The stroke that disconnected Cathy Hutchinson’s brain from her body has kept her silent and unable to move for more than 14 years. But science is starting to change all that.

Researchers have connected the 58-year-old woman’s brain to a computer that runs a robotic arm. As Hutchinson sits at a table staring at a bottled drink and imagining the robot grabbing the bottle and bringing it to her mouth, the robot arm begins to move.

To read the rest of this riveting story click here

Glenda Cedarleaf

After 8 years in Minnesota, Glenda Cedarleaf has relocated her hypnotherapy practice back to North Carolina. She sees clients in her North Raleigh office and at Hillsborough Yoga and Healing Arts. She also provides telephone and Skype healing imagery sessions.

In late February Glenda gathered with a wonderful group of artists, teachers, healers, therapists to be trained as a a SoulCollage®facilitator. SoulCollage® is a process birthed by author, therapist, and sage woman Seena Frost.
This powerful process is a wonderful deepening and reinforcing companion to the journey of guided imagery. Glenda is excited about weaving these two creative adventures together in client sessions and future retreats.

To see her latest Newsletter for Mother’s Day click here.

Mothering Ourselves

“You have to find a mother inside yourself.
We all do.
Even if we already have a mother,
we still have to find this part of ourselves inside.”

~ Sue Monk Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees

Susan Gold

New board member Susan Gold is creator and editor of our brand new monthly e-mail newsletter.  Her first one is published and is first to announces our upcoming 4th annual conference speakers and topics.  Susan says each future issue will feature an interview with one of our speakers.  Other time sensitive information with hot links will be included such as notice when ImagiNews is available.

Registration for the conference will be announced soon.  Conference dates are October 5-7, 2012 at Mercy Center in Burlingame, California. We look forward to seeing you there.

If you wish to receive the newsletter you can send a request to signup@imageryinternational.com.

Susan Gold is a fiction writer, teacher, and hypnotherapist practicing in the San Francisco Bay Area. She holds an M.A. degree in creative writing and specializes in using hypnosis and guided imagery to help writers and artists overcome blocks, reconnect with their creativity, and develop discipline in their craft. Please visit her website: http://www.susangold.net

Susan Ezra hosts a panel of Imagery International certified hypnotherapists who incorporate imagery in their work. There are surprises as each has a different approach to their work.  As is often the case with complementary/alternative practices the theory may be different.  This is a fascinating presentation for anyone who is curious about the similarities and differences between Hypnosis and Guided Imagery.

Elizabeth Wolfson

They discuss trauma and how survivors of the Holcaust are helping young traumatized youth to create new meanings and hope.  She refers us to visit Portraits of Survival – Life Journeys During the Holocaust and Beyond to learn more. Listen to the program by clicking on Elizabeth Wolfson – Holocaust Rememberance.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum – Days of Remembrance, April 15–22, 2012

Congress established the Days of Remembrance as the nation’s annual commemoration of the Holocaust and created the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum as a permanent living memorial to the victims. Holocaust remembrance week is April 15–22, 2012. The theme designated by the Museum for the 2012 observance is Choosing to Act: Stories of Rescue.
Watch the live webcast of the National Days of Remembrance ceremony in the US Capitol Rotunda on Thursday, April 19, at 11 a.m.

Hello, everyone.

Belleruth Naparstek

I’m very much looking forward to giving a day-long practicum on posttraumatic stress for mental health and health professionals at Grace and Growth Counseling Center, hosted at Mercer University in Atlanta on April 20th.

The workshop will review what the field has come to know about posttraumatic stress over the past dozen or so years and why guided imagery is a best-practice approach for treating it.  I’ll summarize the relevant clinical research and discuss ways to introduce imagery into a clinical practice, whether that be with individuals, couples, families or groups.

I’ll demonstrate several kinds of effective imagery and go over practical do’s and don’ts, gathered over the years from the combined wisdom of hundreds of practitioners and their clients.  I’ll also be talking about other imagery-based techniques and discussing special considerations when dealing with military-related stress, something we’ve been doing a lot of lately over here at Health Journeys.

If you want to learn more about this, click here or contact Mary Ellen Hughes at Mhughes@graceandgrowth.org or 678-235-3911.

