Arnold666

Same here. I done it for 2 and a half years and for the last year once a week the ice bath and I'm literally panicking, my body thinks that this is it this is the end especially after 10 min of ice. So after a morning like this I'm so euforic and chill cuz my body thought that we nearly died so what can really bother me anymore later that day? We just escape death!

România

Haha, yes!

I don't think people realize how Carl Jung came up with all of his ideas. People don't understand the enormity of it. Only when they published the Red Book in 2009 we realiezd that that was the basis of EVERYTHING that he did in his career. Everything came from that. So what is about ? Well, it's an acount of his expiriences, his journal, it's his "psyche" giving this wisdom through visions. So if your familiar with the samanic vision technique, what later he called activ imagination, he went to bed for (for like 20 years he did this) and started meditating. Just resting in unconditioned consciousness and letting the imagination flow. Things would just pup up and menifest, visions, places, people, demons, angels and slowly he started talking with them. At one point he got so good at it that he would see these things with his eyes open, in broad daylight. Dude, the things he is seeing and the things the angels and demons are saying to them and the shit he is going through, it's just crazy amazing. That's why i want you guys to know about these things, i really think people are unaware about the dude and he is under appreciated. “The years… when I pursued the inner images, were the most important time of my life. Everything else is to be derived from this. It began at that time, and the later details hardly matter anymore. My entire life consisted in elaborating what had burst forth from the unconscious and flooded me like an enigmatic stream and threatened to break me. That was the stuff and material for more than only one life. Everything later was merely the outer classification, scientific elaboration, and the integration into life. But the numinous beginning, which contained everything, was then.”- Carl Jung Some quotes: “Hell is when you know that everything serious that you have planned with yourself is also laughable, that everything fine is also brutal, that everything good is also bad, that everything high is also low, and that everything pleasant is also shameful.” “The deepest Hell is when you realize that Hell is also no Hell, but a cheerful Heaven, not a Heaven in itself, but in this respect a Heaven, and in that respect a Hell.” “But the supreme meaning is the path, the way and the bridge to what is to come. That is the God yet to come. It is not the coming God himself, but his image which appears in the supreme meaning. God is an image, and those who worship him must worship him in the image of the supreme meaning. The supreme meaning is not a meaning and not an absurdity, it is image and force in one, magnificence and force together. The supreme meaning is the beginning and the end. It is the bridge of going across and fulfillment. The other Gods died of their temporality, yet the supreme meaning never dies, it turns into meaning and then into absurdity, and out of the fire and blood of their collision the supreme meaning rises up rejuvenated anew. The image of God has a shadow. The supreme meaning is real and casts a shadow. For what can be actual and corporeal and have no shadow? The shadow is nonsense. It lacks force and has no continued existence through itself. But nonsense is the inseparable and undying brother of the supreme meaning. Like plants, so men also grow, some in light, others in the shadows. There are many who need the shadows and not the light. The image of God throws a shadow that is just as great as itself. The supreme meaning is great and small, it is as wide as the space of the starry Heaven and as narrow as the cell of the living body.” “When I saw that the devil is joy, surely I would have wanted to make a pact with him. But you can make no pact with joy, because it immediately disappears.” “The devil is an evil element. But joy? If you run after it, you see that joy has evil in it, since then you arrive at pleasure and from pleasure go straight to Hell, your own particular Hell, which turns out differently for everyone.” “Nothing is more valuable to the evil one than his eye, since only through his eye can emptiness seize gleaming fullness. Because the emptiness lacks fullness, it craves fullness and its shining power. And it drinks it in by the means of the eye.” “The devil knows what is beautiful, and hence he is the shadow of beauty and follows it everywhere, awaiting the moment when the beautiful, seeks to give life to God.” “If your beauty grows, the dreadful worm will also creep up you, waiting for its prey.”― C.G. Jung, The Red Book: Liber Novus Poetic, but pretty non dual to me. And there are more, that is all about non duality, or how the opposites need each other and then it transcends into ONE. Also a trailer for the book: If you guys are interested read AION where the dude demonstrates how Jesus is a simbol for the SELF and Mysterium Coniunctionis where he talks about that alchemy wasn't about turning fizical things into gold but it was about self realization, about turning your self intro the TRUE SELF, that is where the real gold is, alchemy was about ENLIGHTENMENT but he called the process of individuation.

“Astrology, like the collective unconscious with which psychology is concerned, consists of symbolic configurations: The “planets” are the gods, symbols of the powers of the unconscious.” Read Jungs work on it. You will put it in the right category of mind, it will recontextualize and it will make sense then.

