Inner Assessing

This section of my book is about "inner assessment." You already know that you can't change something until you are aware of it, or show willingness to be aware of it. A big problem in working with disorderly eating, addictions, or anything for that matter, is that often we aren't "aware of attuned to the facets." We either simply don't know or we have chosen not to see. In this chapter we are going to "attune" to many facets that sit below the surface of compulsive or disorderly eating, some of which are deep inside the subconscious mind library.

MIND EXERCISE

Take a moment to deeply relax, and just as if you were looking in a big filing cabinet, find the folder that contains your current lifestyle patterns. As your mind scans the material, notice that some appear familiar, but others may not be quite so clear. While you think you know yourself and how you spend your time, you are about to find out that you know less about yourself than you thought. That is because a good part of your day is spent in a very limited conscious state known as low-level awareness, or automatic pilot I call this is day-sleep walking, a form of automatic self-hypnosis.

There are many areas of lifestyle behaviors that are on automatic pilot. The areas in the above box represent only a few. It helps to imagine that each automatic pilot area has a separate folder in your subconscious mind. As you work with your personal assessment, you will be opening these folders and researching the many aspect of the automatic pilot programming. Some aspects may need to be deleted, changed or mind-edited in some way. Other parts may appear to be fine, but it's a good idea to review these anyway. Your subconscious librarian may have suggestions to make these even better than before.

We all tend to think within certain boundaries, but unfortunately when we do so, our innate creativity can be curtailed. Practice allowing your mind to open and flow. Your subconscious mind will apply this to other areas of your life each time you encourage creative thinking. Very soon you will find yourself doing so on automatic pilot, and this is a great creative self-gift.

While automatic pilot has some benefits, it also has drawbacks. When you are not fully awake, you give up your rights to observe, assess and manage your thought processes. Thoughts are goals. Whatever you play in your mind becomes your goal for that moment. For example, if you decide to brush your teeth, you will most likely participate in an automatic pilot program designed for oral hygiene. While this may be a safe, automatic mind program for you, suppose that you have a tendency to over-brush, therefore injuring your gums. Since this type of continuous abrasion can lead to some serious gum problems, you will want to dismantle your old automatic program. As you practice heightened awareness, you will be able to edit many of these subconscious mind programs, allowing them to better serve you and your desired outcomes. If any of these come to mind now, make a note of them in your journal. Consider them awareness gifts from your subconscious mind librarian.

You can actually encourage these to surface. Here’s how to do that. Relax into the chair where you are reading this. Sense the chair pulling your gently down. Pay attention to what you are reading. You are currently in the process of reviewing and perhaps editing lifestyle behaviors. Notice if you are managing any addictions or any disorder in your life. Perhaps you binge on food or some other substance. Ask yourself if any of your automatic programs are blocking your goals for a healthy life.

Notice if you are wearing a belief coat that no longer fits, or one that you never wanted in the first place. Notice that you can edit or correct whatever you choose. Take your time in this moment. Your subconscious mind may send some suggestions now, or later, but your questions will be answered. You can ask questions in the forms of words or through imagery. Place an image or an idea on your mind screen and ask how to achieve this. It’s as simple as that.

SELF-ORGANIZING AND INNER ASSISTANTS

This personal assessment is helping you self-organize both consciously and subconsciously. You are evaluating your needs, both present and future, as well as viewing your weaknesses with the tool of detachment, allowing you to see without self-judgment, shame, blame or guilt. Here you are uncovering the obvious, as well as your hidden resources known as resilience. You are learning how to utilize these as stepping-stones for health, growth and development. Through the detachment tools you are re-examining past successful inner motivation programs, preparing them for current use.
Automatic programming is continually taking place, and so we need an “inner assistant or Therapeutic Self" to help with this major work. Relax into the moment and image your subconscious mind librarian or inner coach. Both are great images and work very well here in this program, as well as in your daily life. This inner assistant will be your first line of command in asking for what you want or need in any given moment.

Thoughts and mind pictures play continually in the theater of the mind, forming directives or orders.. In hypnosis these are called suggestions. Some of these are useful while others are not. Your inner assistant or Therapeutic Self helps to keep order based on your specific requests.

Keep in mind that your subconscious filing cabinet is huge. Besides your automatic programs, you have an unlimited number of choices that may be better suited to meeting your needs in any particular situation. Your assistant can bring these to your attention if you give directives for that. In your work here, you will learn how to wake up, assess what’s playing and make a program switch if appropriate.

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.


Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Awakening

In order to stop or curtail any disorder or addiction, you need to get your ducks in a row. The disorder or addictions are the symptoms, and while they need to be understood in their own right, it is necessary to go below the surface to the cause. This holds true for all addictions and disorders. This chapter is designed to help you to accomplish this. Be sure to have your journal. Be prepared to put aside some real time for yourself. This is not quick fix work. In fact, you will find yourself coming back to this area, time and time again. Patients often ask me when “all of this” will be over. This always makes me smile, as that question is not foreign to me. It is important to find the joy in the journey. Then one can stop wanting it to finish quickly. Self-work is truly never finished, and hopefully you will come to know that is a good thing.

You are already learning that it will be possible to change your lifestyle behaviors. The earlier chapters set the early stage for breaking old patterns. You are beginning to understand that patterns have many parts, all needing attention. In the past you may have thought of a pattern as being singular, such as disorderly eating, but this particular pattern can have a hundred parts or more. The more awareness you build, the more parts you will find. Then you will decide how you want to manage them. As you look at the negative parts, you will locate some huge time wasters many that tend to complicate life. Your own memories can affirm this for you. Here’s how. Think of how many times you thought about starting a program to re-order your life in some way? Now pile those thoughts up in the theater of your mind. How high is the pile? How many minutes, hours or days does this represent? These re-starts are not only time-wasters, but they re-etch failure, thereby making a new pattern for your collection.

You already know that these mind and body tools will also take you towards optimum performance, if you work with them in a consistent way. It’s one thing to have a tool, but quite another to know how and when to utilize it. This is just like purchasing a tool in a hardware store. You know why you bought it, but you still need to read the directions to become familiar with it. Once you are familiar, then you are ready to use it. Most tools, like the ones you are given here, are multi-purpose, and can be utilized in many areas of life. As you get to know yourself better, you will also become aware of the varied uses for the tools.

One of the basic tools of this program is called Heightened Awareness. It involves becoming very aware of specific behaviors, the emotions that color them, as well as the connected body sensations. Remember that you cannot assess or change what you cannot see, nor what you are not willing to see. This is key. Many behaviors and emotional reactions are very ingrained. You may know them as part of your personality or "just the way you are". This is perfectly fine as long as they are not interfering with the quality of your life experience and health.

Unfortunately, for many of us, our behaviors and emotions tend to do just that and more. They are infamous for robbing creativity and smashing possibilities for prosperity in all areas of life. You don't have to look far to know how true this is. It's easier to see this in others, but self-awareness and healthy self-assessment is quite another matter. When looking in the “self-disclosure mirror” it is difficult to honestly see ones self and even more difficult when one doesn't know what to look for. This is where the power of personal assessment comes to help and guide you.

