FAST FOOD LINKED TO DEPRESSION

   If  you are a fast food junkie and suffer from depression, a 2012 study finds those two conditions  may be related.  The study of 8,964 people was done by researchers at the University of Las Palmas. Gran Canaria, and the University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain and was published in PUBLIC HEALTH NUTRITION.

    The study findings indicated that those eating the most fast food during a six-year period were 37% more likely to become depressed than those who ate the least fast food.  Those who ate large amounts of commercially baked goods such as doughnuts and muffins also were more likely to be depressed.  

     The largest consumers of the commercially baked goods and fast food tended to be younger, less active and single.  So the depression might be caused by lifestyle rather than the specific foods studied.

     Poor eating habits, lack of exercise, depression are all things that can be helped with hypnotherapy.  Change bad habits with the help of hypnosis and BE WELL.

HYPNOSIS AND SOCIAL CONTAGION

   You may not have heard the term "social contagion" before.  But I expect you have observed its influence.  New scientific studies are identifying how our family and friends can influence the choices we make.  Some choices are quite obvious like choosing where we live or where we work.  But less obvious choices are also often the result of the impact of the people we are around .

     Choices like whether we stay married or divorce, whether we exercise and eat well or become obese, whether we have professional success or failure are often highly influenced by those around us. In fact, research indicates that behavior and emotions are extremely contagious.  This might help to explain why before the Great Recession millions of people bought houses they could not afford.

    Nicholas A, Christakis, MD, PhD, was named one of one hundred most influential people in the world by TIME magazine in 2009 for his work on social contagion.    With his colleague, political scientist, James Fowler, PhD, he researched the issue of overeating and obesity which has been identified at epidemic levels in the United States.  He found that nine states in the USA report that more than 30 percent of their residents are obese.  Christakis and Fowler used a study that had been done in Framingham, Massachusetts over thirty years.  This tracked the details of thousands of people and their connections and how they interacted.  The researchers found that the spread of obesity followed a pattern similar to the way the flu spread.  The Framingham study indicated that if you had a family member or friend who was obese, your risk of becoming obese was 45% higher.  Even if a friend of a friend was obese, it increased your risk of obesity by 25%.  So the health of your extended social network is a key factor in determining your health.

     The researchers went on to study other issues moving through human networks like suicide, sexual practices, back pain and suicide.  They found that there were "Three Degrees of Influence"  That choices and actions could be influenced clear out to friends' friends' friends. Issues like divorce are considered so personal but the ripple effect of social contagion found that if you have a friend divorcing, that increases the likelihood that you will divorce by around 147%.  

     Christakis and Fowler found that behaviors such as smoking and overeating, can be influenced by friends who live hundreds of miles away.  Obviously individual thinking, cultural upbringing and genetics all contribute to our behavior, but this research found that social contagion is also a power influence.  If you socialize with family and friends who are obese, it can change your idea of what is acceptable body size.  If you are around heavy smokers or drinkers, you may allow yourself those options as well.

    So what can you do with this information?  Do NOT abandon friends and family.  Know that the benefits of being connected are far more important than the costs.  The researchers found that the most consistently happy group of people were those who had lots of friends.  But  remember your actions and choices can influence others as well.  So ask what you can do for those in your group of family and friends.  When you quit smoking, start exercising or lose weight,  your influence will benefit not only you, but your friends and family as well.

      If you need help to make those changes, hypnosis can help you quit smoking, lose weight or get motivated to make some other positive change.  Use hypnosis and BE WELL.

HYPNOSIS FOR SOCIAL ISOLATION

    Julianne Holt-Lunstad, PhD, and associate professor of psychology at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, reported on the findings of researchers who reviewed 148 studies that compared the frequency of social interaction and health over a period of 7.5 years.  They found that strong relationships with the people in their lives including family, friends and coworkers increased the likelihood of survival by 50%.  

    Holt-Lunstad suggested that to live longer open your life to more social interactions like volunteer work, joining a club or hosting events in your home.  If you feel you are naturally shy or anti-social and want to get motivated to make those changes, hypnotherapy can help you no longer be socially isolated and BE WELL.

HYPNOSIS FOR BEREAVEMENT

    If you have recently lost someone you love, you are at increased risk for heart damage.  Thomas Buckley, PhD, and senior lecturer at the University of Sydney Nursing School, in Australia, has reported on a 2010 study on bereavement.  The researchers tracked the heart health of 78 adults who within the previous two months had lost a child or spouse.  This was compared to the heart health of adults who had not been recently bereaved.   They found that during the six-month period after the loss, the bereaved had nearly twice as many rapid-heartbeat episodes as those who had not had such a loss, increasing the heart attack risk.

