A few years ago I was travelling with a few other families. I noticed that one of the kids only drank coca cola. He also had a tendency to being overweight. So one day, I had a quiet chat to him. I asked him, “do you know that Coke is not good for you?” He said, “yes, but I can’t stop myself, I crave it”. It reminded me of patients that I used to see when I worked as General practitioner who were addicted to smoking, alcohol, gambling or even harder drugs like heroin.

Apart from counselling I used hypnosis as one method to help them retrain their minds and bring their minds back into their control rather than letting certain addictions and compulsions just play out on their own. I found it to be quite effective.

I asked the boy if he wanted a suggestion to try and stop and he said yes. I told him, “you are allowed to drink as much coke as you want”, but there are two conditions. One, “when you drink coke, you have to be 100 % mindful and aware that you are drinking coke”. It can no longer be a knee-jerk habit. He had to make a choice that was open to all possible choices such as water, or fresh juice, or coke. Coke was not banned. Just that if he were to drink coke, it had to be a 100 % conscious choice with full ownership and responsibility. He was very happy!

The other condition will seem a bit harsh on an 11 year old, but nevertheless, I used it. I told him, “you can drink as much coke as you want, but when you drink it, say to yourself ‘I am drinking poison’”. It was strong aversive suggestion. If I were to do a proper hypnosis session on him, I would have linked it to the consequences of drinking coke such as teeth becoming rotten and dropping out etc.

In this way, you can use mindfulness, suggestions and affirmations to break your bad habits. If you need help, find yourself a good meditation teacher, counsellor or hypnotherapist.

Last time I checked, he was coke free!

In Health and Wellness

Ranjit