GETTING READY TO SELF-EXPLORE

You already know that most of your mind programs are on automatic pilot, woven into the fabric of your life. The subconscious mind is available to help wake you, but you are going to need to know how to communicate with your subconscious mind in a very specific fashion, about what you want, as well as what you don’t want. For this you will need special data collection. This is what assessment is about; collecting data for careful examination without judgment. This opens your mind, giving you the opportunity to decide if you would like to change or mind-edit “your data” before returning it to your subconscious mind library. This is experiential interactive self-hypnosis.

Most likely, you do not know all the things you need to know to make changes in your lifestyle behaviors. Like the octopus, the head of the behavior may be above water, but the tentacles or roots of the behavior are below the surface. You may sense or experience these as blocks, resistance or procrastination. You may want to change, thinking you know what needs to change, but until you identify and own the tentacles below the surface, it will be very difficult or next to impossible. It’s not uncommon to have a physical sensation of being unable to move, just as if your feet were stuck in tar or cement. You may recognize this as anxiety or depression.

In order to move out of the tar, you will be needing additional information that may not be in your current memory bank, but waiting for you in your subconscious mind library. Some of these things will pertain to your family of origin, as well as from your own health, emotional and behavioral history starting from the time you were an infant, and up through this very moment. You will also be reclaiming memory files about your beliefs, how you got them, and whether or not they are blocking your current progress.

Beliefs are like coats, many that were placed on you when you were a child, or perhaps as an adult when you were unaware. Someone who appeared stronger than you in that moment may have forced them on you. But that was then, and now is now. Through this work you are taking back your personal power. You will be choosing only those belief coats that you want to own. This is your life and this is your performance.

You will be guiding yourself with images of what you do want. That is why we must spend time in thinking about this. It's important to review your life and notice the areas, both big and small, that do not reflect what you want, and also to notice areas that do reflect those positive aspects. They need to be divided, just as if you were cleaning and clearing your home. When you have accomplished this, you can enter any area of your Inner Library and start inner exploring. The lights will go on, and it will easier to see in the corners of your belief closet, and the past experiences that are connected to these. When your “subconscious mind librarian” spots something that may be of interest for a self-review, you will find yourself receiving the message. This is rather like having a wonderful personal assistant who is completely attuned to you.

BEGINNING INNER DETECTIVE WORK

The library of your mind is vast. You began collecting subconscious experiences and corresponding belief coats in the beginning of your life, even though you cannot consciously remember these. All coats and experiences, old or new, big or small can hold important information and keys to your success, as well as reasons for past failures. You may have a desire or tendency to rush through this kind of self-detective work. Perhaps you even recognize this as a past behavioral trait of yours. This is a good example of Heightened Awareness. You may have uncovered an unhealthy source that leads to procrastinating or self-blocking. When you spot these tendencies, pretend that they are colored child-blocks, labeled with their name. Place them in a pile over there.

While it's just fine to scan through this material to become familiar, don't fall into the trap of hurrying and not doing the detailed detective work. You will be cheating yourself, taking away from the quality of what you are capable of doing, and perhaps even taking you down past roads of failure. There is no easy road when looking to achieve high level health and optimum performance. If it were, more people would be experiencing it. This program offers you the opportunity to see, and address your short and long falls, as well as your potential. As you build your commitment to this self-development work, you will probably want to review this area more than once, so as to build on the already presented memories.

You probably know plenty of people who want to change something, but simply can’t figure out how or when to get started. Somehow it never seems to be the right time. Excuses abound that keep them engaged in procrastination. Perhaps you have had this personal experience, and are wondering right in this moment if you can do this. This is another colored child-block called "doubt". It usually accompanies "lack of self-confidence."

Do know that this time it will be different than before, because I’m going to help you get started and find your balance. In fact, you are already in the process because you are reading this book. It’s said that when a rubber band is stretched, it never returns to it’s original position, and so with reading material such as this. The actual process of reading engages your right brain, or subconscious mind and so inner motivators are already etching. Notice if you can sense them.

Throughout this inner detective work you will be activating the different areas with a light application of Interactive Self-Hypnosis. Managing health issues, addictions or getting to the heart of any problem involves the act of beginning. You must commit and step onto the merry-go-round of life. Life does not stand and still and wait for you. So reach out and grab on to the golden ring. The ring is the catalyst for moving you out of procrastination, and into the action of the merry-go-round of life. That's all you have to do.

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.


Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Pillow Talk

You already know that dreams are gifts from the subconscious mind & here we will work with both waking & sleeping varieties for the purpose of healing and making changes in everyday life. If you haven't read the first blog on working with dreams, it's posted right below this one. I'd like to continue from where I left off.

Following a particular dream, wait a few days, and then taking some quiet time begin this exercise. Allow the mind to empty with interactive awareness, and once you feel the inner shift to a slower brain wave state, begin to ask questions of the subconscious mind related to the particular dream state you are reviewing. There are many ways to do this interview. You can ask direct questions, or ask for further information. You could ask for the information to be provided in an additional dream or quiet time. You could speak directly to the images. For example, if in your dream a green tree was blocking your path, you might ask it, "Green tree, why were you standing in the middle of my path?" "What would you like me to know?" Be sure to have pen and paper available, so you can write the answers as they come. It is not uncommon for dreams to build upon each other, especially as the subconscious mind notices you are interested in accessing information.

We'll work more with dream programming, but first I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

MIND EXERCISE

Take a moment to relax deeply. On your mind screen image yourSelf falling deeply asleep and waking up in the middle of your own vast subconscious mind. Anything and everything you have ever experienced is here. Help surrounds you, and unlike your awake time, you are totally immersed in the inner library with time no longer being an issue. Feel what it feels like to be completely free of time constraints.

As you roam the bookshelves and other memory holders, feel free to explore all that is yours. Connect with your inner wisdom. You have come to understand how dreams choose to communicate with you, no matter what their genre. There is nothing to fear here, just pure communication and learning. Sometimes you are given dark learning tools and other times you receive lighter versions, some even hilariously funny. It’s easy for you to find what you need here. Dreams and other suggestions come forth. Feel what it feels like to have all these resources at the bottom of your pillow. Take a few moments to return to your awake state, allowing the wisdom and dream experience to stay with you.

You can build skills to help remember dreams. First, dreams must be accepted as important. When something has value, then the mind finds ways to bring that towards you. You could begin by placing some powerful affirmations in you mind during the day, especially in conjunction with your Interactive Awareness work. Active affirmations tend to work best. For example, “My dreams are important to me. I remember them clearly because they are so very important to me.” On the mind screen, bring up images of “importance”. What does importance look like to you? How does it sound? Be emphatic when you place affirmations that have special meaning to you. This is no time to be wishy-washy.

You might go further and place an active visualization of seeing yourSelf dreaming, with the dreams literally entering your memory bank. Think for a moment how you would put that picture board together. Remember, there is no right or wrong way to do this work. We are all wired differently, so each one reading this will have a completely different set of pictures, but the meanings remain the same. As you wake up, review your dream bank contents before getting involved in any other activity. Perhaps have a notebook for recording them, or a tape recorder. You might speak them out loud thereby engaging your sense of hearing that will further cement the dream memory into his bank.

