If you need to lose 5 lbs. for a special occasion or social event, you may want to consider hypnotherapy for weight loss. Clinical hypnotherapy can be very effective for training the mind to lose weight and make long-lasting changes while encouraging healthy eating habits.

My Story As A Hypnotherapist On Weight Loss Treatment

My weight loss journey began when I was nine years old and went through a chubby phase. This was partly due to a growth spurt but there was also a lack of dietary guidance in my life. I had the kind of chipmunk cheeks that adults love to pinch and a big gap in my teeth that showed when I smiled. It wasn’t a pretty year, but I didn’t pay much attention to that because I didn’t really care. I just wanted to go to school, play with my friends, and eat whatever I wanted, like any other kid.

One day my mother told me that I needed to go on a diet and lose weight – at least five lbs. I didn’t even know what a diet was and she offered no plan nor instructions, as she had no educated dietary advice to give. My father had decided that both my mother and I were overweight, and needed to lose at least five lbs. each, and he put her in charge of making that happen.

Weight management was a foreign concept to me at such a young age. I was perplexed as to why I needed to lose weight at all and since I didn’t know how to diet, I disregarded my father’s mandate and continued to enjoy my mother’s delicious southern cooking, as well as plenty of junk food.

Emotional Eating

It was during this time that I began to notice all the anxiety attached to weight and food in my family. I watched my mother struggle with her own weight, and I heard my father criticize and make fun of her. The more he tried to control what she ate, the more she wanted to eat. Her constant pursuit of thinness to gain her husband’s approval continued to perpetuate the idea that she was not good enough as she was. This led to ever-increasing sadness, low self-esteem, loss of self-confidence, and eventually, clinical depression.

To be fair, we were not educated about the dangers of processed food, back in the day. If anyone did have this intel in my little hometown, they were not talking about it nor posting it on social media, because the internet was not yet invented. We were attempting to lose weight by cutting calories in general and not by the quality of the food we were consuming.

Convenience foods were very popular. Fast food restaurants were booming and a Big Mac and French fries were a treat in my household. I always looked forward to Fridays when my mom would take me to McDonald’s, go shopping at JCPenny, then finish up our excursion at the grocery store. I always brought home my favorite snack – Hostess Twinkies – and wasn’t concerned about the artificial ingredients on the label. I was unaware of the toxicity of chemicals, preservatives, empty calories, and how bad they are for you.

Why I Wish I Discovered Weight Loss Hypnosis During a Pivotal Moment of My Childhood

As an only child, it was a big deal when I was allowed to have a friend sleepover because it didn’t happen very often. My parents were very private as they drank a lot and didn’t like to have guests, especially kids who may go home and tell their parents about my parents’ drinking and bad habits. My home life was a big secret that I was not to discuss with anyone, so I was surprised and elated when I got permission to invite my friend from school to spend the night.

The big day arrived and when my friend was finally dropped off around dinnertime, we were so excited that we didn’t even take her overnight bag into the house; we stayed outside and jumped for joy in the front yard. I didn’t even notice when my mom came out until she got right in my face and said, “You’d better keep jumping around because you have to lose five lbs. by tomorrow, or you’re in trouble with your dad.”

I froze. I was terrified of my father. I just stared at my mother and said nothing, hoping that my friend couldn’t see the panic in my eyes. At that moment, I felt embarrassed, ashamed, vulnerable, and confused as I had no idea how I was going to lose five lbs. by the next day.

In a flash, all the possible consequences of being overweight raced through my mind: no dinner, no popcorn, and snacks during the movie we had planned to watch after dinner, no breakfast, and no lunch. In fact, I couldn’t have any food at all until I lost five lbs. But my friend had to eat, so how was that going to work?

Weight Loss Goals or Weight Loss Consequences

What would my punishment be if I didn’t lose that weight? The belt? Grounded? Food deprived? But worse than the threat of any of those things was the humiliation that I was trying to hide from my friend and my struggle to feel normal again. I wish I could go back in time and give myself a hypnotherapy session and a hug. I desperately wanted to return to that state of carefree fun with my friend, but it was all I could do to not burst out in tears and run away.

