The Meditation & Hypnotherapy Centre

17/10/2022

Morning everyone, just some Mindset Monday motivation for you all, and also a reminder that I have a FREE nutrition and exercise app which you can download here : https://linktr.ee/nu_lifestyle

I am busy recording meditations and guided relaxations too which will become a mindset section to the app as soon as it is ready, a bit like Calm or Headspace but with the nutrition and exercise parts!

Thanks 🙏

22/08/2022

“I Know What To Do, So Why Don’t I Do It?”

( NU Mindset Monday - Topic #3 )

I have heard this many times in my 12 years in the physical and mental wellbeing industry.

Whilst the statement itself is common, the underlying reasons for it are complex and varied.

Here are some of the most common answers that may (or may not) apply to you.

Address any that do and your motivation will grow:

1. Because you are exhausted.

79% of Americans and 63% of British are underslept. Lack of sleep costs the world economy almost a trillion dollars per year through lack of productivity and related illness (USA $411bn , UK $50bn). If you’re not doing what you need to do, you’re procrastinating and lethargic, you might just be utterly exhausted. Track your sleep with a device or app and make sure you’re getting enough.

2. Because you are stressed.

Elevated cortisol and adrenaline levels over time cause our bodies to shut down. We don’t absorb nutrients from food, our brains don’t function clearly, our immune system (linked with energy levels) shuts down and it’s completely exhausting. Sooner or later we withdraw and burnout, our motivation destroyed. Address both your stress level and stress tolerance strategy; you can’t always change your stressors but you can change how you deal with them.

3. Because you are unfit.

Probably the easiest to address. Humans evolved doing 12-14 hours of moderate physical activity daily. Exercise boosts positive hormones, positive neurotransmitters, circulation and helps us remember more and problem solve better. It boosts our sleep and improves happiness. It is no wonder that being unfit can rob you of the energy and motivation to do, well, anything. Take some responsibility, and if this applies to you, get moving. Walking first then explore other options available to you, you will not regret it.

4. Because you are sick.

Its not a nice thought, but illness saps our energy and drive like nothing else, so if you really can’t understand your lack of motivation and productivity then get yourself to a GP. If it’s not a mental health issue then start with a blood test and get to the bottom of it.

5. Because you have a bad diet.

If you put the wrong fuel in your car it’ll break. Guess what? The same goes for you. Humans have evolved eating (and therefore being able to digest and extract nutrients from) certain foods, you already know what they are. Processed high fat or high sugar foods / drinks are not natural, they’re nutrient void and they’re addictive. Let’s not forget about alcohol of course, which, as well as being calorific, has the added ‘bonus’ of disrupting and damaging your nervous system and poisoning your liver. Review and improve your diet and motivation will follow.

6. Because you are depressed.

It is sometimes a daunting fact that if you have no motivation, you aren’t doing what you want or need to do, you have no energy and ultimately don’t feel good at all, you may be depressed. It’s okay to consider that this may be the case and to ask for help. Discuss it with loved ones first and then your GP and take it from there. The good thing is that once you accept something, you can start taking positive steps to address it.

Don’t be naive, if you know what to do in your life but you aren’t doing it then there is a reason, and no one is going to solve it for you.

Seek help, take action and you might just start to feel your motivation return.

NU by Jordan Storey Jordan Storey FIT MODE By Marta Lentner

13/08/2022

Update for followers, the meditation and hypnotherapy centre has now teamed up with NU by Jordan Storey to provide mindset services , follow the page and keep an eye out for updates 👇

< EXCITING NEW PARTNERSHIP FOR NU by Jordan Storey! >

For those of you who don’t already know, I am now on the management team of NU by Jordan Storey, a company which provides health transformation services as well as general nutrition, lifestyle and mindset support to individuals, corporations, professional athletes, sports teams and celebrities.

One of the main offerings of the business are the NU6 Transformation Programmes.

