The United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention states that 34.9% of adults in the United States are obese. Newsmax Health reports that overweight and obesity are at an all time high. A study published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine tracked data from 2007 to 2012. In the study, individuals who had a body mass index (BMI) between 25 and 29.9 were classified as overweight, and those with a BMI of 30 or higher as obese. The study shows that more than two thirds of Americans are overweight or obese and that those numbers are expected to increase. Obesity is linked to numerous health conditions including diabetes, heart disease, cancer and arthritis. Why are numbers for overweight and obesity continuing to rise? The National Institute of Health lists the following reasons why overweight and obesity has become an epidemic: environment, genetics, emotional factors, medicines, lack of sleep, inactive lifestyle, stress and television.
The Mayo Clinic suggests that the best strategies for weight loss are: make a commitment, find your inner motivation, set realistic goals, enjoy healthier foods, and get and stay active. These sound like wonderful ideas, yet for many if not most of us, they are extremely challenging to implement, much less stick with over time. Harvard Health Publications states that people with a strong genetic predisposition to obesity may not be able to lose weight with the usual forms of diet and exercise. For some, sheer willpower alone is ineffective in counteracting their tendency to be overweight.
The reason why hypnosis is so effective in helping with weight loss is because hypnosis works with the subconscious mind. When someone is desiring to lose weight, they must change their lifestyle in order to be successful. This means they must change their habits. For many individuals it also means working on their self identity and self esteem. Most who try to lose weight try to do it through the use of their willpower. Willpower is a finite resource. Willpower is a tool of the conscious mind. Lifestyle habits and how a person feels about themselves are deeply embedded in the subconscious mind. When willpower goes up against the subconscious mind, the subconscious mind will eventually win, and usually rather quickly. According to Dr. Bruce Lipton, former professor of medicine at Stanford University, the conscious mind is in charge 1-5% of the time and the subconscious mind is running the show a staggering 95-99% of the time. No wonder it is so difficult to change our behaviors! One’s lifestyle simply reflects one’s subconscious programming. How does Dr. Lipton recommend changing one’s subconscious programmimg? He recommends meditation and hypnotherapy.
Hypnosis provides one the opportunity to change their habits as well as their thoughts and feelings about themselves. For example if the person would like to exercise more, once under hypnosis, the hypnotherapist may give the suggestions: “You find yourself looking forward to exercising everyday. You feel so good about working out. As you walk by a mirror you notice how fit you are becoming and you feel so proud of yourself.” Since the person under hypnosis is in a very relaxed state of mind, either the alpha or theta brain wave state, the suggestions are accepted much more easily into the subconscious mind than if the person was alert in their normal wide awake delta brain wave state. The effects of hypnosis for weight loss are greatly enhanced if the session is recorded and the person listens to the recording on a daily basis. When cognitive behavioral therapy is coupled with the hypnosis, the person processes and releases old thoughts and feelings that may not be in their best interest for promoting weight loss.