MIND EXERCISE

On a piece of paper draw three steps leading up to a big building. The building will work as the symbol for the dream library. Make the steps the width of the building so you have a place to write. On each step place a goal, in this case ask to be free of your particular addiction. For example, if it is sugar you would write, “I am completely free of my addiction to sugar.” You would write this on each step and read it out loud to yourSelf in a firm, but kind voice. Now close your eyes gently, tilt them up and experience yourSelf walking up the steps and into the dream building. Coming towards you is your dream guide, carrying a stone tablet. Examine the tablet and find your words chiseled into it. The dream guide asks if the words are correct and if this is your total desire. Affirm this. You may feel some resistance, but notices that it shrinks and moves backwards out the door. Resistance has no place in the dream building.

You instinctively know to follow the dream guide further into the quiet building. Enterthe area on the right that is outside under the stars. You are directed to your sleeping stone, noticing that it is not hard at all, but indeed very comfortable. Your tablet is placed at your side and you are instructed to observe the night sky. Before long it is morning. The tablet is gone, as is the dream guide. Find your way back and out the door. As you turn and look at the steps, notice that they are clean and ready for the next dream request. Throughout the day you will become aware of the workings of your dream team.


Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Dream Communicating

Dreams are gifts from the subconscious mind & here we will work with both waking & sleeping varieties. The dream state is a very powerful way to program your mind for change. You already have some of the tools in place for dream programming. Earlier in this book you learned how to practice interactive awareness & daily fractionation. You learned that following a period of fractionation, your mind would be at the alpha brain wave level & simply by tilting your eyes up to about 20 degrees, you could place a goal picture on your mind screen. Goals can be anything you desire & the desire to access or remember dreams is simply another type of goal that you can program during waking states & especially before going to sleep at night when your brain waves are very receptive to suggestion.

Sometimes it takes weeks for suggestions to take hold, but if this is your mission, certainly keep planting the suggestions, preferably following a period of interactive awarenss fractionation. A good idea is to put an affirmation on your desk, or in several areas of your home or workplace. A suggestion for an appropriate affirmation could be, "I remember my dreams clearly." "I wake to remember my dreams." "My dream recollections are clear to me." It only takes 1/200th of a second to flash a "desire image" on your mind screen.

Reiterating suggestions such as these several times a day, coupled with "seeing/sensing yourSelf in your mind's eye remembering dreams easily," & further energizing this affirmational picture with powerful "I Can" emotions makes it clear to the subconscious mind that you do want to remember your dream states & expect it to happen. Following this suggestion or inner command, you may find yourSelf waking in the middle of the night, or very early in the morning as a particular dream finishes. Keep a dream diary or even a simple notepad by the side of your bed for describing images or messges from the subconscious mind. These notes or clues will help to trigger further memories later on. A very powerful time to program the subconscious mind for change is just before going to sleep. This is the time when the brain waves are quite slow, meaning you are nearer to the subconscious library. This is also called the hypnogogic state.

Once again, follow the directions for interactive awareness fractionation. Within five minutes you will begin to feel a shift to a much lower brain wave level. At this point simply turn your eyes upwards about 20 degrees and see an image of your desired, completed goal on your inner movie screen. Enhance it. Energize it. See it in action. And then, place a golden frame around it. Follow with the suggestions or commands you have chosen. Some examples might be, "This is what I want." "This is what I need." "Show me the plan for achieving this end goal." Now, simply go to sleep and allow the subconscious mind to do its work.

We'll work more with dream programming, but first I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

DREAM COMMUNICATION
You may receive answers directly in the dream state, or they may be forthcoming during the day, or days that follow. Always make certain you provide "quiet time" in your day for receiving answers from the subconscious mind. It is not uncommon for individuals to ask for guidance or information, and then not provide a time when the answers can be received. You should be building quiet time in your days through interactive awareness fractionation periods. Sometimes answers are received in the shower, or other times when you are alone and quiet. Driving without the radio or cassettes, silent walking can provide an excellent opportunity for the subconscious mind to reach you with requested information.
Sometimes we miss important information from our dream states because we do not understand the images. Keeping a dream diary allows one to work with these images, and to obtain further information from the subconscious library. Upon awakening, write down any and all recollections. This is not the time to wonder about their meanings, but to try to get as much information as possible written down.

I'll continue this subject in the next Blog..

Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Opening Fear

Working with your own inner aspects is truly empowering. Life mySelf, many of my clients arrive at my office fearful of their eating, sugar or carbohydrate addiction. Often, it is linked to other addictions or chaotic, disorderly living, making recovery seem almost impossible. When I met up with Emma, she presented herSelf as a frightened & overwhelmed chidSelf, not the mature woman who ran her own business. This idea of herSelf positioned her in the middle of the roads going towards disease. These fears culminated in the form of a big, black cloud encompassing all of her. Sitting on my "therapeutic chair", Emma was very tentative, revealing just some of her fears & secrets, as if just telling about them would be very dangerous, perhaps punishing her for letting them out.

I'm very familiar with these types of stress-producing mind games. In the past, they were enough to send me straight to the peanut butter jar or ice cream container. It always amazed me how those two particular foods acted like drugs, relaxing me while chasing away the mind monsters. I remember experiencing the dicotomy of wanting & not wanting to recover. As much as I wanted to be healthy, it was simply too frightening. I felt safe inside my addiction where I believed the stories the addiction told me. But, I wasn't safe & will never, ever be safe inside my eating addictions & that's why I've named this book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" The answer is the same as it is for peanut butter, ice cream, chips or whatever is the presenting addiction of the day...there will never be enough to make me happy, safe, balanced or anything else. There is nothing for me inside my addiction. It's just an empty room with bars on the window, with a sound system laughing at me.

Throughout this book I share stories from my patient files, as well as some of my own truths. I never back away from telling my own stories, because I believe that is the purpose of them...to encapsulate learning experiences to help others. It took me decades to get my head on straight in relation to my eating issues & so, I have plenty to share. And, while sharing is a healthy thing to do, the most important part is "how to" change the multitude of things that need to be changed in any addiction.

Addictions are multi-faceted & each facet is actually a Mind Story unto itself. While you can learn & change from listening to my stories & those of my patients, the most powerful stories are already present in your own subconscious mind, waiting to be opened. When a story is opened & you visit inside the pages, you will be rewarded with "hidden treasure." Those treasures are the things you need for your own healing. Some of them will be directly related to your weight or eating issues, but others will be indirectly connected, perhaps even presenting themselves as not being connected, but indeed they will be, for everything is connected.

Sometimes we are afraid to go inside & to look. Have you ever seen a shy child, looking at you from behind her hands. This is the very same part of you that is fearful of what you will see inside the book, but these are the very things that hold the power of your healing. While you might want to work with a therapist, for most of us, we can move past this by disassociating from the child-state & moving into the powerful states of teacher, parent or healer.