DEFINITELY IQ ties in with intelligence. Please read the scientific literature on this and you will be shocked. Pretty solid science on this. But again, I will say for those who think IQ is everything and if you don't have high IQ than why do this work bla bla. you're wrong and you should drop it. Limiting belief. You can't imagine how far you can go with your "low IQ". And for those who think IQ ain't shit, your wrong. Please inform yourself for the integration of your scientific model. You can learn a lot by reading the literature on IQ. So it's like this, learn about the IQ studies than drop it like it's hot.

@Richard Alpert Oh, yeah man and also in the spirit of the latest videos of Leo about duality if you wanna do some more homework about it in the Mysterium Coniunctionis Jung talks about duality and how the ego is created because of it, he talks on so great lengths, also on steroids cuz its his last book before he dies and all his life wisdom goes in it and its so deep and hard to read like i its shocking. Trully, trully shocking. Terrifying book. Never saw, red, heard something like that before. The brain power the dude had it's God like. P.S. i just red not long ago that he had a massive heart attack and had a near death experience. Cut the story short he was walking in the woods and saw a cave, he entered and saw a Yogi meditating. He than realised that that Yogi was him and he is dreaming this Carl Jung life. It is just this Yogi's dream this Carl Jung persona and when the Yogi(HE) will wake up, the Carl Jung life will end cuz all that is this Jung was just a dream. The Yogi had a dream and he thought it was a Swiss psychiatrist.

I get you man. We all have this fear. We all have times when we feel like this is it, I did it this time, went too far and now I'm Insane. It's a really disorienting endeavor. You are cutting and pulling out the roots of your psyche. It's not for the weak hearted. Take care of yourself. But then again, if you want enlightenment you will have to lose your mind eventually.

Found a comment on YouTube. : shaiisnotavailable9 months ago let me explain to everyone who wonders about Aikido TWO THINGS: (I have been training in MMA, Boxing, Mauy-Thai, Judo and Krav_maga & and Aikido): ONE - each art is about something - to comment about a boxing match: they are just fake - lets see them against a Mauy-Thai kicker, makes no sense. To comment about a Judo Olympic fighter - he cant even dodge a punch is also as senseless. TWO: So let me tell you what Aikido IS about (its not about punching, or kicking, or even staying in good shape...). Aikido is about 5 things: 1 - spirituality (never mind that now). 2 - hands locks (go to an Aikido teacher and let him do a hand lock on you - it a very frightening experience as you get to feel totally helpless, unable to move, and in pain - even when your teacher is being gentle with you - such hand locks tern into hand breaking - if the other person doesnt move quickly enough with your hand-locks. Thats why they pre-fake the moves and jump - as if u do it for real you break the hand). 3 - leg positioning. (helped me SO MUCH in MMA, as positioning in Aikido is simple brilliant. 4 - Blending (how to move in accordance with your opponents moves, how to breath in accordance to how they breath, how to act and counter act in a way that uses their power not your....) again helped me so much in MMA. 5 - how to keep people on the ground using hand locks (when i had to jump in on the street to CONTAIN a guy that was fighting, he actually punched already three people - no - punching him in the face would have not been the right thing to do, how would it helped? would i ihave to punch him into a KO? where is the peace in that, and what if i end up being taken by the cops because i knocked him too hard? and i did not want to hold him down like in BBJ as that means I would have also been on the ground and maybe he had mates suddenly coming to jump on me? What should I do? My Aikido training was the best way! I held him in a ground Aikido lock - when I was still standing and ready if someone else tried to come, and he had no choice but to stay there. LOCKED, until the cops came). So i hope this explain it. Yes, Aikidio is as useless against punching in real life as boxing is useless against leg kicks in real life. And as Judo is useless against any punch in real life. if you want to be an all-round MMA style fighters, you have to learn FEW arts to be rounded. But Aikido IS a real art, and has a lot to teach that no other art has. SHould it be your only art if you want to be a fighter? Ofcoruse not. It has no punching. It even doesnt have physical conditioning. It is bulshit? For sure not. The skill sets it has to teach is REAL and can really make you into a far better fighter. Bless.

Than go slower. Lock yourself in the room and set a timer for two hours or more. In that time you don't let yourself be distracted. Do that days in a row till you get out of the belly of the beast. You wanna go through the shitty faze the fastest as you can handle. The more you sit with it, the faster you go through it. Being under the dark night influence its like being drunk. You say stupid shit and make fucked up decisions. But also have compassion for yourself, don't take it personally. It's not your fault, it's like the wather. Sometimes it rains and you can't do shit about it just wait till the clouds part.

But why argue? Why not read? try Mircea Eliade History of religious ideas. Doesn't sound like a better solution?

Here is a way to get out if the dark night. I sit down on the bed in a morning and don't let yourself get up that day. You just have to sit with it. No distractions. Meditate, than just sit looking at the room watch the things that arises and passes away, thoughts and sensation then meditate again. Max run for the fridge to eat something and run back. But usually I fast that day. This is how I get through the dark night every time. I you just have to sit with it. You will start to like it after a while. It will return again if you into this work so you better get it handled and build a relationship with it cause it can really fuck you up, you and people you love and make you lose track or even quit completely.

