Hypnotherapy is one of the most misunderstood therapies in the world. It has been around for thousands of years but most people don’t know what it actually is. There is a lot of confusion between hypnosis and hypnotherapy, especially in the media where it is often portrayed differently to what it actually is. This blog is designed to answer the question: What is hypnotherapy and what can it do for you?
About the Author:
Helen Birch is the author and founder of Helen Birch Hypnotherapy. She is a highly experienced therapist and featured expert in many online publications.
If you are someone who is suffering from some sort of anxiety or stress induced illness that has been brought on by your day to day life then you must try hypnotherapy. There are many people who don’t even know what hypnotherapy is and what it can do for them. Here Helen Birch will explain what it is and why you should go for it
All about Hypnosis
All about hypnosis. When people find out that I am a hypnotherapist, they often say half jokingly that I am not going to look into your eyes or I’m going to avoid making eye contact with you in case you make me cluck like a chicken. And the image they have in their mind is one that they’ve seen on TV, such as spiralling eyes, and swinging watches. The hypnotist who’s controlling a person’s moves, actions and what they say. But this is far from the truth.
So what exactly is hypnotherapy?
Hypnotherapy is a form of psychotherapy used to treat a variety of ailments and conditions. Patients that visit a hypnotherapist can expect to have their subconscious mind reprogrammed to help them change unhealthy habits and behaviours. Consulting a hypnotherapist can be a great way to work through difficult problems and issues that may be hampering your life.
Hypnotherapy is a form of treatment that uses hypnosis to cure a person from a particular problem. In the past, hypnotherapy wasn’t considered a treatment for anything. It was more of a state of mind, where the person was relaxed and the mind was open for positive suggestions to be made. But today, hypnotherapy is used as a kind of treatment for psychological issues, physical problems, and even some behavioural problems.
What does a hypnotist do?
As a Hypnotherapist. I can’t make you do anything that you don’t want to do. You are always in control of your own experience. My job is to guide you to achieve what you want in life. And the tools I use as a hypnotist can help you achieve your goals. I can help to bypass your inner self, your inner doubter, your inner critic, your inner procrastinator. Hypnosis isn’t about being suggestible. But rather it’s about being open to suggestion and open to the possibility of change.
Suggestion is so powerful.
The easiest way to think of it is to think of it in the context of a placebo effect, which is when there is a medicine that doesn’t really have any medical properties, but has very similar treatment effects to the real drug. Sometimes, even when the person knows it is fake, it will still have the same medical effects as the real drug. This shows how powerful suggestions can be. So whether you have back pain or depression or anxiety, thoughts and expectations can change your experience.
The work I do is always goal and outcome driven. And this is really important. We focus on how to want to be. This really focuses your mind on what matters to you, and it puts you in control of the therapy. So whether it’s changing a behaviour, habit or an experience, you can explore ways of making that goal happen. And hypnosis. works best when people are open to the experience and engage with it wholeheartedly. When you trust that your mind is powerful enough to make changes that you previously didn’t think were possible. I can show you how powerful belief and expectation can be, particularly when it comes to sexual issues.
What does it feel like?
Hypnosis is really relaxing. Most people are very surprised to find that it will feels a bit like having a lovely nap and some other people describe it as a type of mental massage.
In hypnotherapy sessions , I help to guide you into a state of hypnosis and I like to call this hypnotic relaxation. But we all go into hypnosis several times a day and this is because we are all open to suggestions all of the time as we go about our everyday lives. So for example, if you hear somebody saying you’re not good enough, then you will start to think that you are not good enough even though you might consciously not be thinking that so you can have and through suggestions.
Your subconscious will take some on board because they fit with you. And there are some suggestions which our subconscious would not take on board because they don’t fit with you and they don’t fit with your ideology. With all kinds of hypnosis, there is evidence to show that expectation can really affect the experience and success of hypnosis. So this means that the more you believe that it will work, the more likely it will happen. But Alongside this, you need to have a really good, empathetic and experienced Hypnotherapist.
Why is hypnosis so beneficial?
And because hypnotherapy addresses the subconscious—instead of just the conscious—it may be more effective. In fact, a study analysis from 1970 found hypnosis to have a 93 percent success rate, with fewer sessions needed than both psychotherapy and behavioural therapy
We know that hypnosis along with self hypnosis, and other mind reprogramming techniques, including meditation and mindfulness are really useful for various issues. And this is because physical changes take place in your brain when you’re worried or anxious, and these can affect your emotional responses. Caring for your mind is just as important as caring for your body.
- So regular mindfulness and mind training can help to strengthen the part of your brain that regulates memory and emotions and help with planning and problem solving.
- And it can help increase the grey matter in your prefrontal cortex, which is the area that’s responsible for higher functions helping you to stay calmer, when you would otherwise feel overwhelmed. Undergoing hypnosis also increases the cortical thickness in the hippocampus, which increases your capacity for learning and memory. And this is the area of your brain that becomes really vulnerable to stress. So regular mind training and self hypnosis can help to protect and nurture it.
- It also increases the grey matter in your ACC, your Anterior Cingulate cortex, and this is all about self regulating and managing conflict. And you know those moments when you find it hard to manage conflict, as well as you may have done before, then you can really do something about it. And through hypnosis and hypnotherapy sessions, you are literally growing that part of your area you are literally increasing that ACC matter and having a physical effect on your brain and the way your body responds to emotional intensity.
And so I integrate a variety of approaches, and this includes hypnotherapy, self hypnosis, EFT, mind, reprogramming and training, as well as meditation and mindfulness and they all play a vital role. So they are psychological tools which can really help to empower you and make long lasting changes.
There are many reasons why someone would want to seek help from a hypnotherapist. Some people want to quit an addiction, while others want to eliminate a bad habit like smoking or biting nails. Hypnotherapy can even be used to help you reach your fitness goals. Contact us today to learn more about what hypnotherapy can do for you.
Although hypnotherapy is a form of counselling, it is different to traditional methods as you are in a relaxed state of mind, which allows you to access your subconscious mind and its unlimited power to heal and grow. If you are looking for a way to overcome a problem or to improve your life, hypnotherapy could be the answer for you.
If you have any more questions regarding hypnotherapy, please feel free to contact Helen Birch at www.hypnosisinyorkshire.com Thank you so much for reading this blog, we hope that you found it informative and that if you are looking to have any issues addressed that you will consider visiting our site!