There are many different images to utilize for this type of subconscious mind work. For me, I like to take my child-Self by the hand as I sense mySelf inside Higher or Creative/Therapeutic Self, reminding me that the reason I am here on the face of the Earth is to be healthy, to heal & then to bring healing to others. Here we are "not" the child, but the "Higher or Therapeutic Self", a separate being. This is a powerful, sensory image & I'll lend to you if you like. Notice that I'm taking my childSelf along for the learning journey. My goal is to help her to mature by releasing those negative, blocking emotions of fear, guilt & shame. I've taken off her "I can't" shirt. She now wears her " I Am" shirt. I want that strong inner part of me to transmute the maturity & self-confidence of my Higher Self to the smaller & needy childSelf. As she heals, so do my older Selves, right up to the present & into the future.

We'll work more with these images, but first I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

EMMA'S JOURNEY

"The moment I stepped out of my childSelf, I felt a sense of true release. It became clear to me that I traveled in & out of the child part me as I traveled throughout my day. I was looking forward to uncovering the different facets of my life that were "taken over" by my Child, because knowing how to disassociate, I could then move to my Higher, Creative Self & clean up my life. This inner work was allowing me to look below the surface of my binge & disorderly eating.

BELOW THE SURFACE

I must be honest. I do feel fear at exploring the facets of these issues. I've decided not to use the image of "below the surface", but instead to walk down a beautiful pathway, filled with gardens on each side as Elizabeth suggested. Everything here is of benefit to me & I've learned to sit outside each garden before entering, filling mySelf with light & healing. My weight & disorderly issues began in early childhood & I've always been a fearful person. I'm realizing that each area I enter will need light to disperse the fear that connects to the roots. I see/think myself as a delivery system for the light, rather like a magnificent marble fountain. As I enter separate gardens/facets, I sit quietly, then weed. Next comes the delivery of light. I can sense the release...sometimes big, but often small. I accept what I'm given, knowing that these are the gifts of healing that I've been looking for. There are children in this garden & I enjoy playing with them. I ask them questions & they tell me things I've wondered about. We are uncovering & discovering. New plants in the image of "what I want" are ready to be placed in the warm soil. In the days that follow, I'm keenly aware & energized to change different aspects, knowing the gifts are showing themselves.

Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Subconscious Mind Games

If you've been following along, you know that there are four fundamental Goal-den Bricks, each brick having it's own new StoryBook. Starting "new" is a wonderful opportunity, but often times it is scary & even confusing. Those of us who have been entertaining addiction and/or any form of disorderly eating tend to be disorganized in other areas of life & that includes our thought processes. Our thoughts are often like scrambled eggs, ideas popping up, then hiding or disappearing completely. Although I've been in recovery for decades, I still can have this phenomenon. It's as if my own mind wants to play old, distorted games with me.

These games are very stress-producing & in the past, they were enough to send me straight to the peanut butter jar or ice cream container. It always amazed me how those two particular foods acted like drugs, relaxing me while chasing away the mind monsters of recovery & healing. It was almost like I didn't want to recover, but just stay inside my addiction where I believed I was safe. But, I wasn't safe & will never, ever be safe inside my eating addictions & that's why I've named this book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" The answer is the same as it is for peanut butter, ice cream, chips or whatever is the presenting addiction of the day...there will never be enough to make me happy, safe, balanced or anything else. There is nothing for me inside my addiction. It's just an empty room with bars on the window, with a sound system laughing at me.

Throughout this book I share stories from my client files, as well as some of my own truths. I never backed away from telling my own stories, because I believe that is the purpose of them...to encapsulate learning experiences to help others. It took me decades to get my head on straight in relation to my eating issues & so, I have plenty to share. And, while sharing is a healthy thing to do, the most important part is "how to" change the multitude of things that need to be changed in any addiction. Addictions are multi-faceted & each facet is actually a Mind Story unto itself. While you can learn & change from listening to my stories & those of my students, the most powerful stories are already present in your own subconscious mind, waiting to be opened. When a story is opened & you visit inside the pages, you will be rewarded with "hidden treasure." Those treasures are the things you need for your own healing. Some of them will be directly related to your weight or eating issues, but others will be indirectly connected, perhaps even presenting themselves as not being connected, but indeed they will be, for everything is connected.

Sometimes we are afraid to go inside & to look. Have you ever seen a shy child, looking at you from behind her hands. This is the very same part of you that is fearful of what you will see inside the book. While you might want to work with a therapist, for most of us, we can move past this by disassociating from the child-state & moving into the powerful states of teacher, parent or healer. There are many different images to utilize for this type of subconscious mind work. For me, I like to take my child-Self by the hand as I sense mySelf inside Higher or Creative/Therapeutic Self, reminding me that the reason I am here on the face of the Earth is to heal & then to bring healing to others. This is a powerful, sensory image & I'll lend to you if you like. Notice that I'm taking my childSelf along for the learning journey. My goal is to help her to mature by releasing those negative, blocking emotions of fear, guilt & shame. I want that inner part of me to transmute the maturity & self-confidence of my Higher Self to the smaller & needy childSelf.

We'll work more with these images, but first I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

STORY BOOK IMAGES

We need positive StoryBook images inside each Fundamental Goal-den Brick. If we can't find them in our own life, then we have to get them from somewhere else. But, I've already told you that you have all that you need inside your own subconscious mind. The problem with most of us is that we only think consciously, never thinking that the answers we are looking for reside inside what we perceive as our problem issues. We cannot get inside our issues UNTIL we open them & they cannot be opened from the INSIDE. Perhaps this is one of the biggest mistakes we make in our attempts at recovery. In the beginning of my own Therapeutic Journey, I thought I didn't have enough self-image or esteem to stand outside my issues. It was like I didn't have the right to do so. But, I was wrong. My Higher or Creative Self took me by the hand, as I'm taking you.

Relax in the moment....deeply. Go to your fourth Brick & meet up with your Creative Self & when you are engaged, travel over to the StoryBook you are writing. Enter & go to the Table of Contents. There you will find the entry for your eating issues or addiction. You may enter this area & find yourSelf on the Path of these issues. You are walking with your Creative Self & sense your state of relax & power. You are welcome here & the different aspects of your issues are happy to see you, as if they were waiting for you. Each aspect is separate & has it's own garden. Notice that you have tools on your belt & you enter one of the aspects. Weeds dominate. Go ahead & begin to clear. You must always clear before receiving the gifts. Once you have cleared, sit down on the rock or bench...your aspect is sitting with you, facing you...how easy it is to be with this part of you, not like in the past when you were blocked from each other...now, go ahead & ask any questions you may have...or..ask for your questions to come down the path..or present an image of what you truly want from this aspect. Make it very clear...very definite...kind, but firm.

In the next blog I'll invite you to observe as one of my students works with one of her "aspects."

Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Time-Quickening

We're in the process of "mind painting" in the food-related StoryBook utilizing the "paint jar of time". If you haven't read the first blog on making peace with time, I suggest you do that first. If you have, then you already know that our perception of "time" can either make or break our level of success, even our health & so the paint that we apply to our mind-images need to be properly "time-mood adjusted." It's important to remember that the subconscious mind does not differentiate between reality or thoughts. Everything is real & therefore will alter the body/mind physiology. If you are feeling time pressure or just think you are or are future-pacing it, the body/mind will be responding in the exact moment.

