Even successful people can experience performance anxiety or stage fright. For example only recently Adele sought hypnotherapy to help her overcome her growing nerves over performing her Bond theme Skyfall at the Oscars ceremony. Apparently the previous year she had been so nervous it resulted in her being physically sick before the show and she did not want a repeat of that this year.

I have yet to work with anyone as famous as Adele, and if I did I would not tell you! But I did receive an unsolicited testimonial when this happy message arrived in my Facebook inbox for me to use publicly, it was a nice reminder of how satisfying this work can be.

We had two gigs this last weekend and I was pleased with both. The first one contained the dreaded “solo” and it went better than the previous time and I was almost happy with it. It seems to be heading in the right direction – becoming less and less dangerous – and I found myself enjoying the bits before as well as the bits after, which was new. During the second gig I felt a most beautiful feeling of not being nervous – a really relaxed feeling in my solar plexus that felt new and very welcome. So thank you so much, you have really helped me and the CD is there for whenever I need it.– Kath, Cornwall

Dido is another singer who has used hypnotherapy to overcome stage fright, according to tourdates.co.uk. She said: “I went to hypnotherapy for stage fright years ago and it completely worked. I always get nervous, but it was getting to the point where it would mess with my singing.”

One of the benefits of working with celebrities is that occasionally you get to go on location with them to help them with their anxiety or issue. So if you catch me posting on Facebook from some exotic location sometime soon, it might just be that I’m working with a celebrity

Morden in 1965, just after I was born.

I grew up living on the outskirts of London where it borders with Surrey. A very built up, busy area where the real sunset was often hidden by houses. I never enjoyed London, or staying in towns and would often say I felt happier being able to see the sun set on the horizon.

My desire to see the horizon and be aware of the sun setting came to mind while perusing though an old copy of Red magazine, ironically while staying in Bristol. I was killing some time browsing through the magazine when I noticed a small article that saying that more and more studies are recognising the power of nature to make us happy and reduce stress.

Seeing the horizon can help us relax.

They made a point of mentioning being able to see the horizon…. And I thought that was just me!

It reminded me of other articles discussing stress, city lifestyles and nature. One theory I have come across is that cities are inherently stressful as we unconsciously respond to vehicles and noise with a stress reaction. The bus triggers the same response as a wild elephant might, the taxi becomes a sabre tooth tiger, ready to leap out should you get in it’s path, the noise signals an avalanche, a stampeding bunch of buffalo etc

Maybe seeing the horizon helps us to relax because we know nothing is hiding, waiting to jump out and eat us…

Surprisingly studies show us that even looking at images of nature help us relax more than other types of image. Maybe tuning in to a National Geographic documentary might be more relaxing than we fist imagine!

So with spring upon us, I wonder what opportunities you may have to relax watching programmes such as Springwatch or maybe even getting outside and experiencing some of the relaxing benefits of nature first hand? Whether getting out into your local park or going camping and hiking in the great outdoors, a real sense of increased well-being and relaxation could be yours.

How sleep problems can cost you.

Sleep are problems are more common than many imagine. According to studies insomnia affects between 30 to 45% of the adult population, with almost half of Britons (47%) saying that stress or worry keeps them awake at night. According to the World Sleep Day press release 1,550 people die because of sleep related accidents every year and 46% of individuals with frequent sleep disturbances report missing work or events, or making errors at work, compared to 15% of healthy sleepers.

For those with sleep problems it may be surprising to know sleep issues can often be easily overcome. If you are one of those with sleep problems you may like to follow this blog, as I will be giving away free tips and techniques for getting a good nights sleep that work well for a lot of people.

Enjoy

Success was not instant and after three exhausting nights of polishing the floors the chap was almost exhausted. On the forth night after getting up to the polish the floors the chap was so tired he decided to go back and lay down for just a couple of minutes to rest his eyes. The next thing he knew morning had come and he had slept soundly most of the night, a whole 9 hours. After that he never again had a problem of falling to sleep.

If you suffer from insomnia I wonder what burdensome task you could find?

Whatever the reason for your lack of sleep there is a good technique I know which I wanted to share. It gives you something to focus on which is inconsistent with thinking, planning, or feeling anxious, etc. and is known as the 3-2-1 technique.

The goal of the 3-2-1 technique is to give you something interesting to focus your attention on and experience as your mind slows down. It is really simple and works like this:

First, just listen for three things and count them. Any three things that you hear: maybe the sound of your breathing – “one”; or maybe a sound of the heating cooling down— “two”; or maybe the sound of your skin against the sheet — “three”. These are just examples and you can use any three things you hear. They can even be the same thing. Just listen for, hear, and then count three things. It’s that simple.

