Hypnosis on Big Brother

When Brian entered the house, we were told that "he likes to dabble in a spot of cosmic ordering and reckons he can self-hypnotize". Typically for British media, this was presented with a hint of scorn.

Well, Brian might come across as a bit thick but at least his thinking is taking him in the right direction. Cosmic ordering, if practised properly, may well take him from his present job as a data-entry clerk to something bigger and better. For more information, find out about "The Secret".

The Secret DVD

This week we were shown how he hypnotizes when he practised on Gerry and Amanda. Unfortunately, he counted forwards to take the person deeper and backwards to wake them up which is the wrong way round. To take the person deeper, count backwards which causes confusion to the conscious mind and so gains access to the subconscious mind. Counting forwards to wake the person reintroduces order which signals to the conscious mind that it is time to wake up.

Antonia Stuart-James is an English Hypnotherapist in Belgium.

"Thirteen Days" - Cuban missile crisis

We watched a riveting film about the Cuban missile crisis in October 1962 when the then US President John F Kennedy faced a nerve-wracking escalation as the Soviets built up a presence of nuclear missiles on Cuba, all within striking distance of 1000 miles within the USA. The world came so close to disaster.

The film stars Kevin Costner, one of my favourite actors, who played the part of the President's aide, Kenneth O'Donnell.

"As Hollywood history lessons go, Thirteen Days is riveting stuff. You may find yourself wondering what might happen if reality presented a repeat scenario under less intelligent leadership." - Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com



Antonia Stuart-James is an English Hypnotherapist in Belgium.

Genesis in Brussels

I discovered the magical music of Genesis in 1976 when watching "Silent Movie" in the cinema and Genesis' music came through the walls. I borrowed a couple of LPs from a friend and started appreciating this music, so different to The Osmonds for whom I was still a teenybopper just one year earlier.

In Brussels, I saw them in concert for the first time in 1981, one year after "Duke" was released and the same year as "ABACAB". Again in 1983 after "Genesis" and then in Wembley Stadium, London in 1987 for the "Invisible Touch" tour. The cynics said that Genesis were has-beens and would never sell enough seats for three nights in a 100,000 seats stadium. They were wrong. They sold out four nights.

As well as outstanding, intelligent music Genesis were known for their lights show, especially during "The Cage" from "Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" (1974).

Sadly, Genesis split up in 1992 then reformed in 1997 with Ray Wilson as lead singer after Phil Collins had left. This album was a flop and Genesis were destined to be a memory leaving just their albums to be played again and again.

Well this year they delighted us longstanding fans with the "Turn It On Again" tour through Europe and the USA. Their main concert in London will be tomorrow at Twickenham Stadium but I decided to see them at my local arena, Stade Baudouin in Brussels on Sunday 24 June.

What can I say? Genesis were truly outstanding. Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford might be 56-57 years old but lacked no energy, especially Phil who was as fun and outrageous as ever. He is quite rightly considered to be the best drummer in the world and when out the front, leaves the drumming to Chester Thompson who is part of the touring line-up.

See my photos at Flickr

"Genesis are an English rock band formed in 1967. With approximately 150 million albums sold worldwide, Genesis are among the top 30 highest-selling recording "artists" of all time." (Wikipedia)

My favourite albums are "Trick of the Tail" and "Duke".



The unofficial 2 CDs of each concert are available from The Music.com priced $30 per set.

Abundance and "The Secret"

"If you look at what you have in life, you'll always have
more. If you look at what you don't have in life, you'll
never have enough."
- Oprah Winfrey

So true. "The Secret" tells us to be grateful for what we have, really show gratitude rather than being dissatisfied. What we focus on is our reality. Focus on what we do not have and it will never be ours. Focus on the abundance we already enjoy and that abundance will be magnified.

Go here to download an audio book of "The Secret".



Antonia Stuart-James is an English Hypnotherapist in Belgium.

Big Brother Earnings

I just heard on "Big Brother's Little Brother" that all of the housemates can expect to earn large sums of money when they leave the house in appearances, endorsements and stories.

Currently, their friends and families are earning from sending photos of the housemates to the press.

Our society really is obsessed with fame for fame's sake, even of non-famous people. Yet the really important people who are contributing to society eg scientists developing cures for illnesses, surgeons developing new eyehole surgery techniques etc. are only known of in their fields. What a sorry world we live in.

Antonia Stuart-James is an English hypnotherapist living in Belgium.

Big Brother

I have never understood why people spend hours watching Big Brother obsessively. Get a life!

Why watch other people doing ordinary things, all trying to stand out and become famous. Famous for what?

However, I watched the launch of the last UK Celebrity Big Brother because I thought I should be aware of who was in the house as people would be talking about it for weeks. I watched a little of the coverage but lost interest.

When the new series started two weeks ago, I again watched the launch to find out about the characters chosen as housemates. I then watched a few minutes here and there and am now pretty much hooked.

As a hypnotherapist helping people to change, I am fascinated by people's character, habits, thoughts and behaviour. Big Brother gives us a snapshot of watching how total strangers cope in such a limited environment with no contact with the outside world, no writing materials, no books to read and no idea what the public's opinions of them are. I personally could not stand the boredom of being a housemate as I need to do things. I would suffer from PC-deprivation at least.

So I watch "Big Brother's Little Brother" when having my breakfast and catch up before I go to bed.

Co-incidentally, I picked up a library book by Ben Elton called "Dead Famous" which is about a murder committed in a house. I did not realize it was about a Big Brother scenario fictiously called "House Arrest." The programme producer deliberately skews the editing to tell the story she wants, portray the character as she wishes rather than a true representation. Does this happen in Big Brother?

Did I say it was a coincidence I found this novel? No such thing. Read "The Celestine Prophecy."

Latest news from Channel 4 Big Brother



Antonia Stuart-James is an English hypnotherapist living in Belgium.

Cycling

It seems everyone in Belgium has a bicycle. Motorists are very careful regardless of whether cycle tracks are laid or not and cycling is encouraged as a healthy option. Bicycle stands are seen everywhere in towns and by bus stops. Many cities and towns offer free bicycle hire.

Yesterday my two boys of 6 and 9 rode without stabilizer wheels on their bicycles for the first time. I was so pleased and proud. All the children here can ride bicycles but as we lived in England then Spain before, there was no opportunity for the boys to learn. Cycling in both those countries can be dangerous as motorists do not give consideration to cyclists. It was very hilly where we lived in Spain and the motorists drove badly, often ignoring red lights and zebra crossings so I never felt comfortable allowing my children to cycle. I myself had not been on a bicycle for 24 years until three weeks ago when I bought a new bicycle.

This morning, the boys strapped on their helmets and we all three cycled up to their school, 1km away. We crossed one main road with a roundabout but the motorists just stopped when they saw us.

We live in Limburg, called "Fiets Paradijs" (bicycle paradise) so we shall enjoy cycling here.

Antonia Stuart-James is an English hypnotherapist living in Limburg, Belgium.