Celebrities turn to hypnotherapy to help conquer their jungle fears.

As ITV’s I’m a Celebrity…Get me out of Here! starts again this week, this year’s celebrities will undoubtedly be faced with some of their biggest fears in the Australian jungle – much to our delight!

Most Haunted star Yvette Fielding, a contestant on this year’s show, admitted that she had attempted hypnotherapy previous to entering the jungle to conquer her fears. Similarly, Linda Robson last year also underwent hypnotherapy before the show, to help control her extreme phobia of rats and spiders.

The jungle experience faces celebrities with extreme challenges including coming into contact with snakes, tarantulas and various critters, being buried under ground in a confined space or hanging on a wire at extreme heights. However phobias and fears can be developed about almost anything.

Most phobias develop in childhood and are far more common than many of us realise. It is estimated that more than 11% of the population are living with some kind of irrational fear.

What is a phobia?

A phobia is a type of ANXIETY DISORDER, and even thinking about the source of a phobia can lead people to feel panicky or anxious. They can be specific such as animal phobias, situational phobias such as the fear of flying or environmental phobias such as heights and deep water. Complex phobias are known to be more disabling, causing extreme anxiety. This can sometimes result in a person avoiding busy crowded places, travelling on public transport or being alone.

The solution is generally to see the phobia in a different context starting from an objective perspective and then generally building up exposure from a minimal to comfortable level.

If a fear or phobia is affecting your everyday life then hypnotherapy may be a solution for you to consider. Hypnotherapy is a relaxation technique that helps you to manage your symptoms - phobias can often be treated in just one session.

Although there is no guarantee with hypnotherapy, as change heavily relies on an individual’s willingness to embrace it, I have had many success stories.

If this post relates to you, get in touch with either myself or one of my professional accredited hypnotherapists. No problem is too big or too small.

Sheila x

Preparing Hull for the 2017 Hull City of Culture year : How local businesses can reap the rewards

There’s no doubt that the local region has had a very exciting couple of years.

In 2013 Hull won the UK City of Culture 2017-and since then, we have seen huge changes taking place.

With increased publicity on the city, as well as more investment and opportunity pouring in, how can local businesses reap the rewards, and adapt to a changing environment?

It is important to begin making your business as appealing as possible-how can you extend its reach? How can your product beat the competition? If you own a shop and you think it could do with a bit of a makeover, now is the perfect time to banish those cobwebs and give it a fresh lick of paint.

Championing our local talent and products is a fantastic way of introducing ourselves to the rest of the world. The things that make Hull stand out are the individuality and local skill we can offer.

Hull City of Culture 2017 will see a huge amount of attention fixed on us, not just national coverage but international, too-it is a highly prestigious event and sure to boost the region’s profile. Make sure your business does not get left out!

Over the course of several years, I have helped 3,500 people harness their own potential, gain new clients plus secure future business bookings with my methods to encourage positive thinking and proactivity.

Find out how I can help your business prepare for 2017 by dropping me an email, or clicking on the events section of the website to find my next seminar!

Sheila x 

Feeling down? Blame the weather! How people’s moods are affected by the seasons.

Have you been experiencing mood swings lately, or feeling a little bit out of sorts?

Feeling a little bit down is normal and usually picks up after a much needed cup of tea and a chat with friends.

However, some people report serious mood swings depending on the time of year.

There has been a lot in the papers recently about how people feel differently at different times of the year.

I have heard from people who feel very down and depressed when it’s dark and cold during winter. Their mood usually picks up again in time for summer. Some people report feeling very tired and sluggish during summer, but alert during winter.

It’s all too easy when its miserable and cold outside to retreat into your home, cancel those plans and snack on a serotonin-boosting snack to lift your spirits; and even with an extra half an hour in bed you still find yourself feeling tired and sleepy-headed.

Some people have even resorted to buying expensive light boxes in order to get some much needed vitamin D on dark, cold days.

Known as Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD, experiencing mood swings is becomingly increasingly common, yet not much coverage has really been done on the phenomenon.

Many people are turning to hypnotherapy in order to manage their symptoms-it’s safe, and works by putting you into a state of deep relaxation, allowing you to visualise feeling happier, healthier and more balanced!

