In the book Shift: Managing Your Emotions—So They Don't Manage You, neuroscientist Ethan Kross reveals various methods for effectively managing emotions. Interestingly, these methods are closely related to hypnotherapy. Both aim to help people better control their emotions and enhance their quality of life.
The book emphasizes the importance of emotional management, pointing out that emotions can not only ensure our safety, promote health and well - being, but also cause troubles in life due to excessive or inappropriate reactions. People who are good at emotional management perform better in all aspects of life, and emotions are contagious. Managing our own emotions can have a positive impact on others. This coincides with the goals of hypnotherapy. Hypnotherapy also hopes to help people improve their emotional states, thereby enhancing their quality of life and interpersonal relationships.
Looking at the specific methods of emotional management, the technique of "harnessing your senses" is similar to the guided relaxation session in hypnotherapy. The book mentions that when we feel lonely or sad, we can listen to upbeat music, smell the fragrance of flowers, etc., using sensory experiences to shift our emotions. In hypnotherapy, therapists often use elements such as sounds and scents to guide clients to relax and enter a state more receptive to suggestions. For example, playing gentle and soothing music allows clients to immerse themselves in it, relax their tense nerves, and relieve negative emotions. This is consistent with the idea in the book of using sensory experiences to regulate emotions, both of which aim to change the internal emotional state by influencing the senses.
The method of "changing your focus", that is, appropriately diverting attention to relieve emotions, also has its counterpart in hypnotherapy. When people are troubled by negative emotions, hypnotherapists will guide clients to shift their attention away from the things that trigger the emotions. For example, they may guide clients to imagine beautiful scenes or recall pleasant experiences. This is similar to the view in the book that by diverting attention, we can avoid overreacting to negative emotions and let the emotions subside naturally. Both approaches help people temporarily break free from the entanglement of negative emotions and face problems with a calmer mindset.
"Altering your perspective" is also a key method of emotional management, which is closely related to cognitive restructuring in hypnotherapy. The book mentions that re - examining the perspective of things can change emotional reactions. For example, looking at your wife's lateness from a different angle may reduce your anger. In hypnotherapy, therapists will guide clients to explore the beliefs and thought patterns in their subconscious minds, helping them to re - interpret past experiences or current dilemmas and break free from the shackles of negative emotions. For example, guiding a client who blames themselves for a work mistake to look at the mistake from a different perspective, regarding it as an opportunity for growth, thus reducing anxiety and self - blame. This is in line with the idea of adjusting emotions by changing perspectives in the book.
In addition, the book mentions that "practice helps with emotional management", which also has similarities with the practice of hypnotherapy. Hypnotherapy requires clients to participate multiple times. By repeatedly practicing specific relaxation and cognitive techniques, clients can gradually form new emotional response patterns. Similarly, the book encourages people to constantly practice emotional management methods in daily life so that they can use them skillfully when their emotions fluctuate and better control their emotions.
In conclusion, emotional management and hypnotherapy complement each other, providing us with more dimensions of thinking to deal with emotional problems. We strongly recommend you to use the methods in the book for self - regulation. We'd also encourage you to explore the inner self with hypnotherapy, not only to manage emotions better, but also help others to become the masters of their emotions, and lead a more fulfilling life.
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