Never. Read Jung, Gerardus van der Leeuw and Mircea Eliade. They called the human species Homo-religiousus. "Institutions are not pretty. Show me a pretty government. Healing is wonderful, but the American Medical Association? Learning is wonderful, but universities? The same is true for religion... religion is institutionalized spirituality." oh yeah, also Huston Smith.

ENFJ

Name The Three Good Things (also known as "The Three Blessings") Purpose/Effects The Three Good Things exercise is intended to increase happiness and a sense of wellbeing. It does this by a simple method of redirecting attention towards positive thoughts and away from negative thoughts. Human beings have evolved to spend much more time thinking about negative experiences than positive ones. We spend a lot of time thinking about what has gone wrong and how to fix it, or how to do it differently next time. In the past there may have been an evolutionary advantage to this way of thinking, since it seems to be innate. However, for modern humans this negative bias is the source of a lot of anxiety, depression, and general lack of wellbeing. Luckily, by re-directing our thoughts on purpose towards positive events, we can do a lot to correct this negative bias. In the video, Martin Seligman describes the purpose and effects of this exercise. Here he uses the alternate name, the "Three Blessings." Method Summary Each night before you go to sleep: Think of three good things that happened today. Write them down. Reflect on why they happened. Long Version This exercise is to be done each night before going to sleep. Step 1: Think about anything good that happened to you today. It can be anything at all that seems positive to you. It need not be anything big or important. For example, you might recall the fact that you enjoyed the oatmeal you had for breakfast. On the other hand, you might also recall that your child took its first step today. Anything from the most mundane to the most exalted works, as long as it seems to you like a good, positive, happy thing. Step 2: Write down these three positive things. Step 3: Reflect on why each good thing happened. Determining the “why” of the event is the most important part of the exercise. For example, you might say that your oatmeal tasted really good this morning because your partner took the time to go shopping at the local farmer’s market, where they have fresh, organic oatmeal. Or you might say that your child took its first step today because God was pouring blessings down upon your family, or because it really wanted to get to some cookies on the table. You get to decide reasons for each event that make sense to you. History This method was created by psychologist Martin Seligman. He is considered to be an expert on depression and happiness, has been called the "father of Positive Psychology," and is one of the preeminent psychologists of the 20th century. He is also the director of the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

Name Taking Other Viewpoints / Tunnel-Busting Purpose/Effects "Tunnel-busting" is the practice of shaking up one's "reality tunnel," another name for the set of viewpoints and conceptions we all hold deeply. By consciously and fully taking on the viewpoint (or reality tunnel) of another, we both develop an understanding of and compassion for that person's beliefs and foibles and allow ourselves to question the things we might take for granted as "truth." Tunnel-busting is a powerful tool for personal growth and enlightenment, for as we widen what we accept as part of reality, we break free of social imprinting and start to discover our true potential. Method Summary Adopt the viewpoint (or “reality tunnel”) of someone else as completely and fervently as possible. Now do so with that viewpoint’s polar opposite. Long Version All of these tunnel-busting exercises require that you behave like an actor: pretend until the pretense seems real. “Fake it ’til you make it.” If you are a liberal/leftist, take some time and read through the National Review. Try to get into their headspace for a few hours. If you are a conservative/rightist, do the same with The Nation. If you’re a libertarian, read the World Socialist Web Site; a Marxist, try Reason. Do your best to take on the opposite political worldview with judgment or criticism, no matter how abhorrent you might find it. If you are an atheistic scientific rationalist, read Fate Magazine and try to get into their headspace for a few hours. If you’re a spiritually and holistically-inclined individual, do the same with the Skeptic’s Dictionary. Once again, you must do this without any judgment or criticism–you are trying to “be” the opposite side for a little while. Imagine that you are Reverend Jerry Falwell, a mullah in a theocratic Islamic nation, or another conservative religious moralist. Explain to an imaginary homosexual why his or her sexual orientation is sinful and must be changed, including instructions on changing it. Now, imagine that you are Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, or another fervently godless rationalist. Explain to an imaginary 60-year-old nun (preferably of an extremely charitably-inclined and humble order) why her religious devotion is idiotic and must be changed, including instructions on changing it. Read an anthropological study about a tribal group different from your own culture. Compose your best serious argument for why your culture’s taboos are objectively more sensible than the taboos of the tribe. Now, do the same from the viewpoint of the tribe, as seriously as you can. Imagine that you are a conspiracy theorist (you can pick your favorite conspiracy theory; some possibilities include One World Government/New World Order conspiracists, or the people who believe that most of the world’s leaders are actually evil reptilian aliens). Do your best to get into your conspiracy theorist’s headspace. Now, spend as much time as you can stomach watching 24-hour news channels in that frame of mind and look for all the evidence that each newscaster and talking head is either a conscious or unconscious dupe of the conspiracy. Become a Nazi for half an hour. Believe that might makes right, and that some groups (specifically, yours) are destined to rule or crush other groups. Plan a campaign to take over the world by force and fraud. This exercise is extremely trying, for obvious reasons, but it tests the extent of your ability to reach beyond your own reality tunnel, even into something horrifying. Become a pious, strict Roman Catholic and compose a serious argument for the Church and Pope’s infallibility and holiness, despite what you know of its history. If you are Catholic (or otherwise religious), compose an argument for why science holds the answer to every question in the universe. Now that you have spent some time in the reality tunnels of others, come back to your own reality tunnel, whatever it may be or have been. Examine it fully. Does it seem as objectively truthful as it did before you started tunnel-busting? From now on, when you are confronted with new, strange, “stupid,” or “evil” belief systems, try taking on their viewpoints for at least a few hours. History Timothy Leary coined the term "reality tunnel" to describe the personal conception of truth/reality/the world unique to each person, as decided by his or her beliefs and experiences. Later, author Robert Anton Wilson used this concept in his books Prometheus Rising and Quantum Psychology and created a series of exercises intended to break people out of their personal reality tunnels and allow them to comprehend other viewpoints. Notes We think of constancy, dedication, commitment, and unwavering loyalty as good traits. This is natural; society depends on its members sticking to a path, making money, and producing offspring. Commitment to ideas can be incredibly noble. If you find yourself having a hard time accepting these exercises because they clash with your notions of the good--that is, having strongly-held beliefs--congratulations, you have discovered part of your personal reality tunnel! See if you can completely take on the viewpoint of someone like Leary or Wilson, believing that the mind's boundaries and comfort zones must be expanded for enlightenment. If you want to take tunnel-busting exercises and their implications to the next level, we cannot recommend enough Robert Anton Wilson's Prometheus Rising and Quantum Psychology.

