Our brain health plays an important part in our overall wellbeing. Feeding the brain to change our life, Shelly Jo Wahlstrom is in this episode to talk about how she incorporates nutrition and amino acids in her hypnotherapy business. A certified Clinical Hypnotherapist, Addiction Recovery and Mental Health Nutrition Coach, and dubbed as the Amino Acid Lady, Shelly shares with us her journey of becoming who she is today and how her family inspired her to change people’s lives. She imparts to us the profound effects of amino acids in our body and lets us in on the comprehensive services her company, Shelly Jo’s Hypno Aminos, offer.
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Hypnotherapy: Feeding The Brain Amino Acids And Nutrition With Shelly Jo Wahlstrom
My guest is Shelly Jo Wahlstrom and she is the Amino Acid lady. She’s also a certified Clinical Hypnotherapist, a certified Addiction Recovery and Mental Health Nutrition Coach and specializing in amino acids. She is the owner of Shelly Jo Hypno Aminos, a nutrition supplement. Shelly Jo, welcome.
Thank you, Emmalou. I’m excited to be on here with you. It was so great meeting you.
When I met you and had a chance to get to know you, I was fascinated with your journey. What led you to hypnotherapy and amino acids?
It’s is a crazy story and I’m going to first explain what my mission and my business look like. It’s like a three-legged stool. For a three-legged stool to stand, all the three legs have to be strong. If one of those legs isn’t working, then it won’t stand. That’s like our bodies. We have the brain, the actual brain cell. We have the body and we have our thoughts. When they are all working correctly, then you have optimal health. When one of those places is not working, that’s the place where you want to work at. My business is feed your brain, change your life. I do that by feeding your brain with amino acids and feeding your body with nutrition. You need to change your thoughts through hypnotherapy. When I tell people that, they always think, “I don’t understand the connection. How do those work together? That seems like an odd combination.”
My story is this. I’ve always wanted to do something to help people. I’ve had this desire and I love the Law of Attraction. I always believed in self-help and I looked around and kept thinking there’s got to be something that fits this picture. As I was growing up, I taught aerobics for eighteen years and I loved it. I loved that I could help people. Then I taught children singing and dancing for eighteen years and I absolutely loved it. My husband and I own a Subway sandwich shop and that was great. I wanted something for me. When my youngest graduated, I thought, “What can I do that I can use all this information that I’ve accumulated with the self-help and the Law of Attraction?” I decided to figure out what that would look like. There happened to be a gentleman that lived in my neighborhood who has a school. I talked to him a few years earlier and I said, “Tell me about what hypnosis is.”
The only hypnosis I’ve ever seen was on the stage. In fact, I’m somebody who was one of those participants on the stage and I thought it was cool. I didn’t understand how it worked. I thought, “This is fun entertainment.” I was up there and people were laughing and it was a great time. I didn’t understand how powerful hypnosis was. I asked him if I could go to his class and he said yes. The first one I went to, he hypnotized for a purpose to help overcome a situation. I became so excited because I thought, “I can change somebody’s life. I can help them with their blocks to get rid of these false stories and things that they’ve been living on.” I went through the class. I became a hypnotherapist and I thought, “This is amazing.”
There were a few people that I would work with and I think, “There’s something missing here.” They had the desire to at least make the changes, yet I’d have them and they come back the next week and it was like I had not done anything. I kept thinking, it’s like 50 First Dates. You understand what that’s like. You’re doing everything you can as hypnotherapist to get them to release what they do and they have the desire and then they come back and you’re like, “I don’t get this. Why is this not working? It works with everybody else.” I felt like there was a missing link. I couldn’t figure out what that link was but I knew there was something.
At the same time, I have a daughter who is 25 now, but at age six she was diagnosed with anxiety. I did what all moms do. I took her to the doctor and got her on some meds. It helped, but it didn’t fix the problem. We went from doctor to doctor, got her on different meds and something was not right. At age fifteen, she came to me and said, “Mom, I’m tired of being a doctor science project. I want to feel normal.” It hit me strongly. If she was ever introduced to drugs and alcohol, I knew she’d be instantly addicted and she was. At age fifteen, she was introduced to alcohol, which turned into marijuana. I watched my daughter go from this beautiful and vibrant girl getting ready to go into high school to withering into this addiction.
Meth is the drug of the devil. Click To TweetI didn’t understand it. It’s not my life. I’ve never been around it and I couldn’t understand it. She barely got through high school and then was introduced to meth. Meth is the drug of the devil. It literally changed her life and because of that, I was looking for answers. I thought there’s got to be something here. I was introduced to amino acid therapy. What they do is in therapy, they give large doses of amino acids through an IV in the recovery units. They find that by doing this, after three days, their cravings start to go away. After ten days it’s almost completely gone. I knew it was my answer, but it was $1,000 a day. I thought, “That’s a lot of money. If that’s the only way I can get to my daughter, I’ll figure it out, but how do I help my clients?”
