I currently offer hypnotherapy consultations in Ipswich and Felixstowe. Please contact me for more information and to find out if this therapy is right for you.

Hypnotherapy is a therapeutic technique which works to reprogramme the subconscious mind. Once a light trance has been induced, a number of things can be done:

• Negative or limiting beliefs can be cleared and replaced with positive new beliefs such as "I am confident" or "Who I am is enough"
  
  
• Deep analysis can be carried out to find the route cause of a problem, and then guided visualisation can be used to create a solution.
  
  For example, if in a client's childhood, something bad happened, they may have forgotten about it consciously. However, the subconscious mind still remembers it as if it has just happened. Once it has been identified, it loses some of it's power, as it can be integrated with adult awareness and understanding. If further work is needed to heal the memory, appropriate visualisation will be suggested to the client, so they change the memory in their minds.

Hypnotherapy can be used in many situations, where a person wishes to change some aspect of their life.

It can be used to treat depression, anxiety, low confidence, low self-esteem, panic attacks, sadness, fears and phobias, worry, low motivation, grief, post traumatic stress disorder, sleep problems, addictions, weight management and so on.

How is hypnosis achieved and what does it feel like?

After a discussion which lasts around 30 minutes, the client is invited to make themselves comfortable on the chair or coach. Gentle music is played in he background, and the session begins.

There are many methods of inducing a trance - the objective is to get the conscious, questioning mind to relax and take a back seat. This can be done by distracting, confusing or boring the conscious mind (have you ever been so bored by someone that you switched off? you were in a light trance state when this happened!)

The induction method I prefer is progressively relaxing the client, gently relaxing them limb by limb, starting at the top of the head and working down to the feet. This gives a very pleasant first impression of hypnosis, and is a technique clients can use at home, to reduce their stress levels and help them sleep.

This technique takes about 30 minutes and by the end of it, the client is deeply relaxed.

From here I may use a deepener which takes them further down into relaxation. For example I may describe a beautiful place in nature, which they've been to before, or somewhere totally imaginary. By this time the client is focusing on their internal pictures, sounds and feelings and is very deeply relaxed and receptive to positive suggestions for change.

Then comes the therapeutic bit...

We may do some exploratory work - possibly going back in time, or travelling into the future... or meeting a wise advisor for advice on their issues.

We may change the way they view their problem so it is turned into an opportunity.

We may explore through visualisation how they would like their life to be.

We may destroy a fear by putting it in a balloon and letting it float away.

We may box up their problems for sorting out later.

We may use affirmations (positive present tense statements - e.g. I am successful!

We may dissolve anger and other suppressed emotions with coloured light.

The above are just examples, and many different techniques are used during the sessions, depending on the client's needs.

Once the therapeutic work has been completed, the client is counted up out of the light trance state. The client will 'wake up' feeling positive, optimistic and relaxed. There will be some time for the client to come back fully to everyday awareness before they leave to drive home.

Being in a light trance feels like that time when you are laying in bed, not quite awake, not quite asleep. It is a daydreamy state, where you are focused internally rather than externally.

You can think about the levels of consciousness in the following way:

Fully alert: You are taking an exam

Light trance: You are daydreaming about taking an exam

Moderate trance: You are fully imagining yourself taking an exam

Deep trance: You can feel yourself taking an exam

Sleep: You are dreaming about yourself taking an exam.

What is the difference between stage hypnotism and hypnotherapy?

Most client's who come to see me have seen some form of stage hypnotism, whether it's Paul McKenna or someone else. Whilst these shows are good for raising the profile of hypnotherapy, and providing proof that it does work, it does create some apprehension in people.

You will be pleased to hear that hypnotherapy is much more dignified than what you may have seen on the TV. You lay down on a couch or lean-back chair, and gently relax into an altered state of awareness. There is no squawking like a chicken required!

The main difference between the two uses of this tool is the intention behind it.

The work hypnotherapists do is entirely therapeutic. This means it is carried out 100% for the benefit of the well-being of the client. People visit a hypnotherapist because they have something they want to change in their lives.

Stage hypnotism is carried out for entertainment. People who allow themselves to be hypnotised in a show, know what's involved and are happy to proceed on those terms.

It is important to note that in both cases the full consent and cooperation of the person who is hypnotised is required for it to work. People CANNOT be hypnotised without their consent.

Is there anyone that can't be hypnotised?

Certain drugs and mental conditions may interfere with hypnosis. Your medical history will be discussed before the first treatment, and if necessary you will be asked to provide a consent letter from your doctor.

Everyone else who is fit and well, and not on certain medication can be hypnotised.

For many people it is not necessary to contact their G.P. before having hypnotherapy. However where appropriate I encourage clients to tell their doctor they are receiving treatment, for example in a case of Irritable Bowel Syndrome. In the occasional case, I request a doctor consent form before beginning treatment.

Hypnotherapy is a complementary therapy. This means it works alongside allopathic medicine - and not instead of it. Whilst undergoing hypnotherapy or any complementary treatment, you must continue taking all medication until you have the consent and supervision of your doctor to reduce / stop it.

Hypnotherapy versus counselling

Hypnotherapy has an element of counselling in it. The first part of all sessions give the client a chance to talk through anything that has happened or they have been feeling since their last session. Talking is therapeutic to a point - as the saying goes, a problem shared is a problem halved.

However unlike counselling, hypnotherapy is solution focused, and each session uses techniques to move the client closer to their goals. Hypnotherapy starts with the belief: You are here... and you want to get to here. Lets look at how we can achieve that. Counseling starts with: You are here... lets talk about this and see if it changes. In my experience, the more you focus on your problems, the bigger they get.