There are many areas in the StoryBook of food management that regularly entertain time-pressure. Some include planning, shopping, food preparation & the actual cooking, even eating of a meal or set of meals. When time-pressure is present, it's common to find tension, as well as procrastination or blocking. The blocking may be very emotionally-charged, sometimes with arrows flying in all directions. Often, the real culprit isn't even identified as the emotionally-charged arrows carry different blame labels.

Let's paint a StoryBoard representing this common dilemma. Emma, one of my patients, is very emotionally challenged in the time area of life balance. She knows that the reason she is over-weight is because of her poor food choices, but she continually makes excuses about not having sufficient time to plan, shop & prepare. One night she grabs some fast-food on her way home from work, subconsciously hating herSelf for her perceived inadequate abilities. Her family sits down to dinner & the complaints begin to fly about what's being served. Emma gets her arrows & shoots them at each family member, blaming them for all sorts of things that have nothing whatsoever to do with what's really the issue here. She screams out about not having time, thereby engraving this belief in her own mind bank. Everyone leaves the table mending their hurts & Emma slips back into reinforcing her inability to have a healthy relationship with "time."'

Emma has a lifetime of complaints regarding time. She's never had "enough" & in her mind, that is why she is obese. Time is her enemy & so that must change. This relationship work begins with learning to identify her vocalization & thoughts related to her negative relationship, relaxing deeply to open them "in the moment." Opening is necessary in order to release & then program for change. In other words, Emma must first see the issue, then be willing to open it so it can be changed. In the example above, once the time issue is opened, she can choose to either slow down certain aspects, or even speed them up. I suggested that she do both "in concert", first slowing & then quickening. I want her to be able to view the entire StoryBoard in slow motion. Seeing the activities she needs to accomplish with an image of a clock up on the wall, indicating the exact amount of time needed, will allow her to let go of her old automatic mind stories & see the truth. From this position, her mind will also show her some shortcuts that she already knows, but wasn't willing to accept BECAUSE she wanted to stay in her "victim" position. Remember the arrows? Blaming time allowed Emma to attack other issues that have been buried, perhaps for a very long time. It's important for her to see this truth & also to know that these are areas she needs to address in new ways.

Now Emma is ready to quicken some aspects of her activities. Remember, the subconscious mind does not know the difference between what's truly happening in the moment & a thought. Emma will see & interact with images of herSelf shopping very quickly, emotionally experiencing in the theater of her mind how efficient & effective she is as she whips through the aisles, creative ideas lightening her way. She then moves to another image, perhaps one where she is preparing the food for her family, enjoying these moments of focused relaxation, even including something special to meet her own needs. In the past, Emma believed that she had NO TIME to take care of herSelf, but now she can not only see, but feel intuitively that she has more than enough time & can even enjoy doing this. She senses her love & respect for herSelf. This StoryBoard image was both slowed & quickened, allowing Emma to taste the joy & creativity of her cooking, as well as move it along. In the past, there was a dragging quality to cooking & preparing, but all of that is over.

We'll work more with Time, but before we get further into the paint, I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

"TIME" IN A PAINT JAR

Obviously we can't pay attention to all of our thoughts, but if you ask your subconscious mind to cue or notify you when you are in an automatic pilot state of time-stress, it will do that. You may be surprised at how many times you are cued in this regard. Most of us have no idea as to what we are playing on automatic pilot & time issues are so major, that just waking up for these will give you a good opportunity to change many other aspects that aren't working in your life, because all are connected. Some emotional elements you might find attached include anger, guilt, shame, indecision, impatience, intolerance, anxiety, panic, fears of all sorts & poor self-image/esteem. Remember, your subconscious mind takes these thoughts as "truth" & so you do want to open them with deep relax when they are presented to you, then replacing them with positive, healthy images.

We'll paint some of those in the next blog.

Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

ClockWork - Making Peace with Time

Working inside our first StoryBook, we are designing images with our CreativeSelf utilizing our artistic tools. In the practice of self-hypnosis, we are able to work with a wide variety of metaphorical paints. Here we'll dip our brush into the very important "paint jar of time." We'll be using this particular jar throughout our work in this book, because our perception of "time" can either make or break our level of success, even our health. We can all relate to time-stress, knowing how sick we can become from this type of pressure. Often, even without thinking, we name & blame "time" as the reason for our failures, not only to finish or complete something, but also for our inability to get started. We call this procrastination. Time heads just about every list of excuse-making.

On the other hand, time can be a very valuable friend, not only because it is Key in helping us to achieve our goals, but it can also be a catalyst for change in many areas of our lives. In order to reach this level of mind-work, it's necessary to become aware of old, automatic programs that keep "time" in the enemy column & then dip the artistic brush in the "paint jar of time", applying a new, healthy perception in our new StoryBook Images. All paint, whether real or imaginary, has elements or components. Here are some reflective in the "paint jar of time."

Relaxing
Slowing
Hastening
Knowing
Trusting
Accepting
Enjoying

In my mind, the most important element is that of relaxation. As I review my past experiences, time never seemed to be on my side. My words & thoughts were filled with tension-filled stories, all blaming time for just about anything & everything. I don't think I ever went through an hour without one of my time-complaints. It seemed like I was never happy. If time were a real person, it would never have chosen to be my friend. Not only was I super-critical of it, I simply couldn't stand it's presence, despite the fact that I needed it.

In my work with "disorderly eating", the discussion of "time" comes up right from the get-go. Everyone is in a hurry to move out of the problems & who can blame them. Most people with negative eating issues have carried them around for years & simply want them "gone"....better still...."gone now." The most common question I get from patients or readers of my work is "How long will all of this take?" Because I'm a Clinical Hypnotherapist, I tend to see lots of living images & one that always appears for me is an image of "time" sitting next to the individual, usually wearing a little smile, already knowing that this individual is like a sleeping child who is about to be awakened, perhaps rudely. Then, it will be my job to move them from reality into a state of relaxation, as time gets to do some very important life lessons.

We'll work more with Time, but before we get further into the paint, I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

"TIME" IN A PAINT JAR

As we awaken to our mental & emotional battering of "time", we have the opportunity to recognize the mindBody state of deep relax & begin painting in a new way. We have all the time in the world to get our disorderly eating corrected & can choose to do it as fast or as slow as we prefer. Knowing that we have a choice in how we utilize time is very freeing. It's not up to anyone else but yourSelf. I remember stopping some of my negative eating behaviors immediately, while others went slowly. I determined all of this. I therefore owned all of this. Bad-mouthing time will only deliver more stress to the mindBody, actually making it more difficult to move through resistance. So, practice catching your thoughts, as well as your spoken words, then transmuting or changing them with a deep relaxing breath. Here's a helpful affirmation...simple..."I'm in charge of how I utilize my time. I can go fast or slow, as I choose."