This is becoming a much more viable alternative for people who don’t like the thought of lots of medication or counselling.

With hypnotherapy, you are relaxed, and able to visualise a happier future for yourself, and manage your symptoms.

To find out more on how my hypnotherapy sessions can help you manage your seasonal mood swings, drop me an email on my email address.

Sheila x 

Escape the work rut

Do you feel as though you have got yourself into a bit of a rut?

It’s so easy to pick up habits as part of our daily work routine.

These could be as simple as picking up a stodgy lunch, clocking off a little earlier than normal, or even staying in bed for those extra fifteen minutes.

If you feel like you need to freshen your routine up, and improve your work-life balance, then look no further than my handy hints below:

1.    Get up earlier. It’s a commitment not many people want to make. Getting up earlier is like a physical pain to some poor people. But there’s no denying that the early to bed, early to rise adage really is true. Getting up earlier gives you more time to wake up, grab a proper breakfast and prepare to seize the day.

2.    Take a different route to work. It sounds simple-but it is a great way of mixing your routine up a little in a morning. If you drive to work, try setting off in good time and taking a more scenic route. If you walk or get the bus, try walking a different route, or getting off at an earlier stop. Studies by psychologists have found it’s a great way of making you more alert and perceptive.

3.    Visualise your goals: Spend afew minutes every day closing your eyes, letting all the clutter fade away and focus on your main goals that day. It can be anything-making time for the gym, cooking a healthy meal, or spending some evening time with your children. Crossing out each task you have achieved that day is a fantastic boost and gets you out of that rut.

4.    Be proactive: Is there a goal you would like to achieve in your life? Or an experience you would like to have? Be proactive to make any changes you feel are necessary in order to achieve them. Don’t be afraid to take the leap!

5.    Spend time with friends and family: Spending quality time with those you care about is really important. Studies have shown a quick coffee and a natter with friends can boost self-esteem. Don’t forget to make time!

Sometimes, you may need a bit more help to get out of that rut. If you find yourself feeling low quite a bit, and struggling to make the changes you want, you may benefit from talking to a professional.

Hypnotherapy works because it helps you find your own potential through the power of positive thinking. I firmly believe we all have the ability to make positive changes in our lives.

If you would be interested in hearing how hypnotherapy can help you to succeed, drop me an email or browse my website to find one of my licensed practitioners.

Sheila x

'I've never hypnotised anyone - they do it themselves'

This week I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Catherine Lea, business editor of the Hull Daily Mail. 

We spoke about my work with schools to help students overcome exam anxiety and being tasked to help big corporates to reduce stress levels among employees. 

We even took a trip down memory lane, back to where it all started, when I read about a woman who could't stop hiccoughing and offered her free hypnotherapy. I'd only been qualified for a couple of weeks, so it was a bit of a risk, but I felt it was something I could help and it certainly paid off in the end. 

I took Catherine on my globe trotting journey and we touched on some of the 1000 trained practitioners that are accredited to deliver Sheila Granger Hypnotherapy, as well as licensed trainers in four different countries. 

Every time I am approached for an interview I still get surprised, because at the end of the day I am just doing my job and that is to help people. And as the saying goes, if you love your job, it doesn't feel like work.   

How we can prepare our children for exam results

For most children and young adults, exams are an extremely stressful time. There is a lot of pressure to ‘get everything right’ be able to answer every question, and not ‘let themselves down.’

In fact, a recent study found that exam results directly influence a child’s self-esteem. The higher the grade, the better they will feel about themselves.

Exam time can also be a challenging time for youngsters because they often come before a major change. This could be a new school, new lessons, or even right before they leave for University. 

Around exam season, schools, colleges, and universities put a huge amount of effort into creating helpful study guides, study sessions and trying to help young people as much as possible during this difficult time.

Preparing your child for receiving their results, whether it’s a month, week, or even the night before, is really important and can help them to cope, whatever their results may be.

Worrying about what questions they may have answered incorrectly, whether they let themselves or their school down, and trying to imagine their future can all run through young peoples’ heads right before they receive their results. It’s a stressful time.

Something which can really help banish those negative voices is meditation.