Physiologically, the trauma of this incident had triggered the Fight or Flight Response, which is a primitive and involuntary reaction to perceived danger or anxiety, in order to protect oneself or flee to escape the situation. This state of overwhelming induces environmental hypnosis and quite often, people experience “Hypno” amnesia, which is memory loss, and maybe either spontaneous or induced by suggestion.

This is why I have no recollection beyond trying to collect myself and carry on, while standing in the yard that day. I don’t remember if I ate or not, if I did or did not lose five lbs., or if I was able to salvage my dignity long enough to show my friend a good time. But I can tell you that my friend never came back for another playdate, and I do remember how I felt about myself after that incident.

I saw myself differently when I looked in the mirror. I no longer felt good enough the way I was. And because I was not thin enough, I had lost parental love and approval. And all of it was my own fault, because I didn’t know how to diet, so that made me stupid as well as fat. I became sad, angry at myself, self-conscious and didn’t like nor approve of myself. Losing weight and healthy food eating habits seemed far out of reach at this point of my life.

How We Learn: Identification, Association, and Repetition

So for me, the Identification was weight loss. The Association was that you have to be thin to get love and approval. To be thin means you have to lose weight through sacrifice, as in food deprivation, starvation, and suffering. If you fail to be thin, the price you pay is still food deprivation, because you must still pursue thinness, but now you may also be punished by the deprivation of physical safety (the belt), deprivation of personal freedom (grounded), and deprivation of proper nourishment. That’s a lot of deprivation repetition attached to weight loss.

So in this paradigm, how do you win? There is no win; just a vicious cycle with no end, if you want to get love and approval, that is. I know this sounds ill because it is, but the subconscious mind absorbs information in a literal manner without judgment, based on your particular experience. The more the repetition of an idea or experience, the more they get reinforced and eventually become a permanent part of your belief system. The following diagrams illustrate the Theory of Mind and how our behavior is programmed over time.

Everyone Has A Unique Map of Reality

This negative conditioning continued throughout my childhood and was never discussed with anyone, and quietly settled into my subconscious programming as truth. As I got older, I didn’t realize my self-confidence and self-esteem were so impacted by my looks and my weight, especially when I started puberty at 12 years old.

I was self-conscious just like any other adolescent, and I knew that was normal, but what I didn’t know was that these self-destructive thoughts would not go away with the passage of time, nor would I grow out of it on my own.

All of us develop our own Map of Reality as we grow up, which can work for us or against us, depending on the circumstance. Inner conflict around weight loss and food is a very common thing that can instigate feelings of deprivation and rebellion, which can result in binge eating and a loss of self-control.

It’s difficult because it feels like a constant war within the self, and if we overeat or eat poorly, we may judge ourselves as weak. This can spiral downward to guilt, self-loathing, self-sabotage and futility, because it’s a game with no winner. Either we deny ourselves of our comfort foods and feel deprived, or we indulge in whatever we want, and then feel ashamed.

You Are Not Alone

This paradox is not your fault. We know that we are sincere in our intent to eat better, lose weight and commit to a healthy lifestyle, but sometimes we struggle for self-control in the presence of comfort food and sugar, for example. It’s easy to see how we can form a sugar addiction, starting in childhood, and it can make weight loss a challenge in the future.

When we get a good grade on our Report Card, we get a treat. We fall down and skin our knees, we get a cookie. We behave nicely, we get ice cream, and so on. We also celebrate holidays, birthdays, and social events in general, with sweets. On Halloween, we Trick or TREAT.

Valentine’s Day? A heart-shaped box of candy that represents love, romance, and the American way, at least according to Hallmark.

Over time, we develop a powerful association in our subconscious that desserts are a reward, a treat, a curative for anything that ails you, including a broken heart – pass me the chocolate please! That’s a lot of sugar attached to our emotions.

