Changing The Channel With Self Hypnosis

By Janelle Merry THD,CHT 

Driving home from visiting a relative in the hospital the other day I was feeling tired and cranky.  My spouse was

riding shotgun, pointing out all the potholes and generally pushing my buttons.  I started to vent.  To my amazement, he understood and responded by holding his tongue…literally holding his tongue and continuing to talk.  It looked and sounded so funny that I had to laugh.  That broke the tension and helped me to “change the channel”, in other words, to redirect my thoughts.  This anecdote is just an example of a moment in a day in the life of a normal person.  Define normal.  Normal is just a setting on a wash machine.  But, really, we all have good days and bad days.  How can we have more good days or turn bad days into good days? 

 We can “change the channel” to have a good day by shifting our perspective.  We all have buttons that get pushed in one way or another, some days more than others.  These buttons are wired to our beliefs and perceptions that have been hardwired into us from the day we were born.  Our upbringing and the societal expectations that we’ve been conditioned to believe in help to establish the beliefs and perceptions that drive our patterns of thinking and behavior.  To change the channel we need to shift from our habitual pattern of thinking.  Get out of the rut, so to speak.  How do we do this? 

 Changing the channel to shift out of a way of thinking takes practice.  This practice is made easier if it is done in an altered state.  Self-hypnosis is one of the easiest ways to practice changing the channel.  We do it all the time.  Have you ever sat in front of the television and were so focused on the program you were watching that you didn’t even hear the phone ring?  Or reading a book and someone is talking to you but you don’t hear a word?  Or daydreaming and completely lose track of what is going on around you?  Hypnosis is focused attention and concentration. 

 All hypnosis is self-hypnosis.  Hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness that lies between awake and sleep.  When we’re awake, moving around, talking, etc. we’re mostly in Beta brain wave state.  When we are daydreaming, concentrating on a book or a television show, etc., we are entering into more of an Alpha brain wave state.  It is in the Alpha state that a light trance can occur.  When we are deeply relaxed and beginning to drift off we are entering into the Theta brain wave state.  It is in the Theta state that a medium trance can occur.    When we sleep and begin REM (rapid eye movement) and dreaming we are in the Delta brain wave state.  It is in the Alpha/Theta state where we can practice changing the channel and healing our lives.

 So if I’m having a bad day how do I change the channel using self-hypnosis?  Well, start by making a list of all the things that bother you.  Dump it out.  Empty it all on a sheet of paper, or do it verbally, out loud, even if it’s whispering so only you can hear.  By doing this you’ll start to feel better already.  Next, make a list of affirmations….things that make you feel good or good things that you want to feel.  Some examples are “I do the best that I can with what I’ve got.” “I am a loveable person.” “I feel happy and healthy and my life is full of abundance.”  “I am at peace.” Then from that list of affirmations pick one or two that really resonate with you at that particular time.  Now begin repeating the affirmations out loud, if you can. The act of voicing and the act of hearing these sweet words of encouragement through your ears is very powerful. For those of you driving down the road, or changing the channel while at the shopping mall, etc., this is about as far as you can go for now.

 To further integrate peace, love and tranquility into your life, you will need to put forth a bit more effort.  You can do this by making time to actually practice changing the channel and staying tuned to a positive attitude.

 Find a comfortable place to sit or lounge back and allow yourself to relax.  Completely relax.  The goal here is not to sleep but to consciously relax.  Focus your attention on your breathing.  If thoughts come in and take your attention away from your breathing just bring it back around to focus on your breathing.  Simply pay attention to your breathing.  Don’t try to control it.  Just focus on it.  After a while you will notice that your mind is beginning to clear.  For those of us in which multi-tasking is second nature, this may be difficult.  Don’t give up.  Be gentle with yourself and give it a chance.  Next, start at your head and mentally relax every muscle all the way down to your toes.  Concentrate on finding and relaxing all the tense and tight areas.  Once you reach your toes. Do a mental body scan to find any remaining areas of tension.  By now, your body should be pretty relaxed and your mind is calming.  Now is the time to introduce your chosen affirmations.  Allow yourself to continue to relax completely and breathe easily and say your affirmations to yourself.  Envision and FEEL the affirmations. 

 By practicing this and changing your emotional state you will find that you’ve changed the channel.  The events of the day don’t seem to be quite so bad anymore.  You can change the channel on just about anything in your life.  It’s a matter of shifting yourself out of the negative thinking rut.  If there is a specific thought pattern that you know is holding you back, whether it be FEAR (False Evidence Appearing Real) or anger, you can make a permanent change by practicing changing the channel regularly and staying tuned to a positive attitude.  Practice self-hypnosis for 3-4 weeks daily and you will find that you’ve changed your life.  You’ve kicked the habit, so to speak. 

 There are many ways you can apply self-hypnosis to your life. I’ve used self-hypnosis for 11 years and changed my life dramatically.  I’ve become a healthier, happier, and more peaceful and content person.  I have studied many classifications of applied altered states of consciousness, the corresponding appropriateness, and the techniques used to implement them.  The technique I have outlined here and which I call “changing the channel” is one of the many daily uses of self-hypnosis I can give you an introduction to.  You will find that you can apply this simple useful tool to change your beliefs and perceptions and heal your life.  Then, the next time you’re driving and your spouse is irritating you, you’ll be able to just change the channel and FEEL GOOD.

 JaNelle Merry is a Spiritual Counselor and Certified Master Hypnotist (CHt).  She is a recognized member of the National Association of Transpersonal Hypnotherapists.  She has doctorates in Theology and Divinity and is currently pursuing a Clinical Doctorate in Naturopathy at American Holistic University.  She works at the Chrysalis Center (920-604-1504) just 25 minutes north of Green Bay.