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Hypnosis for Reducing Stress Without Needing Alcohol · The Hypnotist

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  Welcome to The Hypnotist, the show that gives you inside
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  access to cutting edge hypnosis with real clients facing genuine
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  issues. Brought to you by the
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  hypnotherapist, demanded by celebrities, CEOs and even
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  royalty. Adam Cox.
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  These recordings took place live from Adam's clinic in London's
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  world famous Harley Street. This podcast features powerful
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  hypnosis, so do not listen while driving or operating machinery.
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  This recording is not suitable for those with epilepsy or
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  severe mental health issues, so get yourself comfortable and
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  enjoy today's episode of The Hypnotist.
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  Hi, it's Adam here. And in today's episode of The
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  Hypnotist, you're going to be listening to a an alcohol
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  reduction hypnosis session created for a client that wanted
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  to reduce their alcohol consumption just to two or three
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  drinks, maybe 1 bottle of wine on let's say, a Friday or a
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  Saturday. They didn't want to be drinking
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  every day. And what had happened is that a
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  couple of things had reached a point of feeling stressed,
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  feeling overwhelmed, and then alcohol felt really appealing in
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  that moment. So what you're going to hear in
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  this session is. Treating that as.
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  Reconnaissance, it then gives us this ability to say right, well,
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  if alcohol currently is up the list as a coping strategy for
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  stress, we need to have better coping strategies for stress so
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  that alcohol falls all the way down the list so that even if
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  they're stressed alcohol doesn't seem like it's going to help in
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  that situation. So it is a two things really,
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  alcohol reduction, but also stress reduction or providing
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  alternative coping strategies for stress so that alcohol
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  becomes less appealing in that context.
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  If you drink alcohol as a way to reduce stress, actually this is,
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  it's not an addiction, but it can lead to an addiction because
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  alcohol temporarily does make the level of stress go down.
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  And therefore you're rewarding yourself every time you you
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  drink if you're feeling stressed and, and that can create
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  addictive loops. So if you're feeling stressed
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  knowing that no emotion lasts forever and you can manage it in
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  a different way, then actually what you'll find is that alcohol
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  becomes less necessary and more optional.
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  And when it's optional then you can take it or leave it which.
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  Itself is very. Empowering What's also worth
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  bearing in mind when it comes to alcohol is that it will have a
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  huge element of a placebo effect, the ritual of opening a
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  bottle. Of beer or.
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  Pouring a glass of wine and taking your shoes off or just
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  kind of sitting on a couch watching TV with that, there'll
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  be other things that contribute to the relaxation that have
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  nothing to do with the alcohol. Because a lot of people say,
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  well, immediately that first sip of wine, they feel more relaxed.
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  It takes about 20 minutes for the alcohol to actually enter
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  the bloodstream. So therefore that relaxation
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  can't be coming from the alcohol, it has to be coming.
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  From the belief. That it's helping and these are
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  the things that will help you to be free of this idea that
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  alcohol is necessary to reduce stress.
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  It can be, it can link to it, but it isn't necessary.
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  There are lots of other things that can do that as well.
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  If you feel like you're struggling with alcohol and
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  maybe you you drink when you're stressed or drink when you're
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  anxious, that can change. This session itself may help.
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  But if you do feel like a customized session might be
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  useful for you, then there will be a link in the show notes so
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  you can check out my website adamcox.co.uk and book a free
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  consultation Call there. For now though, find a quiet,
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  comfortable place where you won't be disturbed.
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  Relax and enjoy the session. Take a deep breath in, and as
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  you breathe in, imagine breathing in a feeling of pure
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  relaxation. Get the sense of that relaxation
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  going in through your nose into your lungs.
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  And just imagine as you exhale, a steady sense that any stress,
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  any tension, is gradually but consistently leaving your body
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  in your outward breath. And when you breathe in, breathe
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  in deeper than you did before. And as you exhale, allow that
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  outward breath to be longer. Feel the stress or tension
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  leaving your body, almost like you're breathing towards a
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  candle several meters away, really emptying your lungs.
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  And when you breathe in, breathe in even deeper than before,
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  breathing in that distilled relaxation, a resourceful
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  feeling of relaxation. Breathing in what your body
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  needs and giving yourself permission to let go of any
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  unresourceful emotions, particularly stress.
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  Feel stress leaving your body not only in your outward breath.
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  Imagine it melting away. Imagine it evaporating.
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  Imagine it disintegrating. Just imagine all of that stress
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  gradually disappearing into nothingness, and yet you're
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  still breathing in that resourceful relaxation.