The NU6 Transformation Programmes are 6 week events run 4 times per year where participants experience a complete physical transformation, build new habits & behaviours and improve their mindset through working with our team of experts.

Jordan Storey designs bespoke meals for each NU6 plan and tailors them to each participant.

FIT MODE By Marta Lentner is in charge of the exclusive online workouts to aid in the physical transformations.

I (Robert Brennan) support the participants to optimise their for success, to become more motivated and driven to succeed.

The programme is already phenomenally successful, with people enjoying complete physical and mental health transformations and sticking with the new healthy habits formed, BUT even great things can be improved.

For the October NU6 we are introducing live workouts every week and not just traditional fitness sessions, but other important disciplines such as…

🥁 (Drum roll) 🥁 YOGA 🧘

We’re delighted to announce that we have teamed up with the incredible Emayoga to bring her extremely popular online yoga sessions into the future NU6 programmes.

Starting with the October NU6 we will be screening two live 90 minute Yoga sessions with Emma, exclusively for the participants. The sessions will include a Yoga Q&A for the curious among you and Emma will be on hand to support any Yoga queries in the private members Facebook group too.

Emma has 28 years experience in Yoga and has taught for over 8 years. She has been featured in both GLAMOUR UK & Tatler in recent times for her Yogic wisdom and is truly a leader in the field.

We know you’ll love working with Emma and are excited to invite you to do just that by joining the next NU6 programme which will be the most comprehensive and holistic physical and mental transformation programme that you can buy.

The sign up link is below and you can use the code “emayoga15” to get 15% off.

https://nu-by-js.com/sign-up

Thanks for reading, or should I say ‘Namaste’ 🙏

The NU Team

27/01/2021

In the last few weeks I have started delivering corporate mental wellbeing clinics in businesses across the globe.

The clinics consist of a set number of 1-hour (online) appointments with me, and each appointment is tailored uniquely to the needs of the individual. Whilst being unique, the sessions will ordinarily cover many key aspects of physical, mental and emotional wellbeing, as well as the specific issues raised. Each session is followed up with a comprehensive support email containing informative slides, strategies and resources to further re-enforce the effectiveness of the session.

The clinics have been incredibly well received by the staff in the businesses I have operated them in, with each date fully booked within minutes of going live in every case.

The demand for these clinics (whilst arguably already being there) arose in principal due to the challenges faced by millions of staff since the start of the pandemic.

Just some of challenges faced include; working from home, homeschooling children while working, financial pressures from salary cuts or job losses of partners, lack of social contact, lack of family contact and of course general COVID anxiety, fear of getting ill, fear of losing loved ones and grief from people taken too soon.

Just looking at the above list makes it abundantly clear just how much pressure is on people’s shoulders right now, and sadly the light at the end of the tunnel just keeps getting pushed further away.

Despite a global vaccination programme of unprecedented scale, 2021 is not shaping up to be the positive year of recovery, prosperity, social contact and holidays that it once was lauded to be.

It is likely that all of us need support right now, and those employers who are acknowledging this and providing wellbeing offers such as my corporate mental wellbeing clinics are helping their staff more than they realise.

It is okay not to be okay right now and it is okay to need help.

That help should be provided whether it is asked for or not.

Contact me to find out more rob@robert-brennan.com

12/12/2020

Find The Peace Within

Recently, one of my young clients, who I was working with for a substance addiction, said something absolutely brilliant that really stuck with me.

We were digging into why they felt they had persisted with the addiction for so many years and they said, after a period of deep thought “I know it’s pointless, I don’t even enjoy it really... it just turns ‘doing nothing’ into ‘doing something’”.

It hit me like a tonne of bricks. This simple statement and how it was delivered was really quite powerful.

People in general these days, and especially young people, just can’t ‘do nothing’...they can’t be at peace with themselves, they can’t just sit with their own thoughts and feelings and be content. They HAVE to be doing something.