Slowing down is so important. If you tend towards compulsive behavior, you will be able to easily identify your relationship with time speeding along, even pushing you. People with disorderly or addictive eating tend to live in a compulsive world of their own making. I know this world well, because it is my world & while it is still my world, I'm now in charge of it, not the other way around. This makes a big difference. If I'm pressured or anxious about getting something accomplished, or solving my personal multitude of problems, I'm very kind to "time" & purposely slow it down. I like to utilize an image of a clock that allows me to turn a dial, making time go at a slower pace. Try that... it's a simple image that works very well. You can add an affirmation if you like. "I have all the time I need. Time goes slower for me & I like it this way." When we are recovering from addictive or disorderly eating, we agree or pretend that we have all the time in the world. The recovery path is a learning path & if we try to go too fast, we tend to miss the learning along the way. "Be still my friend & walk the path, noticing what appears to you along the route. These are your gifts for traveling this way."

We'll continue dabbling in this paint jar in the next blog entry.

Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

The Artistic or Imagine Me

Our StoryBooks have images...lots of images! In the past, a portion of those images were negative, often over-riding their positive counterparts. This is especially true in the parts of the StoryBooks that have to do with addictions or disorderly eating. Now we are creating new StoryBooks...not just "editing' the old ones. You are writing your StoryBook through the power provided by your higher Creative Self who has given you the opportunity of a new fresh start. While old programs may "stop by" & ask, or perhaps even demand to be in the new Book, the answer is a simple "no." No need to be angry, depressed, anxiety-ridden or feaful; no need to argue or to defend yourSelf any longer. You have learned that these old, unwanted & unsavory Stories are just that...Stories. They have been designed by your emotional childSelves, supported by your "old & weary" self-esteem & image. Take a moment to image these lower parts of yourSelf, standing next to your Powerful Highest Creative & Healing Self...notice how insignificant they appear; almost silly. There is no need to feel any negativity towards them. They are simply "lowerSelves" who have never been put in front of your Higher CreativeSelf mirror, but as you do now, they shrink even further & as they shrink, there diminishing Power is transmuted or changed into High Level Positive Energy.

Here we are working creatively with Interactive Self-Hypnotic Images or Imaginology. Each of us has an inner Artistic or Creative Self. You have this even if you never, ever considered yourSelf creative or having any artistic talent. Everyone has this & now that you know, you can begin to utilize it in very powerful ways. There are no limits to the Artist's Brush...

We'll work more with our Artistic Tools, But before we get started, I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

THE INNER ARTIST

Everything we do is from the position of our Highest CreativeSelf. If you have been following along, you know that Self is contained in the fourth Foundational Goal-den Brick. We enter the brick through deep relaxation & a sincere desire to "connect." If you are new to this work, go back a few chapters & locate the directions. Once we are connected, we'll travel over to the StoryBook we are writing in the first Goal-den Brick that is related to food. You already know how to enter the Book & where the Table of Contents are located. In the very front of the Book you will find your easel & drawing tools; paints, crayons, brushes, pencils, erasers & other artist's tools. There are also reference materials such as magazines, books & a memory pad that contains healthy images that you already have stored in your very own subconscious mind. Some of these healthy images also have mentors connected to them & you are free to invite these individuals to join you in your Artistic endeavors. Perhaps you know people or have seen people who are already practicing high level health...in so doing, they are the "keepers" of very powerful images that they will share with you. You do not have to know these people, but only to know "of them." That's all that is necessary. When you have settled into this image & are ready to continue, just come to where I'm waiting for you....over here.

These are some of the things we're going to do:

Create Images with the Artistic Tools

Clearly Define the Images

Choose Colors

Emotionalize the Images

Intensify the Images

Expose the Images to the Procedure of Enlightening

I'll meet you in the next Blog/Entry & we'll do these together.

Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Attracting Positive Power

While we are still working in the First Fundamental Goal-den Brick & in the first new StoryBook, the special images & exercises I'm presenting here can be utilized in the StoryBooks that will follow this one. Just the subject matter will change. I'm sure by now you understand that the goal-den bricks & storybooks are "frames" or "containments" for additional suggestions. The subconscious mind likes things orderly & so it is helpful to engage in orderly choices, leaving all disorder behind. You already know that old storybooks are no longer available & all suggestions are designed towards high level health & performance.

Containments allow us to do many things & to build on top of basic suggestions, such as losing weight in a healthy fashion, curtailing addiction, or whatever else we've decided to do. When we only work with our conscious mind, we not only give up a lot of power, thereby making it more difficult to achieve our goals, but we also give up opportunities to build positive, powerful layers that not only support the goal at hand, but can be transferred or absorbed by other goals in other goal-den bricks.

I've introduced you to the use of living affirmations & we've practiced entering them, thereby participating inside the goal facets, making them stronger with deeper roots. Here we'll be working with new images for adding even more layers & power to the eating or food related goals. We will be attracting Power through a variety of venues that are listed in the image above. All of these mindStates deliver power that is available "in the moment", as well as making them available in the future, just like money in a bank account. The practice of Interactive Self-Hypnosis, imagery & imaginology is very easy to do, but is best accomplished from the position of the fourth goal-den brick, where the CreativeSelf resides. I suggest that you read through the exercise, then plan on spending some time in deep relaxation, allowing the suggestions to find their way "home" in your own subconscious mindPlace.

But before we get started, I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

ATTRACTING POSITIVE POWER

In the past, you may have kept your negative behaviors alive with some of the very same mindSets that we are now going to utilize for "positive use only." What's interesting is the amount of POWER that is truly available in people with addictive behaviors. I know this personally, as well as from working with patients in my private practice. This very good news. Addictive people have lots available to transmute from negative to positive. All that is needed is to have "hot desire" & to be in the presence of one's Higher CreativeSelf. You already know how to place yourSelf in that mindState, so take a moment & I'll meet you there.

All mindSets are filled with energy. We get to point or direct this Power towards our chosen goals. When one is lost in addiction or life disorder of some type, these very same mindSets are pointed towards those negative choices, thereby energizing them. Anyone who has fought addiction is familiar with these.

Creating & Designing - we all have very creative minds that work full-time designing chosen outcomes. In the "new StoryBook" all creation & design is aimed at positive outcome images.

Opening & Learning - there is much to learn & in order to learn we must be open & clear. Now we change direction with these powerful mindSets, aiming them towards opening new routes to health.

Loving & Forgiving - in a negative life, these two mindSets are often utilized against the Self. Now, we accept them, aiming towards all positive images & affirmations.

Focusing & Flowing - in a negative life, the mind focus was on the addiction & flowing through it's layers. Now, the direction changes, focusing & aiming at new, healthy images & affirmations, flowing or traveling between them.

Freeing & Letting Go - addiction brings tightness to both the mind & body, keeping it tightly locked in a jail-like environment. Now that we are opened, loving & forgiving, it's easy to let go & aim towards the things that were only dreams in our past.

Energizing & Magnetizing - as we eat to meet our body needs, physical energy naturally enhances. This is very different from being energized by addictive substances, including food. The energy-ride is now balanced. We form a natural magnet, drawing towards us all that is positive & enhancing. No need to just wish or window-shop. Everything is available.