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  As your body relaxes, your imagination awakens.
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  And I want you to imagine a hot tub that overlooks a mountain
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  range. Just imagine wearing whatever
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  clothing is suitable to be really enjoying that hot tub.
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  Imagine the temperature of the water is exactly the temperature
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  to maximize your relaxation. Not too hot and not too cold,
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  just the right temperature to really enjoy bathing in that
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  water. I want you to imagine it's not
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  sunset, but getting close. I want you to get a sense that
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  there is a glow, perhaps a glow in the sky, but also a glow on
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  you. I want you to get a sand then.
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  That glow? Of the sun is melting away any
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  remaining tension and stress and a feeling of the water on your
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  skin in that hot tub helps you feel deeper and deeper.
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  Relaxed. Maybe you could imagine the
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  water gently bubbling around you, or perhaps the water is
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  still and it's just the temperature you can notice.
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  But the combination of the views and the warmth and the water
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  gives you a wonderful feeling of pure relaxation.
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  And we need to get a sense of when you look at those distant
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  mountains, just imagine any work related worries or stresses are
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  all the way over there behind the mountains.
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  When the time comes to think about them, those thoughts will
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  return. But not now.
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  Now those thoughts don't need to be in your head to just place
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  them behind the mountains. And notice when you do that you
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  feel lighter, freer, able to enjoy your free time,
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  particularly weekends and evenings.
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  And notice that when you feel relaxed, when you port any
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  worries and thoughts far away, there is no need to feel a
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  desire to drink, and if you do, it's purely for recreation and
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  not self medication. From this point onwards, you no
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  longer need any form of alcohol to deal with stress because you
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  realize there is so many other options here in this hot tub.
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  In your imagination, you feel deeply at peace here, relaxed
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  and safe. Just before you fully drift off
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  in that warmth of the hot tub, I want you to remember a time when
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  you were walking a dog. Also, on a sunny day, I want you
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  to imagine rolling hills and trees and blue skies and maybe
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  old buildings like a church that you could see.
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  You could imagine being in the hot tub, imagining that you're
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  walking a dog and in doing so feel that fresh air, feel
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  invigorated while also relaxed, feeling that any stresses and
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  worries are far, far away. They don't need to be with you
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  while you're walking the dog in that picturesque countryside.
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  Imagine looking at the dog having so much fun.
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  A friendly, happy dog wagging its tail through rural
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  countryside. What if this is a blueprint, a
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  tip? Why is it that dogs don't carry
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  so much stress? Dogs are experts at mindfulness,
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  being in the moment and every time you see your dog looking
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  cheerful, wagging its tail, just enjoying a belly rub or a
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  stroke, to get a sense that that ability to be mindful also
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  applies to you. Anxieties when you think about
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  the future. Regret is when you think about
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  the past. But there is power in the now,
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  in the moment, because in the moment is the only moment that
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  is ever real. I want you to get a sense that
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  as you imagine walking that countryside, perhaps you can
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  imagine flowers or trees, birds in the sky.
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  I want you to think about a time when you were just relaxing at
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  home. You get a sense, then you could
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  imagine being in a hot tub, imagining that you're taking a
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  dog. For a walk.
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  While then imagining being at home on a reclining lounger with
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  a particular scent in the air. Feel how good it feels to just
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  unwind at home. No need for a drink.
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  That smell, that rate of breathing, feeling of just
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  relaxing now gives you a sense that all you need to relax is to
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  give yourself permission to relax.
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  And as you lay there, feeling the softness of that reclining
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  lounge, with the scent drifting through the room, giving you
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  permission to just unwind completely, your mind begins to
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  drift. And maybe as your awareness
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  gently moves inward, you begin to think about how in the past
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  you would automatically reach for a glass of wine, as if it
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  was the only way to unwind. But what if now something has
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  shifted, not just in thought, but deep within you,
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  unconsciously? What if your body and your
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  nervous system now craves other things instead?
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  Movement. Laughter, walking in nature,
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  relaxing in warm water, breathing deeply, Music at a
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  frequency that makes relaxation effortless.
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  Some people find journaling a great way to get thoughts of
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  their head in a place where they can look at them later.
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  Some people find solitude and silence the perfect way to
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  really unwind. Some people find a particular
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  drink, maybe a particular blend of tea or iced tea.