By practising meditation, you are teaching yourself to get rid of all of those unwanted thoughts and feelings that cloud your judgement-worries about what questions you answered correctly, or whether you did enough revision, can create feelings of tension and affect confidence.

Meditation helps to calm those nerves and make you focus-lots of professional athletes and musicians are known to meditate right before they go into the spotlight because it helps them to focus on their goal.

I wish all students the best of luck in their exam results.

If you would like to find out more information on the power of positive thinking, browse my website or write me an email today!

Sheila. 

Jetting off? Overcome your fear of flying

Have you still got a holiday to look forward to this year?

Left right and centre it seems people are packing their suitcases and jetting off for a much needed dose of sun and sand.

However, there are many people who come to dread holiday season.

A fear of flying is becoming more and more commonplace these days, as long distance travel becomes easier and more accessible. I have spoken to people who say they are so frightened of flying they can’t sleep the night before they fly, and become a nuisance to other passengers with their nervous behaviour.

I have had reports of people spending a small fortune on dubious sounding ‘quick fix’ courses, sleeping tablets to take during the flight, and even missing their holiday altogether out of fear.

Hypnotherapy is an ideal solution to help people overcome their fear of flying. There is nothing unusual or magic about it, really! People are placed into a state of deep relaxation, where they can help themselves to focus and think about a situation that would normally cause fear or anxiety.

This method allows people to face their fear of flying safely, while still in control-people have told me hypnotherapy is a much better option than taking strong medications with side effects, or simply trying to ‘grin and bear it.’ On the day of their flight.

The number of hypnotherapy sessions needed can vary depending on the person, and the level of their phobia. I have seen people have just one session and be able to board a plane the week after with no worries, while for others it can take further sessions until they can face a flight.

If you are interested in finding out how hypnotherapy can help you face your fears, don’t hesitate to drop me a line on my email address or browse my website.

Sheila x

Sheila eyes prize for work with youngster's minds

“Being nominated for this award has come as a complete shock” 

A SELFLESS East Yorkshire-based clinical hypnotherapist has been nominated for the Mail's Pride of East Yorkshire Awards for her work helping students adopt a positive mindset and deal with exam-related anxiety.

Sheila Granger, a professional lifestyle engineer and clinical hypnotherapist who works as far a field as Australia and the USA, launched the Educational Performance division of her business four years ago in response to growing concerns over the number of children on mental health service waiting lists.

She recognised that by providing support mechanisms to those young people with lower levels of anxiety, it would prevent their problems from escalating into something with much more devastating consequences.

Now, she has trained a team of more than one hundred Educational Performance Practitioners worldwide to ensure young people, their parents and their schools can access support of this nature no matter where they are.

Sheila has been nominated for the Mail’s Business in the Community award by her communications partner Mercury.

“Being nominated for this award has come as a complete shock,” said Sheila. “I thoroughly enjoy my work with schools and it’s been incredible to see the Educational Performance side of my business go from strength to strength due to increased demand over recent years.

“We all have expectations placed on us, either by ourselves or by others, and it’s these expectations that can cause us the greatest stress. Students with low expectations who believe they are going to fail, find it difficult to think positively – which ultimately impacts on their performance.

“In much a similar way, top performing students have to contend with the weight of increased expectations and sometimes the pressure to deliver can set them up for a fall. For teachers, there is already a vast emphasis on the delivery of pastoral care and teachers have the added role of coaching individuals through the exam experience, as well as preparing them academically.”

There’s no place quite like home for Sheila. She says it’s been an honour to work with students and teachers on her doorstep, in her hometown of Hull, to make a difference to their lives.

She has been working closely with students at Endeavour High School in recent months, which is closing at the end of this school year, to make sure pupils go out on a high.

Teachers at the school say the initiative has paid real dividends with students better prepared than ever before.

Headteacher Stewart Edgell said: “If you have a student who is worried and you bring someone in who can help them by arming them with new strategies and coping mechanisms, they feel valued that someone has taken note of their concerns and is doing something with them.

“Sheila’s work has dovetailed nicely into giving students a positive outlook and creative ways of preparing for exams, such as setting aside one hour a day when they can worry but during the rest of the day putting any negative thoughts out of their minds for example.

