Hypnotherapy
Most people believe the mind to be a mirror, more or less accurately reflecting the world outside them, not realising on the contrary that the mind is, itself the principal element of creation.
Rabindranath Tagore
What is hypnotherapy?
Hypnotherapy has been approved by the British Medical Association since 1955 and is recognised by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE). It is an effective, safe and relaxing process that enables people to change old thought patterns and habits and achieve lasting change.
It has effectively been used to help people:
Increase health & wellbeing
Improve sleep, stop smoking, manage pain, balance weight and alleviate IBS and other stress related health conditions.
Manage stress & anxiety
Increase confidence, overcome phobias and panic attacks; boost self-esteem, end nail biting and hair pulling.
Achieve your true potential
Overcome public speaking fears, exam pressures and interview nerves, increase work and sports performance, lose self-sabotaging behaviours.
My role as a therapist is to support you to achieve your goals, in coming to hypnotherapy you will already have a strong motivation to overcome your challenge, and the process of change is already beginning to take place during our initial conversations.
Everyone is different and I will draw on various tools alongside hypnotherapy to support you during the ‘talking phase’ of the sessions including Neurolinguistic Programming, Integral Eye Movement Therapy, Cognitive Behaviour and Solution-Focused techniques. The hypnosis part of the session is both relaxing and enjoyable, it is sometimes described as feeling like you are daydreaming or being ‘on the edge of sleep’, where you become immersed in your own world but are still aware of your environment on the periphery.
What happens at a session?
The first session is held over the phone and is completely free of charge, it gives you a chance to talk through your situation and the outcome you would like to achieve. It also gives you time to learn more about hypnosis and for us to talk about whether hypnosis would be the right approach for you.
Subsequent sessions last for 60 – 80 minutes and start with a discussion about outcomes, obstacles and progress before hypnosis. For the hypnosis part of the session, you can stay seated in the chair or lie down on the coach, the most important part is that you are comfortable.
Being guided to connect at a deep level with your subconscious mind gives you the opportunity to communicate directly with the part of your brain that holds your feelings and your memories enabling you to make powerful changes to your habits and thought patterns.
Hypnotic trance is a natural state of mind that we all experience many times each day, to some degree or another. You may have driven your car along a familiar route and suddenly become aware that you do not remember part of the journey or been in a meeting and realised your mind has been elsewhere and you missed part of the conversation. Our minds go in and out of trance as we move between conscious actions and accessing our memories and feelings, which are stored within our sub-conscious.
The variation of session time (60-80mins) depends on your needs that day, my aim is for you to leave the session feeling positive and recognising the progress that has been made. The number of sessions you will need is personal to you – as a general guide most people have 2- 6 sessions. However, some people prefer to have a one-off longer session (2 hours) to address a very focused topic; for example, smoking cessation or resolving a specific challenge.
As part of your support, I will provide you with a CD or MP3 recording to listen to between visits, that will compliment your session.
Fees
(smoking cessation)
- Sessions are held in Bristol , Bath and North Somerset
FAQ
In my experience, yes… clinical trails show that two thirds of the general population can easily access the state of hypnosis. As all hypnosis is self-hypnosis, it is likely that the remaining third deliberately resist the process as they don’t feel safe/comfortable, and this group are very unlikely to actively seek the services of a hypnotherapist. Within all my years of practice I’ve never worked with anyone that was unable to reach some level of focused relaxation. How deep client drift into trance, can vary from experience to experience and does not affect the results of the session.
No, your sub-conscious mind will reject any suggestions that you do not feel comfortable with. Hypnosis is communication between your conscious mind and your sub-conscious self, it is directed by your desires and always within your control. When you see stage hypnotists appearing to make audience members do ‘silly’ things, they have used various ‘sifting’ techniques to find a few people that enjoy being in the limelight, are desperate to be called up on stage and who feel totally relaxed being a bit outlandish.
The sub-conscious mind is a great protector, and some memories are outside our conscious awareness for a reason. There are many different techniques that can be used during hypnosis and the past does not have to be delved into for healing to take place.
No, you only need to talk about things that you feel comfortable sharing. However, anything you do discuss will be received without judgment and treated as confidential.
We often think of willpower as a determination and discipline. The driver behind this unwavering desire are beliefs and feelings that support the individual to follow through towards their goal. That’s why willpower without deeper change is often short lived.
You will already have a desire to move towards your outcome as you are attending hypnotherapy and, I suspect you are also aware of a few blockages or ways you self-sabotage which is why you are seeking further support.
Hypnosis works by bringing your sub-conscious thoughts in line with your conscious desires, achieving your goal will still involve you taking some conscious actions but they will be supported by your automatic thoughts and feelings.
Yes, if you prefer to read science-based findings click here to be directed research articles. If you are interested in real life stories, then click here for testimonials and case studies.
Hypnosis is a relaxing and enjoyable experience; it is similar to a daydream where you can become immersed in your own world but are still aware of your environment on the periphery. Some people remember every detail of their inner experience and hear all the words that are spoken to them, others recall their experience in a hazier way.
The numbers of sessions you will need varies from person to person and depends on the desired outcome. Stopping smoking and other very specific focused issues require just one two-hour transformation session. Most other issues need between 2 and 6 sessions, we will discuss this during the initial consultation and again at an agreed point of review.