Name Taking in the Good. A Walking Meditation. Purpose/Effects To practice present awareness and achieve a happier state of being “in the moment.” Method Summary While walking, practice being in the here and now by noticing, pausing and taking in sights, sounds, aromas and textural sensations that please you. Long Version Take frequent walks. Regular walking is beneficial for body, mind and spirit. Walk at whatever pace suits you and check in with the physical sensations of walking: the feel of your feet on the path, the flex of your legs and arms. Without effort, relax your upper body. Notice your breathing. When you have established a comfortable rhythm start to become more aware of your surroundings. Experience where you are and what is in the vicinity – whether you are in the country or the city is not important. As you stay in touch with your surroundings you will notice that certain details catch your eye (or nose or ears.) When one of these details elicits a pleasurable response, stop walking and take some breaths to take in and experience the positive feeling. This is called “taking in the good.” Encourage yourself to relish these moments, – as Rick says in Chapter 4 of “Buddha’s Brain”, “bring a mindful awareness to them — open up to them and let them affect you……….Savor the experience…………Make it last by staying with it for 5, 10, 20 seconds” When you have given yourself enough time to notice all the inner sensations of a particular pleasurable occurrence, continue your walk until you encounter the next thing that calls up a positive response. Most places are packed with “opportunities for positive response.” You don’t have to be in the middle of beautiful scenery or a well-tended garden, though these are certainly positive experiences. Opportunities aplenty exist on busy city streets – in well crafted building details, the playfulness of a puppy, the gurgle of rainwater falling into a catch-basin, the smile of a stranger on the path, the smell of coffee roasting, the crunch of new fallen snow. Keep looking and you will certainly find these opportunities. Continue until you feel “full.” Conclude the meditation by sitting quietly, being with yourself for at least five minutes. History This is a variation of a mindfulness walking meditation where the object of focus is the felt sense of pleasurable feelings. The story of its ‘spontaneous generation’ is told in detail here: http://bit.ly/ttziSN Cautions Obvious reasonable precautions about walking in safe areas are advised.