Next, feel three things. Any three things. The feeling of the sheet against the skin — “one”; An interesting tingling sensation in the limbs— “two”; Cool or maybe warm air on the face — “three”; It does not matter what they are. Any three things will do. They can be different or the same. Just feel them and count them,1,2,3.

And then, see three things in your minds eye. Just let them appear, on their own. A rose — “one”; A blue sky— “two”; maybe a beach — “three”; Now after you have seen the third thing, go back and repeat the process but do it for two thing, so hear two things, and count them in the mind. Then feel two things. Then see two things. Then repeat for one thing, hear one thing, feel one thing, and see one thing.

If you’re still awake start again. You will lose count as your mind is experiencing what it hears, feels, and sees and begins to drift to sleep. So hear, feel and see three things, then two things, then one thing and then go back to three until you drift into or back into a peaceful sleep.

Include

Vitamin B complex vitamins are essential for mental and emotional well-being. They cannot be stored in the body, so a daily supply is important. B9 (Folic acid) is found in leafy veg such as spinach, broccoli etc. B6 can be found in meat, fish, wholegrain products, nuts and bananas. B12 in eggs, dairy, meat and fish.

Vitamin C is available in fresh fruit, apples, Kiwi, Oranges

Serotonin – The body makes serotonin using an amino acid available in meat, fish, eggs, beans, seeds, oats, yogurt, cottage cheese, chickpeas, bananas and dark chocolate. The amino acid 5-HTP that is available as a dietary supplement is also involved.

Complex Carbs have a calming effect, help produce serotonin, wholegrain pasta and rice, legumes and beans are good.

Water – optimal brain functioning depends on being hydrated, drink plenty of water!

Avoid

Simple Sugars and refined carbs stress the body due to the spike in blood sugar level and so are best avoided. These are often processed foods such as white bread, cakes, pastries and biscuits.

Caffeinated drinks – caffeine stimulates the nervous system which aggravates anxiety and stress that often worsen depression.

So if you want to boost your mood why not make some changes today?

Do antidepressants work?

A high percentage of the clients I see have been offered anti-depressants and I am always pleased when I see they have refused them. I get the impression that many people think of anti-depressants as happy pills, but of course that is not what they are. Lasting meaningful happiness is not available in a pill, and never will be. So here is the ‘anti-climax’ for those expecting to feel happier on anti-depressants, and forums are littered with people saying “they don’t work”, while others say they made them feel worse.

Indeed, while I recognise that some experts in dealing with depression do say that anti-depressants can be valuable with people so depressed that they will not even get out of bed or who are potentially suicidal, it does surprise me the ease at which they are prescribed. This is even more confusing when you read about the potential side effects, the internet is rife with comments such as:

“When compared with a placebo, all antidepressants, including SSRIs, seem to double the risk of suicidal thinking, from 1%–2% to 2%–4%, in both children and adults.”

As that comes from the Harvard Medical School website I would assume it is fairly trustworthy. There are indeed many more potential side effects and obviously these are all carefully weighed up and the conventional argument is that more good is done than bad, statistically speaking at least.

My personal experience is that in the UK Anti-depressants are the ‘first line’ treatment for depression. Before I began working in this field I was a Secondary School teacher in a rather stressful school, with very limited support. I coped well (I think I did anyway…) for long time, but when in the space of a about a year, my mother died and my wife came down with ME, work seemed to get worse and stress got the better of me. I can remember a conversation with one Doctor where it was pointed out that maybe I had a chemical imbalance in my brain and I might need an anti-depressant. So even though I had no thoughts of taking my own life, harming myself or others and there were environmental causes for my feelings, the thought was still that I had a chemical imbalance that needed a drug to fix.

The concept that depression is due to a chemical imbalance seems a controversial one, in his book <a href=”http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1847920837/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1634&amp;creative=6738&amp;creativeASIN=1847920837&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=wwwskyblueriv-21″>The Emperor’s New Drugs: Exploding the Antidepressant Myth</a><img src=”http://www.assoc-amazon.co.uk/e/ir?t=wwwskyblueriv-21&amp;l=as2&amp;o=2&amp;a=1847920837&#8243; width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”” style=”border:none!important;margin:0!important;” /> Irving Kirsch, Associate Director and a lecturer in medicine at the Harvard Medical School, states that he believes idea of depression as a chemical imbalance in the brain is a myth. After some very detailed explanation of how he has examined unpublished data from clinical trials he comes to the unpopular conclusion that:

<blockquote>Depression is a serious problem, but drugs are not the answer. In the long run, psychotherapy is both cheaper and more effective, even for very serious levels of depression.</blockquote>

Of course if you are already on anti-depressants you should consult your medical professional before changing that medication or stopping it and Kirsch does say one thing to learn from this data is that doing nothing is not the best way to respond to depression. So if you are depressed what is the best way to respond?

