It’s not hard but it’s hard to talk about!

So, erectile dysfunction. Of course you don’t suffer from it, but maybe you have a ‘friend’ who does?  It’s very common but rarely discussed openly. Losing an erection or failing to get an erection is a very common problem which affects most men at some point in their lives. Sex is an important part of life and this problem can often cause you to lose confidence, your relationships might suffer and it can make you feel anxious or down. Although it’s a very common problem, the good news is that there is a lot that can be done to help the situation.

Common causes of erectile dysfunction include stress, tiredness, worry, as well as physical problems such as impaired blood flow down there.

Let’s talk a little biology now.

Our autonomic nervous system is the part of our body which looks after things like our breathing, digestion, immune system, reproductive systems etc. Basically all the systems in your body which work without you being consciously aware, are controlled by your autonomic nervous system.

This system can be in one of two states:

A Fight or Flight State

A Rest and Reproduction State

When we are anxious or stressed our Fight or Flight Response is stimulated. This causes blood flow to be diverted to our arms and legs. It causes our heart rate and breathing to quicken and adrenaline to be released. All these reactions get us ready to run or fight. When the Fight or Flight response kicks in, sex and erections are suppressed. After all, if you had to run from danger the last thing you would want would be an erection!

This system worked brilliantly when we evolved and were subjected to short term stress, such as running from a predator. Unfortunately, in modern life, we can be stressed about work, difficult relationships or social pressures. This means we are often stressed chronically.

When this happens, the Rest and Reproduction System is suppressed over a long period of time, often leading to erectile dysfunction. Of course, once erectile dysfunction becomes an issue you get anxious about it happening and this exacerbates the issue.

Erectile dysfunction can be caused by physical or psychological factors.

The most common physical cause of erectile dysfunction is restricted blood flow to the penis, causing by narrowing of the blood vessels. If you are suffering then do go and see your GP. If you are suffering with erectile dysfunction you should speak to your GP first to identify any underlying physical issues.

As a hypnotherapist I help men to overcome erectile dysfunction which has been caused by psychological factors. The key is to remove any anxiety related to sex. This turns off the Fight or Flight Response and turns on the Rest and Reproduction Response.

There is a great technique you can use to do this.

1) Get yourself into a lovely relaxed state, either by focussing on your breathing or imagining various parts of your body relaxing in turn.

2) When you feel very relaxed, double that level of relaxation, perhaps by imagining going down levels or walking down a flight of stairs, relaxing more with each step.

3) When you are really relaxed imagine yourself in bed with your partner. Really imagine it as vividly as possible, as if you're actually there. Notice what you see, hear and feel.

4) All the time concentrate on relaxation and hold on to that level of relaxation.

5) Imagine the whole scenario all the way through to the end and see yourself successfully getting and maintaining an erection and having good sex.

6) Repeat as often as possible.

Hypnotherapy is very effective for helping to overcome erectile dysfunction. If you would like a hypnosis MP3 to help you with this problem you can download one from:

http://www.cs-hypnotherapy.co.uk/Mp3download.aspx

How to have a stress free Christmas

Christmas should be a fun time of year. However, with the pressures of present buying, entertaining family and industrial scale food production, Christmas can turn into a stressful time of year. Not to mention the dreaded work Christmas party, loved by the supermodels of this world, loathed by the vast majority. So, how do you relax and enjoy the Christmas season?

Here are five simple ways to have a stress free Christmas.

1)      Notice the good things about yourself. Christmas parties can bring out many people’s insecurities. Instead of focusing on the negative, find five things about yourself that you like. Imagine what your best friend would say to compliment you, and say the same thing to yourself. It’s amazing how this shift in perspective boosts your confidence.

2)      Don’t catastophize. Sometimes, when we’re feeling stressed, small problems seem bigger. We sometimes imagine the worst case scenario. When you notice yourself catastophizing, stop! Challenge your thoughts. Will you be hated by the whole of humanity if you over cook the sprouts? –Unlikely. If you can’t buy the exact present you wanted for your partner. What’s the worst that can really happen? Make you sure you keep small issues in perspective.

3)      Say No. We often want to please everyone. However, it’s OK to be a little selfish from time to time. If you feel too busy to attend an event, say No to it. If you have got too much on your plate, (metaphorically speaking!), then ask family members or friends to help. It’s important to look after yourself and not to get swept up in putting everyone else’s needs before your own.

4)      Do something every day just for you. Plan something each day, which you enjoy. This is not
something you have to do or should do, it’s something you want to do. It could be something like reading a book or magazine, meeting up with a friend, or going for a walk. Do something every day just for you. This is a great way to relax, feel happier and also to boost your self-esteem.