     The researchers theorized that bereavement and mourning is a highly stressful time for sufferers and that the stress may damage the heart.  It is believed the changes usually settle down after six months.

    So what can you do if you have suffered a recent loss?  Buckley suggests that those who are recently bereaved have a physical which includes a heart checkup within the first month after the loss.  In addition, working with a therapist or hypnotherapist to deal with the loss and to build stress coping skills can be of great value.  Even in times of loss, hypnosis can help you to BE WELL.

REMOVING NEGATIVE LABELS WITH HYPNOSIS

    Too often when things don't go to suit us, we find blame in  things outside our control.  We find myriad reasons to make excuses for our faults and bad habits.  Our bad luck, our genes, our parents all get blamed for the problems in our lives.  Unfortunately, as we avoid responsibility we begin to use those excuses as truths about who we are.  Theses excuses become limitations to making changes and overcoming old labels.

    How often have you labeled yourself?  If you identify yourself as "lazy", "fat",  having a poor memory: being"a shopaholic", a klutz or any other negative label, you are limiting yourself.  These limiting labels can be the basis to self-actualize that belief.  Soon you don't move because you are "lazy, don't lose weight because you are "fat" or over-spend because you are a "shopaholic".  

   So what can you do to change this pattern?   It's time to stop accepting negative labels.  If you want to change old habits that are holding you back,  consciously remove the old negative label and give yourself a positive affirmation.  Create a positive affirmation that resonates for you.  For the negative label of laziness perhaps you could create a positive label like "  I am capable and accomplish my goals."  For the negative label of being fat, a new label could be: "I make good choices to create a strong, healthy body."  For the negative label of poor memory, a positive affirmation could be "I live mindfully and remember well."

    Know that how you think creates who you become.  So work on removing negative labels and create positive affirmations to create a more positive life.  A qualified hypnotherapist could help guide you through this process and do a hypnotherapy session to reinforce the new positive labels.  Remove negative labels, create new positive labels and BE WELL.

TECHNIQUES FOR MINDFULNESS

    Dealing with stress and learning to relax are two reasons I often see clients in my hypnotherapy practice.  From daily life stresses like work issues and family relationships to dealing with major traumas like sexual assault, car wrecks and returning from war,  people need tools to manage the stresses they are experiencing in their lives.

     Amishi Jha, PhD, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, who studies stress-fighting techniques to help military personnel has said that "The mind needs support - we call it 'mental armor" - just as much as the body does" She notes that "Research shows it's possible to cushion yourself against stress and the tactics we're using with soldiers also apply to real folks and more common types of anxiety."  

    Stress is dangerous.  Stress over time causes anxiety and persistent anxiety can actually kill neurons in the brain dealing with decision-making and memory.  This destruction is so damaging it is even visible on brain scans.

     Among the coping techniques new PTSD science is teaching is how to deal with stress.  The researchers at the University of Pennsylvania are using the practice of mindfulness meditation with military personnel to help stress resilience.  Results have shown that Marines were more alert, exhibited better memory and less reactive to stressors after just eight weeks of meditation training.

    If you have tried meditation before and found you could not do it or felt too busy to meditate, here is a simple technique the Marines use even in a war zone.  Sit upright while focusing on your breathing.  Then begin to pay to attention to a physical sensation such as the feel of your chest moving or air in your nostrils.  When your mind wanders, just note the disruption and then return your attention to the physical sensation.  Some people meditate for half an hour or more each day, others find that it is easier to simply meditate for five to ten minutes at a time for a number of times a day.

    Hypnotherapy is another great tool to deal with stress and help you relax.  A qualified hypnotherapist can help you learn techniques for mindfulness so you can BE WELL.

TOOLS TO OVERCOME ANXIETY

    Almost everyone will occasionally experience anxiety.  Dealing with a difficult person, speaking in front of a group or even making a challenging phone call can be the kind of situations that may make us have a moment of anxiety.  But one in ten adults overage 60 suffers with the worry, obsessive thoughts, fear and perhaps the nameless dread of anxiety that has become chronic.

   If you are suffering from anxiety,  seeing your physician is the first step to overcoming this challenge.  Most doctors will prescribe medication which many patients will find very helpful.  But I often see clients who feel that the medicines are not the answer for them.  Some feel the medications are just not working while others are fearful of side effects or dependency.  

    If you suffer from anxiety and do not wish to take medications, what else can you do?  If you would like to tame anxiety without drugs, there are other tools to overcome anxiety and help prevent future occurrences.  Making healthy diet and lifestyle changes can strengthen your body and conquer anxiety.