When we make a conscious decision to eliminate sugar as part of a new healthy lifestyle, why is it so hard to pass that dessert table? If we exert enough conscious willpower, we can walk on by, but the impulse to go back is strong. This internal struggle can be exhausting and confusing. We wonder why it’s so difficult to control our urges and we may feel controlled by the situation itself, which can then breed resentment. All this can produce so much stress and anxiety that we just want to give up and quit.

Your First Hypnotherapy Session Can Take You A Step Closer To Your Weight Loss Goal

Ultimately, I am grateful for my weight loss journey. Because it was so painful and emotionally debilitating, I feared I would never find a permanent solution, which forced me to think outside the box. I desperately did not want to be a yo-yo dieter for the rest of my life, like my mother. I was actively seeking solutions when I moved to Los Angeles, and that’s when I discovered hypnotherapy. I had no idea if it really worked or not, but at this point, I was willing to try anything.

I was immediately impressed with the power of clinical hypnotherapy, as I thought it was the same as stage hypnosis, but they’re completely different. Stage hypnosis is performance-based for the purposes of entertainment, while clinical hypnotherapy is a healing modality that is based on behavior modification and habit reconditioning.

After only one session, I was truly amazed! I felt more empowered than I had in all my years of talk therapy. I felt emotionally calm, mentally alert and physically relaxed, but I was excited and enthusiastic at the same time. With every session, I felt stronger, happier, more focused, and back in control of my life. It didn’t take long before I realized I had to become a Hypnotherapist to help all the people who had lost hope, just like me.

I didn’t know how blessed I was to attend Hypnosis Motivation Institute, the first Accredited College of Hypnotherapy in the entire nation, which means their curriculum is approved by the U.S. Dept. of Education as an actual education with a recognized Diploma in Clinical Hypnotherapy.

I graduated in 1998 at the top of my class and was invited to become an Instructor at the college and a Staff Therapist at the clinic. When I gave birth to my identical twin girls, I opened a private practice at my home office so I could stay home with my babies. That was over 24 years ago and I have worked with countless clients with just about everything the sun, but weight loss remains one of the top presenting issues today.

Hypnotherapy is effective because I always ask for your conscious permission before we start. And since you agree to participate, you are always in control. You are the Director and I am the Operator. Together we can comfortably, gently and systematically alter your Map of Reality in the Subconscious realm to align with your Conscious intentions, which ultimately brings congruency and dissolves the inner conflict.

This means you can finally be released from all those tumultuous emotions and your thoughts about food will be different. You can walk on by that dessert table with peace of mind and quiet resolve because you know your priorities and sugar is not on that list. You are free! You are no longer a slave to sugar or anything else that no longer serves you.

You may begin to notice that your thoughts match your feelings – they are congruent, i.e. you make a conscious choice to go to the gym and you feel good about it, instead of internal resistance and looking for excuses to stay home. You will organically gravitate toward healthier food and actually, you may even start to crave it.

Now you understand that your own personal power and clarity of purpose naturally allow you to be the Architect of your Life, and the Master of your Destiny. Now you know you can accomplish any goal you set for yourself; not just your body weight. And best of all, hypnotherapy is all natural – no drugs, no GMO’s and no artificial ingredients!

Hypnotherapy Automatically Strengthens Your Immune System

Regardless of the situation you want to improve, just being in the state of hypnosis brings complete physical relaxation, calms your emotional state, relieves stress in your entire mind-body system, which in turn naturally strengthens your immune system. These are just some of the benefits of the hypnotic state and there are many more.

For weight loss and weight management, here are some of the many habits that we work on during hypnotherapy sessions:

• Binge Eating
• Emotional eating
• Maintaining healthy weight
• Heal any underlying belief systems that may be blocking you.
• Raise your self-esteem, self-confidence, and motivation to reach your goals.
• Create new beliefs that align with and support your new behaviors & lifestyle.
• Evaluating weight loss programs and utilizing hypnosis to get the best results.