5)      Download my free Wash Away Stress MP3 (usually £10) here.

If you would like more information about hypnotherapy, well-being and personal development, please subscribe to my newsletter in the top right.

Falling at 100 mph

I was lucky enough to recently do something I had always wanted to do. I l jumped out of a plane at 10,000 feet. It was wonderful. Do feel free to watch the video. http://youtu.be/3pvYwfO8QBI

 I appreciate that it is not everyone’s cup of tea. In fact many people said they felt nervous just watching the video. I, however, felt only excitement about the jump.  Many people actually commented about how cool I seemed to be. Being a hypnotherapist, of course gives me an unfair advantage, when it comes to overcoming nerves. Naturally, I used certain techniques to remain unafraid. The good news is, that you can easily use these same techniques to overcome any nerves you have. Whether that is overcoming a fear of flying or being able to do public speaking, these techniques can help you.

A great technique that you can do without hypnosis is Systematic Desensitization. This technique works by pairing the feeling of relaxation with the scenario (e.g. a skydive) in your mind. It's impossible to feel relaxed and anxious at the same time, so the association of relaxation replaces that of anxiety.

Systematic Desensitization – Pairing Relaxation with the Trigger

  1) Get yourself into a lovely relaxed state, by closing your eyes and taking deep slow breaths.

2) When you feel very relaxed, double that level of relaxation, perhaps by counting from 10 to 0 and allowing yourself to go deeper into relaxation with each number that you count.

3) When you are really relaxed imagine yourself in the situation which you feel anxious about. Really imagine it as vividly as possible, as if you're actually there. Notice what you see, hear and feel.

4) All the time concentrate on relaxation and hold on to that level of relaxation.

5) If you start to feel anxious, then let go on the trigger and focus once again on relaxation.

6) Imagine the whole scenario all the way through to the end and see yourself successfully handling it.

7) Repeat as often as possible, gradually increasing the severity of the trigger, e.g. imagining progressively higher heights.

When we feel anxious about an upcoming event we often think about it. The problem is we often think about the most frightening part. Or we imagine ourselves coping badly. From now on, whenever you imagine a nerve wracking situation, imagine it through to the end, when you are once again safe. Also imagine yourself coping in a calm way. This teaches the brain that the fearful situation actually turns out ok.

I hope these tips help. Please do leave comments below if you use any of these techniques.

If you would like more information about hypnotherapy, well-being and personal development, please subscribe to my newsletter in the top right.

A Simple Guide to Self-Hypnosis



In my hypnotherapy practice, I teach my clients self-hypnosis techniques. Self-hypnosis is a wonderful skill to have. Using self-hypnosis you can:
focus your thoughts,
relax,
relieve stress,
see things from a new perspective and
have a greater clarity of thought.

Hypnosis is often seen as slightly mystical, or as being a difficult state to achieve. However, in reality, hypnosis is similar to daydreaming and we enter hypnotic states many times during the day. Therefore, learning to enter hypnosis yourself (self-hypnosis) is actually surprisingly easy and I'm going to give you a couple of methods here.

Self-hypnosis method 1 – read through all the instructions before starting

1.       Get yourself into a safe and comfortable position. Make sure that it is safe close your eyes and that you are unlikely to be disturbed. Lying on a sofa or a bed is ideal.

2.       Close your eyes and make yourself as comfortable as possible

3.       Take deep, slow breaths. With each breath imagine breathing in calmness and relaxation and breathing out any tension or worry.

4.       Continue for a few minutes, breathing in calmness and relaxation. Breathing out any tension or worry.

5.       Some people like to imagine the calmness and relaxation as a white colour they are breathing in.

6.       You could also imagine the tension and worry to have physical qualities as you breathe them away from yourself.  

7.       Your mind may wander, and that’s fine. Whenever you notice your mind wandering just bring it back to your breath.

8.       In your imagination, imagine yourself at the top of a flight of stairs. You are stood at the top of the flight of stairs, looking down. As you look down you can see ten steps leading gently down. Take the time to make this image as clear as possible in your mind.

9.       Walk down the stairs one by one as your count down in your own mind from ten to zero.

10.   With each step you walk down and with each number you count down, imagine that you are relaxing more and more.

Self-hypnosis method 2 – read through all the instructions before starting

1.       Get yourself into a safe and comfortable position. Make sure that it is safe close your eyes and that you are unlikely to be disturbed. Lying on a sofa or a bed is ideal.

