When it’s about Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), it gets the heads turning all the time with both believers and critics jumping into a debate. Most debates on the discussion end at screaming insults and personal attacks, which is absolute fun to read but we don’t intend to start another here. However, we are going to concern ourselves with only the possibilities where NLP can be a pure genius for health and wellbeing.

NLP is basically a model of interpersonal communication that uses cunning quirks of language and behaviour patterns to alter or change the pattern of mental and emotional behaviour of the other person. Introduced by Bandler and Grinder, NLP claims to be able to treat problems such as phobias, habit disorder, psychosomatic illnesses, depression,  and learning disorders to name a few, often in a single session.

Below are 4 awesome ways you can use NLP for health and wellbeing:

PICTURE ACTIVITY

Exercise is a key factor in losing weight but many of us don’t enjoy it. Trick your mind into enjoyment by picturing the times in your life when you enjoyed an activity (like sex or dancing). After a while, your unconscious mind will connect the feeling of excitement and eagerness to the thought of exercising.

FIGHT PHOBIAS

For phobias, NLP, which helps you ‘rewire’ your brain, can be a fantastic and relatively easy treatment. NLP claims to remove phobias in a couple of hours[1][2] simply by altering your “self-talk”, the inner voice inside, replacing negative messages with positive ones.

VISUAL GOALS

Changes are implemented visually, auditorily and kinetically for greatest benefits in NLP, which means you need to see, hear and do them. Write down your goals and pin them to your fridge so you can see them, tell your family and friends what you’re trying to do and put your plans into action.

REDUCE APPETITE WITH NLP

One of the basic NLP premises is that the mind and the body are one system. If you make a change in your mind, there will also be a change in the body. NLP can help reduce your appetite by helping you understand your eating habits. Create a mental picture of the times you snack and replace it with one of drinking water, walking or doing something healthy. Many people believe water has spiritual qualities for healing, so a gentle swim is a good choice after an argument or to wind down after a stressful day at work. Swimming is also a particularly good form of exercise because you’re weightless in the water, which has positive physical and emotional effects.

With amazing possibilities, we believe that exploring NLP is worth a spin. What do you think about NLP? Share your feedback with us in the comments below. 

If you are wishing to explore NLP a little more, this is a recommended read: Neuro-Linguistic Programming: A Basis for Language Learning by Marion H. Love

References:

[1] Denholtz M.S., and Mann, E.T., "An automated audiovisual treatment of phobias administered by non-professionals" in the Journal of Behaviour Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry (6, p 111-115), 1975.

[2] Einspruch, E. "Neuro-linguistic Programming in the Treatment of Phobias" in Psychotherapy in Private Practice, 6(1): 91-100, 1988 In this study from the University of Miami Phobia Trauma Clinic, 31 phobic clients were seen in group therapy, and 17 in individual therapy. The subjects were given questionnaires before and after therapy, and these suggest that the technique is successful for symptoms of both anxiety and depression in clients with phobias.