What was likely more than 15-years ago, while casually shopping at the mall – you know, the social activity we could find ourselves doing pre-COVID without thought or question, I came across the mug pictured below. It had a quote I couldn’t ignore.
peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, it means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.(unknown)
I believed the constant reminder would come in handy, plus, my name, Irene, means Goddess of Peace. It was a two-fold value for me, so I bought the mug.
In recent times finding my peace has been a challenge, and not just in the months of COVID - this runs deeper and longer. In these last couple of months, however, I have felt like the world has come to join me for an even more chaotic ride as we brace ourselves for a new and unknown venture. We are on a journey where the lights have gone dark and we are blind to what lays ahead. We still can’t quite calibrate ourselves to balance as we are forced to move forward into the unexpected and uncertain. No matter who you are; a large organization, a bank, a top-ranking CEO, a business owner, a mother, a barista, a student, or a child, the now and immediate future has become confusing and uncertain for everyone. For the first time for the majority (if not all) of the world, there are no answers, no rules or playbooks to follow and no easy button to press – there is no immediate switch to turn the lights on.
That is scarier than shit. I’m sure we have all had our moments of overwhelm, sadness, grief, and despair. Physical, mental, and emotional bleakness. I don’t know about you, but for me, simply wearing gloves and masks as I shop takes its toll. By the time I get home, my energy is drained, my mind foggy, and my heartaches.
A small change in my routine and the visual reminders have left an impression that can nearly make me cry each moment that I place a mask on my face and gloves on my hands. It’s a reminder of today in isolation and the days that lay ahead.
There is hope and I know in my heart it will be better on the other side. We’re going through the rough patch right now.
I circle back to the fact that I had been facing a challenging time before COVID came to be. I needed to step up and break through the fears that I felt were holding me back.
May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.
Nelson Mandela
I have always been open to exploring many forms of personal self-care and health options. It stemmed from being born with eczema and my mom’s perseverance to find solutions to keep her family safe and healthy. She found a homeopathic doctor earlier on in my life that produced results. This opened my eyes to new and old methods of care beyond the mainstream methods of doctors and medications. Chiropractors, massage, natural path, acupuncture, Chinese medicine and practices, osteopathy, and in recent years, hypnotherapy.
As explained by Nicolette Eus, my hypnotherapist, hypnotherapy is a therapy that uses the tool of hypnosis. Hypnosis is focused on concentration or deep relaxation and it can be used to get better, get over things, or let go of things.
Mayo Clinic defines Hypnosisas:
Hypnosis, also referred to as hypnotherapy or hypnotic suggestion, is a trance-like state in which you have heightened focus and concentration. Hypnosis is usuallydone with the help of a therapist using verbal repetition and mental images. When you're under hypnosis, you usually feel calm and relaxed, and are more open to suggestions.
Hypnosis can be used to help you gain control over undesired behaviors or to helpyou cope better with anxiety or pain. It's important to know that although you're more open to suggestion during hypnosis, you don't lose control over your behavior.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/hypnosis/about/pac-20394405
Through hypnosis, you gain access to your subconscious – the deep, wise, and creative intelligence that offers a fresh perspective and new solutions. It is an ally to the conscious mind’s logic, reason, and inner critic.
Hypnotherapy is something I tried here and there over the past five years as I began to slowly introduce meditation into my life. I knew it was good. I also knew I was not doing it enough where I could really see the results I wanted. Having played sports, I related it back to being in “the zone”. When I did hypnotherapy, there were the glimmers of greatness, just like being in “the zone” when I was on the court.
Needing to find my peace, I looked to 2020 as a year to give time and attention to me and my development so I could be more effective in my business and as a mom. I didn’t play competitive sports anymore due to a long-standing knee injury, so I was on a quest to find something that gave me the drive, vision, and energy I had been missing.
I bulked up in hypnotherapy sessions and I put on a full-court press.
It gave me space to find, explore, and reconnect. To what? To whatever I need to at the time.
I made a commitment to four back-to-back sessions, to see what it would bring to life. To list all the things that have changed since visualizing new ideas or being able to find space to define what is most important would take far too long.
My easiest example and one that expands to my entire family is Friday Family Fun Nights. In my first session this year, the path led me to want to spend more engaged time with my kids. I wanted to have more fun with them and build core traditions. Family fun nights were one of many items born from that first session. Now every Friday we rotate who gets to pick the activities for the night. We have celebrated every Friday. COVID has restricted the activities to the house, yet, it has encouraged us to participate, play, and have fun – there are always laughs and the love and joy fill my cup to overflow. It is beyond heart-warming knowing how excited the kids are when it’s their week to choose and I love getting to know more about what they love to do. Recently we roasted marshmallows outside while listening to music and had an epic ping pong tournament.
The first four sessions were so life-altering, we completed four more promptly after. This time, three out of the four had to be completed virtually due to COVID. It was different, yet, brought similar impactful results.
Sessions with Nicolette have always been consistent. Each session forward, there is a heightened comfort and expansion that happens between us. My original or inaugural sessions years ago were really to get a lay of the land and to understand the process. Nicolette teaches breathing technics to support the evolution between sessions. Each session involves a personal talk at the beginning (i.e. the therapy potion), I recommend going in open and as deep as you can. Review important items, which usually help to lead the direction for the guided phase (i.e. the hypnosis portion). After the guided process, Nicolette gives time to reflect and reconnect to the visuals and feelings explored. She so eloquently summarizes those into a simple cue card for you to take with you and reflect and implement. I have kept every cue card.
I have been fortunate to have leaders in the mortgage industry encourage and push a consistent message to source support services, whether that be for professional help or personal. There has been open dialogue that its ok if everything is not ok. Just last week, our Mortgage Architects president interviewed his own counselor on his weekly morning call to bring attention to the importance of self-care and the value it brings.
I echo these sentiments and I encourage the exploration of new ways to find your peace, especially if that means trying hypnotherapy.
To give you a deeper sense of Nicolette Eus and her practice of Hypnotherapy, I encourage you to:
1. Watch this 4-minute interview
2. Read her a recent blog “Building Your Own Self-Care Toolbox“ which includes another video interview worth watching.
3. Listen to her 8-minute guided imagery series.
As described by Nicolette, when on a journey, whether a novice or well-traveled explorer, it can help to have someone along with you to hold the map - to remind you that you have everything you need to get where you want to go and to encourage you when things feel scary or challenging, to support you as you course-correct and to hold the light so you can see more clearly and find your path.
About Nicolette Eus
After many different career paths, including an 18-year run as a free-lance broadcast producer, Nicolette found herself looking for better ways to use her skills to connect with and help people in more meaningful ways. She has been a Clinical Hypnotherapist since 2009 and brings compassion, collaboration, and care, helping her clients discover their strengths, capabilities, and resources, honor their goals, and recognize that they have the freedom and power to change their minds.
Contact Nicolette
p: 604.649.5108
e: nicoletteeus@gmail.com
t: @NicoletteEus
During one of our sessions, Nicolette shared this picture with me. It was fitting for a part of our discussions. I leave it with you. If you are ever feeling helpless, then helping someone can undoubtedly be transformational. In some cases, that person can be you.
