SELF HYPNOSIS TO CALM ANXIETY: “TODAY IS GOING TO BE A SURPRISINGLY GOOD DAY”

In my shower every morning I say this statement. It lifts me, makes me feel curious and open to the good things that might happen today - whatever they turn out to be. They might be small things like eating a piece of chocolate, or exchanging a smile with someone, or they might be good news, or something that makes me laugh, or a problem that is fixed… or… so many possibilities.

This is self hypnosis, and with regular practice it is a very powerful way to change your thinking, your mind and your expectations. This is called priming. It sets up positive, rather than negative expectations (the opposite of Anxiety which leads us to expect the worst), and challenges that pessimistic thinking habit by mismatching, or “anti-doting” it, to help us look forward and feel optimistic.

You can use any positive statement you like - you don't have to fully believe in it, just that it is possible and therefore credible. That’s enough to influence your unconscious mind. Here are a few more examples:

“I wonder what I might notice today that will make me feel [better, happy, safer, lighter etc…]”

“Later, when I look back on today, I wonder what will have happened that made me [smile, happy, pleased etc…]”

“Today I am going to look for anything that is [beautiful, makes me smile, inspiring etc…]”

Try it! Later, looking back on your day you might be surprised how good it was!