2.       Close your eyes and make yourself as comfortable as possible

3.       Imagine, just imagine don’t actually do it, tensing every muscle in your body. Imagine tensing your whole body from the top of your head to the tips of your toes. Hold that feeling of tension for a couple of seconds.

4.       Now imagine letting go of all that tension and relaxing the whole of your body. You can allow your body and all your muscles to really relax and let go. Actually relax all the muscles.

5.       Imagine tensing all of the muscles in your feet. Imagine curling your toes and tensing all the muscles in the feet.

6.       Then, just relax the feet as much as you possibly can. Allow all the muscles in the feet to just relax and let go.

7.       Allow the feet to remain completely relaxed. Now tense all the muscles in your legs. Tightening the muscles in your calves and thighs. Hold that tension for a couple of seconds.

8.       Then, let go. Allow all the muscles in your legs to relax.

9.       Continue to imagine tensing and then actually relaxing all of the muscles in your

a.       Abdomen

b.      Lower back

c.       Upper back

d.      Chest

e.      Arms and hands

f.        Shoulders and neck

g.       Face and head

10.   Let your mind relax too and think of a place where you feel really comfortable, safe and secure. Really vividly imagine yourself being in that comfortable, safe, secure place.

Coming out of hypnosis

Once you have finished your hypnotic technique your can bring yourself out of hypnosis by counting from one to five in your mind. As you reach the count of five your eyes will open and you will feel awake and energised.

Mastering self-hypnosis has many wonderful physical and psychological benefits. If you would like more information do get in touch on www.cs-hypnotherapy.co.uk.

Useful tips and advice are also on my Facebook page. Join the Facebook community   http://www.facebook.com/CatherineSwatridgeHypnotherapy

Hypnobirthing – It is good enough for royalty

Hypnobirthing – It is good enough for royalty

As the date approaches for the birth of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s baby, it has been reported that the Duchess is planning to use hypnobirthing.

You may have heard about hypnobirthing, using hypnosis to make childbirth easier. But how does it actually work?

The connection between our minds and bodies is more powerful than you could imagine and you can use this power to your advantage. Even aspects of your physiology which you would consider as being automatic are influenced by our minds.

A good example of mind/body interaction is the way that we blush when we think of something embarrassing. This is an example of a simple thought changing the blood flow in our face.

Within my practice I often create numbness of the right hand. This is to enable clients to use their right hand to alleviate pain. While their right hand is numb the right hand is totally pale, a completely different colour to the left. This is a fascinating example of how the mind can control the body

Hypnobirthing is a fantastic way to give birth. Using hypnosis you can change your perception of pain, you can relax more deeply than normal and you can let go of any anxiety.

Lots of women (and their partners) can understandably feel very worried or anxious about childbirth. The first part of my hypnobirthing program uses relaxation techniques and diminishes anxiety about childbirth.

Relaxation techniques are also incredibly useful during the birth. When you are tense, your muscles tense up and your adrenal glands release adrenaline. All of which can slow down the birth process. If you are relaxed, your muscles are more relaxed and you feel calmer, then birth can be a much easier, quicker experience.

I teach a variety of pain relief techniques to my clients. These techniques work fantastically well and are the most important element of my hypnobirthing programme. Being able to manage pain is such a valuable tool and minimises the need for other interventions such as epidurals and pethidine during childbirth.

I provide my clients with CDs to listen to at home in the last few weeks before the birth and also during labour. This allows you to really master all the techniques before the big day. Please do get in touch if this wonderful method of childbirth appeals to.

Various studies have supported the wonderful benefits of hypnobirthing. Labours are shorter for women who use hypnobirthing compared to those who do not. Women using hypnobirthing also require less drug intervention than those who are not using hypnobirthing. It has also been suggested that an easier birth can lead to a happier baby and better bonding between mum and baby.[1]

If you are expecting a baby and would like to find out more about how hypnobirthing could work for you do get in touch at www.cs-hypnotherapy.co.uk

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[1] Hao TY, Li YH, Yao
SF. Clinical study on shortening the birth process using psychological suggestion therapy. Zhonghua Hu Li Za Zhi. 1997 Oct; 32(10):568-70. (General Military Hospital of Jinan, P.R. China.)

Jenkins, M.W., & Pritchard, M.H.
Hypnosis: Practical applications and theoretical considerations in normal labour. British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 100(3), 221-226, 1993.

Harmon, T.M., Hynan, M., & Tyre, T.E.
Improved obstetric outcomes using hypnotic analgesia and skill mastery combined with childbirth education. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 58, 525, 530, 1990.