______________________________________________________________________

This week is National Sleep Awareness Week, folks, so we’re featuring some of our sleep-related titles for you to check out. We’re proud of the quality of our carefully curated collection and the range of techniques and practitioners that we’ve put together for you.

It seems to me we’ve never had such an epidemic of sleep deprivation and disruption as what we’re seeing right now, and we can’t keep these titles in stock.  I wonder what that’s about, exactly.  For years, weight loss seemed to be America’s Most Obsessed About Issue, and we used to joke that sales of our Weight Loss imagery paid the bills and allowed us to keep carrying our less popular titles.

I’m not sure exactly when that changed – maybe 10 years ago? – but now Healthful Sleep clearly holds that distinction.  It’s far and away our bestselling title, and has been for quite a while.  This can’t be good either.  Here’s hoping we all get more sleep – the nourishing, restful, replenishing, renewing kind.  

Take care and be well!

Just as the effectiveness of hypnosis and hypnotherapy varies from individual to individual, so too will the effectiveness of a hypnosis recording.  However, it is my opinion that some recordings are better than others.

An interesting observation for me is that no matter how technologically advanced we get (and I can record a .wav file on my digital recorder and burn it to CD or send it in an MP3 format, so here at Rothman Hypnosis we are very technologically advanced), folks still want to call all recordings “tapes.”  Go figure.

A generic recording is the least favorable and the best is a personalized hypnosis recording for the following reasons:

You can buy generic hypnosis recordings on everything from weight loss to smoking cessation and from phobia release to relationship issues all over the Internet, but for the most part, unless you can listen to them ahead of time and determine if there’s nothing in them that won’t bother you, they probably won’t work for you.  Anything that bothers you will cause you to pop out of the very state you are trying to achieve and stay in (i.e. hypnosis). 

Some of the reasons why a hypnosis recording might bother you are as follows:

a.  You don’t relate to the subject matter.  While it may say “weight loss hypnosis” (which of course you do relate to because this is the absolute #1 reason why anybody seeks hypnosis of any sort) you might not like how the subject matter is presented.  For example, the voice on a generic weight loss recording might suggest “You eat less and less every day.”  Is that a good thing?  No!  (If your subconscious mind takes that at face value, that means eventually you will eat nothing).  Can you believe it?  No!  Will you come out of hypnosis if somebody says that to you?  I know I would.  Or the voice could say “You won’t even need to exercise.”  Is that a good thing?  No!  In order to have a healthy lifestyle, you need to exercise.  Some hypnotist / hypnotherapists use metaphors that some will relate to but not others.  For example, I know of a hypnotherapist that uses a metaphor of a car needing fuel and oil in order to run well on their weight loss recordings.  I hate the idea of eating gas or oil, and since the subconscious mind is literal (we think), that would be real turn off for some.  Would you pop out of hypnosis if you heard this?  I did when I heard it.  Plus, most women except maybe Danica Patrick (I would think, but I could be wrong, and please excuse my lack of political correctness), would probably not relate to metaphors about cars.  I absolutely love this hypnotherapist, but I don’t like their metaphor.

b.  You don’t like the voice of the hypnotist.  You may love the description of their recording on their website.  Some folks are great at writing magnificent descriptions of the content of their recordings, but if the hypnotist’s voice is squeaky, too gravelly, too fast, too slow, or have an accent that you find annoying, or their voice has poor inflections where good inflections matter, you will pop out of hypnosis and not get your desired effect.  A bad waste of good money.

c.  You don’t like the music.  If there’s background music, you may like it, and you just may hate it.  I am very picky about this.  I like Tibetan singing bowls on my recordings because I have found that most people like them, and there’s no music for them not to like.  Another option is no background sound at all, but most people who are making hypnosis recordings will not opt for that.

d.  There are too many pops and clicks and/or background noise.  In essence, the recordings are unprofessional.  Another turn off, and one that will take you right out of hypnosis, even if the hypnotist was able to lull you into trance in the first place.

e.  You don’t like the imagery.  Many hypnotists commonly use a “beach scene” to relax people, because most people relax at the beach.  But not all people!  Some people hate the sand, and the noise when there are lots of kids, and the ocean.  Some people might have even been involved in a tragic tsunami and are deathly afraid of water.  In this case, generic is good!  The best imagery is generic imagery where the person finds their own relaxing spot.  In fact, the best hypnosis is non-leading where the person directs every aspect of their hypnotic event with as little interference from the hypnotist as possible.  They become their own “inner hypnotist” if you will.