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  We're just watching the sky change colour or clouds drift by
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  happens to work for them. And what if that old belief that
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  wine was either the only way or the best way to deal with
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  stress? What if that belief has crumbled
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  now? What if your own life tells you
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  that there are so many other ways, ways that leave no regret,
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  no guilt, no disappointment, no feeling crossed, breaking your
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  own standards, no tiredness or cloudy morning after.
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  And now when you do drink wine, feel that your unconscious has
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  calibrated a new natural limit. Maybe in the past that natural
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  limit was 2 bottles, and when you got close to that limit,
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  sometimes it would mean drinking to excess hangovers the next
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  day, sometimes even blackouts. I want you to allow your
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  unconscious to set the new limit, an unconscious limit at 1
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  bottle and when you get close to that.
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  One bottle limit. Your desire goes all the way
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  down, almost like it's repulsive or just undesirable or bland to
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  you. What if you feel no desire to
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  drink more than a? Bottle.
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  And if that bottle were ever exceeded, what if your body gave
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  you clues, but you began to feel something change inside you?
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  Perhaps your mind would help you naturally set this limit.
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  Maybe you notice then. More than a bottle.
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  You can't help but think that the wine is corroding your
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  stomach, burning your gut lining.
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  I wonder if you can imagine it now.
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  More than a bottle. Burning, bubbling, damaging the
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  very centre of your well-being. Doesn't feel relaxing, could
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  even feel toxic and corrosive. And maybe emotionally it's worse
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  over a bottle. Feels like fuelling anxiety or
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  disappointment. Maybe it feels like breaking a
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  promise to yourself, like falling short of the new
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  standard that you've created. I want you to feel that this new
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  you knows their worth, values their peace, and appreciates
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  their power. Doesn't it feel good to set a
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  new standard and meet that standard?
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  What, if anything under a bottle makes you feel proud and in
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  control? Healthy.
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  Anything above that makes you feel sick and anxious and tired.
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  I want you to feel that you are in control now, not because you
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  force yourself, but because it's who you are becoming.
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  Feel that it's easier than ever to stop just two or three
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  glasses, or even less. Whatever you think of wine or
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  alcohol, make it a black and white image in your head.
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  Feel like it's small and distant, just doesn't call you
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  anymore. It no longer pulls you the way
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  that it used to. Instead, your unconscious begins
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  to steer you toward sense of peace and tranquility, towards
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  pride. And what if that means that you
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  get more deep sleep, more clarity in the morning, and
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  energy that lasts? What if you've been taking
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  future energy to deal with the moment and then drinking wine to
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  deal with the stress, All of that cortisol in your blood, but
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  then that affects your sleep and then you feel tired the next
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  day. I wonder how good it would feel
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  to break a cycle. You feel less stressed.
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  And when you do feel stressed, you deal with stress in
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  different ways. You drink perhaps 70 or 80% less
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  than you were. Your body has more energy, more
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  clarity, and therefore more of these situations gets managed
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  well and you feel even less stressed.
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  What if this whole cycle can work in the opposite way?
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  The more energy you have, the more accomplished you feel, the
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  more resilient you feel, and the less stress you notice.
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  And anytime a moment of stress or discomfort arises, you will
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  find your mind automatically exploring other options, like
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  tools on a belt or or resources within you.
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  And they work because you work. I want you to feel you're worthy
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  effort, feel sense of duty, of care, of peace.
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  It's time to leave this place in your mind.
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  Can you imagine that You're no longer on that lounger smelling
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  that incense. You're actually walking a dog
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  through beautiful countryside and then realise this is a
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  thought within a different thought.
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  And you're actually there in a hot tub overlooking mountains
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  behind which your problems are far, far away.
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  But even that, it's just a thought within a thought, an
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  idea within an idea, a dream within a dream.
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  And actually here you are, right now, in the moment, here,
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  listening to me. So take a deep breath in through
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  your nose and out through your nose.
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  Swiggle your fingers and wiggle your toes.
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  Start to connect and calibrate the here and the now.
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  Very soon I will count from 1:00 to 10:00 to awaken you.
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  But you will awaken with a whole new level of self-control, a
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  deep respect and care for your body, and a quiet, lasting
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  desire to live a life that doesn't need more than two or
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  three drinks and most of the time doesn't need it at all.
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  Starting to count to awaken you 123 Waking up 456 More alert 7
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  eights Open your eyes, Open your eyes 910.
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  Wide awake, wide awake, wide awake.
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  Thank you for listening to The Hypnotist with Adam Cox, the
• 26:44
  show that gives you inside access to cutting edge hypnosis
• 26:47
  with real clients facing genuine issues.
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