The Power of a Single Comment

Have you seen the story of Brian Flemming, the man in Michigan who weighed 600+ pounds and lost 380 pounds?  He had almost a lifetime of being overweight and eating very unhealthily, never exercising, drinking a fifth of vodka a day, and sitting around pitying and loathing himself and his life.  In the Spring of 2012, he was playing the popular on-line game Draw Something.  He randomly matched up against a woman in England named Jackie Eastham.  As they continued playing games against each other, they shared banter between games, eventually developing a casual relationship.  That relationship continued, and Brian tried to garner pity from Jackie because of his weight and helpless situation.  Jackie, who was suffering from Myotonic Dystrophy that causes progressive muscle weakness and can affect various systems and organs, was having none of the pity-party.  At one point, she told Brian “there were people struggling for their lives and then there’s you — you have all these opportunities and you’re throwing it all away.”  That one comment was more powerful than Jackie could have imagined.  It was the impetus that propelled Brian to quit drinking cold-turkey, lose a massive amount of weight, start walking, then jogging, and then running.  He became an active athlete who completely transformed his body – all from a single comment!  You can read the entire story here.

Hypnotherapists know well the power a single comment can have on a person’s life.  Age regressions often pinpoint the Initial Sensitizing Event (ISE) that launched an otherwise healthy person on a journey of obesity, or anorexia, or rheumatoid arthritis, or stuttering, or a significant fear or phobia, or depression, or any other of dozens of life-affecting conditions.   A single comment!  When accepted by the subconscious as true, an unkind and wholly untrue comment can have a debilitating and/or negative impact on the rest of a person’s life.  We are especially susceptible to the effects of these comments when we are young, before our critical factor is fully developed.  That is why it is SO important to be careful about what is said or done to a child.  Their subconscious NEVER forgets, and as the psychological protector, will do whatever it has to do to help us move on, despite damage the comment or deed caused.  A child or adult who is told they are fat may develop anorexia or bulimia later in life; a sexually abused child/person may manifest any number of behaviors, such as frigidity or promiscuity, or even becoming sexually abusive themselves, or suicidal; a child or adult derided as being lazy, irresponsible, or worthless may fulfill that message when sufficiently convinced, and may never achieve the potential they truly have.

Conversely, a child or adult living in what appears to be dire conditions or having overwhelming odds against them may go on to achieve astounding things after receiving positive messages – when they are convinced that they can do those astounding things.  It happens all the time.  I don’t know what messages Brian Flemming received as a child, but I would bet my bottom dollar someone or something convinced him early on that there was something wrong with him, and that convincing lead him to the physical and psychological condition he fulfilled.  Thank goodness for Jackie Eastham convincing him otherwise – with the power of a single comment!

To learn more about how hypnotherapy can help you or a loved one in the Salem, Oregon area, please feel free to contact me through my website at www.skipnotherapy.com.