“I am in no doubt whatsoever that this work has had a significant impact on the students who have worked with Sheila.”

Rachael Dean, account executive at Mercury, nominated Sheila after working closely with her in recent months and being inspired by the true difference she is making to young people in East Yorkshire.

She said: “It always moves me when I see the life-changing results of Sheila’s work. As a recent graduate myself, I know how detrimental the effects of exam-related anxiety can be and it’s really inspiring to see how Sheila can help shape someone’s future who, in their mind, might have already lost all hope.”

Too late to shape up for summer? NEVER!

Summer is finally here, and yes it will probably be gone before you can say BBQ, but that doesn't mean you still can't kick those bad habits that you've been promising to do since January. 

When the days are long, dark and cold, it’s all too easy to munch on that extra biscuit for a much needed sugar fix, wear extra layers and stay warm on the sofa instead of donning trainers and going for a walk in the fresh air.

Staying in and popping the telly on seems a much better idea than getting out and about with friends, and it can be easy to become isolated.

Summer is the wake up call many people need to start getting back to their healthier, happier lives and getting rid of those bad habits!

By following my basic tips for banishing the blues, you can claim back your body confidence and back into that bikini before you know it!

1.    Practise mindfulness. Start off by making small goals. They can be anything-fitting in a twenty minute walk on your lunch break, or trying something new for tea. Ticking off those you achieved on an evening bring a fantastic sense of achievement.

2.    Get healthy: Winter is an excuse for a binge-when the weather is miserable and dark, we crave carby, sugary food in order to boost our low moods. Start off by banishing those calorific snacks in favour of healthier alternatives.

3.    Sleep it off: Make sure you are getting enough sleep! Going without our recommended eight hours can have all sorts of effects on us long term, including irritability, poor concentration and even a lower immune system!

4.    Talk it through: Has the long winter and busy holiday season left you feeling a little bit flat? There’s nothing like making fun plans and chatting through any problems you have with friends. In fact, regular interaction with others has been proven to improve depression and boost self-esteem!

5.    5: Be Realistic: Many people start off with unrealistic expectations-the trick is to take small steps, be honest with yourself, and if in doubt seek more help!

If you are interested in finding out more on how my popular hypnotherapy sessions can help you achieve happiness and health, or to find out when my next seminars will be, don’t hesitate to drop me a line on my email!

Sheila x

Endeavour School use hypnotist to help pupils with exams

"The work we have been doing with Sheila is to ensure students are in the best frame of mind when they sit their exams"

STUDENTS at a city school are being hypnotised to relieve exam stress.

Clinical hypnotherapist Sheila Granger has been working with GCSE students at Endeavour High School on techniques to help them through the exam period.

Teachers say the initiative is paying dividends, with students being better prepared than ever.

The Beverley Road school closes this summer and headteacher Stewart Edgell is determined youngsters will go out on a high.

He said: "We want the school to go out on a high this year, but ultimately we want our students to achieve the very best results that they can individually.

"The work we have been doing with Sheila is to ensure students are in the best frame of mind when they sit their exams, and that any barriers to them performing at their best have been removed.

NEW TECHNIQUES: Headteacher Stewart Edgell and Sheila Granger with pupils. Picture: Jack Harland

"If you have a student who is worried and you bring someone in who can help them by arming them with new strategies and coping mechanisms, they feel valued that someone has taken note of their concerns and is doing something with them.

"When you get a critical mass of students being looked after in this way, it's much more likely everyone will perform better across the board."

Mr Edgell said the school has worked hard with its 101 students to ensure they achieve the best results they can.

He said: "We brought Sheila in to work with students who we identified that would benefit from additional strategies for preparing for their exams, adopting a positive mindset and believing that they can do it when it comes to achieving their potential.

"We have worked with our students to help them structure their revision carefully and Sheila's work has dovetailed nicely into that in terms of giving them a positive outlook and creative ways of preparing for exams."

'Massive student pressure

Sheila Granger, clinical hypnotherapist, said: "With exam season well and truly upon us, the pressure on students gains considerable momentum at this time of year.

"I have been delighted to work with Endeavour High School in the run up to this important time of year and it's been a real pleasure to work with the students there.

