Hypnotherapy and Stress - by Bunny Vreeland

By Bunny Vreeland -
Bunny Vreeland is a hypnotherapist serving Oxnard, Ventura, Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Ojai and all of Ventura County California. Bunny Vreeland is a certified hypnotherapist.
2007 Dr. Bunny Vreeland


Hypnosis has helped thousands, maybe millions of people to reduce Stress.
You can hardly pick up a newspaper or magazine or watch TV without seeing or hearing some reference to Stress.
Why all the sudden fuss and fascination?
After all, stress has been around since Adam and Eve were evicted from the Garden of Eden.
Is it because there is much more stress today?
Is it because the nature of contemporary stress is somehow different and more dangerous?
Or is it because scientific research has increasingly confirmed the crucial role stress can play in causing and aggravating different disorders and the diverse mechanisms of actions responsible for mediating its multitudinous effects?
The answer to all of these questions is a very resounding "YES!".
The stress response of the body is somewhat like an airplane readying
for take-off. Virtually all systems (eg, the heart and blood vessels,
the immune system, the lungs, the digestive system, the sensory organs,
and brain) are modified to meet the perceived danger.

We are all under a lot of stress...but healthy people learn techniques to help themselves manage stress. A few minutes of relaxation with self-hypnosis meditation can make you a winner over stress.
America, like many western civilizations, is feeling the impact of global change. The effects of change reach into every crevice of life putting people more and more under pressure. Think about the changes that have taken place in your neighborhood over the past few years…especially since September 11, 2001.


Many people try but find that the avoidance strategies frequently generate more stress rather than reducing it. If you drink alcohol or take drugs to avoid stress you'll end up worse off in the long run.
The perfect antidote to stress is relaxation and meditation...and the perfect form of meditation is hypnosis.
Stress causes the brain waves to increase, which causes a chain reaction of events to cascade in the body. A few of the changes that take place in the body when we experience stress are higher blood pressure, rapid heart beat, tense muscles, rapid and shallow respiration, cold hands and feet and decreased immune function.
When you are stressed it's as though your brain is preparing your body to fight or run away…and it is!
The stressors faced by humans conditioned to a nomadic hunter-gather lifestyle are obviously different to the high-tech lifestyle of today. Our distant ancestors needed responses to stress that would enable them to trigger physical flight or fight responses to the perils and pleasures of hunting.
These types of responses are inappropriate today. If you physically ran away from your workplace whenever things got on top of you then this would not enhance your standing in the organization. Conversely if you punch the boss on the nose when he/she gives you a tough time then the resulting dismissal and assault charges will generate considerably greater levels of stress.
Stress causes strain on the body…and the strain can lead to illness…unless we do something about it...like practice relaxation and meditation with hypnosis.
Stress causes strain on your immune system and that can lead to illness and disease. Many doctors report that up to 90% of people in hospitals are there because of stress…including many types of cancer and heart disease.




The perfect antidote to stress is relaxation…not relaxing with a brew at the pub or relaxing in front of the television…but relaxing the body and slowing the brain waves into the Alpha state with hypnosis.
When we are in the Alpha State the brain waves slow down to 6 to 8 cycles per second. When that happens we are perfectly relaxed! Everything that happens to the body is the opposite of what happens when we are stressed.
In the Alpha State the blood vessels dilate, so the blood pressure goes down. The breathing is slow and deep. The heart rate slows down. The muscles completely relax. In the Alpha State the immune system speeds up…so Alpha is a healing state.
There are only four brain wave states.
Beta…when we are awake…21 to 35 cycles per second.
Alpha…when we are perfectly relaxed and hypnotized…
6 to 8 cycles per second.
Theta…when we are asleep…3 to 5 cycles per second.
Delta…when we are unconscious or in a coma…1 to 3 cycles per second.
Alpha, or hypnosis…the words are interchangeable…is a natural state. It is a fact that we pass from Beta through Alpha every night before we fall asleep. And we pass from Theta-sleep-through Alpha when we awaken in the morning.
Stress is an unavoidable consequence of life. As Hans Selye (who coined the term as it is currently used) noted,
“Without stress, there would be no life.”
However, just as distress can cause disease, it seems plausible that there are good stresses that promote wellness.
Stress is not always necessarily harmful.


Winning a race or election can be just stressful as losing, or more so, but may trigger very different biological responses. Increased stress results in increased productivity -- up to a point.
However, this level differs for each of us. It's very much like the stress on a violin string. Not enough produces a dull, raspy sound.
Too much tension makes a shrill, annoying noise or snaps the string. However, just the right degree can create a magnificent tone. Similarly, we all need to find the proper level of stress that allows us to perform optimally and make melodious music as we go through life.
The body may contain its own best pharmacy.

Good health is more than just the absence of illness.

Rather, it is a very robust state of physical and emotional well-being, that acknowledges the importance and inseparability of mind/body relationships.

Through the use of Hypnotherapy you can learn how to harness stress, so that it can work for you, and make you more productive, rather than self-destructive.

The total relaxation that accompanies hypnosis is a buffer that dissipates the harmful effects of stress…so that you can thrive in spite of the problems and changes life throws at you.
For high-quality, safe, and affordable hypnotherapy, contact Bunny today! 805-984-1237 or 800-755-4083.

Bunny Vreeland is a hypnotherapist serving Oxnard, Ventura, Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Ojai and all of Ventura County California. Bunny Vreeland is a certified hypnotherapist.
2007 Dr. Bunny Vreeland