Your first session
Firstly – clinical hypnosis is very different to stage hypnosis! As a clinical hypnotherapist I can address serious issues with a medical, non judgemental approach. It can be used as a voyage of self discovery born out of curiosity, or to clear a path for better health and well-being.
For example, guilt, anger, and lack of forgiveness can block us from going forward healthily in life. By deep relaxation to access the subconscious I can change old belief systems and inappropriate behaviour (if you wish to change).
There are two types of hypnosis – a blast of positive suggestions, or a regression to earlier memories you may have hidden in your mind, perhaps at a time it was too difficult to deal with. Accessing these painful memories does re-create the pain, but once dealt with in hypnosis creates a feeling of euphoria – as if a bag of rubbish has been cleared from your body! Just like eating a bad prawn… after the poisoning, clearing it from your body makes you feel so much better. All this is done with a compassionate approach, and takes approximately one hour. Initially we will start with the psychotherapy and I will talk to you about what you want to achieve on a conscious level. For example, a client may come because of panic attacks, but this could be the symptom of the root cause of a low esteem. I always look for the root cause. Even if a client comes with a weight problem, the root cause of that might be that they no longer wish to sleep with their partner-even if they do not know it on a conscious level.
Then after this and if you are in agreement – will be the hypnosis. In hypnosis you may feel as if you are sinking, floating, tingly heavy, or experience eye-fluttering. The session can only be beneficial. We all go into altered states of consciousness every day – for example before and after sleep or sometimes when going into another room to find something and then can’t remember what we’re looking for! It’s only natural.
You can’t get stuck anywhere, you will not be asleep, you will probably hear and remember everything I say and YOU WILL NOT LOSE CONTROL and cannot be made to do things against your will. You can see the door and leave at any time, or ask questions or stop me going a certain route during the hypnosis.
It is hard to know how many sessions you will need, depending on the root cause, but generally it takes between one and three. After the hypnosis you will have a sense of relaxation (sometimes elation) and a refreshed feeling. Almost like having a lovely body massage – this is like having a wonderful mind massage!