Practicing Formlessness - in this mindState we leave our bodyMind, existing as our Highest CreativeSelf, completely trusting, as we flow through our positive life experiences as an observer, moving from "the moment" to the future, perhaps back to clearing the past & then back to "the moment" once again...everything in perfect unison.

The more these positive mindStates are practiced, both consciously & subconsciously, the more they will attract, for each practice enhances their Power.


Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Living Inside the New Eating StoryBook

We gain value from our StoryBooks, not only by having them, but by participating "inside" of them. In this section we are writing the new StoryBook that lives in the first goal-den foundational brick having to do with our food & related behaviors. The old StoryBook is gone & all thoughts related to it have been dismissed. If an old related thought "missteps" & enters the thought channel, you will notice it right away, giving you the opportunity to discharge it in a hot-air balloon. This is a simple process of simply noticing a "thought-thing" that you don't want, taking a releasing breath & observing it floating away. Nothing dramatic like beating it with a broom...the best releases are done with a powerful, peaceful stroke.

Remember, thoughts are things & you get to choose if you want them or not. If you don't give directions for release or keep, the mindBody will simply keep them. This is fine if your thoughts are related to what you want, but if they are not, you truly want to release them, because not doing so will give the message to your mindBody that you want more of the same. If we could examine the stress-triggers in your body & notice the imagery connected to them, you would be able to see little visualizations of things that you don't want. So, keep this in mind as you become more aware.

We practice entering all "StoryBooks" from a deeply relaxed state & from the fourth foundational goal-den brick, representing the presence of the Higher or Creative Self. In this position, we are free of Ego & all efforting. We have no desires, just the utmost trust in the Universe & our Highest Being to provide what is best for us, as well as all the details for achieving it. And while we have fully released, there are certain things one may notice as the StoryBook opens it's covers & lighting the interiors. The "wallpaper" or emotional colorings are always very positive, embodying joy, balance, relaxation, commitment, readiness & peace...& perhaps the most important, a feeling of true engagement with the new Story.

In a moment we'll accept the invitation to enter, but before we get started, I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

ACCEPTING THE INVITATION

Perhaps you can make yourSelf very little & sense yourSelf standing on top of your new StoryBook. Go ahead I examine the cover...the words....the images...the lock & key....all gifts to you from your Highest CreativeSelf. The Key knows the lock & the lock responds to the Key as it turns itself, indicating the way for you to enter. Relax deeply into the moment... if you find any difficulties in imaging, simply "think" this Story. The mindBody knows exactly what to do & there is truly nothing that you have to do. The StoryBook writes itSelf from the position of your Highest Creative Self. Notice how comfortable you are, knowing & trusting that everything is already worked out & in process. The Table of Contents is over there & while you can enter any area, in the beginning it's a good idea to do things in some sort of order. In the book I'm writing, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" we will enter each area of the Table of Contents in each new Story that lives within each goal-den brick. The blog space is a bit limited, so I'll have to break down the exercises more than I would like.

I like "Table of Contents" of mindStoryBooks because they build the frame for the full suggestion or over-arching umbrella to the subject at hand. Here, in the first goal-den brick, the book is all about the eating areas of yourLife & connecting emotions. Everything is about suggestion & the mindBody responds to all suggestions AS IF they had truly happened. This is the power of the CreativeMind. This is your book & so your Table of Contents may be somewhat different from mine, but many areas will be the same. The first area in my Table of Contents has to do with "food choices & preparation". This area also manages the serving sizes & introduction of new foods. All emotions that are engaged with these areas are also present & form not only the wallpaper of this area, but engage fully with the You within the pages. Once you enter the chapter or area, You will find working affirmations that are living, just as if the affirmation was a person unto itSelf.

Let's go ahead INSIDE. Look around, noticing where everything is. You might find the supermarket, as well as the kitchen or restaurant or both. Take your time to go around all areas, noticing & touching everything that has been made available to you. In my kitchen I have the very best appliances & all food is beautifully stored & protected, thereby honoring it. Affirmations line the walls & positive emotions are busily engaged in shopping, preparing & setting the table with the very best china, silverware & crystal. Linen tablecloths & real napkings re-inforce my respect for mySelf. I sense the emotions of joy, balance, relaxation, commitment, readiness, effortlessness, peace & engagement. When working within the mindBody & with the CreativeSelf, always sense the emotions as they exhibit themSelves inside of you in their "chemical state."


Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Re-Writing the Food StoryBook

Each goal-den brick, foundational or otherwise, has it's own "storybook." These stories have been written by us over time & often, have not been edited to keep up with our growth & changes. In addition, many of our stories are not about what we want to attract or create, but instead, are about our failures or things that we don't want in our lives. Each storybook is filled with suggestions for attraction. They work like radar...pulling towards us whatever they contain, whether we want those things or not.

The CreativeSelf that resides in the fourth foundational brick is always eager to improve the stories that reside in the other goal-den bricks & once given permission, will actually go & do the writing or law of attraction goal-setting as we sit back & observe. Of course, our CreativeSelf always works in our best interests, even making up the plans for achieving the goals as the new stories are created. You may be wondering if you have always had these four foundation bricks. Yes, they have always been present, but more than likely not properly organized or programmed for high level health & performance. You have always had an area related to your food & eating behaviors, your exercise, self-image & esteem, as well as a connection to your Higher CreativeSelf. Now, that you are keenly aware of their presence & structure, you can enter these areas in the presence of your Creative or HigherSelf, either just observing as the CreativeSelf does it's work, or directly joining in.

You already know the power of cleaning & clearing in all four foundational bricks. In the last blog we worked on entering the CreativeSelf & then traveling over to the food-related blog "in the moment" & changing outcomes BEFORE they even happened. That is called future-pacing & it is a powerful concept & tool. Now, it's time to write an entirely new story for the food-related blog. From time to time you may add to it, for indeed, you are growing & maturing as you design the experiences & outcomes that you choose to have.

In this book we'll be spending quite a bit of time writing "new stories", but before we get started, I'd like to welcome new readers..

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

WRITING THE NEW FOOD-RELATED STORY

Since we are going to work hypnotically, take a few moments to deeply relax into the chair where you are resting. Make certain that you will not be disturbed by others or by phones, etc. This is very important work & it's best not to be interrupted. While you don't need to write the whole storybook at the same time, it's a good idea to fully respect the time you have decided to allot to this, because you are sending an important message to your Higher CreativeSelf or subconscious mind, that this is very important work & you honor it. This mindset will engage the CreativeSelf to work in your behalf.

Notice that the "old book" in the Food-Behavioral Foundational Brick no longer exists. It is simple gone. All storybooks are fictionalized experiences, whether they really happened or were just figments of your imagination that you decided to place there. Storybooks are filled with imaginary images & beliefs that were either constructed by you or given to you by others, that you accepted & placed in your storybook. The subconscious mind is a servo-mechanism & follows the book in every detail. Not only that, it will "attract" you to more of the same. This is fine if you truly want what is written in the book, but if you don't want it, then you are going to get even more of it. Obviously, not a good choice!

