How Big Is Your But?

How Big Is Your BUT?

INTRODUCTION

If you are thinking, "Fun book title, but what does How Big Is Your But mean?" I understand and it’s a great question!

The BUT is what blocks you from reaching your goals or living a life you love. Take a moment and ask yourself these questions:

Can I relate to the feeling that I am fighting a battle with myself I don’t understand? Do I feel stuck and cannot seem to move forward?

This book is for you if find you are tired of struggling and feeling confused. Do you hear yourself saying something like this?

I want to move forward in my life BUT . . .

I want to be a success in my career or business BUT. . .

I want to lose weight BUT. . .

I want to be happier BUT. . .

I want healthier relationships BUT. . .

This book is designed to help you release blocks and let go of those "yeah BUTS" that keep you stuck. You will learn to gain awareness, stop the internal struggle, and find your version of Happiness.

You will learn to gain awareness, stop the internal struggle, and find your version of Happiness.

I understand, because I have been there, and I hear it from my clients every day. They often tell me they are not sure what their BIG BUT is and what may be holding them back. I tell them they are not alone; this is common.

As a hypnotherapist, I am passionate about helping you gain awareness and learn how to move forward. I know how it feels to keep reliving old patterns you cannot seem to change. It is exhausting. I kept telling myself every day that I was capable, strong, Happy and at peace. Yet nothing changed, and I found myself in the same place. I believed there was something wrong with me.

You may have experienced something similar. Perhaps you have made attempts to change a pattern but the pattern stayed the same. Please know this is not your fault. Those BIG BUTS are held in your subconscious mind and most of us are not taught how to manage our emotions, which are often guided by your subconscious.

This book will help you use the power of your inner mind to help you reach your goals. You will gain understanding and learn simple techniques, practical tips, and suggested daily practices. You will:

• Gain self-awareness and release self-doubt.

• Feel safe and move forward in your life

• Discover simple techniques to help you get out of your own way so you can find your Happiness.

I want to encourage you to do the exercises in each chapter. They are designed to help you move forward. I suggest reading through them once and then going back and doing them. Do your best; there is no right or wrong way to do them. I added notes at the end of each chapter in case you want to write down those aha thoughts. The exercises are simple and designed to build on each other, to manage the subconscious mind, and to help you soar.

Throughout the book, I explain why this works and how the process can help you reach your goals and create the life you desire.

It is important to me that this book be easy to understand and straightforward so you can apply the principles to your life today.

Many self-help books have made my eyes glaze over. They can be pretentious or flowery. I have found myself reading those books feeling frustrated and saying out loud, Why can’t they just say what they mean?

My hope is that you will read this book and feel hopeful, saying to yourself, I get it! I can do this! This makes sense to me! Why didn’t anyone tell me this before?

Congratulate yourself because reading this book and educating yourself about how the mind works is a huge step to taking back your power. Knowledge is power!

Knowledge is power!

I wish you could hear my voice and see the sincerity on my face when I tell you learning these concepts and techniques changed my life. I know these same concepts and techniques can help you on your journey. I became a BUT Buster and so will you.

I started the work and gained awareness after I divorced from a 20-year marriage. I was overweight, frustrated, and felt I had lost contact with who I truly was. Talk about having BIG BUTS! I began to see how I was blocking myself. I had created really BIG BUTS, and I knew I was trying to keep myself safe. I was the only one who could do the work to feel safe enough to make changes and release the blocks.

As I started my personal healing, I have to tell you it was a relief to know I was NOT broken; I had remained whole and complete. Each step I took towards trusting myself again allowed me to wake up and practice a new way of thinking. When you trust yourself enough and begin to believe you can handle whatever comes your way, your sense of calm, peace, and Happiness shifts.

I stopped beating myself up and moved away from fear and towards love. I released the guards of protection and looked within with acceptance and compassion. I was okay.

It was not always easy in the beginning, but making changes was so worth the effort. I changed my career, improved my health, and found love waiting for me. I just needed to get unstuck and start the journey. I remembered that I was worth the effort. I know you are too!

Everything you learn in this book is a lesson I have learned personally and teach my clients daily. I have changed the name of my clients to protect their confidentiality.

I am often heard saying that I have the best job. I am always thrilled and excited when I see how this work changes people’s lives. I get a front row seat. I love it when they come back into my office and tell me they looked in the mirror that morning without any judgment and smiled. I see people take back their power every day and create a life they love. As far as I’m concerned, there is nothing better than that.

