Conditions helped

Hypnotherapy for anxiety

Feelings of anxiety and worry can strike at any time, it is highly likely that everyone will experience these feelings at some time in their lives.

There are many factors that contribute to these feelings of worry and stress, perhaps pressure or managing change at work, money worries, problems with your personal relationships or even just the pressures of day-to-day life.

These feelings are completely natural and normal, but for some people, at some points in their life, levels of worry and anxiety can begin to affect their ability to get on with living.

Our ‘inbuilt’ system, known as the ‘fight, flight, freeze’ response is designed to protect us from danger. When our brain perceives a threat, our sympathetic nervous system kicks in, flooding our body with adrenaline so that we can prepare to protect ourselves. Increases in breathing and heart rates ensure our limbs are filled with oxygenated blood, we are primed and ready for ‘escape’, to fight our way from perceived danger. This is of course great if you are in danger, but not so helpful if you are perhaps worrying about an exam, an interview or some kind of presentation you have to do.

• Anxiety may manifest itself in many ways, common symptoms include:
• Heart racing/palpitations
• Fast breathing
• Butterflies, stomach churning or ache
• Trembling or feelings of weakness
• Increased perspiration
• Headaches and fatigue
• Dry mouth
• Unwanted thoughts and difficulty focusing
• Nail biting

Anxiety is caused by negative thoughts, when we are anxious our internal dialogue can become overwhelming, we can often lose sight of reality, catastrophise and begin to make negative predictions about the future and ourselves. As a result it may be that we begin to avoid situations and environments that evoke this anxiety response. If left unchecked, it can restrict us living the life we want and deserve.

How can Solution Focused Hypnotherapy help?

I will support you in reinstating your calm. I will give you an understanding of how our brains work, why we react the way we do and help you turn down the volume of that internal chatter, those negative thoughts and behaviours that can limit you.

Through support with progressive relaxation, mind calming techniques and positive suggestion, I will work with you to help you to regulate your breathing, reframe situations and environments that may trigger anxiety responses and build confidence and self esteem.

If you are ready to act and regain control of your life, contact me today to make an appointment.

Hypnotherapy for building confidence

Confidence is a state of mind. When we feel confident, we accept ourselves and believe in our abilities. When feel less confident, we can become stressed, anxious, unfulfilled and ultimately unhappy. We become aware of that inner monologue which lists all the bad things that might happen…

Low self-confidence is something many of us suffer with and can be a result of many factors: fear of the unknown, low self-esteem and fear of other people's perceptions. This lack of confidence can hold us back from developing and striving for the things we want to get out of life.

Maybe you know someone who despite reassurance, encouragement and approval, lacks confidence in their abilities? Perhaps you know someone who is really knowledgeable but finds presenting to others an almost insurmountable challenge, despite encouragement and support?

This is because our unconscious mind holds a belief system that is independent of external factors. In order to build confidence in these situations, we need to change the way we think. Hypnotherapy can help with this.

How can Hypnotherapy help overcome your difficulties?

Hypnotherapy can be a positive way forwards for building confidence, as you learn how your brain works and how it can, at times, hold you back. You can learn how to cope with just about any situation in work and in life, in a calm, relaxed, confident way, letting go of self-limiting beliefs and quietening that internal chatter.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is a talking therapy using the best of SFBT, CBT and NLP, with hypnosis at the end of each session.

Hypnotherapy for low mood or depression

We all go through periods of low mood, or feeling down, but when you are depressed, you may feel persistently sad for weeks or months rather than just a few days. 

Depression is a real illness, with real symptoms that can be debilitating.  It is not simply sadness, when we are depressed we lose the ability to feel emotion strongly. 

The good news is that depression is ‘treatable’.  80% of people with depression can be treated successfully with medication, psychotherapy or a combination of the two.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy, combines hypnosis with psychotherapy, and is particularly effective due to its future facing approach. One of the things that keeps people depressed is a negative internal dialogue - that internal chatter revisiting past events and predicting future happenings in a negative way.  It is our subconscious mind that keeps our brains ‘stuck’ in this way of thinking. Hypnosis provides a route to our subconscious - enabling us to learn how to develop new ways of thinking, new ways of seeing things, turning down the volume on that internal chatter and breaking away from the destructive cycle of depression.  

The length of your treatment will, of course, depend on individual circumstances - we will discuss this at your initial consultation.  

Call now to make an appointment and take that first positive step to change.

Hypnotherapy for phobias and panic attacks

Fear is a natural and healthy response we all have to danger, a survival instinct allowing us to avoid or escape threatening situations. Phobias are different - they are frightening episodes where a person experiences overwhelming feelings of fear, stress or anxiety and may result in panic attacks for some people.

