Hypnosis and Confidence

The internet is a great resource for many reasons, not the least of which is being able to read the thousands of newspapers all across the country and the world.

I recently came across an article posted in the Health section of the United Kingdom’s Daily Mail that touched on a subject most of us are well aware of but few of us take into consideration: the role of hair in a woman’s life.

The article, titled “We’ve all lost our hair (and we’re still beautiful)” talks about a surprisingly common but lesser known condition, particularly among women, called Alopecia. Alopecia is an auto-immune skin disease that causes patches of hair fall out of the scalp and other areas due to the body’s immune system mistakenly attacking hair follicles as though they were foreign antigens. It’s estimated that it affects 5 million people in the United States alone and nearly 2 percent of the world population.

Now, most of us experience hair loss. In fact, as the Daily Mail reports, between 75 and 100 hairs fall out of each of our heads everyday. But because they’re small and because our hair tends to grow back rather prodigiously, we hardly ever notice it.

But if you have the more severe forms of Alopecia (universalis or totalis), not only does more hair fall out than usual, but once it’s gone, it stays gone.

Most women would not take such cold hard facts well. The five women interviewed in the Daily Mail article certainly didn’t. However, they learned after years of soul searching that beauty is not determined by the world or societal mores; beauty is determined by your own self-worth. Hypnosis and self-hypnosis methods aid in this process by breaking through the wall that so often clouds our views and judgments on what really makes us happy and what really boosts our confidence.

Its amazing how hypnotized society has become by media images and “cultural norms” that label beauty as it sees fit. Just look at pictures of yesteryear (the 80s, in particular) and you’ll be hard pressed to find the same hair styles and dresses that were once considered “popular.” Because we place so much importance on appearance on self-worth, should something happen that alters the ideal look, it often brings with it resentment, disappointment and fear of rejection.

The five women interviewed felt all those things and more. One of the women, a 32-year-old corporate lawyer, sought out every treatment she could for four long years, such as receiving a vast assortment of steroid injections and wig fittings. Thousands of pounds (the United Kingdom’s currency) later and no hair to show for it, the chance meeting of her current boyfriend helped her recognize the beauty she had in her all along. It also recalled something her dermatologist said at the time of her diagnosis: “It’s not the hairs on the head that make you the person you are.”

A 25-year-old social worker, who was diagnosed with Alopecia universalis, also sought out numerous treatments including steroid injections, creams, sprays and acupuncture. Again, all her attempts were in vain. Feeling she’d lost her femininity and her self-worth, she resigned herself to the fact that she’d never be the same person again. But thanks to the positive reinforcement of her friends and boyfriend, she’s able to press forward with life without feeling like she somehow lost her femininity with her hair.

Granted, I am not a woman and I certainly don’t presume to understand the importance that women place on their hair. Several ladies I know leave their hair dresser’s hundreds of dollars in the red, so believe me, I understand that many women (and men) view the mane as a symbol of womanhood

But I believe this to be flawed thinking. A man’s muscular stature does not make him any more of a man, just as woman’s hair does not make her any more of a woman.

What makes all of us who we are and content with who we are is what we believe. Not what others say ought to make us content or ought to make us feel successful, but what we say is the right way in which to live by. And as hard as it may be to believe, you hold the power within yourself to make that happen. Turn off the television. Turn off the radio. Surround yourself with the kind of close-knit friends who are always building, never tearing down.

I leave you with the immortal words of German author Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe: “Trust yourself, then you will know how to live.”

Steve G. Jones, Clinical Hypnotherapist
http://www.betterlivingwithhypnosis.com/