Name Taking in the Good Purpose/Effects Neuroscience shows that memory has a negative bias. It is much easier to remember the bad stuff that has happened to us than the good. This leads to needless suffering and a generally pessimistic outlook. Taking in the Good allows us to focus on positive experiences and to let go of negative ones. It is not about putting a happy shiny face on things, nor is it about turning away from the hard things in life. But it is about nourishing a solid well-being, contentment, and peace inside that is a rock, a refuge, a home base you can always return to and come from. The result of this is a gradual improvement in a general sense of wellbeing, as well as a reduction in the painfulness of negative memories. Method Turn positive facts into positive experiences.Actively look for good news, particularly the little stuff of daily life that’s all around: the faces of children, a sense of your own tenacity, the smell of an orange, a memory from a happy vacation, a minor success at work, and so on. Then, bring a mindful awareness to it, opening up to it, letting it affect you. It’s like preparing a meal: rather than just looking at it, dig in with a big spoon! Savor the experience. It’s delicious! Make it last by keeping your attention on it for 5, 10, even 20 seconds. Try not to jump onto something else. Focus on the sensations and emotions of the experience. Let the experience be big and strongly felt, filling your body. For example, allow the feeling of being liked to bring warmth to your whole chest. Pay particular attention to the rewarding aspects of the experience, like how fulfilling and cozy it feels to get a big hug from a child. Imagine or feel that the experience is sinking deeply into your mind and body, like warm sun on a T-shirt, water into a sponge, or a jewel placed in your heart. Keep relaxing your body and absorbing the experience. Healing. This is an option, extra step. Here you use positive experiences to soothe, balance, and even replace negative ones. When a negative memory or feeling arises, allow your positive experience (that you cultivated in the previous steps) arise at the same time. Hold these two experiences within yourself at the same time. When two things are held in mind at the same time, they begin connecting with each other. That’s one reason why talking about hard things in a supportive relationship – with friends, or a teacher or therapist – is often so healing: painful material gets infused with the comfort, encouragement, and closeness you experience with the other person. Over time, this has a strong healing effect on negative material. History This method was created by psychologist Rick Hanson. Cautions Getting the benefits of this method requires repeated practice over a long period of time. It is not so much a "quick fix," as a long term strategy for improving your wellbeing. Notes The longer that something is held in awareness and the more emotionally stimulating it is, the more neurons that fire and thus wire together, and the stronger the trace in memory (Lewis, 2005). While you’ve been savoring it, your amygdala has been busily highlighting its positive emotional meaning for your hippocampus, which packages the experience for storage in long-term memory. Further, sometimes you might like to intensify the experience by deliberately enriching it. For example, if you are savoring something related to a relationship, intentionally calling up a strong feeling of being loved by others will help stimulate oxytocin and deepen the sense of relatedness.

Name Shadow Exercise Purpose/Effects This exercise will help open up the hidden depths of your creative self. It can also be used to begin the journey of self discovery. Method Summary Describe a person you strongly dislike. Long Version 1. For this exercise you need paper and a pen. 2. Now bring to mind someone who you really strongly dislike, or someone who has a lot of behaviors that drive you crazy and make you angry. 3. Make a list of all the things about this person that you do not like. Be very specific about which things about them or their behavior bother you. 4. When you have finished, draw a box around this list. 5. In large letters, label this box “My Shadow.” 6. Consider that all the characteristics you have written down represent a hidden, unconscious part of yourself. This is a part of yourself that you hate, fear, or otherwise dislike for some reason. 7. Think about how many people around you demonstrate these shadow characteristics you have described. You may be surprised! 8. It is often the case that we attract into our lives people and situations that have these shadow characteristics that we dislike. This is because the shadow is a disowned part of yourself that contains important parts of your overall, whole personality. 9. Sit for a moment, and consider if there is a way, through art or writing or some other creative expression, that you can express this disowned, suppressed part of yourself. The shadow is where the power and creativity in your soul lives! History The concept of the shadow was first elucidated in this form by psychologist Carl Jung. Cautions Shadow work can sometimes be quite difficult or intense. If you want to do deep shadow work, it is recommended that you do so with the help of a Jungian therapist. Notes Because the shadow represents a repressed part of our own unconscious self, it is very common for the shadow to appear in dreams. Nightmares, dreams of monsters, killers, demons, etc., are often simply the shadow appearing in its most disturbing disguise. If this is the case, do some dream tending with the image.