The storybook related to food issues will be a joy to write, mainly because the old book that is now gone was so very toxic. It feels good just to have it "over & done with." From now on YOU WILL ONLY ENTERTAIN those ideas, beliefs, behaviors & anything else food-related that you want for you. You will not be writing anything in this book that has any negative connotations, in any sense of the word. No more negative images. This is your book, it's about you & about what you want for you. Simple as that. Take a cleansing breath now & just rest in the "light" of your CreativeSelf, who will light the way for you, as it assists you in writing your new, beautiful book.

The Food-Related StoryBook has many different chapters. Some of your chapter titles will be similar to mine, while others may be very different. Most likely you will add chapters as you grow within the covers of your book. I'm suggesting that you write your book in your Journal. It certainly is fine is you write it on your computer, for this is somewhat different from the other Journaling we are doing together. In my life, I have a separate three-ring binder for each of my StoryBook's. Some of my chapters include Food Management, Thought & Emotional Management, Activities & Special Events. Each chapter is further sub-divided & I'll go over these with you in the blogs that follow this. I'm going to suggest that we work directly with "living affirmations" that will appear in each chapter.

"Living affirmations" are not just words, but true self-hypnotic experiences. This is the most powerful way to plant & enhance an affirmation. For example, a simple affirmation such as "I enjoy eating healthy foods" might be planted in the different chapters, but the image that accompanies it, might change. In the Food Management chapter, you may enter your shopping area, or find yourself looking in your refrigerator & cupboards, or sitting down & actually tasting the foods on your plate. This same affirmation may present itself differently in the Special Events chapter, where you enter a party with a buffet & delight in placing healthy foods on your plate, knowing that you are "gifting" your body for high level health.

The next few blogs will entertain many examples of "living affirmations" designed for your new StoryBook for this particular goal-den brick.


Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers

Shifting Gears

In the last blog I introduced "fractionation"...dividing the day into segments, then actively practicing deep relaxation, while noticing thoughts that travel through the mind, emotions that accompany them & body sensations that are always connected to what is playing out in the "theater of the mind." Learning to observe the ongoing inner commentary, images & body sensations is KEY to high-end releasing & then changing or editing subconscious mind programs. It's important to remember that every thought & even emotions & body sensations are their own "mind programs." For example, tightness in a particular part of the body is a mindBody program. Unless it is released & then re-programmed, the mindBody will take it for granted that it is "desired." The mindBody does not judge, but follows the dictates of who owns it.

For me, I tend to store tension in the muscles that live in the back of my neck. Sometimes I can sense the tension, but other times I can't feel it at all, but it is there. This is because I've become very accustomed to it being there. In order for me to feel it, the neck has to become excessively tense....it's screamer state. And so, it's important for me to know my mindBody programs & make certain to release them before I feel them. In the area of emotions, it's important for me to tune in to my lower level negative mindStates that tend to be habitual. Mine include being too intense over small things, impatience & intolerance. On the other side of the coin, I often forget to entertain my sense of humor & my peaceful/loving mindStates. An interesting practice in the fourth goal-den brick is to invite positive emotions to enter when a negative emotion has taken over. The positive emotion will always win out & in that specific shifting of gears, the negative stress chemicals will actually turn off, saving the body from extra stored stress, while re-programming the mindBody for future encounters with that particular negative emotional state.

Shifting gears is a very important practice & begins in the fourth foundation brick. As you become more practiced through fractionation, you will be able to do this in any moment. In the image above, I've connected the fourth brick to the first brick. Here they are shifting back & forth. I'll give you some examples of how to utilize this in just a moment, but first...

A NOTE TO NEW READERS:

This experiential blog/workshop is based on my new book, "How Many Cookies Will It Take to Make Me Happy?" This book is not published as yet, but you have the opportunity to read it in it's unpublished state. If you are new to my writing, you might want to read the earlier mini-chapters. They are available on FaceBook, The PublishersMarketPlace & at the following link. Remember to scan down to find the earliest chapters & work your way up. http://beyonddisorderlyeating.blogspot.com/
A bit of background.... we are working with creative Interactive Self-Hypnosis imagery, planting suggestions directly into the creative subconscious mind as you read along. What appears like a story is a series of self-hypnotic sessions, designed to bring about desired lifestyle changes. The inner mind is creative & rather child-like, loving to play with images, especially when they are emotionalized. Just like the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", well-planted mind images, can be worth hours of therapy. We can actually change or motivate in 1/200th of a second. So come along & look forward to some lifestyle-changing events.

SHIFTING GEARS - EATING ISSUES

When working with new patients, I always suggest that they practice re-entering the fourth fundamental brick as their day unfolds. It's rather like driving a car...shifting gears...up & down...in & out. It's easy to do this. It's a matter of "waking up" from your self-imposed daily hypnotic state, taking a cleansing breath & imagining yourSelf moving into your fourth brick...the brick of cleansing, clearing, releasing, balancing & coming into communication with your CreativeSelf. This book is about disorderly eating & so we are given a multitude of opportunities to shift gears because most people with eating issues have ongoing compulsive or emotional thoughts, emotions & even body sensations that are food-related. How do I know this? Well, as you already know, I have a very long history of "disorderly eating" & have been working with patients with similar problems for many decades.

My patients are often distraught when I tell them that I have to practice "shifting gears" every day. Of course, we would like to get rid of our eating issues forever, but it's important to be realistic. The mindBody programs related to disorderly eating are usually very deeply etched into the subconscious mind, mainly because they have been entertained for so long. I believe in respecting my "stories" or deep programming & by doing so, I've found that the actual "stories" are willing to assist me in changing. I'll write more about that later, but let me give you some examples of when & how I "shift gears." My most current vulnerable times are in restaurants, in the super-market & around nine o'clock in the evening. In the past, I had others, but many of them have resoved themselves ( stories helping me out.)

I believe in something called "prodromals." Those are the things that preceed a certain happening. Remember my telling you about my low-level neck tension? OK...well, I believe the same about my compulsive tendencies in my vulnerable areas. I always go to the fourth goal-den brick BEFORE going into the supermarket, restaurant & around 8PM, thereby alerting my mindBody that I am fully present. Then, I travel over to my first brick & plant the images/imaginology of what I want. I do not entertain any images of what I don't want because that would be an example of negative programming. I call in positive, powerful emotions & surround the images of what I want with their energy. This is why fractionation is so important....the more you practice, the more you will be able to recognize your vulnerable areas & emotions/body sensations. You are now on your way to Recovery...


Copyright 2009 Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
May not be copied or reproduced without permission of the author.

Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht is author of Sugar...the Hidden Eating Disorder & How to Lick It. She is also the writer/producer of over 350 mp3/CD programs in the areas of medicine, health, prevention, addictions, self-development & sports for adults & children.

http://www.facebook.com/elizabeth.bohorquez
http://www.twitter.com/elizRN

http://www.hypnosis-audio.com
http://www.sugar-addiction.com
http://www.international-medical-health-writers