By: Gwenn Kafka, CMH, MH

If you add the components of holiday activities to those already highly stressed, you can count on them gaining weight, especially if they are already struggling with their weight, which may be caused by stress in the first place, and they just didn't know it. The average person gains 8-10 pounds over the holidays, then of course plans on going on a diet January 1st. This is a vicious cycle. 

When I see people for weight control challenges, I say that most of them already have a PhD in dieting. But it still surprises me as to how many do not know about cortisol, the hormone that when raised above normal levels, makes it very difficult to release weight. Merely having a brief argument with someone, can cause your cortisol to rise enough that it won't come back down to its normal level for as much as 2 hours. Think about what is happening if you are upset much of your day due to a stressful job or challenges with co-workers or family members!

Here is what happens: Humans have a complex system for responding to danger. While these fight-or-flight responses served our ancestors well, (like running away fast from a saber-tooth tiger) they can lead to long-term health problems in modern-day environments.

SHORT-TERM EFFECTS:

Stimulus: When the body senses a potential threat, a loud noise, a close call on the freeway, something that causes you to feel that you are in danger, the brain initiates a cascade of events that gets your body ready for action.

1. Hypothalamus: In response to warning signals, this part of the brain secretes a chemical called CRH that stimulates the nearby pituitary gland.
2. Pituitary: This gland makes a molecule called ACTH, which travels to the adrenal glands.
3. Adrenal Glands: These glands release cortisol. This hormone helps keep up blood sugar, giving the body extra energy to act.

RELATED RESPONSES:

The body has other ways to ramp up. The adrenals produce epinephrine, which increases the heart and breathing rates. Blood pressure rises; the legs and arms receive extra blood for energy.

LONG-TERM EFFECTS

New conflicts: While we are well adapted to passing threats that require immediate action, our stress responses are less effective against constant, low-level annoyances, such as a not very agreeable boss or a hectic daily commute, bad relationships etc.

Health problems After years of chronic activation, stress responses can wear the body down. Some of the common symptoms include:

• Impaired memory* Weakened immune system* High blood pressure
• Stomach ulcers* Skin problems* Digestive difficulties
• Weight gain (especially in the mid-section of the body due to cortisol increases from stress)

Many years ago, I had a client referred to me by a doctor down in Arroyo Grande, California. This woman had been seeing a renowned Endocrinologist in Santa Barbara. This doctor had been working with this woman for a year and a half to lose weight on a very restricted diet, but she just wasn't losing a pound. This doctor told the woman that she needed to "de-stress" so the weight could come off. Her Internist then sent her to me to help her to learn how to de-stress.

I told the woman about how with using hypnosis we can go to the subconscious to change the behaviors that are stored there. We can learn to eat only when the body is truly hungry and stop eating automatically once the body is satisfied. We can learn portion control. We can control emotional eating and we can activate the hypothalamus part of the brain to help us release the inert fat stores in the body and even stop cravings and addictive behaviors around food. But she really wasn't too sure about how she felt about hypnosis even though all of those ideas sounded great. But since her doctor referred her to me, she was willing to try the hypnosis for stress reduction. We had our session by phone.

After making her just one personalized relaxation induction to listen to, she released 4 pounds in two weeks, after being on a strict diet for such a long time and not loosing a pound! With this newly learned technique, she decided that she wanted to work with me for weight control. She released 25 pounds in just a few short months.What can you do for yourself to de-stress? There are many things.

Over the past three decades, so many studies have confirmed the benefits of what we call "the relaxation response," a state of mental calm during which your blood pressure drops, your heart and breathing rate slow, and your muscles become less tense. Practicing the relaxation response on your own is simple once you have practiced it and you are comfortable with it. Hypnosis gives you tools to accomplish instant calm.

If you are standing in a very long line waiting to purchase your holiday presents or in the grocery store in extra long lines, take at least three deep breaths and exhale slowly. Now focus your thoughts on something that is very pleasing to you. Something that is calming to you, like the beach on a perfect day. Or you might think about someone you love. Just something that is the complete opposite of where you are and what is going on around you. Have this thought ready to use whenever you need it. It will be an "anchor" for you. It takes only a second to change the chemicals in your brain to take you from stressed, to pleasantly calm. Thoughts plus emotions create behaviors. We are the creators of our behavior and we feel the way that we think.

By checking in occasionally as to what our bodies are telling us, we can learn to identify that anxious feeling and stop it instantly by something as simple as taking some breaths and changing our minds to our pre-established calm place. You will lower your heart rate, blood pressure, and feel so much better so quickly on your own command.