I said, “I figured out what that missing link is, but it can cost you $1,000 a day.” That’s a lot of money. I knew that there were amino acids available that I could buy at the store. I’ll go to the store and I’ll buy supplements. I’ll just give my daughter large amounts of amino acids through a supplement form. It made sense to me. Luckily, my son-in-law says, “You can’t just throw amino acid to people. You have to understand how they work. I contacted a recovery unit in Florida and said, “Please help me. I have a daughter who is an addict. If I don’t figure something out, she’s not going to make it.” At that point, I never knew if she was going to kill somebody, kill herself or end up in jail. This process came after she’d been in jail three times. I thought, “I don’t know how to help you. If I ever got put in jail, I wouldn’t have to go there more than once.”
I don’t understand addiction enough. What I’ve learned about addiction is they don’t want to be it and they’re self-medicating for whatever reason. I found a recovery unit online out of Florida that was using the amino acids. I said, “Help me out. I have this daughter and I have clients.” He said, “I’ll make it even better. In two weeks, we’re going to have a training in Salt Lake on amino acids.” I knew that was my answer because I live in Roy. I went there and I learned how they work. It was phenomenal what I found by being able to feed your brain with amino acids. What I’m talking about is you have neurotransmitters in your brain that fire these chemicals, the happy, the calm, the feel-good and the energy chemicals.
When they become depleted for whatever reason, there are several different reasons but it’s not like you did this and this is what happened. Those neurotransmitters become depleted, then anxiety, depression, lack of energy, lack of asleep, overstress, addiction, cravings and weight gain become real. It’s not to say that they’re the only reasons, but this is something that most people don’t know about. There are specific amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein. You either create them in your body or you get them from an outside source like protein or supplements. There are specifically ones that go into the brain and help to balance the brain. By getting your brain to balance, then your brain can go back to taking over and firing the neurotransmitters. Once I found that for my daughter, it changed things.
I watched my daughter change because what it was doing was feeding her brain. I started using it with my clients. I found that by feeding their brain the amino acids and feeding their body with the food they need because their brain is 65% fat. There’s such a connection between the brain and the body that we don’t realize. We always think, “Food is important, but it is also important to the brain.” Getting that connection together, then working with the hypnotherapy to be able to release those thoughts and change those false stories, it made it a lot easier. It makes it so that I’m working with the whole person rather than one or the other. What I’ve seen has been phenomenal. I’ve seen miracles. I’ve seen people lose 65 pounds because now they’re eating correctly and they’re using the amino acids. I’ve worked with different clients who in the past would have had a hard time and now they’re being able to let go of past things that are holding onto them or helping them move forward. I become very passionate about this whole process.
I can tell. It all makes sense. I know those essential proteins and the amino acids have a profound effect on brain functioning. That has a profound effect on addiction recovery, losing weight and also on moods.
The cool thing is if somebody comes to lose weight. You and I both know that it doesn’t have anything to do with the food. Food is energy. It’s a source. It’s not that there’s bad food or good food. Food is just is. It’s not about the food when it comes to releasing weight because it’s taking less food and more workout or move your body equals weight loss. It’s not scientific, it’s this minus this equal this.
There are a lot more factors than just the food you eat.
What I do is I look at it and say, “First of all, which of the neurotransmitters are depleted? Is it a dopamine issue that you’re craving for stimulation? Is it a serotonin issue where you’re craving for positiveness where something is still anxiety and depression? Is it a GABA issue where you can’t calm down? Is it an endorphin issue where you’re looking for comfort, reward or numbing?” By first looking at that, then I can get you on the correct amount of the amino acid, which helps with the cravings, which is the biggest thing. I can get somebody who wants to release weight and I can give them amino acids correctly. Plus, by giving them the right food to feed their brain, I don’t have to tell them, “You have to get off sugar.” Sugar, like you and I know, is also an addiction and it’s a comfort.
If I can do those two things, then when it comes to hypnosis, I’m looking for the source. What’s the story underneath it? What is the subconscious holding onto and saying, because your subconscious job is to keep you protected and safe? What is the underlying story that keeps you from releasing the way for good? You ended up sabotaging it and it could be for control. It could be for protection. There are several different reasons why somebody holds on weight, but by looking at it in that way, then you’re able to get to the bottom with the hypnosis on what those stories are? It makes it easier for them to release the weight.
I believe that you offer a comprehensive service. You’re covering their nutrition, their brain functioning and then the hypnotherapy. Are there any other services? Tell us about your company, Shelly Jo’s Hypno Aminos. Tell us about that. There’s an interesting story there too.
Are you talking about how I got my own supplements?
Yes, I am.