Whether it is scrolling on a phone, lighting a cigarette, calling someone or chewing gum, people just aren’t comfortable doing nothing anymore in this modern world so rich with sensory stimulation from every angle, and this absolutely makes us more susceptible to addictive behaviour.

Silence is golden...

There was a study I came across many years ago on mice and their receptiveness to various sounds. They played various noises to the mice to monitor their brain responses; baby mice squeaking, predator noises, adult mouse squeaks of both s*xes etc.

When analysing the results, they became focused on a very active and recurring brain response, far more active than at other times. They thought that whatever sound was causing this must be hugely significant... but when they cross referenced it back to the inputs, they found that these periods of high brain activity were in between the sounds, they were when the mice were faced with nothing but silence.

This encouraged scientists to increase the study of meditation and mindfulness practices. More and more research over the years (into humans now) has shown that mindfulness, meditation and other practices that quieten the mind such as yoga or tai chi have a host of mental (and physical) health benefits.

Regular meditators are more creative, calmer, more active physically, more motivated, happier, more focused and more likely to sleep well. Meditation also improves blood pressure, reduces blood cortisol levels, reduces symptoms of anxiety such as panic attacks and reduces heart disease risk. There are many other benefits we don’t have time to go into right now, but surely these alone are enough.

It is okay to do nothing...

The key message to take from this, is that in the melee of our regular, busy lives, we have forgotten that it is okay to do nothing. One of the reasons the Coronavirus lockdowns this year have been so hard for so many people, is because they have forced us to do less, and that, ironically has been stressful.

Teaching our children to sit and think about their homework, or anything they want to do such as a craft project, rather then just telling them what to do, will boost their creativity and confidence and show them that they have more capability than they thought.

Encouraging young people to put their devices away for a couple of hours each night and just talk more will help them to connect with themselves, and their families and get comfortable not being constantly stimulated.

Anyone I work with for addiction or trauma, or anything really, is encouraged to meditate and practice mindfulness, as it helps them to build agency over their actions and master their impulses.

All adults too need to get comfortable with not being ‘busy’ all the time. Taking time out of each day to just sit and think, reflect, be grateful, meditate or truly connect with someone by talking presently to them, will have untold benefits in the long term.

Remember, we do not always need to turn nothing into something.

18/10/2020

Testimonial for resolving anxiety quickly

You never quite know how it is going to go with each new client, and my usual expectation is around three sessions to be pretty certain of a great result, no matter what the presenting symptoms are.

This however was one of the brilliant occasions when a single session of 2 hours was enough to resolve some fairly serious anxiety which dated back many years and also featured some physical symptoms too. The session involved some NLP, Hypnotherapy, Coaching methods and of course Havening.

It is impossible to guarantee such a rapid result with everyone, but it’s incredible when it happens, and it further reenforces my personal belief that NO ONE NEEDS TO LIVE WITH, OR ‘LEARN TO COPE’ WITH ANXIETY - WITH THE RIGHT SUPPORT IT CAN BE COMPLETELY RESOLVED.

Havening Techniques

03/08/2020

We need to talk about masks....

Are you afraid of masks?

Whether you are or not, mask wearing is a sensitive and complicated topic right now, and we NEED to talk about it.

Masks are causing a host of different reactions in people for various reasons, and here are a few key camps you could be in...

1) You are genuinely afraid of people wearing masks, otherwise known as ‘Maskaphobia’ (a newly defined phobia, linked to coulrophobia, which is a spontaneous fear of clowns or other masked characters). This means mask wearers elicit a phobic response in you, and as with any phobia, this can be very extreme, and may include shaking, sweating, anxiety and panic attacks.

2) You are afraid of the feeling you get while wearing a mask because it makes you panic and feel like you can’t breathe. This is more likely to be an expression of claustrophobia, the fear of enclosed spaces / being trapped but with the same phobic symptoms as above. This is very common in relation to wearing masks or face coverings.