"We all have expectations placed on us, either by ourselves or by others, and it's these expectations that can cause us the greatest stress".

If you are interested in any of my services or need some questions answering, feel free to contact me via email or visit my website. 

Needle Phobia: Taking back control

 "NEEDLE PHOBIA IS A DEFINED MEDICAL CONDITION THAT AFFECTS 20 - 23 PER CENT OF THE POPULATION"

One in four of us will need to receive blood at some point in our lives, so it was quite alarming to see “Britain heading for blood donor crisis as new numbers giving blood drops by 40%” splashed across the headlines earlier this week.

NHS Blood and Transplant says 120,000 fewer people joined the blood donor register in 2014-15 than in 2004-05. Most of us know giving blood saves lives, but not nearly enough of us do it and the NHS believes one of the main reasons is the increasing pressure on people's free time – citing longer commutes and the distractions of social media.

Needle phobia is a very important, but widely ignored condition and one which I believe is contributing to the decline in donors. Many people who are afraid of needles get labelled as being ‘a bit of a wimp’, but this is far from the case.

For some individuals it can be mildly distressing but manageable.  For others it can be seriously debilitating, causing massive anxiety attacks, cold sweats and blind panic. It is actually a defined medical condition that affects between 20 and 23 percent of the adult population, to such an extent that it causes some to even avoid essential medical appointments.

People come to me for help with all sorts of fears and phobias. Hypnotherapy works by accessing the underlying cause of the phobia and eliminating the person’s conditioned response to the stimulus. 

While I’m not promising I will be able to alleviate your fear altogether, although this has been reported in a vast amount of cases, I can definitely help you to control your phobia once and for all.  

The blood unit is calling for 204,000 new volunteers to start donating. Do not let your fear control your life, get in touch with one of my accredited hypnotherapists to arrange a consultation to get the help you need today. The results could be life-changing, and not just for you.

Sheila x

Exam stress and believing you can do it!

"we all have expectations placed on us, either by ourselves or by others, and it’s these expectations that can cause us the greatest stress"

Many of us will be able to recall how nerve-racking it can be to take an exam. Butterflies in our stomach, sweaty palms, a racing heart and panicking that we won’t be able to remember anything we’ve learnt are all common feelings before an exam.

But, when I recently read that children as young as ten were smoking cigarettes to prepare for their exams I was in utter shock. The poll of 1,000 youngsters, who took Key Stage Two SATS last year, also found the students are gorging on junk food and drinking energy drinks for breakfast.

This just proves that there is definitely a huge demand for children to be equipped with skilled coping techniques to get them through this stressful time of year. So, recently I have stepped back into the classroom to help pupils maximise their potential before the exam season got underway.

I have been busy working with several local schools and students, conducting a range of group and one-to-one sessions with the aim of instilling coping strategies that allow everyone to perform to their best ability.

What’s interesting is that, we all have expectations placed on us, either by ourselves or by others, and it’s these expectations that can cause us the greatest stress. Students with low expectations who believe they are going to fail, find it difficult to think positively – which ultimately impacts their performance.

This mind-set is called premature cognitive commitment, which, in a nutshell, means that if you don’t believe you can do something, you won’t even try despite never reassessing whether your belief is true or not.

Take this story of the Indian elephant as an example. A baby elephant is chained to a big tree and the elephant will struggle against the shackles, but only for a period of time. It then gives in to the belief that as long as there is something around its foot, it no longer has free will. Once it’s fully grown, it can be tied by a flimsy rope to a small plant and it will not try to escape - despite the fact that it would be able to!

In much a similar way, top performing students have to contend with the weight of increased expectations and the pressure to deliver can set them up for a fall. Belief has so much to do with it. 

We are all guilty of negative self-talk, both young and old, which can easily turn a good day into a very bad one. My work is all about changing this mind-set.

For teachers, there is already huge emphasis on the delivery of pastoral care and teachers have the added role of coaching individuals through the exam experience, as well as preparing them academically.

Teachers will give pupils their exam dates and the material needed to study but don’t always teach the children to plan their revision. And it is the things that we don’t plan for that make us stressed.

Helping students through this important milestone can be challenging, especially as schools are constantly under the spotlight when it comes to results. It’s really not unusual for schools and colleges to incorporate alternative methods of dealing with student issues such as exam stress.

