I had a bit of an existential crisis last year. I was really asking myself why I was here and what is it I can positively contribute to this planet while I am here. I wasn’t depressed but felt my inner-clock ticking away and a sense of urgency to act. I found I was being too clear on what I didn’t want in life rather than on what I did want.
Giving up a job you have been doing for many years (in my case I was teaching for 23 years) with the idea of finding your real true purpose in life is no easy task. Your sense of identity changes; in some sense you feel liberated and in others completely lost in a wash of where do I go from here? And how?
Meditation was helpful. It kept me balanced and brought back calm and focus when I needed it most. Meditation helped me accept my human condition.
It was over the Christmas break, being away from home, connecting with nature and having moments to quietly reflect and jot down thoughts that my self-realisation came. Being in a different environment clearly helped. I was more relaxed and open.
I decided to make a list of things I love doing and then a list of things I’m good at. I wanted to focus on what would really give me a life of joy, passion and fulfillment. I started off with:
“When my life is ideal I am…” and brought the list down to my 5 most important. I started to see a clearer picture form. Basically I like helping people live a better life. I’ve always been a good listener and I would love to be able to ease people’s suffering or transform people’s lives. I have had an ongoing fascination for psychology and how the mind works. This is one of the motives for writing this blog. Now it became clear that my purpose in life is to work in a therapeutic field. And as by casuality….
an article appeared about how hypnosis can work effectively in a wide range of situations. I was totally absorbed and fascinated. I discovered how well-known sports people such as David Beckham had used hypnosis to stay at the top of his game, Jack Nicklaus used it for improved concentration in his golf, Jimmy Conners for career success at tennis, Tiger Woods for golf improvement and peak performance, and the list goes on in the sports world. Also treatments for anxiety, depression, building up self-esteem, changing compulsive behaviours, weight loss, quit smoking…the list is long. Just google it. I could visualise how hypnosis could be complementary with my 23 years of teaching experience in supporting children and teenagers with emotional problems, exam nerves and overcoming fears, and how my love for mindful running for motivating sportsmen and women to excel at their sport.
It took me nearly 2 months of sourcing out a course that I felt would put me up there with one of the best training schools to be a Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist with Neuro-Linguistic Programming and a good grounding in cognitive behaviour. I came across Adam Eason who is the UK’s leading evidence-based hypnotherapist and am now signed-up to start the course with him. So next week I’m off to college in Bournemouth for 10 days to begin a long and intensive course in a fully accredited Hypnotherapy Practitioner Diploma (HPD) which will be mix of classroom-based and practical learning in Bournemouth followed by plenty of study and practice from home and another intensive classroom-based block later this year. I’ve got a lot of hard work ahead, got to get my student head back on and be prepared to step out of my comfort zone. I’m really excited!
Bournemouth with 7 miles of beach (Bournemouth Beach named 20th best beach in the world, 2019 by TripAdvisor). I expect the weather to be quite fresh in March.
I’m also thinking about what it’s going to be like going for a run in Bournemouth. Those running shoes are definately coming with me!
And I also hope to despell the myths and misconceptions of hypnosis in the near future.
Alive & Kicking!