3) You are medically exempt from wearing a mask due to a respiratory condition such as asthma or an allergy to the components used in making masks, so you just can’t wear one. This may lead to anxiety as people may be hostile to you for not wearing one without knowing your story, and you may be more anxious about getting COVID-19. This may make you less likely to go out right now. If you’ve been shielding too and now you can’t wear a mask, you are possibly feeling slightly agoraphobic (fear of going outdoors).

4) You are 100% on board with masks, you love them in fact and practically live in yours. You want everyone to wear one ALL the time and your only frustration is that we weren’t all masked up months ago by the government. You are a self appointed member of the ‘Mask Police’ and spend most of your free time posting on social media about wearing masks, without much consideration to people in the first three camps of this post.

5) You object you wearing a mask because you don’t think they work so think it’s a bit pointless. You’re heathy in yourself so reckon you’d absolutely own a bout of coronavirus in any case.

6) You object to wearing a mask because you think Coronavirus is a hoax, something about 5G, and that mask wearing is but a stones throw away from becoming automatons controlled by the evil puppet master ‘Bill Gates’ through the medium of vaccination.

7) You’re a pretty easy going citizen and you’ll wear a mask where and when required to do so by law. You don’t feel the need to comment on other people in relation to their own mask wearing, whether they wear one or not. To be fair you’d probably be happy to go along with anything recommended that was supposed to help the situation in some way.

So, whatever your camp, the subject of masks is not going away and we need to talk about it. One way or another, whether you like it or not, we all need to get comfortable with them too.

If you’re in camp 1 or 2, then you need help. Thankfully I can provide that help. I clear phobias every week, and no matter what they are, no matter how simple or complex their roots and/or expressions are, all phobias can be removed.

If you’re in camp 3, it’s more complex as you have a medical exemption so you need to take great care to protect yourself and of course others too. If you have a medical need to shield also, then this is all the more true. I can certainly help to remove any anxiety however as it is really a pragmatic matter of ‘are you safe or not’ and going out needs to be carefully considered. If you are becoming agoraphobic then of course I can clear this up.

If you are in camp 4, you probably don’t need help, maybe just to move slowly away from your keyboard and take some deep breaths in a darkened room for a while, masked or otherwise, and take a step back from the situation for a few days.

Camp 5 is an interesting one, it’s a free world, but there is the small matter of the actual law, and the actual science which says two things: One, you need to wear a mask regardless of what you think, and two, you are wrong about them not working, just ask Asia.

If you’re in camp 6, you desperately need help, but not from me.

Camp 7, well that’s probably most people. Congratulations you’re fortunate enough to to have escaped any psychological or medical issues with masks and you’re probably a fairly chilled out person on the whole, which is generally good too. So, you’re off the hook for now, keep up the good work and stay safe.

I’m sure I’ve missed out a few camps, terribly sorry if you’re in one of them, I meant no offence.

Now, I’m off to try on some masks to see if I can find one that doesn’t make me look like Pob. If you’re a millennial, google it.

07/06/2019

Some thoughts on the topic of grief...

Firstly, I would like to apologise if this post is triggering for anyone; but then again, if it is, then perhaps that’s exactly what I am talking about.

Last week I witnessed two of the most remarkable and rapid grief release sessions I have ever seen (thank you Paul McKenna & Dr Ronald Ruden).

Both were performed in front of live audiences, so the sessions required both great courage from the clients and great skill, understanding, composure and compassion from the people helping them to heal.

As I watched the highly emotional but remarkable release processes, it struck me that I wanted to do more of this work; to help people process and deal with unresolved grief from their past. It also struck me that there was so much more of this in society than we realised, affecting peoples behaviour, sometimes subtly, sometimes less so.

Strangely, as I returned to my clinic this week, four of the people that I saw, each with very different presenting issues, all ended up requiring very similar suppressed grief releasing processes.

Perhaps ‘The Universe’ is testing me after what I witnessed last week and how I felt about it (or perhaps not, as they were all already booked in!)