All this being said, if you find a hypnotist’s recordings that you enjoy on the whole, they may help you will your issues, challenges, and changes particularly if they help you utilize the powers of your own inner mind and they don’t bother you in any way that would cause you to pop out of hypnosis.

Personalized hypnosis recordings are absolutely the best possible option for you.  If the hypnotist / hypnotherapist is doing their job, they are listening very carefully and closely to everything you are saying and can create a recording that will not only be pleasing to you on every level, but will resonate deeply for you in your subconscious mind where your changes must ultimately take place.  These recordings can be done in person, on the phone, or even on Skype as long as the hypnotist / hypnotherapist has the proper recording devices ready to go.

In essence, no generic hypnosis recording can compare to a personalized hypnosis recording created by an experienced, confident, non-judgemental hypnotist who is cognizant of the fact that your mind knows how to heal and change itself better than any outside source.  And since repetition can be a key ingredient for hypnotic success, a personalized hypnosis recording is always your best bet.

Click this link to visit Stephanie’s website.

DEAR COMMUNITY,

Charlotte Reznick

Have you every wondered…

How to discipline your children without ruining their self-esteem?
How to protect your child from being bullied at school or online?
How to deal with picky eaters?
How to raise your children to be financially aware?
How to overcome your own parenting issues to raise emotionally healthy children?
Whether you are a parent, therapist, educator, or medical professional, I am excited to tell you about a great show I’m taking part in. It’s called the Great Parenting Show. It’s the #1 Online Resource for Parents and it promises to answer all of the questions above and more.

This breakthrough three-month series begins on Tuesday March 13th at 10 am PT, 11 am MT, 12 pm CT, and 1 pm ET.  You can learn more and register here.

Not only are the interviews available online, but they are FREE to you AND you can ask your top parenting question of me, and the other 23+ great parenting experts!

********************************************
I will be speaking on Thursday, May 10, 2012. My topic will be The (Healing) Power of Your Child’s Imagination: How to Transform Stress and Anxiety into Joy and Success so don’t miss the chance to ask me your questions live over the web! Register here.

Learn more about Charlotte’s offering click here.

Belleruth Naparstek

Belleruth Naparstek, the author of Invisible Heroes, discusses with host Susan Ezra why Guided Imagery is the treatment of choice for Post Traumatic Stress, combat stress, military sexual trauma and sleep disturbances among issues veterans have difficulty.

As Prevention Magazine recently noted, she has been quietly creating an underground revolution among mainstream health bureaucracies, by persuading institutions like Aetna U.S. Healthcare, the U.S. Veteran’s Administration, The American Red Cross, Kaiser Permanente, Blue Shield of California, United Health Care, Oxford Health Plans, GlaxoSmithKline, Ortho Biotech, Roche, Abbott, Amgen, and nearly 2000 hospitals, mental health centers, social service agencies, health spas and recovery centers to distribute her guided imagery recordings, in several instances free of charge to clients.

Psychotherapist, author and guided imagery innovator Belleruth Naparstek is the creator of the popular, Time Warner Health Journeys guided imagery audio series. To find research on Guided Imagery and other topics mentioned visit her website http://www.healthjourneys.com

Belleruth is giving a day-long practicum on posttraumatic stress for mental health and health professionals at Grace and Growth Counseling Center, hosted at Mercer University in Atlanta on April 20th.

The workshop will review what the field has come to know about posttraumatic stress over the past dozen or so years and why guided imagery is a best-practice approach for treating it.  I’ll summarize the relevant clinical research and discuss ways to introduce imagery into a clinical practice, whether that be with individuals, couples, families or groups.

I’ll demonstrate several kinds of effective imagery and go over practical do’s and don’ts, gathered over the years from the combined wisdom of hundreds of practitioners and their clients.  I’ll also be talking about other imagery-based techniques and discussing special considerations when dealing with military-related stress, something we’ve been doing a lot of lately over here at Health Journeys.

If you want to learn more about this, click here or contact Mary Ellen Hughes at Mhughes@graceandgrowth.org or 678-235-3911.