Name Self-hypnosis, autohypnosis Purpose/Effects Self-hypnosis is an important branch of modern hypnotherapy, used either in addition to guided hypnosis. It can be done using a CD or tape recording that leads you into a trance state, or through a learned routine, such as the one below. Self-hypnosis can be an effective therapy for pain relief, gastrointestinal upset (especially in the case of irritable bowel syndrome), a tool to assist in weight loss and addiction recovery, and to relax, relieve stress and anxiety, and to promote general wellbeing. By leading the conscious mind into a relaxed, unfocused awareness, it becomes susceptible to positive autosuggestion. Method Summary Sink into a state of complete relaxation and trance, state the necessary affirmations, and re-emerge. Long Version 1. Find a quiet place where you can turn ringers off of phones and otherwise ensure silence for at least half an hour. Sit or lie down comfortably; many people enjoy using a recliner for self-hypnosis sessions. Ease into a restful position, with arms and legs lying heavily and loosely. Don’t cross your legs as they may start to fall asleep and leave you uncomfortable. 2. Close your eyes and begin to breathe deeply in through the nose and out through the mouth. Slowly relax your body by visualizing the tension and stress flowing out of your muscles, starting at your toes and moving up your legs, through your torso and arms, and finally your head. Let your heavy limbs become lighter with this visualization. 3. In a similar way, let the mental sensations of fear, stress, and anxiety flow out of your mind. If they arise, instead of trying to force them out, just observe them and let them slowly pass away. Visualize with each breath these negative feelings leaving with each exhalation and a bright white light coming in with each inhalation, bringing with it positive feeling and a healing energy. 4. Now, visualize that you are at the top of a flight on ten stairs. Visualize yourself descending this staircase slowly, counting down to yourself with each one, from ten to one. When you reach one, you will be at a doorway. Visualize opening this door to a calm paradise, full of beauty and serenity. Allow yourself to relax and enjoy the natural beauty of your personal haven, breathing in its purifying air deeply. While you are here, you may decide to make some affirmations. Visualize yourself walking through your serene place until you come to a body of water. Look down into this body of water and see your reflection looking back at you. With relaxed and loving resolve, repeat between one and three affirmations silently to yourself two or three times each. For more on affirmations, read the article here. 5. When you have made your affirmations and explored your paradise as fully as you wish, return to the doorway. Visualize yourself opening the door and ascending the staircase slowly and relaxedly, counting up silently from one to ten. When you have reached the top, take three easy breaths and let them bring you back to the outside world. Rest silently with your eyes closed for a little longer, then allow them to open and take in the world from your newly relaxed and refreshed state. 6. As you do this exercise more, your trance will deepen and improve. If you’d like to try another technique, this young gentleman has recorded a video of a different, quick, and easy method: History The 18th-century German physician Franz Mesmer developed a primitive form of hypnosis based on what he called "animal magnetism"; later, the Portuguese monk Abbé Faria postulated that hypnosis-type effects were due to the power of suggestion instead. In 1841 the Scottish physician James Braid took these ideas and developed both traditional guided hypnotism and self-hypnotism. Later, psychologists like Émile Coué refined autosuggestion techniques. In the 20th century, research confirmed that self-hypnosis had similar effects to "hetero-hypnosis" and proved its worth as a self-help technique. Notes If you find hypnotic and autosuggestive techniques helpful, there are a great many different possibilities. Follow the links below under "See Also" for some suggestions. You may want to use self-hypnosis as a supplement to hypnosis sessions guided by a therapist. This is a very effective way to maximize therapeutic benefit while saving time and money.

Name Self-Compassion Pause Purpose/Effects Self-compassion is a powerful tool you can use to improve your well-being, self confidence and resilience. Many find it easy to have compassion for others but struggle in applying this same kindness to themselves. By taking moments throughout your day to pause and practice self compassion, you can gradually increase this quality and make it a more regular habit in your life. Method Summary Pause a few times a day – especially when you are a feeling stressed or overwhelmed – and practice self-compassion. Long Version § When you find yourself stressed out in a difficult situation, take a moment to pause. § Reach up and touch your heart, or give yourself a hug if you are comfortable with that. § Take a few deep breaths. § Acknowledge that you are suffering and see if you can treat yourself with as much kindness as you would a dear friend or child who was struggling. § Offer yourself phrases of compassion, first by acknowledging your suffering: § “This is suffering.” or “This is really painful/difficult right now.” or “Wow, I am really suffering right now!” § “Suffering is a part of being human.” For the final phrase(s), choose whatever is most appropriate for your situation. Feel free to use any of the following phrases or create your own: § May I hold myself with compassion. § May I love and accept myself just as I am. § May I experience peace. § May I remember to treat myself with love and kindness. § May I open to my experience just as it is. § Return to your daily activities, intentionally carrying an attitude of self-compassion and acceptance to your day. History This method was adapted from the Self-Compassion Pause used in Kristin Neff and Christopher Germer’s Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) training program. For more information about their program and about self-compassion, visit: http://www.mindfulselfcompassion.org/ and http://selfcompassion.org/

