In the Mood with Self-Hypnosis

Someone dear to me says she cannot eat anything unless she is "in the mood" for it. I have seen her go days subsisting on whole grain crackers, dark chocolate and coffee, meanwhile complaining that her joints hurt and she has no energy.

Can there be a clearer indication of the mind-body connection?

During a recent visit with two of my grandchildren, I prepared an after school snack for them of sliced apples, grapes, and Colby cheese. The younger of the two walked away from the counter toward the television, but a few minutes later raided the larder for a snack cake. After I retrieved the cake and placed her in front of the prepared snack, I quietly said, "You may think you don't want this kind of snack right now, but if you will think back to the last juicy, sweet, crispy, delicious apple you ate, you just might change your mind. Or maybe not; it's up to you." I swiveled to turn my chair 45 degrees away from her and waited. When I turned back, she was happily eating away at the apple.

The right words create the right thoughts to move us in the right direction. All hypnosis is self-hypnosis. As parents, may we learn to use our words to help our children make good choices, while leaving those choices up to them. Children who seem defiant may simply be waiting for the right words of encouragement.