A Meditation to Break Bad Habits

Trying to change something but keep falling off the wagon? This meditation works with your subconscious mind — the part where motivation actually lives — to help you find the one tiny action that creates lasting change. Great for weight loss, quitting drinking, or breaking any habit that's had a hold on you.

[Remastered 2026. Originally released 2016.]

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Transcript

Chel Hamilton 0:00

Trying to change something and keep falling off the wagon? This week's meditation uses a simple mind trick to make lasting change actually stick. Whether you're trying to lose weight, quit drinking, or break any habit that's got a hold on you.

Intro 0:13

This is the Meditation Minis podcast with your host, Hypnotist Shell Hamilton.

Chel Hamilton 0:19

With that, go ahead and close your eyes if you haven't done so already. And take those three deep breaths, just letting out a sigh on the exhales. These three deep breaths and sighs, signaling to your body and mind that it is time to relax and unwind, to let go for a time. And you can turn your attention to the tips of your toes or to the top of your head as you begin to imagine a very comforting, relaxing feeling or energy, or color even perhaps, moving through your body. I like to imagine myself stepping into a bubbly warm jacuzzi. And some people like to feel the sun on their skin. Or maybe for you it's just that feeling of quiet inside. As you just breathe and be, allowing yourself to quickly, easily, and effortlessly drift down to that more meditative place. And now imagine yourself stepping into a room, a large, empty room. It might be white, it might be blue, it might be black, it doesn't matter. And as you step into this large room, a room of belief, of visioning, of capability, I'd like you to imagine there in front of you some different things that you could do, that you know in a micro-habit kind of way, will support your greater vision in the day-to-day. And as you run a few of those in your mind, whatever they may be for you, this or that, or maybe something else completely pops into your mind that you hadn't expected it to. Because your subconscious mind is the seat of your creativity, and it has all the power that you need to solve this problem for you. You see, the trouble has really not been your subconscious mind as much as it's been your conscious mind, telling you to imagine something that's really undoable. Because in so many ways, the conscious mind's job is to keep us trapped in what it considers a safe place, which is comfort. And when we're living a life of comfort, we are not living our lives fully. Which is why then we want to take vacations, because it's change, it's excitement, it's something different. And so take a deep breath and relax. You've got this. Your subconscious mind is infinitely more powerful than your conscious mind. And in this meditative state, you tap into and let go of the fear, let go of the frustration. If the answers don't come to you right now, take a deep breath and give yourself permission to just relax and trust that later on today, while you're driving or maybe taking a shower, that the right answer will pop into your mind from the depths of your subconscious. And you'll know that it's the right answer for you because it'll be so tiny and doable, but you can see that the compounding result will be what you want in the future. Thereby protecting your right to make the change while letting go of the stress and the guilt and the shame of it just not happening fast enough. Because no bad habit was ever created in a day. And so no good habit is created either in that way. It's created step by step, breath by breath. What is the one action? And if you decide that the thing you want to do is to quit drinking completely, then maybe that one action is just to get the 15 minutes in the car to get to a meeting. Because once you're there, you're there. So finding that micro action that gives you the greatest benefit. And breathing it in, picturing yourself doing it, how how good it feels to keep it doable in that way, and that little voice inside of your mind that says, Oh, it's not enough. You have to do more. Kick it out the door. That's your conscious mind trying once again to set you up for failure. And we're just not gonna listen to it anymore. Slow and steady, step by step, day by day, getting those things marked off your task list to get the dopamine hit. This is the way of lasting change. And as you see it and as you feel it, get a sense of it in your body and mind, then that is the time for you to take a deep breath and bring yourself out of this meditative state, feeling solid, clear, and knowing that you can return here anytime you want, choose, or need to revision your success in these small little action steps.