how you want to be, the more your brain will re-align itself. And importantly, the brain will be better able to deal with the stuff that you have built up in that collection of stress we call the stress bucket.
Many of the anxiety-ridden people I meet in my clinic have very simple “best hopes”. They want to be normal again, leading normal everyday lives. They want peace in their lives – free from the anxiety that they suffer from every day. This is their best hope. This is what they want to achieve. I see the smile on their face as I get them to describe the future that they would like.
Of course, I use hypnotherapy to help reinforce the brain re-alignment, but you can do it on your own. Ask yourself, “What are my best hopes?” Now imagine what it will be like when you achieve your best hopes. Remember, this is not a goal you are setting yourself that you “have to” achieve. It is simply using the power of your imagination to create a better future in your own mind, allowing the brain to sort out your stresses and anxiety on its own. The following time that you do it, you might think of a different future – and that doesn’t matter. What matters is that you can use your imagination to dream of a future that is more positive.
For some people, this is too difficult to do on their own – and if this is you, look for a therapist to help. If you want to give hypnotherapy a go, I run my clinic in Fleet (Hampshire UK) on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.
Photo by Aziz Acharki on Unsplash
