Simply put, Self-Sabotage is the act of preventing yourself, consciously or unconsciously, from reaching a goal as a result of limiting thought patterns/fears or behaviors. It negatively impacts your well-being and holds you back from reaching your full potential. An individual engaging in self-sabotage keeps causing themselves to fail at what it is they are trying to achieve.  

Some behaviors are very clearly self-sabotaging such as a habit of procrastination or consistently being late to work even your boss gets very angry. However, other subtle behaviors or thought processes that people are not aware of can be self-sabotaging as well. For example, a person may get automatic negative thoughts such as “I am not good enough / I am not worthy of love / I am afraid to be vulnerable, etc”. Accepting those thoughts as a fact or the truth and exhibiting behaviors accordingly during the pursuit of a goal or a desire is also self-sabotage. You end up believing it and inevitably it will limit your full potential. 

Self-sabotage can occur in all aspects of someone’s life including romantic relationships, academic life, financial struggles, career, family life, and more. One example of a person engaging in self-sabotage can occur in academic life. A person might be scared that they are not as smart or as talented as they believe they should be. They fear not being good enough, so they will intentionally engage in behaviors that cause them to not be good enough. For example, they might aim at lower grade institutions while applying, skip homework assignments, skip practice, fail to study for tests or come to classes late. That way when they do end up not doing well at academic activities, they can use the excuse that they were not putting forth their best effort and that is why they are not doing well. 

They make these excuses to protect their self-esteem, but they are actually hurting themselves. Aiming high and trying and failing is better than not trying or pursuing your dreams at all. They should have also put in the effort because only effort and practice can make progress and bring them closer to their goal of achieving academic success.

Another form of self-sabotage occurs in romantic relationships. A person who does not believe they are worthy of love might intentionally or unintentionally be pushing away people that try to love them. They might be in a relationship but will push their partner away because they are scared of getting too close. They might ignore the person’s phone calls or start small arguments or emotionally distance themselves from the person. They do not feel comfortable with being vulnerable as vulnerability means that their partners can see that they are not worthy of love and leave. 

Other people might be self-sabotaging themselves professionally. They might have a dream business they want to start. They might even do all of the planning such as creating business cards, creating a website, and getting professional headshots taken. However, they keep delaying the actual date of when to open their business. This may be because they are scared of their business not succeeding when it actually opens. 

Hypnotherapy Can Help Self-Sabotage

Hypnotherapy is a great tool to help you overcome self-sabotage. In hypnotherapy, the therapist and client work together to identify how the client is engaging in self-sabotage, why they are doing it, and what triggers their self-sabotaging behaviors or thoughts. 

After this analysis, the hypnotherapist guides the client into a natural and safe state of hypnosis. This state of mind will help the client’s subconscious mind make positive changes. 

Hypnotherapy sessions will help break down the client’s limiting beliefs, bad habits, and negative emotions they may have about themselves. Instead, the client learns to replace these negative emotions with drive and motivation to achieve their goals. Clients that engage in self-sabotage will benefit from hypnotherapy in the following ways:

• Increased self-reliance
• They will be able to accomplish more goals
• Increased self-respect and self-confidence
• They will trust their own decisions more
• Improvement in meeting deadlines

If there is an area of your life that you feel you can improve on or are scared of overcoming, hypnotherapy may help you resolve any inner conflicts that are keeping you from achieving your goals.

Contact our office today so we can discuss hypnotherapy options and help you achieve your dreams!