    What you consume in eat and drink has a tremendous effect on how your body reacts to the stresses in your life.  Eating to tame anxiety includes eating complex carbohydrates while avoiding simple carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates include brightly colored vegetables and fruits.  A good goal is at least two servings with each meal.  The protective phytonutrients in these foods help prevent the destructiveness of high stress hormones . Avoid simple carbs like white bread, crackers, white potatoes and white pasta elevate blood sugars.  They causes a quick uplift where you feel better before crashing into even greater anxiety. Be sure to get 60 g to 70 g of protein daily.  Proteins are important in moving the amino acid tryptophan to the brain.  This increases the calming neurotramsmitter, serotonin. Protein foods include, beef, chicken and fish,  Nonanimal proteins include soy, beans, seeds and nuts.  Don't forget alcohol is a concentrated sugar so limiting alcoholic drinks is recommended to overcome anxiety. And avoid caffeine which elevates the stress hormone norepinephrine.  Limit or at least avoid caffeinated drinks such as coffee, tea and caffeinated soft-drinks.

    Many experts in the field of anxiety believe that certain vitamins, minerals  and other supplements will help control chronic anxiety. I highly recommend that you consult your medical doctor before beginning a supplement regimen especially if you are taking any prescription medications.  Among the vitamins recommended by experts are the B-complex which include folic acid, B-6 and B-12, Vitamin D and Omega-3 fatty acids available in a fish oil supplement.  Minerals such as calcium and magnesium can help as a mild muscle relaxant.  Herbal supplements are also recommended including Saint-John's wort, Passionflower and L-theanine.  Before you use these be sure and discuss dosages with your doctor.

     Exercise can be a great way to deal with anxiety.  Get up and move.  If you are anxious about being outside, climb the stairs inside your home.  If you haven't been exercising at all, start slowly - walk outside to the mailbox or down to the corner.  Challenge yourself to do a little more each day until you are moving regularly for about half an hour.

     Learning breathing techniques can be a great way to deal with the stresses that can foster anxiety.  If you have ever watched a baby asleep on its back, its little belly will go up and down.  We're born knowing how to breathe.  As we age, we get more uptight and tend to inhale much more shallowly.  To release the tension which can cause anxiety, put your hands on your belly, breathe down through your lungs and into your abdominal cavity. You should be holding air  so your tummy will go out rather than such in.  I suggest you breathe in to a count of four.  Hold your breath for two counts and exhale for seven counts.  Do this for about a minute at least three times a day.  Some people do it as often as every 90 minutes to two hours.  By doing this, you are training your body to release stress and tension automatically.

    Hypnotherapy is an excellent tool for relieving anxiety.  It will help you relax.  I always suggest to my clients that they may want to record the session on their smart phone for a time when they would like that level of relaxation again.  In addition, hypnotherapy can be a great way to motivate yourself to eat better, avoid caffeine or alcohol, and exercise more.  Hope you can use these tips to overcome anxiety and BE WELL.

Hypnotherapy for Cell-phone Addiction

    Look around you when you are sitting at a traffic light, walking down the street or sitting in a restaurant  It is likely you will see almost as many cell-phones in use as you do people.  A recent study found that one in every three teen-agers and almost one in every five baby boomers checks his or her cell phone at least once every fifteen minutes.

    Larry Rosen, PhD and past chair of psychology at California State University, Dominguez Hills, has written a book on this problem called iDISORDER: UNDERSTANDING OUR OBSESSION WITH TECHNOLOGY AND OVERCOMING ITS HOLD ON US.  He identifies this obsession as being a compulsion rather than an addiction.  The difference is in why the user feels the need to check the phone so often.  Addicts are triggered physiologically because the behavior releases the pleasure chemical, dopamine, into the brain.  Compulsive use is triggered because the use relieves anxiety.  The cell-phone users become anxious that they might be missing something like breaking news or someone trying to reach them or using the phone reassures them they haven't lost the phone.

    The compulsion to constantly check the phone can cause serious problems both personally and professionally. People who are around cell-phone compulsives can feel diminished.  A person who is constantly looking at his phone is sending the message that the person he is with is not as important. This harm relationships and it can harm job performance.  A person who keeps her phone on her bedside table may not rest as well if she is constantly checking for incoming messages.

    Get a feel for how often you are checking your phone.  Then begin to stretch out the time between checks.  If you were checking every fifteen minutes, push the time to twenty,  Put the phone completely away while driving or with other people.  Place the ringer on silent or turn the phone upside down so you can't see messages coming in.  If you feel that cell-phone compulsion has become a problem in your life, hypnotherapy can be a valuable tool to find new ways to relieve anxiety, control phone use and BE WELL.

