​Confidence is like a crown jewel. When you wear it, you shine. Even a quietly confident person radiates authority and inspires trust. Confidence is supremely important when it comes to creating new behaviors, attaining goals and maintaining successful outcomes. When confidence appears to be lost or missing, there can be a domino effect. What happens to self-esteem, enthusiasm, contentment, courage and fortitude when confidence is missing?

When you begin fertility treatments it's important to have confidence in your team of health practitioners and your body's ability to cooperate. Sometimes a woman who has been highly successful in other areas of life feels betrayed by her body when pregnancy and birth do not happen at the time she feels ready to become a mother. Women who have no obvious medical issues preventing pregnancy can lose faith in their ability to conceive when, month after month, menstruation occurs rather than conception. Confidence needs to be restored. 

Confidence is also essential in patients preparing for surgery, clients wanting to give up addictive substances and behaviors, people who have been laid off in a tight job market, and ex-lovers feeling insecure due to separation and loss. Truly, we can all use a bit more confidence every now and then, but especially at those pivotal times in life when changes in our bodies, careers and relationships leave us feeling doubt and pain.

Where does confidence come from? For some people it seems as much an inherited trait as the color of their eyes. Even if they lose a little at times, it doesn't stop them. They know what to do to get it back. In other people confidence lies hidden in the shadows of negative thoughts and feelings of unworthiness, guilt, doubt and fear. It needs to be coaxed back into the light. In such cases it may take a little longer for confidence to emerge, but HYPNOSIS is a great facilitator and will make it happen sooner rather than later. There are many techniques a hypnotist has at her disposal to help a client experience confidence in any area of life.

One way in which a client can benefit is by tapping into a past life during hypnosis. Here is one example. A client struggling with issues of low self-esteem felt unable to 'stand in her power.' In trance, she experienced herself as a sheriff in the Old West -- a very, very tall man wearing a shiny silver star. "I am a man of stature!" she exclaimed, and went on to describe what it felt like to be be a tower of strength and a person of great social standing in the community. Because she was able to step into that experience fully, at the end of the session her whole bearing had shifted from the slump of depression to an open, relaxed, confident stance. By using all her senses to vividly recall feelings of empowerment in that lifetime, she was able to carry them forward in her present life, which gave a huge boost to her confidence. 

When we keep reinforcing positive experiences our perceptions begin to change. The half-empty glass becomes half-full. We discover that we are not who we thought we were. One experience of confidence is not usually enough to change an old, entrenched pattern. However, it is enough to shift our awareness and demonstrate unequivocally that we have tremendous inner resources and change is possible. We can learn with HYPNOSIS how to make our mind our friend, how to see the positive intention in negative behaviors, how to work with our feelings, and how to tap into our innate goodness and love. We can stop struggling and start dancing, moving through life with confidence, grace and poise. 

One of the best ways to begin your path to pregnancy is to believe with all your heart that your baby is waiting for you. Repeat this thought in your mind as you breathe, allowing yourself to relax more with each breath. When other thoughts arise, breathe into those as well, and let them go. All thoughts arise and subside in a stream of energy that flows through your body. If any doubts, concerns, or 'buts' start bubbling up to the surface, imagine them dissolving or floating away. Keep returning to the thought that serves you best: " My baby is waiting for me."

Thoughts are creative. That is why it is so important to become aware of your thoughts and to use language that supports your desire to become a mother. When you focus on 'fertility' rather than 'infertility' you are sending positive messages to your unconscious mind to create the right conditions for pregnancy and birth. After all, your baby is waiting for you.

At times, other people's thoughts might throw you off your game. Fortunately, there are simple techniques you can use to resist them. For example, if you are planning IVF and someone tells you that the procedure never worked for them, imagine yourself erasing that thought from a chalkboard.  You are creative. If you're not particularly visual, let yourself feel what it would be like to pluck negative thoughts from your mind the same way you would pluck weeds from a garden. You can also click an imaginary 'cancel' or 'delete' button to eliminate any thought that triggers worry, fear or doubt. Then replace negative thoughts with positive ones like "My baby is waiting for me."

When people speak of their sadness and disappointment, you can remain fully present without owning their pain by holding loving space for them. Compassion is healing, pity is not. Fortify yourself agains the limiting thoughts of others by creating healthy boundaries. You are, in essence, preparing to plant a garden. A good fence will help ensure successful germination of new seeds as well as an abundant harvest.

Hypnosis creates a deep feeling of relaxation that helps to banish the stress associated with negative thoughts. Any hidden, unconscious thoughts and beliefs that might be at odds with your desire to have a baby are also identified and released during hypnosis. The part of your mind that creates, imagines and dreams becomes receptive to positive suggestions that will boost your confidence, bolster your courage, increase your enthusiasm and affirm a strong, healthy body.