Many schools have even gone one step further to alleviate the pressure on teachers by creating permanent therapist positions, hiring counsellors and holding mindfulness and meditation lessons, where they work with psychiatrists and therapists on a more regular basis.

It’s natural to feel nervous before taking any test, let alone one that could help shape your entire future, but using the power of suggestion and visualisation techniques will encourage students to clear their racing mind and approach the exam with a cool, calm state of mind.

I wish all students taking exams at the moment the very best of luck.

Sheila x

For information on how one of Sheila's accredited practitioners can help you achieve your goals, visit http://www.sheilagranger.com/pages/lifestyle 

Battling the bulge with Hypnotherapy!

“Everybody can change and turn a negative feeling into a positive feeling. I enjoy what I do, I help people all the time."

I have travelled worldwide training practitioners about The Virtual Gastric Band. Mark, who has trained with myself, has pledged to help people "battle the bulge". Read his story below:

"Instead of having to face the risks of going under the knife Mark Nicholson, 48, says he can make clients believe they have already had the stomach shrinking operation.

'I have had people lose two stone in weight,' said Mark. 'People think they have had the band.

Mark, who has had a spell working in upmarket Harley Street, first became interested in hypnotherapy when he purchased a motivational tape by Paul McKenna. McKenna was a regular on our TV screens in the 1990s, presenting a number of programmes including The Hypnotic World of Paul McKenna, Paul McKenna’s Paranormal World and Hyp the Streets.

Many of his one-to-one clients are celebrities including comic David Walliams, who used McKenna to help to help with his charity swim across the English Channel.'



Read the full story here

If you want more information about the Virtual Gastric Band or any other services i provide please dont hesitate to get in touch via email or visit my website

“I felt relaxed, but I don’t know if I was hypnotised.”

Hi there,

Jason Linett is one of my Virtual Gastric Band trainers in the U.S., and this week he’s presenting a free webinar event I wanted to share with you.

 

“I felt relaxed, but I don’t know if I was hypnotised.” For some hypnotherapists, this statement can ruin the best of hypnotherapy sessions. Jason has created an “easy-to-master” formula to prevent this challenge with some interesting twists on classic techniques.

You will learn strategies you can fold in before, during, and after your sessions to create better hypnotic moments, strengthen your client’s belief in hypnosis, and turn your clients or volunteers into raving fans for your business.

 

This webinar event is free, but space is limited. Join Jason on Thursday, January 22 at 9:00pm EST./ thats 2am UK time on the 23rd.  If you cannot attend live, replays will be made available, but only to those who register for the event – so DO register today.

 

Click this link to register today: Supercharge Your Hypnosis

Keep making a difference

Sheila x

Hypnosis helping Business Owners achieve success !

Last Saturday (10th January) I spoke at a local event aimed at helping business owners unleash the power of their mind in order to improve their business. This was held at the Beverley Arms Hotel and profits from the event have gone towards Beverley Community Lift.

Over several years I've helped over 3,500 people around the world to achieve their personal goals by addressing their mindset and changing how they think. In recent m,months I've also started helping those whoare considering a career change or who simply want to improve their current business, by demonstrating how to broaden the circle to attract people outside of the immediate networks.

Success begins in the mind and during my business workshops I demonstrate how to unleash the power of the mind by dealing with the chatterbox in our head. It's possible to turn the negative chatter that tells us we can’t do something or that we are going to fail into positive messages that we will succeed and that anything is possible.

I aim to run more of these workshops during 2015, so keep watch for details of one which could be running in your area.

Sheila

xx

Change the voice in your head to improve your business

Would you like to learn better Sales & Marketing techniques to help you in 2015?

If so, I will be speaking this Saturday in Beverley where I will teach you how you can really grow your business over the next 12 months.

We are meeting at The Beverley Arms Hotel from 10:00-12:30pm and running the event in aid of Beverley Community Lift in an event organised by Fiona Ives (www.fionaives.co.uk).

You will learn proven sales and marketing techniques to help you improve your business.

We want to help local business owners get the new year off to the best possible start. If you want some inspiration and motivation please book your place via fiona@fionaives.co.uk