Now it is time for you to get started on your BIG BUT and make it smaller! I am excited for you. You have an amazing journey ahead. Remember to have some fun along the way. Feel free to send me a note and share your story.

Rene Brent, RN-CCHT

Clinical Hypnotherapist,

BIG BUT Buster

and a Proud Happiness Hunter.

ReneBrentHypnosis@icloud.com

Rene@PracticeHappyNow.com

Chapter 1

HOW BIG IS YOUR BUT?

Ilove play on words, so know that I am not talking about what you sit on or carry behind you. I am talking about the BIG BUT that may be blocking you on a daily basis.

When I start working with clients, I ask them if they feel they are fighting a battle with themselves they don’t understand.

Most of my clients give me a big yes! They tell me they may not know which blocks are holding them back but they feel an inner conflict and say they are exhausted. They feel stuck. I reassure them, and I want to reassure you, this is common. Most of us are not taught how to listen to how we truly feel about issues in our lives or how to gain self-awareness. Our lives are so busy, we accept that this is the way it is and move on. You will quickly learn you never have to accept how your life is. You have the ability to change anything you want to change. If you can’t change the circumstances, you absolutely can change how you react to those circumstances.

You have the ability to change anything you want to change. If you can’t change the circumstances, you absolutely can change how you react to those circumstances.

This work can help you in all aspects of your life. You are just taking the time to read the owner’s manual.

Let’s begin with awareness. The first step to changing and getting around blocks is paying attention to the words you use. For instance:

I want to move forward in my life BUT . . .

I want to be a success in my career or business BUT. . .

I want to lose weight BUT. . .

I want to be more easy-going, happier BUT. . .

I want to have healthier relationships BUT. . .

The key to changing the blocks is to listen to words you tell yourself after the word BUT. That is where your truth resides.

For example: I want to lose weight BUT . . . I am big-boned; or I have a slow metabolism; or why should I try, I will always be ugly? I want to get that job BUT . . . I am not smart enough. Take time to listen, because when you pay attention to what you are really telling yourself, you can begin to see how damaging and illogical messages are.

When we dream about beautiful possibilities or making changes in our lives, the natural instinct is to block ourselves by the "yeah BUT." We do this to protect and keep ourselves safe from potential hurt or disappointment.

This is learned behavior and part of our survival instinct. The blocks you create actually have the highest intention for you. They are running an old program that used to work to keep you safe and Happy, but that programming may not be working for you now. This is why it is important to learn to listen to the internal dialogue and gain awareness. Start paying attention because this is the key to moving forward.

You cannot release and heal a block you are not aware of. You cannot release your BUT unless you know what it is. Good news: The block or objection is pretty easy to hear.

You cannot release and heal a block you are not aware of.

Pushing It Down

Most of us are experts at pushing down and ignoring pain, negative experiences, or emotions. Let’s face it—sometimes it seems easier to ignore the negative messages. It may help to avoid dealing with these emotions in the moment, but they will catch up with you and show up somewhere in your life or body. They are still running in the background, even if you feel you have turned down the volume. You might as well learn how to manage and release them as they show up.

As my clients gain awareness they often want to know, What do I do now? How do I manage? I tell them patience is crucial.

You are learning a new way to BE. Many of my clients have to get used to the quiet in their minds.

I want to remind you that everyone has the ability to release emotions. There is not a right or wrong way to do this work. You will do it in a way that is right for you. It is different for everyone.

Everyone has the ability to release emotions. There is not a right or wrong way to do this work.

Sarah, a thirty-five-year-old female client came to me discouraged because she was sure she couldn’t change. She was having difficulty managing her emotions. She wanted help gaining balance and confidence to start a new business. There was a part of her that knew she could be a success, but she found herself making excuses and self-sabotaging. This business was important to her and her family. She was a single mom who was tired of struggling.

Most mornings she woke up feeling sad and confused. Sarah didn’t understand why there was a part of her that wanted to move forward and a strong part that argued with her at every turn.

My client was closed off to her potential. She was closing off in order to shield and protect herself. Clearly, she was blocked by a BIG BUT.

Although it is a natural instinct to protect and close your heart, doing so prevents you from finding your version of Happiness. When you close up to protect yourself, you do not cry all your tears but you also do not laugh all your laughter. It becomes difficult to