Nutritional therapy – a real eye opener!

In the past I’ve trailed the book shops and internet looking for a diet that can make me skinny over night! In reality this won’t happen. I’m a sucker for eating out and with my lifestyle I like my ‘quick fixes’. I’m always making excuses for my weight and always saying ‘diet starts on Monday’ of course when Monday come around it’s ‘next week’. In the real world any diet has to be committed to for you to see the results but not all diets have to be hard-work or ‘rabbit food’.

In all honesty I’d never heard of a Nutritional Therapist and if I had I’d never given it a second thought but I tell you something for all you yo-yo dieters like myself its well worth it. I booked in with Helen for my consultation when she went through a checklist of all sorts of things like allergies, current diet, how I feel, lifestyle and so on and then asked me to draw up some ideal goals. Of course I said I want to loose at least 1 and 1/2 stone by Christmas (mainly to make room for my Christmas turkey without looking like the Christmas turkey). I would like healthier looking skin and more energy. From this information she then asked my to keep a 4 day diet diary that she could then analyse using a fantastic software package she has. I was completely honest in my diet diary because it had come to the point where I needed change and fast!

I met up with Helen a few days later at JBC Vitality to discuss my ‘food calculator’ with her and I was amazed. I never realised how much food affects the way we look and feel. For instance I got immediate answers as to why I never loose any weight and believe it or not my calorie intake was 450 below the recommend guidelines and if you’re like me you’d think well surely I’d be losing the odd pound her and there but it wasn’t because it wasn’t my calorie intake that was affecting my weight. I found out the answers to my dry skin problems. Everything was so much clearer, I could see exactly what I was eating and how this was effecting me, simple, all in one small folder. Brilliant!

Helen offers sessions for IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), weight loss, skin problems, energy levels and lots more and to be honest there isn’t really anything that she cant help you with.

I am now waiting for the recipes that she is going to draw up for me and I’ll give you feedback on them when they arrive.

More info on Helen and Nutritional Therapy can be found at JBC Vitality an alternative therapy clinic based in Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne.

Using hypnotherapy to conquer phobias

Now I don’t know about you but my assumptions of Hypnotherapy was someone taking control of me and my actions and making me do strange things and then I’d wake up in a room of people laughing hysterically at me clucking like a chicken. Although some Hypnotists can in fact do this, Hypnotherapy is completely different and can be used to achieve fantastic results in areas such as weight loss, quitting smoking and overcoming fears etc.

During my consultation with Judi she asked me a range of questions abut my lifestyle, fears, childhood and so on. She then asked me exactly what it was that I’d like to achieve from the sessions. I have a strong phobia/fear of switches, not looking at them or touching them, simply worrying that they are not switched off and that the toaster may spontaneously combust! Leaving the house on a morning or evening would be a nightmare as I would literally have to go around and check each switch three maybe four times before leaving the house and even then I wouldn’t be convinced they were off. The best thing about the consultation was that I knew I didn’t have to feel silly or embarrassed about my phobia as she’s heard them all before and that alone made me feel better about myself. I think sometimes just being able to talk about something that bothers you without being judged can really help.

The next day I had my first hypnotherapy session and I was completely open minded as I didn’t want to let any preconceptions get in the way. Judi had explained to me that the session would be very calm and relaxing and she wasn’t wrong.

During the session I lay on a nice comfy bed with some relaxing music playing while Judi talked calmly and softly to me. Throughout the whole hour Judi talked to me about all sorts of things and sent me on journeys to nice places and the experience was peaceful and calming. Although everyone will feel different things and will have different experiences to me, I can only describe the feeling like floating, like being in a swimming pool of warm water and slowly lifting my legs off the floor and pushing myself up into a floating position and just staying there, completely relaxed, with nothing that could hurt me. When the session was over she asked me how I felt and reassured me that there would be no side effects to the session and that even though I may not remember everything that was said it didn’t matter because subconsciously my brain would have taken everything on board. After a chilled glass of water and a few minutes to gather my thoughts I could continue with my day as normal.

Although I still have my fear of switches I can now eat my toast before switching off the toaster and unplugging it at the wall without the overwhelming worry that I used to get. A number of sessions will be needed to cure my phobia completely but I would definitely recommend hypnotherapy to anyone who suffers from something they’d like to get under control. For me, my phobia was controlling my life to the point that I thought there was nothing that could help me so I am eternally grateful to Judi for her hypnotherapy sessions and I will keep you posted on my progress.

Everybody will experience Hypnotherapy in different ways but Hypnotherapy can be used as a therapy for nearly everything so my advice would be don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.

Judi Butler is a clinical hypnotherapist at JBC Vitality Clinic

Add some Vitality to your life

JBC Vitality alternative therapy clinic

I remember reading ‘Slowing down to the speed of life‘ some years ago, a book about simplifying your everyday life by using your mind and thoughts to ‘foster a sense of mental calmness’. It’s a very good read, containing many common sense and easy to use ideas but often a real balance in life requires a combination of therapies that treat the physical and spiritual as well as the mind.

This is what we’re trying to achieve at JBC Vitality, bringing together a range of experienced practitioners and therapies that delight the senses and relax the body.

We treat the body as a whole by looking at your lifestyle, emotions, diet and concerns before recommending a course of action to help increase your sense of wellbeing, reduce stress levels and generally make you feel good inside and out!

Find out more about JBC Vitality at www.jbcvitality.co.uk