As a clinical hypnotherapist (AHA), psychotherapist, registered mental health professional (PACFA), and naturopath (ANPA) I ask for 100% commitment to change from my patients and clients.
Why?
Well – the truth is most people don’t want to change very much. You may want to change a few things, but not too much, so you delude yourself that just little changes will bring big changes in your life.
This is not true because if you are experiencing problems you need to cancel the cause and put in new strategies, so it does not happen again.
Why change your mind and behaviours?
Your mind makes a million calculations a day for you to get from waking up to going to sleep. It’s trying to keep you safe and promote the quality of your life.
It does, however, just like any calculation process, make decisions based on the information you have and the way you are viewing and experiencing the world.
If the information you have been fed does not serve your wellbeing, then it’s time to dump useless and outdated knowledge and start to operate on new information.
You can only have good, rewarding behaviour if it’s based on good information. You can only have a good life if the behaviours you are doing are rewarding. Your thoughts shape your brain, and your brain shapes your thoughts. (Kumar J. et al). It’s called neuroplasticity.
So, to have a better life you need to change your information, thoughts and behaviours.
Neuroplasticity in action
Why do I have to change physically?
There is no separation between mind and body. Health professionals may have fooled you into believing there is because they are poorly trained.
You cannot run a good program on your computer unless the hardware is operated at optimum ability. When your hardware keeps dropping out, so does your software.
This may sound cold and analytical, but it is pure reality.
This is why I practice both physical and mental natural medicine. I want to see you supporting the changes ‘you say you want to make’ in all the ways possible. (Mahindru, A., et al, 2023)
I’ll give you an example:
A doctor came to see me because he kept failing his exams three times to become a psychiatrist. He was considerably overweight and morbidly obese.
The excess weight meant he couldn’t breathe properly because the weight was crushing his diaphragm. Every minute he had to gulp for deep breaths and broke out into a sweat losing his concentration.
He adamantly argued that his weight had nothing to do with his inability to concentrate. I told him I couldn’t help him and to come back when he was willing to change everything.
Two months later he came back following all my instructions to lose weight on a medical diet I prescribed, change the way he thought and his behaviours. In six months, he passed his exams.
The ability to self-regulate
Both your mind and body can self-regulate and automatically solve problems if you take daily care of them daily. You may have been making excuses not to do that because you don’t realise the damage lack of self-regulation will cause to your life.
We can see this from people like Bernado LaPallo who lived to 114 years of age and still walked one and a half miles every morning. (LaPallo, 2014)
We can see Tao Porchon-Lynch still taught yoga eight times a week at 100 years of age. (Shaffrey, 2019) When asked how she approached her day she said, “Every morning I say to myself this will be the best day of my life.”
When the Dalai Lama was asked if he was angry about the Chinese invading Tibet he replied. “Anger – what good is angry – anger doesn’t get me anything?
Studies show us that a positive frame of mind towards both your body and thoughts creates wellbeing and happiness.
A balanced happy life
Common commitment to well being
What these people and others like then show us is that the information you use and create inside your mind determines the quality of your physical and mental wellbeing.
These people did not make excuses, and they were 100% committed to creating a good life for themselves and others.
Even the film star Christopher Reves, world famous for playing superman, who became quadriplegic, wrote a book called Still Me.” He retained his sense of humor and was dedicated to creating a charity, directing a film as well as writing a book (Reves 1999).
What all these people have in common is absolute commitment to change and adapt to new circumstances at any time.
Why do I ask you for 100% commitment?
I grew up in absolute poverty with deeply unhappy and miserable parents. I didn’t have any meaningful schooling after 11-years of age and the education before that was quite negatively impacting. I had a medical condition that took years to accommodate.
Nothing was expected of me by others, and I was written off by all my relatives and teachers.
What I learned at ballet class as a child, that I paid for by selling potatoes on the local marketplace, was progress required 100% commitment. I never forgot that, so I read incessantly, got into college at 15-year-old, became a professional dancer, went onto university and worked in health care.
As I said at the beginning, if your life is not working you need to make big changes. My patients have demonstrated to me again and again that 100% commitment to change takes you towards your physical and mental goals.
So, I ask you if you are 100% committed to change. Only when you say you are willing to do that will I take you as a client to make big things happen for you.
As a naturopath I will guide you to your best health possible. As a clinical hypnotherapist I help you change your mind, thought and behaviours fast.
Dr Tracie O’Keefe, BHSc, ND, DCH clinical Hypnotherapist, Psychotherapist, Naturopath & Medical Nutritionist and Orthomolecular Practitioner, PACFA Registered Mental Health Professional. You can visit the clinic or connect by zoom anywhere in the world. Telephone 0403 398808
References
- Kumar, J., Patel, T., Sugandh, F., Dev, J., Kumar, U., Adeeb, M., Kachhadia, M. P., Puri, P., Prachi, F., Zaman, M. U., Kumar, S., Varrassi, G., & Syed, A. R. S. (2023). Innovative approaches and therapies to enhance neuroplasticity and promote recovery in patients with neurological disorders: A narrative review. Cureus. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37588309/
- Mahindru, A., Patil, P., & Agrawal, V. (2023). Role of physical activity on mental health and well-being: A review. Cureus. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36756008/
- LaPallo, B. (2015). Beyond 100: How to live well into your second century. Lulu.com. https://www.amazon.com.au/Beyond-100-Live-Second-Century/dp/1329343301
- Shaffrey, T. (2019). At 100, Tao Porchon-Lynch still teaches yoga [Video]. Associated Press. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQj-kfYEBp8
- Reeve, C. (1999). Still me (1st ed.). Ballantine Books. https://openlibrary.org/books/OL350834M/Still_Me
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