Michael Yapko a clinical psychologist who has pioneered the use of hypnosis in the treatment of depression has also written several books on subject. He writes that effective help for depression involves teaching coping skills and strategies, amplifying strengths, diminishing weaknesses and developing helpful life skills. Yapko and others believe hypnosis and hypnotherapy can play an important part of that process and I have seen for myself the power of their approach. The approach is very personalised to the individual, as depression is a very individual thing and involves developing hopefulness, and ‘anti depressive’ pathways in the mind.

Indeed Kirsch also sees the value of hypnosis and mentions a study involving a Self Help Hypnosis programme on CD where those on the programme “did at least as well as patients in studies of antidepressants and CBT.” However, for hypnotherapy to be really effective the scripts need to be written specifically for you and that is where problems occur with studies as they like generic, one size fits everyone approach. This is the reason I offer hypnotherapy tracks that are written specifically for you, rather than having many ‘Hypnosis for XXX’ style tracks.

For me the final piece in the puzzle involves coaching in techniques that have been proven to increase emotional well-being, because as emotional well-being increases there is less space for depression. or anxiety and stress for that matter!

You may think that this will takes years, but the reality is that if you are motivated to change, change can happen very quickly; not as quick as popping a pill maybe, but certainly worth the time and commitment if you want a lasting solution to your depression.

To find out more see <a href=”http://www.SkyBlueRiver.co.uk”>www.SkyBlueRiver.co.uk</a&gt;

These are just some examples of exam nerves that can make the whole exam process extremely stressful. Of course a little anxiety is natural, but it is easy for it to get out of hand and stress is well known for preventing us from performing well in exams. It maybe worth remembering that when stressed the neocortex or the clever thinking part of our brain hands over control to our more primeval parts in control of the flight or fight response, the natural response to stress. So easing your exam nerves is about reducing your stress.

Prevention is the best cure they say, and that is as true with exam nerves as it is with many things. Start well before your exams, spend time relaxing in the weeks leading up to them. It maybe that practising relaxation techniques like the 7/11 technique I have blogged about previoulsy could be almost as important as revision itself. Breathing deeply and calmly is key to relaxing your mind, let your stomach move in and out as you breath,  and during those times visualise the being calm leading up your exam and during the exam itself. If you notice during your visualisation that your breathing becomes shallow or your heart rate increases just gently bring your awareness back to breathing deeply and allow your heart rate to return to normal. Prepare your mind emotionally for the exam by visualising completing it confidently and calmly.

On the day itself remember to relax using the breathing techniques like the 7/11 technique which will allow you to overcome your exam nerves and perform to your best.

If you are having real problems with exam nerves and relaxing seems out of reach, hypnotherapy may be your answer. Hypnotherapy is just the use of an altered state of awareness known as ‘hypnosis’ for some therapeutic outcome, in this case being more relaxed during an exam. Hypnosis or ‘trance’ as it is sometimes known, is similar to day dreaming and you are always in full control. Most people will experience a far deeper level of relaxation during hypnosis than they would by simply sitting and trying to relax. The exact nature of the session will depend on your individual requirements but generally the session would involve work to reduce your exam nerves and teaching techniques to use during the exam and just prior to it.

If you would like to know more, please contact me via my website: Sky Blue River.

By using this breathing technique, your body will relax more encouraging your mind to do the same. The focus on your breath will also give your mind something to do rather than paying attention to less relaxing thoughts.

The Technique
Put on some comfortable clothes and find yourself a quiet place to sit or lay where you wont be disturbed. Allow your hands to rest naturally in your lap and your legs to rest uncrossed. Allow yourself to notice the weight of your body resting against the chair or bed.

Now keeping your shoulders down take a deep breath, breathing as deep as you can manage through your nose and pulling the air all the way to the bottom of your lungs, count slowly to 7 if you can, allow your stomach to inflate as you take this breath.

Now gently breath out through your mouth while counting to 11, allowing your stomach to deflate and you will find this triggers your bodies automatic relaxation response.

If your mind wonders gently bring it back to the counting, like you would a child who has wondered of task.

Breathing like this is known as diaphragmatic breathing and repeating it 10 to 20 times will enable you to relax more and more. The key point is to breath out for longer than you breath in, if counting to 7 and 11 is too long you can begin with 3 and 5 and obtain similar benefits.

Enjoy!

Further Reading
HealthSkills Relaxation Training