Articles and Studies | Hypnotherapy

Mind Programming With Hypnosis Seems to Rock

Huffington Post Lifestyle United Kingdom

Posted: 19/01/2015

Over the last week I have met a range of Clinical Hypnotherapists and I have been able to explore how what they do helps their clients achieve their goals. It has been enlightening, understanding how each of them working in a niche area support their clients using what is often described as 'voodoo'. Talking with a range of specialists gives me the opportunity to dig deep into how and what they do to help their own clients achieve the desired result. Here I reflect on a week of hypnosis of hypnotic interest.

I begin my week meeting Rosalind Smith, a smart, straight talking Hypnotherapist who outlines how she recently helped one woman lose five stone programming her mind to eat less. Well aware of how hypnosis is now a leading edge treatment for helping people lose the excess weight, I am inspired as I look at a before and after photo of Rosalind's client who now looks so much happier. Rosalind explains how the hypnosis has also motivated her client to take up exercise and sustain long term focus to stay on track. What strikes me here is the enthusiasm she holds to get results for her clients and a confirmation in my own mind that a direct no nonsense approach delivers results.

Next I meet Nicola Beattie, a Hypnotherapist specialising in addictions. What's interesting is the array of addictions she treats from sex addiction to cocaine addiction. She explains to me that her style of hypnosis is not all about relaxing down into a comfortable place visualising a meadow. In fact it is far from it, as she uses a protocol that means her clients are directly guided into hypnosis to understand the devastating consequences of continuing to practice the addiction. Creating a strong aversion to the presenting addiction is a major part of her treatment plan, before planting into her clients mind that they are now letting go of the addictive behaviour, and bringing in a new positive way of living.

Sports people have always recognised the power of their mind so I catch up with Alice Pinion who specialises in sports performance. She explains that she helps sports people experience the hypnotic trance like state by using deep relaxation and then gets them to focus on bringing the best sporting memories to the forefront of their mind. When asked about negative experiences she explains to me that worries are pushed away, in other words mentally dissociated from the unconscious mind. What follows is strong guided imagery and positive inner dialogue that evidently helps the sportsperson think like a champion.

As my journey continues I want to speak with a Hypnotherapist that specialises in fertility so I connect with Sally Reeves. Can hypnotherapy really assist with conception? Well it would seem so. Sally explains to me that her goal is to always help women reduce their level of anxiety so that they have more chance to conceive, and strengthen the belief of their own sense of fertility. Sally's natural enthusiasm to help women make their dream come true is pretty special and she affirms my thought that often it is important to clear away any emotional issues such as childhood trauma that may be getting in the way of conception. Sally's work feels very special. Helping a woman to conceive must deliver the most amazing job satisfaction.

I complete my discussions with Debbie Holden, a specialist weight management Hypnotherapist who focuses upon understanding the underlying reasons for weight gain so that she can work on them with her clients and then move forward to help them reduce their weight. It sure is a nice place to finish as I reaffirm the power of hypnosis in helping to reduce obesity.

What really strikes me as I complete my week is the whole genius of hypnosis. I am reminded of the vast array of conditions it can help treat, and the passion there is out in the field from many professional Hypnotherapists to help desperate members of the public change their lives. My conclusion is strong. We are what we think.

Wake Up to a New World

by Janice Rosenthal Rock

“I’m so tired of spending my life on a diet. The harder I try to control my weight, the more I become obsessed with food!”

Sound familiar? People face a myriad of challenges every day, but one common lament is not being able to make the changes you want to make. You’ve probably heard that hypnotherapy, which translates to “sleep of the nervous system” can treat various conditions, but the truth about hypnotherapy and why more people don’t seek this type of treatment remains a mystery to many.

IT’S SHOWTIME!

When most of us think of hypnosis, we think of the hypnotist on stage in Las Vegas, getting a group of people to do crazy things in a hypnotic state…all while the audience laughs. Hypnosis used for entertainment is common today. However, hypnotherapy is used for everything from alleviating chronic pain and quitting smoking to forensic investigation and academic research. Hypnosis met mainstream medicine in the 1950s when the American Medical Association (AMA) commissioned a report that endorsed an earlier policy of the British Medical Association. The AMA concluded, “The use of hypnosis has a recognized place in the medical armamentarium and is a useful technique in the treatment of certain illnesses when employed by qualified medical and dental personnel.” Induction, which is the process of putting someone into the hypnotic state, is the same whether the outcome is entertainment or therapy.

FEAR FACTOR

If hypnosis could potentially be the answer to weight loss or easing pain, then one may wonder why it isn’t more popular. David Greenwood, certified hypnotherapist and owner of Greenwood Wellness in Folsom says, “The main reason people don’t come to us for help is because of fear – fear we will uncover some hidden secrets in their subconscious; fear they will be made to do something against their will; or fear that under hypnosis they will reveal things they don’t want to reveal.” Greenwood continues, “The reality is, these fears are unfounded. I can’t make anyone do something their conscious mind doesn’t want to do.”

CHANGE WILL DO YOU GOOD

So, can anyone be hypnotized? And can you be hypnotized even if you don’t want to be? “Not everyone can be hypnotized,” Greenwood explains. “You have to trust the process and be ready to make changes, and not everyone is ready.” Alas, there lie the limitations of hypnotherapy. For the process to be successful depends on how motivated the person is to move forward – to change. Some people find, once they start therapy, they don’t have the energy to make the changes they want to make. The power of old negative habits can be strong. While hypnotherapy is a very effective tool, it takes focus and discipline to overcome the self-sabotage that traps many of us. However, when someone is truly ready to change and move forward, and when they can trust the process, success is almost guaranteed. Greenwood reports that he has excellent results with many clients, including those who want to stop smoking, lose weight, improve their public speaking skills, develop confidence, and make better relationship choices.

If breaking a bad habit is on your wish list, and you’re ready and willing to make a change, hypnotherapy could be the treatment for you.

For more information, visit natboard.com.

This article appears in the October 2010 issue of Style-Online

Greenwood Hypnotherapy and Life Coaching