Using Hypnosis to Observe the Mind

by Kate Delaney

Image credit: Alexandra McCarthy

Right now I’m sitting on the shores of lake Garda in Italy. It’s a beautiful evening. The moon is out and it’s reflecting on the surface of the water like millions of tiny diamonds. Up until this point, however, I have hardly noticed my surroundings. I’ve been thinking about work, deadlines, that sort of stuff as well as fantasising about fresh margherita pizza from the candlelit restaurant just up the road.

Someone once told me that the mind is a bit like a small child. If you’ve ever been for a walk with a toddler you will know how it goes: they try very hard to lead you in all sorts of random directions. Of course it’s your job as the adult to show them the way, but if you were actually to follow them, who knows where you’d end up? My guess is that sooner or later they would lead you into some pretty major trouble — perhaps straight across a busy road or into a muddy ditch! The reality is we all know that young children are not to be followed, they are to be led. And the mind is just the same.

Unfortunately many of us spend much of our lives following our minds. It leads us to places we don’t want to go, but don’t know how to get out of. Anxiety sufferers, for example, spend a lot of time following their mind into the future. The mind’s favourite phrase is ‘what if’. What if I fail my exams? What if I put on weight over Christmas? For those suffering from depression the mind tends to wander into the past. It’s favourite phrase is ‘if only’. If only I had studied harder. If only I hadn’t eaten all those mince pies…

The good news is that we all have a choice. We have a mind, our mind does not have us. Once we take control and lead our mind in the direction of our choosing we are back in the driving seat. Hypnotherapy is a great way to do this. Far from the magic and mumbo jumbo you may have seen on TV, hypnotherapy is in fact a serious clinical technique. As a professional hypnotherapist I spend my time helping those suffering from depression or anxiety to lead their minds in a new direction. Under hypnosis you can use your imagination to visualise the future you want. When you are in hypnosis the imagination becomes more vivid. You can lead your mind to a calm and tranquil place, free from anxiety, free from depression. You can see your new and exciting future in technicolor detail, without fear or negative thoughts. You can see yourself passing that exam, or feeling more in control of your eating. The amazing thing is, that when the mind can see what a positive future looks like, it does everything it can to make it happen. Things just somehow seem to fall into place.

So wherever you are right now, take a moment to observe your mind. Where has it been leading you? Has it been running some negative daydream? If so, STOP. Take a moment. Notice your surroundings. What is happening RIGHT NOW? Because right now life is happening and you can bet your bottom dollar that if you’re following your mind you probably haven’t even noticed the beauty of this moment. Rain or shine, Essex or Italy there is a sense of calm in the present. When you acknowledge this, you are back in control. For me the pizza craving has passed and even though I am now listening to the rain hammering on the roof of our lakeside campervan, I can’t help noticing that right now, everything is just fine.

Kate Delaney

Kate Delaney (PhD, Dip. Hyp.) is an experienced clinical hypnotherapist and associate member of the British Society for Clinical Hypnosis. Kate is founder of the hypnosis downloads site Hypnosis Helps and runs a busy practice on the south coast of the UK. When Kate is not in clinic she is either practicing yoga or being dragged along the beach by her slightly bonkers labradoodle.