CONTROLLING ANGER

      Almost every evening on the news there is a report about uncontrolled anger ruining lives.  Road rage incidents, school bullying, workplace' school shootings and other violent crimes are common place.  Though some of these are organized by criminal organizations, many of them are caused because of people who cannot control their anger.

     Very few people can completely eliminate anger in their life.  Sometimes it can be helpful in signaling to others that important needs are not being met.  So in small amounts, anger can actually be a helpful emotion to express those needs and to solve problems.

     But this emotion can be very destructive when it is not controlled.  It can cause a great deal of misery not only for the recipient of a person's anger but for the angry person as well.  It can damage relationships both personally and in a working environment. It also can cause or contribute to many illnesses.

    If a person cannot control anger, the fight-or-flight response kicks in with a release of adrenalin and an increase in muscle tension.  Muscles tighten when you are angry to help you fight or run.  In other words, you get "up tight". When the muscles in your neck, jaw, shoulders and back tighten up, it can cause soreness or pain in the muscles and skeletal system.

     When the fight-or-flight response activates, your heart beats faster and your blood pressure elevates.  This increases the risk for developing coronary heart disease.  In addition, your liver releases more fat into your blood and your blood cells become "sticky".  These are normal reactions to protect you - the stickiness in the blood cells is to protect you from bleeding out in case of an injury.  The fat is released to give more energy for the muscles to burn.  But all of these reactions increase the risk of your having a stroke or heart attack.

     Digestive and breathing problems can also occur. Stomach and gastrointestinal problems such as IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), acid reflux,and nausea can occur when long held anger turns inward.  Throat constriction, shallow breathing and the feeling of having heaviness in the chest can happen as respiration speeds up in order to send blood to the muscles and brain.

      Besides these negative health issues, anger can cause you to just not feel good.  You may feel edgy and have very little energy.  Many of my clients complain that they just "can't relax" or "don't know how to relax".  So what can you do to manage your anger?  If you  feel like you are angry more often or all the time, it's time to seek professional help.  Ask your medical doctor or find an anger-management expert through the American Psychological Association.  

    If you do not think you are at that level of need but would like some tools to control your anger, there are some simple techniques you might try.  Step outside yourself and try to view a situation that makes you angry from a distance.   Evaluate how high your anger is by picturing a yardstick and imagining an arrow pointing at the number you are at then consciously begin to drop the number.  Deep breathing down into the abdominal cavity and exhaling slowly can help you to feel more calm and safe.  As you breathe in think "I am", and as you exhale, think "relaxed".    Imagine blowing the anger out as you exhale.  Muscle relaxation will help you relax.  Practicing deep breathing and muscle relaxation strengthens your control.

   Clinical hypnotherapy can be a great tool to control anger by working to deal with the underlying issues and helping to work with the techniques described above.  Control your anger and BE WELL.

BUILD SELF-ESTEEM WITH POSITIVE SELF-TALK

     Self-talk is the conversation we have with ourselves all day long.  Unfortunately, too often, these messages are quite negative.  The messages may include irrational beliefs and distorted thinking about ourselves.  They may also include a running commentary about our personal failures or inadequacies.

     Sometimes these negative messages are subtle.  But other times, the negative self-talk is quite blatant.  If you catch yourself often thinking negative messages like "I'm so fat",  "How could I be that stupid."  "I'll never be able to pass that test", you are suffering from negative self-talk which can lead to low self-esteem, anxiety and depression.

     The good thing to remember is that our moods and how we feel about ourselves are not determined by actual situations but by how we think.  We get upset and depressed not because of the bad situation but because of how we think about it.  If you are upset about gaining five pounds and you begin to beat yourself up about your weight with negative self-talk, it is not the number on the scale but your own thoughts which are making you feel anxious or depressed.

    But the good news is that negative self-talk is a bad habit.  And, like other bad habits, it can be changed.  It takes a desire to make the change and a consciousness about your self-talk, but you can learn to recognize the old patterns and choose to change the way you think.  I compare the process to changing the channel of your mind.

     When you become aware through living more consciously about your negative self-talk, you will learn to recognize the old pattern.  Then take a moment to stop and identify the negative pattern and then change the channel of your mind.  I compare this to changing the channel on a television.  Begin to give yourself positive, self-affirming messages.  "I'm making better choices in my eating.", "I am studying with great focus for my class."  "I am capable."  Whatever the negative messages were, change then to positive, confidence-building positive messages.