Symptoms of phobia and panic attacks can include:

• Shortness of breath
• Dizziness or light headedness
• Pounding heart or palpitations
• Mind going blank
• Stomach churning or nausea
• Trembling or shaking
• Inability to speak

If the source of your phobia is something you do not come into contact with often in the course of your day-to-day life, then it may not cause you too much anxiety. If, however you come into regular contact, then it may have a larger impact upon your life.

There can be a number of factors that might result in a phobic response - perhaps your fear has stemmed from a particular trauma or event (for instance if you experienced a particularly bumpy flight when you were younger, you may develop a fear of flying as a result). It may be a learned response that you have picked up from someone else (for example you may have seen a parent be fearful of heights or bridges as a child and you have subconsciously learned that this is an appropriate response).

Regardless of the cause, it is important to know that phobias can be treated and help is available.

Hypnotherapy can be highly effective in turning down the emotional response to phobias. You will learn about your brain in relation to your problem and, above all, the ways of stopping panic in its tracks so you can get on with enjoying life to the fullest.

If you feel your phobia is holding you back or interfering in your life, then call today and make an appointment to discuss how hypnotherapy can help you take back control.

Hypnotherapy for IBS

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is relatively widespread with estimates that 20% of people will suffer from it at one time or another. Whilst it is calculated that women are twice as likely as men to report having symptoms of IBS, the exact cause of it is unknown, but most experts believe it is related to problems with digestion and increased sensitivity of the gut.

Symptoms include: abdominal cramps, bloating, wind, diarrhoea and constipation, fatigue, depression, loss of appetite.

If you suffer from IBS you will already know how limiting (and unpredictable) the symptoms can be and how it can affect your ability to get on with your life.

IBS varies from person to person and different therapeutic approaches may be beneficial, however, following a course of Clinical Hypnotherapy may help you significantly reduce your levels of stress, thus helping to alleviate your symptomology. Learning techniques to help you relax and manage stress along with the guided sessions (both in the therapy session and on CD/MP3) may help you gain better control of your IBS and reduce your discomfort.

Research into the benefits of hypnotherapy upon symptomology of IBS stretch back to the 1980’s when a gastroenterologist in Manchester started using hypnosis in the treatment of IBS and other gastrological conditions. Research continued and in 2008 guidance issued by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) recommended Hypnotherapy as a suitable intervention for IBS.

If you are interested in how Solution Focused Hypnotherapy may help alleviate your IBS symptoms, please contact me for a confidential consultation appointment.

Hypnotherapy for insomnia and sleep disorders

‘A ruffled mind makes a restless pillow’ Charlotte Bronte

Do you struggle to fall asleep at night? Do you toss and turn, worrying about the future or going over things that have happened in the past? Does it leave you feeling tired and drained during the day?

Modern, busy lifestyles, full of technology and endless ‘connectivity’ leave many of us sleep deprived. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the National Sleep Foundation both stipulate that an average of eight hours sleep a night is required for adults, it is estimated that two-thirds of adults in developed nations fail to obtain this recommended dose of nightly sleep. The WHO has declared a sleep loss epidemic in the industrialised nations and the UK is among the list of nations with the most dramatic decline in sleep time over the last century (Matthew Walker - Why We Sleep, 2018).

Whilst you may not be surprised by that, you may be surprised by the consequences - routinely sleeping less than six or seven hours a night affects your immune system, disrupts blood sugar levels, interferes with weight management (due to increased levels of stress hormones in the blood). Lack of sleep can leave you unable to concentrate, less able to remember or make logical decisions, affect your mood, resulting in feelings of low mood and depression…in fact the list goes on.

We need sleep to restore both our brains and our bodies. Research suggests that, ‘there is not a single organ in our body, or process within the brain that isn’t optimally enhanced by sleep (and detrimentally impaired when we do not get enough).’ (Matthew Walker, Why We Sleep 2018)

How can Solution Focused Hypnotherapy help?

Hypnotherapy can help you get a good, natural sleep pattern, enabling you to wake feeling refreshed and alert. I will help you take control of your body and mind, working with you to help you enter into deeper states of rejuvenating relaxation. Sessions are more effective with practise, using my relaxation CD (or MP3) at home will help you ‘compound’ and reinforce your ability to enter into these deeper states of relaxation that are so beneficial to our overall wellbeing.

If you feel you are ready to benefit from improved sleep - call or email now to arrange an appointment.

Hypnotherapy for Exam Nerves

Most people experience a certain amount of stress when it comes to exams. In fact some stress can be used as a positive motivating force. Some people suffer with exam stress more than others - and for those who do, it is key to learn some stress reduction techniques in order to better enable them to perform to their best ability.

Physical symptoms associated with stress are caused by the hormone adrenaline, which prepares us for our fight/flight response. This is an excellent resource to use if we are in fact in danger, however when we are simply preparing for an exam (which is not a life or death situation) and we produce too much adrenaline we can experience unpleasant physical symptoms that can be debilitating rather than advantageous.

