Hypnotherapy

· What is Hypnosis?
· Why does it work?
· Will I lose Control?
· Hypnotherapy v Psychotherapy
· Medical Issues, Prescription Medication and other Therapies
· The Therapy Process

· What is Hypnosis?

Hypnosis is a scientifically proven state of mind, where the beliefs that motivate behaviours can be changed. A US medical study using brain-scanning (MRI) techniques discovered that the person's brain, while in hypnosis, could register the colour red while looking at a white screen!

The latest theories to emerge on what we call hypnosis, is that it is a waking version of a type of sleep called Rapid Eyeball Movement (REM) sleep. Everyone spends about 2 hours per night in this state, characterised by a still body and an active mind. It is now agreed that this state is one in which we work out unresolved conflicts from the previous day, and lay down new learning templates for coping with life changes. The skilled therapist can work with the clients to bring them into this state deliberately, and use this natural process for change.

In hypnosis, the person experiences a profound sense of physical relaxation together with a sense of heightened mental control - it is a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

On bringing the client "out" of the state, it is usual that they remain silent for some time, as they adjust to this new way of feeling and learning. A very typical response is then: "Wow, I never thought that I could feel that relaxed". When it is pointed out that they have remained that way, totally unmoving, for up to 50 minutes, they are amazed.

Yet, this is a skill that can be taught to anyone of normal mental faculties by a competent Hypnotherapist.

· Why does it work?

We all know when we should change something in our lives, but sometimes no matter how hard we try, we can't. This is usually because there is a deep-rooted belief or a fear of failure.

Hypnosis works at the deepest level of our minds, the level where the beliefs or fears are stored, and at this level the Therapist can help the client change those beliefs. As outlined above, ATCS uses the latest emerging science of the way the brain naturally tries to resolve conflict and learn (REM).

· Will I lose control?

Actually, you will be more in control of yourself then ever before! Hypnosis gives you this control, the control to Stop Smoking, Lose Weight etc. It is this control that allows you to make that change.

· Hypnotherapy vs. Psychotherapy

Hypnosis in itself is not a therapy. However, just practicing going into hypnosis has profound effects on the brain, the body and the central nervous system. Essentially, you are allowing the body a daily period of deep relaxation, which will give the system time to relieve built up stress, leading to a stronger immune system, more energy and more efficiency.

Add to this that the hypnosis session will be individually designed and recorded to offer you tailor made beneficial and therapeutic suggestions.

And finally, that unlike a lot of meditation or relaxation techniques, the person does not have to do anything at all - not even consciously listen.

So although Hypnosis is not in itself a therapy, it allows access to parts of the brains resources that are not normally consciously accessible. The most common everyday example of this is when a person experiences a flash of inspiration, a strong hunch or suddenly remembers something that they could not earlier remember. In Hypnosis there is full access to these resources and therefore it is here that the psychotherapy takes place, and thus the term Hypnotherapy was developed. So, Hypnotherapy is actually Psychotherapy carried out using hypnosis as a tool to access the unconscious parts of the brain and effect change.

· Medical Issues, Prescription Medication and other Therapies

Before any client undergoes Hypnotherapy it is essential that all background information is fully discussed and disclosed.

We will not advise any client to cease taking any form of prescription medication, and this could only occur with the full knowledge and permission of the clients GP.

In addition, it is crucial that the client has been examined by the Medical profession to ensure that the symptom does not have a physical root cause. For example, a client might commonly consult with headaches or migraine, and it is important that they have been examined and advised that there is no obvious physical cause.

However, Hypnotherapy is a successful adjunct when used in conjunction with mainstream medical interventions.

Finally, it is not recommended that Hypnotherapy be used in conjunction with other forms of talking therapies such as counselling, due to the transference phenomenon.

· The Therapy Process

Broadly speaking, the therapy process will fall into one of the following categories:

A. Suggestion Therapy: the client and the therapist meet on one or two occasions, usually for a total of approximately 3 hours. They will discuss the issues bring presented, and then a formal Hypnosis session will be conducted. This session will be recorded onto a CD for the client to take away and listen to. The CD will contain all the client needs to go into the hypnotic state on his / her own, as well as the therapeutic suggestions required to address the issues.

This type of approach is useful for basic Weight Loss, Stopping Smoking, Life Coaching, Goal Setting, Grief, Relaxation, Sports Improvement, Memory Improvement, and Concentration Improvement …

B. Analytical Therapy: the client is consulting with a more "deep rooted" issue, and the process would typically commence exactly as the process detailed above. However, the client would continue to meet with the therapist for approximately an hour on a weekly basis, with an aim to find and remove the root cause of the presenting symptom. All of the work is carried out with the client in relaxed hypnosis, so that the client feels open, calm, in control and safe. Analytical Therapy is essentially a search to find and remove the root cause of the presenting issue. Many different techniques would be typically used during this process, such as:

· Regression · Future pacing · Reframing · NLP · Pin-Point Analysis · Parts Therapy · Gestalt Dialogue · EMDR · …

Hypnotherapy is seen as a brief therapy, and therefore an average number of sessions would be 10 - it must be pointed out that this can vary up or down depending on each individual.