Name Self-Affirmation to Reduce Self-Control Failure Purpose/Effects By affirming one's one sense of self, one can strengthen one's self-control. Positive feedback from oneself and from others, but most especially expressing one's core values, strengthens the personal will. This strengthening can counteract the individual's automatic or habitual response and replace it with a conscious willful response. This empowers the individual to change himself or herself and his or her ability to manage his or her life. This form of self-affirmation can be used against procrastination, addictive and compulsive behavior, discouragement at difficult tasks, and other minor problems that result from a lack of self-control. It also has been shown to improve mood and long-term self-esteem. Method Summary Express your core values to help strengthen your willpower. Long Version § Expressing one’s core values is a courageous act that affirms the self. In this exercise, we will focus on this aspect of self-affirmation because it has been shown to be the most effective of its forms. § Think for a long and introspective period about your core values. What defines your worldview? What do you consider your own personal guidelines for living well in the world. Your core values could be anything–compassion for others, dedication to one’s work, a good sense of humor–as long as they are real. Don’t pick something just because it makes you sound like a saint. Remember, the point of this exercise isn’t to win an essay contest for “best human being.” You are trying to affirm the very deepest and most meaningful parts of your self. § Write a short essay explaining one of your core values and why it is important to you and to others. You might also want to include an instance in which this value had made a difference in your life. You might want to begin a journal which you use to write about these core values. You could treat each value as the subject of a newspaper-style editorial piece, in which you can express your most deeply-held values. § As a supplement to this exercise, express these values in the real world. If you believe strongly in honesty, endeavor to be honest and to promote honesty in others. This also acts as a self-affirmative act. § Over time, you may find that this self-affirmation has increased your ability to self-control. Continue to practice this expression in your everyday life to maintain the strength of your willpower. History Dr. Roy Baumeister developed the idea of willpower as something that can be strengthened with exercise and depleted with disuse beginning in the 1980s. Researchers Brandon J. Schmeichel and Kathleen Vohs released a paper in early 2009 summarizing the findings of a series of experiments in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. In these experiments, subjects had their egos "depleted" and then attempted to counteract this depletion using self-affirmative strategies. The results showed a remarkable power in self-affirmation to empower the individual and to increase self-control; it even strengthened some subjects' pain tolerance! Cautions Though growing one's self-control has been shown to help reduce addictive and compulsive behaviors, serious addictions or psychological compulsions may require more assistance than just self-affirmation. You may want to consider the Twelve Step programs Link Notes This program of self-affirmation is very helpful in reducing the tendency to procrastinate. Putting things off is a perfect example of the kind of self-control failure the scientists wanted to work against. By affirming your strength through your core values, you affirm your ability to act -- that is to say, your ability NOT to procrastinate.

Name Self-Advocacy Purpose/Effects Self-advocacy here means treating yourself (and demanding, albeit gently and reasonably, that others treat you) as if your worth is no less than any other being. We live in a culture that alternately promotes self-esteem and equality while promoting interests that are often destructive to individuals and groups. Women, especially, are often taught as girls not to speak up and assert themselves for fear of being "unladylike." We often neglect our own needs and yearnings for the benefit of others. When this becomes pathological and crippling, it inhibits our true wills, and practice in self-advocacy is needed. Method Summary Learn compassion, advocacy, and lovingkindness for others, then apply it to yourself. Long Version Exercise #1: Basic Advocacy: § Sit in a comfortable meditative posture, relaxed and alert. While breathing gently and calmly, begin to think about something for which you have unequivocal good feeling. It could be a parent or a child, a pet or a friend, or even a place or a concept. Begin to wish that person or thing well. You might want to use the lovingkindness techniques detailed here. Consider fully this sensation of caring. Fill yourself with this feeling of support for something and explore it. Examine how advocacy of this sort makes you feel, how you think about the object of your advocacy, your emotions and attitudes. Perhaps slowly try to ramp up this feeling of goodwill. Love fiercely. Care strongly. Then, center your attention on the power of your caring and your commitment to this positive feeling. You might also try to weaken the feeling to see how your mind behaves under those circumstances. Then dial it back up. Notice how your advocacy is something you have control over, and how good it feels to be fierce and strong about love. Enjoy it; it is beautiful.This exercise reminds us of the warmth and pleasure that come from caring, especially caring strongly. It tells us about our own strength and determination. We also find in ourselves the capacity to love completely an imperfect thing. These skills will help us to then begin to self-advocate. Exercise #2: Self-Advocacy: § Settle into the same relaxed and alert posture as before. Now, bring to mind yourself as a child. Focus on your many qualities, how worthy of love you were and how vulnerable. Consider how, even as a child, you were imperfect but good enough. Have compassion for that young child. Then, gradually, move that compassion to yourself now as an adult. Have compassion for your foibles and mistrials as well as for the trauma, bad luck, and hard circumstances you’ve had to endure by virtue of your humanity. Settle into this compassion, allowing it to flow into you with each inhalation. Move on to lovingkindness, feeling it for the child you once were and moving it into adulthood. Feel lovingkindness for yourself now, expressing with your inner voice well-wishes and affection for the person you are, despite your flaws. Finally, move toward advocacy. Return to the child you were, and think about how, if you needed to, you would protect that child and would help that child just as you would any child. See if you can bring this same advocacy to your adult self, empowering you to protect and help yourself and to advocate for your own wellbeing. Consider how you will act in your best interest in the face of illness, bad luck, mistreatment, and suffering, just as you would for the interest of a child. Fill yourself with this powerful feeling of self-advocacy and enjoy it. Allow your mind to commit itself to advocating for you. History Self-advocacy has its roots in 19th-century psychological and philosophical thought that questioned the self-sacrificing ideals of Western culture. The concept of will evolved from Schopenhauer and Nietzsche (who often viewed it in rather bleak terms) into something positive and empowering with the movement toward self-esteem in the late 19th century. Cautions Do not confuse your selfish wants with things that must be advocated for. You, as a human being, have the right to advocate for equal treatment, freedom from abuse, the ability to follow your dreams, and respect from others. Self-advocacy does not mean that petty emotions and greedy desires are okay just because you think them. Notes Self-advocacy is also a term used in the disability rights movement expressing the right that people with disabilities (especially the developmentally disabled) have to control their own lives and to self-determine. The ability to speak up for oneself is crucial for human beings in order to feel empowered about their own lives.

