Beliefs – What Are They?
Beliefs are simply repetitive thoughts that we have had over and over again which become hard-wired into our subconscious.
Think of a field where a man walks his dog on the same path of grass day in, day out. First off, it will be hard for him to walk round and map out a path, but over the weeks it will become easier and faster for him to walk round as that path gets more and more downtrodden. And so our repetitive thoughts then become more and more hard-wired and are quicker to come to mind.
Now, this is great if these beliefs are ones that serve us well, allow us to feel good about ourselves, but not so if it is the other way round.
Core Beliefs
Core beliefs are within us at our deepest level – our identity – who we believe we are.
These beliefs normally start with ‘I AM…’ e.g. I am loved, I am helpless, I am not good enough, etc.
Core beliefs always lead back to one experience where we created that belief first of all.
This normally happens in childhood, and according to research, normally before the age of 7. Why?
It all goes back to our brainwaves.
Research states that before the age of 2+, we are in a delta brainwave state, which has the slowest frequency and is often generated in deep meditation. From age 2 to 6++ we are in a theta brainwave state, which is like a portal for learning and memory and is also the state that hypnotherapists guide their clients into as it is the most suggestible. So between these ages we are in a highly suggestible state. This helps to build up our memories, experiences, beliefs and values.
So in theta state, age 2-6, when experiences happen, and we define both them and ourselves a certain way, we create beliefs about ourselves from that, some helpful, some not.
Think of a string of beads (see pic).
The first experience you had is the bead on the left, there is nothing else before it because it’s the first time you thought that thought.
But each time you experience something similar to the original experience, then the emotion and thought get triggered, the repetitive thought becomes a belief, the emotion often becomes stronger with each triggering experience, and can lead to a point where, as an example, someone borrows your pencil and you vent all your anger on them for being disrespectful and not asking, a culmination of several experiences over time, which have come to a climax emotionally!
Can you think of a time where you held/are holding a certain belief? Can you begin to notice a pattern over time where this belief has been popping up?
Tomorrow, we will be talking about the impact of core beliefs, so stay tuned!
+ Some say age 4
++ Some say age 4 to 7
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