One of the things we learn as we’re working to heal our mental and emotional health issues, including our addictions, is just how powerful our subconscious mind really is. We often aren’t aware of the inner workings of our minds. We pay more attention to our conscious thoughts, actions and beliefs, not realizing that the majority of them are actually governed by the subconscious mind. We learn that the majority of our subconscious thoughts are redundant and negative, causing our daily lives to be filled with fear, fear that manifests as anxiety, insecurity and a lack of self-worth. In order to heal ourselves and have a fighting chance of beating our addictions, we’ll need to reprogram our subconscious minds and all of the harmful beliefs stored there.
Let’s start becoming more mindful of the beliefs driving how we think, feel and behave, how we function in the world, and how we move through our days. If, for example, you find yourself feeling unsure of yourself and feeling as though you don’t measure up to other people, you are most likely harboring the subconscious beliefs that you’re not good enough, that you’re in competition with other people, and that you’re easily threatened by others. These beliefs may have developed from years of not believing in yourself, from unresolved insecurities and unhealed traumas, from being abused or neglected. When we want to start feeling better about ourselves so that we can be empowered in our recovery, we want to reprogram these negative, limiting subconscious beliefs.
Fortunately the subconscious is not a permanent fixture of static, unchanging thoughts and beliefs. We can work with the subconscious mind to change its programming and develop totally new beliefs. The subconscious mind responds to a number of different techniques, among them meditation, visualization, repetition and the written word. Using the above example of our beliefs around inadequacy, let’s explore ways in which we can reprogram the subconscious mind to start feeling more at peace within ourselves, more confident, secure and self-assured. We can create a healthier self-image for ourselves that isn’t full of the beliefs around self-rejection, insecurity, self-hatred and low self-esteem that we’ve been practicing for all these years. If you really loved yourself, what would you look like, how would you feel, what would you be doing? Meditate on that self-image and really visualize yourself as that version of you, putting your energy behind it and working to believe that it’s possible for you, because it is! Write and repeat aloud affirmations that support this new self-perception: I am confident. I am secure. I love myself. I believe in myself. I am fulfilled. I am making my dreams come true.
At The Guest House Ocala, our recovery programs include many experiential modalities including traditional therapy, conscious connected breathwork, equine therapy, somatic experiencing, art in healing, grief therapy, mindfulness and other forms of therapy. Call 855-483-7800 today for more information.