Name Seeing the Good in Others Purpose/Effects Looking for the good qualities - such as strengths, good intentions, talents, virtues, efforts - in another person can have many benefits. Seeing the goodness in someone can improve your interactions and relationship with that person, and also bring out the best in him or her. Through this practice you are inclining your mind to look for the good, while also offering others the gift of being “seen” with kindness. Method Summary Look for good qualities in one or more people you meet each day. Long Version § When you wake up in the morning, set the intention to look for the good qualities in one or more people you encounter this day. § When you meet someone, look for one or more good qualities in him or her. These qualities can be mild, such as a basic sense of fair play. The other person does not need to be a saint, and can have problematic qualities as well (as most of us do). § Remember that, just like you, this person wishes to be safe, happy, and free from suffering. § Imagine that you are seeing a fundamentally noble being deep down inside him or her. § Let the intention of seeing good in others guide your actions as you speak and interact with this person. § Notice how this person responds to being seen and treated in this way. Also, notice your internal responses toward this person. § If you wish, gradually increase the number of days you do this practice. Also, work with seeing goodness in all people you encounter, including strangers or difficult people. History Seeing goodness in others is practiced in many cultures and praised by many, including the Dalai Lama and Nelson Mandela. The method presented here was adapted from a practice created by Jack Kornfield called Seeing The Secret Goodness, and a practice by James Baraz titled Looking for Joy. Cautions Sometimes it can be challenging to find good qualities in strangers or difficult people. Be patient with yourself as you do this practice, and keep continuing to search for any good qualities in this person. Notes In India, it is common to greet others by bowing and saying, “namaste,” which means, “I honor the divine in you.”

I love this Name Scheduling Worry Time Purpose/Effects For many chronic worriers an endless stream of worries can consume the entire day, causing both mental and physical exhaustion. In this method, designating a daily worry time can actually help decrease the amount of time spent worrying. It can also help reduce the pull of your worries and increase your control over where you direct your attention. Method Summary: Set a specific time each day that you will allow yourself to worry as much as you want for a certain amount of time. Afterwards, postpone all future worrying until your next designated worry time. Long Version § Choose a specific time each day to be your daily worry time. § It is best to pick a time that works with your schedule when you have at least 30 minutes. § Throughout the day identify when you are worrying. If you notice you are worrying before your designated worry time, gently but firmly postpone your worrying and return to the task at hand. § It can be helpful to keep a sense of humor during the practice and perhaps say to your worry something along the lines of, “Thank you for your concern but I will see you later at (certain time) today.” § When your worry time arrives, designate 30 minutes to dive deeply into your worries and let yourself think and worry as much as you can. § Try to worry about one topic at a time and when you have exhausted all thoughts and concerns about it you can choose another topic. § If you wish you can write your worries down, say them out loud, or record them. § Try not to distract yourself from worrying. If you get bored, notice that and ask yourself if there is anything else you would like to worry about. Getting bored during worry time can loosen the grip and seriousness of your worries. § After your 30 minutes is done bring yourself back to the next task in your day. § You can thank your worries for sharing and tell them that you will see them tomorrow. § After your worry time, if worries arise tell yourself that you have already had your worry time for the day and will see to that thought tomorrow. § If you find yourself gripped by a particularly scary thought, you can write it down to remind yourself of it during your next worry time. § Try to practice every day for at least one week without skipping your worry time. This will make it easier for you to detach from worrying when it is not your worry time. History Setting up a worry time is a practice used in cognitive behavioral therapy to treat various anxiety disorders. Cautions During your worry time it is not recommended to delve into traumatic events or relive extremely stressful situations. If you find yourself becoming highly anxious, fearful, or uncomfortable please discontinue the practice. Notes § In general, and especially if you have trouble falling asleep, do not schedule your worry time right before bedtime. § Also, some people prefer to have two shorter worry times instead of one long worry time. § The duration of your worry time can also be adjusted. Some prefer to only take 10-15 minutes each day for their worry time.