But whatever it was, it was both a privilege to do the work, and a huge learning experience. I realised with even more conviction that most ‘presenting issues’ emerge from a trauma of sorts, and because grief is by far the most common trauma we experience, it is therefore at the root of much more than we know.

Almost all people have lost loved ones in various circumstances (sometimes not actually through death) and it brings with it fears, anxiety, despair and even abandonment issues (it is normal to feel abandoned unconsciously when someone dies - they have still ‘left’...).

These events leave permanent neurological pathways or ‘scars’ in our brains which do affect our behaviour. Sometimes it’s negligible but sometimes it’s not, and sometimes whole families and extended families are affected by unresolved grief and the fall out from it.

Trauma also has been shown to pass down through generations, so parents with unresolved trauma can vicariously traumatise their children. It’s not deliberate, it’s unconscious, but it happens.

I think that sometimes in society the average person is so busy that they can end up glossing over their true feelings, cutting short their natural mourning time, refusing to talk about it properly or perhaps refusing even to think about it at all, because it’s too upsetting. Years later they then just assume it’s all okay if it’s not at the forefront of their mind every second, but it’s quite likely that it’s not actually okay at all, especially if it was never dealt with when it happened.

I think it’s probably time to talk more openly about grief, difficult emotions and anything else held inside in fact. Loved ones or close friends are great starting points, just talk about it, it might be nothing, but it might open up a pathway to relief, release and to feeling ‘strangely better’.

It’s not easy, and takes courage (people often worry that they’re so busy and stressed they don’t want to ‘destabilise’ themselves) but when the time feels right, there’s nothing to lose.

You might find out nothing at all, but you might find out something surprising, maybe the passing of a distant relative you never even met, and who died long before your parents even met has affected you somehow, and you might want to talk about that. You may find something even more obscure, but you won’t find anything if you don’t take a look.

Don’t bottle it up anymore, it really is good to talk.

11/05/2019

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A is fairly common. A tenth of the population reputedly have a - that’s around 7 million and 32 million just for one phobia...
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Many more exist too of course, some of the ones I see most often being; ( ) , (fear of confined spaces) (fear of open spaces) or (fear of public speaking)
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This means that hundreds of millions of people must be living with phobias, day in, day out, all over the world, AND IT IS EXTREMELY DRAINING to do so!
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In simple terms, a phobia is a disorder of the - the brain centre for , , and ultimately survival. It is a disorder, not because the amygdala isn’t working (it’s working REALLY well), it is a disorder because it’s working when it SHOULDN’T be.
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To elaborate; a phobic person has, at some point in their lives been exposed to, or even heard about a traumatic situation which has caused their brain to hardwire a phobic response. This phobic response is now activated by any stimuli which remotely resembles this original traumatic situation, because it has been neurologically encoded as ‘dangerous’ and ultimately a threat to their life.
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The complexity (and fallibility) of the human brain means that often ‘threats’ are encoded when there is no real threat, they have been mis-perceived, perhaps due to witnessing a severe phobic response from a trusted person such as a parent or older sibling in childhood, or for many other reasons.
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The solution is simple though; the hyper-sensitivity in the amygdala, in relation to the particular phobic stimuli needs to be removed, thus removing the phobic reaction.
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The good news is that it is remarkably simple to do this using a combination of , , and techniques, and I’ve done it a few hundred times.
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The other bit of good news is that right now, I am I need of some video recordings of sessions for my social profiles to demonstrate the speed and efficacy of the methods I use. So - I am offering half price sessions to anyone willing to be filmed.
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Now I know that not everyone will want to be filmed! So don’t worry, I am still offering full price sessions too, minus the camera 😊
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Please get in touch if you want to discuss releasing any phobias that you, or someone you know has, I’d love to help.
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There is absolutely no obligation to book following any initial discussions we may have, and don’t forget, if you don’t mind being filmed, it’s half price.

Thank you.