Sustaining Healthier Habits Through Self-Hypnosis

It’s true: self-talk can greatly impact our perception of reality, as we are the most suggestible to our own thoughts. If you doubt this, you can do a 24-hour test. For one whole day, carry a notebook everywhere you go and write down every thought you have. At the end of the day, tally up all the different thoughts, and write them down in descending order.

Observe the results and you may notice that the higher the number of times you had any particular thought, whether positive or negative, is what you really think about yourself.

If you think your results are not accurate, take a moment to reflect on why you entertained those thoughts, so many times, in just one day. Sometimes we are not consciously aware of how we really feel until we dig a little deeper. When we become aware of the impact of our own self-talk, we can make a conscious choice to improve our inner dialogue.

That being said, just because you have a negative opinion about yourself, doesn’t make it true. In fact, you can round up any critical thoughts you have about yourself and toss them in the trash, because they no longer serve you. How do you know they are not true? Because you were not born that way, so you get to start over with a clean mindset.

Enter hypnotherapy, which is a highly effective tool at exposing and eliminating negative self-thoughts, that you may not have been paying attention to. Then we use the power of hypnotic suggestion to download your new life script – the one you always wanted but didn’t grow up with, or got hijacked somehow, along the way.

In your new life script, you are hardwired for success and you have all the qualities necessary to achieve any goal you set for yourself, including a physique that you love, when you look in a mirror. All the good things that you wanted to believe about yourself are actually true. How do you know this?

Look at babies: they are naturally bright and inquisitive, playful and affectionate. Babies don’t have self-esteem issues or lack self-worth. They will authentically let you know what they need, and they have full expectation that their needs will be met, on-demand. They have nobody dysmorphia and in fact, they are delighted when they see themselves in a mirror.

We can restore that pristine map of reality that we had as children because it’s not make-believe – all of us started out that way. All we have to do is remember that we are beautiful, lovable, trusting, and worthy of all good things in life, simply by virtue of being born. Hypnotherapy can accomplish this restoration, which will then serve to remind your adult self that you have always had all the qualities you ever needed to be happy and successful in life because you were born that way.

But…..when your hypnotherapy sessions are done, how do you maintain your new programming? Enter self-hypnosis, a powerful tool that not only sustains your current progress, but can also be utilized to manifest your best life through creative visualization. If you’re in doubt that you can master this skill, think about this: if you are thoroughly committed, and you actually visualize, each and every day, something that you wanted to materialize, how long do you think it would be before you are internally compelled into physical action toward that goal?

When you make the decision that something you desire is truly non-negotiable, don’t be surprised when it shows up faster than you thought. You don’t have to take my word for it – you can do self-hypnosis in the comfort of your own home, or anywhere you can close your eyes and relax.

When Time Is Of The Essence, Hypnosis Works Fast

Hypnotherapy for weight loss is one of the most popular approaches in Los Angeles and especially Hollywood, because quite often, my clients need to lose a few lbs. for a new television role, feature film, photoshoot or to walk the Red Carpet. I have over 24 years experience with this and have witnessed great results.

Hypnotherapy is also the go-to solution for my clients who want to lose a fast five for a formal event, a special vacation with the family, or before they start a new job. Many times these same clients come back after losing the initial five lbs. and continue on their weight loss journey.

Even though it’s been two years since the initial lockdown, I am still getting clients who have not been able to return to their pre-pandemic weight and still feel a little off. When they finally start getting their bodies back in shape, it’s amazing to see how losing even a few lbs. can restore feelings of self-confidence and satisfaction when they can wear their favorite clothes again.

Let’s talk about your ideal weight and see if hypnotherapy is a good fit for you. But whether you choose hypnotherapy or another modality to achieve your goals, the important thing is that you made a decision to move forward in your life and you are now taking action. This shows that you do have courage and fortitude, so just keep moving forward and success is imminent!

I’m excited to help you live your best life, so call me today at (424) 402-7866, and let’s make a plan for your success!

A man’s mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. – James Allen