Hypnotherapy is a natural and simple technique that can be used to help control exam nerves. It can help boost confidence and reduce feelings of anxiety. It can help you develop the ability to access the calm state of mind needed to sit an exam or cope with a potentially overwhelming situation.

Clinical hypnotherapy can help calm a racing mind, I will work with you to help you approach the exam with a cool and focused head. I will help you ‘turn down’ that internal chatter and address any negative thought patterns that may have become a pre-exam habit. Together we will look at how the brain works, and how we can change our responses to stressful situations.

If you need some support in learning how to overcome exam nerves - contact me today to book an appointment.

Hypnotherapy for Pain Management

Pain is a natural, unpleasant sensory and emotional experience linked to tissue damage. It serves the vital function of triggering attention and avoidance. Most of the time pain goes away after an injury heals. However, when any type of pain lasts a long time there can be changes in the spinal cord and the brain that change how we perceive pain sensations. These changes may result in severe pain with little or no painful stimulus. As a result some chronic pain can be difficult to treat and become frustrating to patients, resulting in low mood and other emotional problems. This can be difficult to treat with medication alone.

Pain can be debilitating and lead to a reduction in activity - which can actually exacerbate the problem over time. Hypnotherapy can give you the ability to gain control over the ‘switchboard’ that controls your pain sensations, turning down the ‘volume’ or intensity of the pain.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is a powerful and safe way to assist in the management of chronic pain. The therapy helps to reduce stress and relax the nervous system in order to help it become less reactive to pain, boosting the body’s natural pain-managing endorphins.

Many people claim that Hypnotherapy is an effective tool as part of their chronic pain management plan, it is a natural therapy with no side effects, which can be used to compliment traditional medicine.

If you are experiencing pain, and want to explore how Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can become part of your pain-management-toolkit, then please contact me to make an appointment.

Hypnotherapy for Sports Performance

We all know that being a successful athlete involves maintaining high levels of physical fitness. According to research, this is only part of the strategy required for success. Sports performance has as much (or more) to do with mental abilities than physical abilities. The ability to access inner resources of resilience, self-belief and visualisation or ‘being in the zone’ can be the difference between a successful athlete and one who is less so.

Hypnosis can help an athlete enter the ‘zone,’ whereby distractions (such as noise, intrusive thoughts or previous experience) are hardly noticed, allowing the sportsperson to be at their best.

Hypnotherapy can improve and enhance an individual’s mental attitude by helping them to relax, removing anxieties and boosting confidence.

Clinical Hypnotherapy can help you to boost your own performance by:

• Increasing your confidence and self-belief
• Reframing your negative thoughts or beliefs
• Increasing your motivation and dedication
• Using deep relaxation and concentration techniques to imagine your own personal success and improve your skills
• Enabling you to maintain composure and overcome distractions.

I will work with you in a bespoke way, working toward your individual goals.

If you feel it is time to explore this avenue - contact me today to book an appointment.

Hypnotherapy to stop smoking

Are you ready to put smoking behind you? Do you want to make some changes and create a healthier lifestyle?

With a genuine desire to be free of the habit - my stop smoking session (yes, a single session) will support you to:

• Understand why you smoke and clarify what your priorities are in stopping smoking.
• Highlight the benefits of stopping smoking - and some of the misconceptions that may have lead you to become a smoker in the first place.
• Support you in achieving your goal and creating a healthier lifestyle for yourself, through offering fresh perspectives and understanding.

Becoming a non-smoker can be simple, and I use a simple technique that will support your own strong desire to stop. The session is up to 2 hours in length - call now to book this specialised approach.

Hypnotherapy for weight management and weight loss

Dieting, Slimming and Weight Loss Management has become a multi-billion pound industry in the UK and across the world - with products and plans that promise to make it ‘easy to lose weight’.

Weight Loss Hypnotherapy is very popular and highly effective, with your commitment for change along with the approach I use, we work together toward the aim of creating healthy long-term habits that enable you to lose weight at a steady rate.

I begin by helping you understand your brain and the way you think about food and eating, supporting you to identify and address any negative eating habits and redefine your relationship with food and exercise.

I will help you understand your eating and analyse the relationship between our emotions and food. When we use food as a response to emotions we rarely feel ‘full’ or satiated. Stress and sleep loss also impact upon weight gain and loss, we will work together to understand this relationship and work toward a healthy balance.

How can Solution Focused Hypnotherapy help with weight loss?

Hypnotherapy is a fantastic tool to help boost your level of commitment to an idea, hypnosis allows us to work with your subconscious mind, where your belief-system and related patterns of behaviour are stored. Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can also reduce your levels of stress, which may also be a factor of your weight gain (or difficulty with weight loss). Whatever your personal circumstances are, I will help you work toward a healthier future.

Hypnotherapy is not a magic wand - weight loss will involve work and commitment from you - however, hypnotherapy can support you with your goals, and can enable you to make changes to the way that you think and behave in your relationship with food, leading to long-term weight loss and health benefits.