Rob

09/05/2019

Horrifying scenes he witnessed as a paramedic left RAF veteran Ross Smith suicidal...then he met the celebrity hypnotist who had a cure for his post-traumatic stress

12/04/2019

>

I have witnessed this sentiment all too often in my nine years in the physical and mental wellbeing industry.

Whilst the statement itself may ring true for many, the underlying reasons why it does are complex and vary hugely.

Here are some of the most common answers that may (or may not) ring true for you.

Address any that do and your motivation will grow:

1. Because you are exhausted.

79% of Americans and 63% of British are underslept. Lack of sleep costs the world economy almost a trillion dollars per year through lack of productivity and related illness (USA $411bn , UK $50bn). If you’re not doing what you need to do, you’re procrastinating and lethargic, you might just be utterly exhausted. Track your sleep with a device or app and make sure you’re getting enough.

2. Because you are stressed.

Elevated cortisol and adrenaline levels over time cause our bodies to shut down. We don’t absorb nutrients from food, our brains don’t function clearly, our immune system (linked with energy levels) shuts down and it’s completely exhausting. Sooner or later we withdraw and burnout, our motivation destroyed. Address both your stress level and stress tolerance strategy; you can’t always change your stressors but you can change how you deal with them.

3. Because you are unfit.

Probably the easiest to address here. Humans evolved doing 12-14 hours of moderate physical activity each day. Exercise boosts positive hormones, positive neurotransmitters, circulation and helps us remember more and problem solve better. It boosts our sleep and improves happiness. It is no wonder that being unfit can rob you of the energy and motivation to do, well, anything. Take some responsibility, and if this applies to you, get moving. Walking first then explore other options available to you, you will not regret it.

4. Because you are sick.

Its not a nice thought, but illness saps our energy and drive like nothing else, so if you really can’t understand your lack of motivation and productivity then get yourself to a GP. If it’s not a mental health issue then start with a blood test and get to the bottom of it.

5. Because you have a bad diet.

If you put the wrong fuel in your car it’ll break. Guess what? The same goes for you. Humans have evolved eating (and therefore being able to digest and extract nutrients from) certain foods, you already know what they are. Processed high fat or high sugar foods / drinks are not natural, they’re nutrient void and they’re addictive. Let’s not forget about alcohol of course, which, as well as being calorific, has the added ‘bonus’ of disrupting and damaging your nervous system and poisoning your liver. Review and improve your diet and motivation will follow.

6. Because you are depressed.

It is sometimes a daunting fact that if you have no motivation, you aren’t doing what you want or need to do, you have no energy and ultimately don’t feel good at all, you may be depressed. It’s okay to consider that this may be the case and to ask for help. Discuss it with loved ones first and then your GP and take it from there. The good thing is that once you accept something, you can start taking positive steps to address it.

Don’t be naive, if you know what to do in your life but you aren’t doing it then there is a reason, and no one is going to solve it for you.

Seek help, take action and you might just start to feel your motivation return.

08/02/2019

Addiction is a complex subject, often defined as not having control over doing, taking or using something to the point where it becomes harmful; physically, mentally, or environmentally. For the person addicted, the immediate ‘rewarding’ effects of the addiction provide a compelling incentive to repeatedly pursue the behaviour - despite an often acute awareness of the detrimental consequences of doing so, to both themselves and others.

While the most commonly thought of addictions are things such as smoking, drugs and alcohol, it’s actually possible to be addicted to just about anything which stimulates the reward centre of the brain, causing dopamine to be released. Examples of other common addictions include; gambling, social media usage, s*x, and shopping...the list is endless.

As well as the health and financial implications of addiction, it also causes serious damage to families, relationships and careers. Thankfully addiction can be effectively prevented, treated and managed using a combination of hypnotherapy, NLP & mindset coaching.

To find out more about how we can support you or someone you know, visit our website http://www.meditationandhypnotherapy.com/hypnotherapy.html and get in touch for a confidential discussion about how we can help.

****ne