   Like any other skill, changing negative self-talk into positive self-talk takes practice. Hypnotherapy can help you in recognizing and shifting old patterns to new  and change your entire way of thinking.  With positive self-talk, you will feel better, have a more positive outlook and build positive self esteem.  Try positive self-talk and BE WELL.

USING HYPNOTHERAPY TO TREAT LONELINESS

      If you are feeling lonely, know you are not alone.  Everyone feels lonely occasionally even in the middle of the crowd.  And loneliness can happen at any age.  Young adults are at risk when they leave school and their parents' home and move into their own home for the first time.  Retirees may feel particularly lonely when they no longer have a daily routine and lose workplace relationships.  Married people may feel lonely during rough patches in a relationship.

    Unfortunately, loneliness can spiral downward into the three D's of defensiveness, desperation and depression.  These, in turn, can push people away and cause even more loneliness.

     Defensiveness actually separates lonely people from others.  If you are feeling lonely, take the time to look at your own behavior.  Look at what could be limiting your ability to establish relationships.  Sometimes some tweaking of your social skills is all that is needed to feel less lonely.  Do you go places to meet people?  When was the last time you accepted an invitation or attended a social function?  Do you join in conversations already taking place?  Release the defensiveness and see how you can reach out to others. Taking a class or joining a volunteer group can be a great way to meet new people and do something positive for yourself and others.

    Desperation occurs when people feel that lack of social connections.  But often the best cure for loneliness is not meeting new people, it is deepening the relationships you already have.  Reach out to the people you already know.  Reconnect.  Go through your address book or emails and reconnect. Find old high school, college friends or co-workers. Then make a real effort to stay reconnected.

    Depression can happen when loneliness becomes overwhelming and the person simply gives up.  They begin to believe that it's impossible to be anything but lonely and become very pessimistic.  They step into the "why bother" mode - why bother to try to make a new friend, why bother to reach out to someone,  why bother to attend a social event.  Of course, you will likely not meet your soul mate or your future best friend at every event.  But, if you are lonely, step out of the loneliness box of your home and into the world of possibility.

    If you need help to release the defensiveness, desperation and depression that can be triggered by loneliness, a clinical hypnotherapist using brief therapy can help you to step out into a better and happier future.  Hypnotherapy can help you BE WELL.

RISK OF MEMORY LOSS FROM OVEREATING

    In 2012, researchers at Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, Arizona, presented the results of a study on overeating at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in New Orleans.  The study was of 1,233 people between the ages of 70 and 89.  The major finding of the study was that overeating increases memory loss in that age group.  A comparison was made between those who ate more than 2,000 calories per day and those who ate less than 1,500 daily calories.  The researchers found that the risk for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) was significantly higher in the higher consumption group. Those who ate more than 2,000 calories daily were almost twice as likely to have mild cognitive impairment as those who ate less than 1,500 calories per day.  MCI increases the risk for dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

    If you are 70 or more, know you are risking future memory loss by high consumption of calories and want to make a change, hypnotherapy can be a valuable tool to create and maintain that change.  Eat less, lessen your risk of memory loss and BE WELL.

DEPRESSION IN OLDER ADULTS

      In a study at Rush University Medical Center in Oak Park, Illinois, researchers found the prevalence of depression in older adults to be as high as 49%. The causes of depression in older individuals are complex.  Some older people have a biological predisposition or history of depression that makes them particularly vulnerable.  Others have lost a partner, other loved ones or social support.  Medications including common drugs like those taken for high blood pressure can also trigger depression.  Disappointment with unfulfilled life expectations and health problems may all contribute.

     Symptoms of  depression in older adults can be hard to identify since such typical signs as fatigue, weight loss, insomnia and appetite changes may be attributed to health problems, medical interactions or old age.  Usual treatment consists of medication, psychotherapy, hypnotherapy and counseling.

   Using tools to prevent depression from occuring to start with can be valuable. Among these tools is the use of vitamins.  The Rush University Medical Center study was of 3,500 adults age 65 and older and found that those who had a higher intake of vitamins B6 and B12 were at lower risk of depression.  They found that the B vitamins could be consumed in either food or supplements.

     Kimberly A. Skarupski, Ph.D., M.P.H. at the medical center reported that for each additional 10 mg. of B6 and 10 mcg. of B12, the olds of developing symptoms dropped by two percent per year.  Foods particularly high in both B vitamins include milk seafood, liver and lean meats.  If you are concerned about depression affecting yourself or an older person in your life know that it can be warded off by consumption of B vitamins.