The culture and family influences we are born into and grow up with have a powerful hold. No matter how much exposure we have to other experiences or beliefs on a conscious level, unless we reach into where the original program lives in the subconscious mind and make updates, that old program stays pretty much the same. Which is why positive affirmations or cognitive restructuring techniques are often not as effective as we would like them to be. It is estimated that 85-95% of our behavior is the result of our unconscious formatting, most of which occurred when we were very young.
In a radio interview with Wayne Dwyer, Bruce Lipton, author of The Biology of Belief, made the statement that the "function of the mind is to create coherence between your beliefs and your life" and that thoughts and feelings are not just in your head, they are "broadcast through the body as if with a tuning fork". Lipton, a cellular biologist, notes that there is a difference in the biochemical makeup between a tear of joy and a tear of sadness, indicating the power of our emotions to effect change on a biochemical level. His suggestion is to create what it is you want in your mind, to use your imagination. Then assume the feeling of that desire fulfilled. Imagine and create what it would it feel like in your mind and in your body to have that which you desire. Go to the place in your mind where all is possible. Do this just before you go to sleep, while you are in that hypnogogic state where the conscious and the unconscious are making the transfer of control. And "let your subconscious marinate overnight".
Making that connection between the conscious and the unconscious is easier than you might think. When we involve the body and the mind together in harmonious activity we can also make that linkage. Affirmations In Motion (AIM) takes the thoughtful intention and joins it with energy moving through the body to support the manifestation of desired change. Energy Psychology offers a variety of approaches to making subconscious shifts. I have used EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) and TAT (Tappas Acupressure Technique) both personally and professionally to effect powerful changes. This is why I love working with the subconscious; miracles can and do happen when we remodel in that room.