Sugar Addiction
By: Betsie Poinsett, Clinical Hypnotherapist
Sound familiar? Many clients ask me if I can help them remove their addiction to sugar and sweets (among other things). As a Hypnotherapist, I know that habits and patterns are formed in the subconscious mind which is 88% of our mind power. Hypnosis is one of the best ways to access that 88% to help people make lasting changes in their lives.
Recently, I had a very interesting case about a client who craved sugar all the time. As with all clients, I do an intake review with them to discuss how their problems might have started. Because I have been a Hypnotherapist for 30 years, certain reasons have emerged that kind of stand out or give me a “red flag” about these issues. The most important is to ask a client about their childhood.
Immediately, my client said that she had a very abusive childhood and she left home at 16. That was my signal to ask her if she had ever done any “inner child rescue work” to go back and help that little girl? When she said “no”, I explained to her that when our inner child hasn’t had any recognition or been healed, then it is always back in our subconscious mind stuck in that fear. This is why it is so hard for many adults to move forward, to find success in their lives. When they try to move forward, yes, they will get to a certain point, but then that little child who has been ignored, abused or abandoned starts acting out – kind of like saying “Wait a minute, you can’t be successful, move forward, etc. because I’m still stuck back here in all this pain”.
Almost always the first session I have with a client is to reunite them with their inner child. The client becomes like the mentor, big sister/brother, saving the child and bringing it forward for a grand reunion. It’s like bringing all your lost pieces back together again. Sometimes I call it “The Humpty Dumpty Syndrome”. Once united they are never ever separated or apart again. This opens up a dialogue between the child and the client. The child can help the client become freer, happier and the client can communicate to the child that she will always “have her back” always be there for her. I tell the client, “ask the child what she would like to do”. Maybe buy an ice cream cone, a pretty dress, jump in the mud, chase fireflies. Whatever she wants to do make time to do it as the healing takes place.
And, so, this is what I did for the client who wanted to remove her sugar addiction. Think about it. What do children love – sweets, candy, sugar. And what does that represent? LOVE. And that is what the inner child is trying to find – LOVE. If they can’t find LOVE then they replace it with craving sweets!
In the hypnosis session, we went to a sacred circle and invited the little girl to come in to join the client. At first, she said her feet hurt. I asked why – she said her shoes were too tight because she had to wear hand me downs. My client immediately told the little girl to take those shoes off and she was going to buy her a brand-new pair of her own. Then the child said her dress was itchy – that was because the material was coarse. Again, my client told her they would buy a beautiful new dress made out of the finest cotton. Then they hugged, held hands and I told them they would never ever be separated again. I asked the client how the little girl felt and she said “WONDERFUL, HAPPY, COMPLETE – LOVED!!”. I told her that when I saw her for the next session, I wanted a full report on what they experienced during the week.
When the client came back for her next session, she said that she had completely given up sugar, sweets, etc. She had no desire to eat them again. As a matter of fact, she had gone out to dinner with her husband. At the end of the meal, they shared a piece of cake. She said she couldn’t eat it at all, it didn’t agree with her. SUCCESS!!!!!! A beautiful outcome for both of them. This is what I want to achieve for all clients. It takes some work, but it is SO worth it.
Written with the permission of the client. April 8, 2019