That is an interesting story. What happened is when I got passionate about this, I started speaking. I started going to conferences and speaking about my journey and my daughter’s journey and how this all works together. I got super excited and I speak at a lot of energy at conferences or anywhere that anybody will let me speak. One day, one of the clients who put on these energies on conferences came up to me and said, “Why are you sending everybody to the health food store or Amazon to buy amino acids?” I never even thought of it. She’s like, “Why don’t you have your own?” I said, “I don’t know that was even a possibility.” Emmalou, did you know you can get your own supplements?
I did not.
I didn’t either. I was like, “I don’t own a manufacturing company. How am I going to make my own supplements?” Things started to happen and within a month I had found a representative out of Orem, Utah that could create these amino acids. Part of the challenge I was having is I have a client come in. I said, “These are the amino acids you want. Here’s a couple of samples, take them home and then go to the health food store or Amazon and buy some.” I call him a couple of days later and I say, “How do you feel now?” He’s like, “I haven’t had a chance to go to the health food store.” I think, “I told you how I could help you and you can’t even go to the health food store?” At the same time, I’m thinking I’m telling people to go get these amino acids, but I don’t even know a thing about them. I don’t know where they come from. I don’t know what they’re made from. I thought, “How can I in good conscious send somebody to buy stuff that I don’t even know what they are?”
There's such a connection between the brain and the body that we don't realize. Click To TweetYou don’t know what they’re going to get.
No, I didn’t. That’s when I thought I’ve got to understand this. The cool thing about my Shelly Jo Hypno Aminos nutritional supplements is they’re created in Orem. I know they have to go by strict guidelines and standards when they’re creating them. They’re non-GMO, they’re vegan and they’re gluten-free. I can in good conscious say that I know that what I have is good. It’s not even good, they’re amazing. I’ve even had people say that they bought mine and then they ran out and they go to Amazon and buy some there and they don’t work this way. That solidifies why these are amazing. I got them ordered and I went and spoke at a conference.
At the time, I didn’t have them yet because they didn’t come in. The guy said, “Why don’t you presale them?” I’m thinking, “Who’s going to buy stuff if they don’t even know what they are?” All I had was a picture of them and I’m like, “I’m going to presale you these and you’re going to get them within a month or so, but I promise you’ll get them and they’re going to be amazing.” That was all I could say because I didn’t know anything about it. They sold pre-sale without even having them. I was like, “This is super cool.” At the time, I had another hypnotherapist come to my class and he had been looking for the same thing as I have. When I learned about amino acids, the reason I learned about it is that I was watching a story on TV.
There was a guy, a local broadcaster name who did the story on how amino acids are helping with addiction recovery. This other hypnotherapist had seen the same story I had. I went to the supplement line because I didn’t have a clue on how somebody was going to pay the $1,000 for a day for an IV in your arm. He went the IV way and when he realized how much money it was going to cost him and how it was not cost-efficient. He was looking for what I had. I didn’t know that. He came to my class and he leaves my class. He came up to me and said, “I’ve been looking for what you have. I want what you have. Will you wholesale them? Have you ever thought of wholesaling them to me?”
I looked at him with this dumbfounded look and I was like, “Yeah, sure.” About a second ago, I thought that’s a great idea. I hadn’t even looked at it. I was just looking at it from my own clients. The thought of having other human therapists or energy healers or anybody else add it to their program didn’t even cross my mind. I’m like, “Sure, I’ll do that,” but then I decided, “Wait a minute, if you’re going to sell them, you have to know how they work.” I decided I had to create a training where I train other hypnotherapists or other practitioners how to use the amino acids.
Once they accomplish it and they know what they’re doing, then I sell them my product at wholesale. They can now add that same program into their own hypnotherapy practice, energy practice or whatever that looks like, but then they’re adding the brain, the body and whatever their modality is. It’s been crazy because now I’ve got several wholesalers on my team that are doing Hypno Amino Pros, I call them, because they’re learning how to do this and now taking it to their clients which makes it phenomenal.
How do people contact you to find out about your one-on-one services, your training classes or your supplements?
They can contact me through my email is ShellyJoHypno@Gmail.com. They can go to my website which is HypnoAminos.com and it has all the information on there, my products, my services and you can get a hold of me there. My phone number is on my website. You can get a hold of me there. You can text me and can call me. I do in person or on Zoom. I’ve had clients in New York and Hawaii. Either way it works or locally you can come to my office and that’s where I’m in Roy.
I know that on Zoom, it’s a matter of coordinating the time zones and you can meet with anyone in the world. Shelly, thank you so much. You have a lot to offer and thank you so much for sharing. What you’re doing is truly beneficial.
Emmalou, thank you so much for inviting me to do this. I feel so excited that we got to meet and compared hypnotherapy and how we each do things a little bit different and we each have our strengths. You’re a wonderful lady. I appreciate you letting me have this opportunity.
Thank you.
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About Shelly Jo Wahlstrom
Shelly Jo Wahlstrom is a Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist, a Certified Addiction Recovery and Mental Health Nutrition Coach, specializing in amino acids. She is the owner of Shelly Jo’s Hypno Aminos.