What Happens in a Hypnotherapy Session?

If you have never had hypnotherapy before then you may well wonder what happens in a hypnotherapy session.

One of the reasons that I always offer you a free initial consultation is so that you can meet me face to face before starting therapy. We can talk through the things you are currently struggling with and the changes you would like to make. I’ll describe what I do, how I do it and how we can work together to get you a positive result. And you can, of course, ask any questions you may have before going ahead with your hypnotherapy sessions. In my view, this in person initial meeting strongly supports the likelihood of you achieving a successful and positive outcome from your sessions.

There are many misconceptions and misunderstandings out there about hypnotherapy. It’s often poorly represented in TV and films and this just adds to the sense that it is all a bit woo-woo and out there. Despite what you may think, you are always in control over your own thoughts and feelings. My role is to help you to take back control over those problematic thoughts, feelings and behaviours so that you can feel better in yourself. Hypnotherapy has a strong evidence base in science and research supporting its effectiveness for a whole range of issues. On top of that, you can read the hundreds of positive reviews on this website to give you the hope, inspiration and motivation you need to achieve your goals.

We are all creatures of habit, pattern and repetition. Hypnotherapy helps you to change these patterns in constructive and beneficial ways. The science and evidence is there but you will want to know what happens in a hypnotherapy session.

 

About Hypnotherapy

But first, a bit about hypnotherapy and hypnosis.

Hypnosis is a specific way of using naturally occurring psychological and physiological states. Understanding and utilising how your mind works, you can take control over, and successfully change, your thoughts, feelings and behaviours in positive ways.

During hypnotherapy sessions you will still be aware of your thoughts, who you are, where you are and what you are thinking about. You can’t be made to do anything against your will and you can’t get ‘stuck’ in hypnosis or  be made to reveal anything you don’t wish to. Rather than being controlled by your problem or feeling stuck, you learn how to take control over aspects of your life in ways that will please you.

Hypnosis is not a state of sleep and, in fact, you may feel mentally alert and aware whilst also feeling physically relaxed and at ease. It is a collaborative process where you mentally engage in what is being suggested. In addition, you will be taught skills and techniques that you can apply in your life to achieve positive results.

Successful hypnotherapy will require a series of sessions. Although everyone is different, in my experience, most people will benefit from up to nine sessions of us working together, making it probably one of the briefest and most effective forms of psychological therapy available.

Hypnotherapy can help with a huge range of different issues and behaviours including anxiety management, insomnia and sleep issues, pain management and stress management. It can help you to stop smoking, with alcohol related issues and with weight loss and eating habits.

It can also help you to overcome panic attacks, fears and phobias and to increase your self confidence and self esteem. And the list goes on way beyond this into helping people with many other issues too (if I haven’t mentioned your problem here, e-mail me and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible).

Whilst not an exhaustive list, the main areas I work in using hypnotherapy are:

• Anxiety & Stress Management
• Panic Attacks, Phobias and Fears
• Overcoming Social Anxiety/Phobia
• Confidence and Self-Esteem
• Stopping Smoking
• Weight Loss/Management
• Alcohol & Substance Issues
• Insomnia and sleep issues
• Academic, Sports and Career Performance
• Exam and Test Stress/Anxiety
• Driving Fears
• Medical & Dental Fears

 

How I Work With You

Before I go any further, I want to give you some information about how I work with people to help them achieve their goals. However, keep in mind that none of this is set solidly in stone because it’s all tailored to meet your personal goal and issues.

Firstly, my aim is for us to be thorough in our work together because I want to make sure that you derive the most benefit from our sessions. So the first thing we will do is understand where you are at now,. We cover such things as what is happening, when it is happening and what is and isn’t part of what is going on. We’ll talk about your goals and how you want to be thinking, feeling and behaving from our sessions and how you’ll know we have been successful.

I’ve found from working with thousands of people that the more thorough we are at the start of our sessions together, the more we maximise the work we do together and the sooner you’ll be creating powerful positive momentum.

With this understanding of what is happening now, and what you want instead (which takes no more than one hour long session), we will be very well placed to make your sessions individual and beneficial to you.

Secondly, I like our time working together to be enjoyable, and even fun, where appropriate. I want you to enjoy taking control over your life, overcoming problems and achieving your goals. If you are very lucky you may get to hear some of my particularly bad jokes and hear references to some of my favourite ‘classic gold’ music tracks.

Thirdly, I want you to keep in mind that to get the most benefit from our hypnotherapy sessions will be a collaborative process. Both within and between our sessions you will need to adopt a positive mindset, engage in your own progress and carry out techniques and actions (that we have discussed and agreed) in between our sessions.

Despite what they often show in the movies and on TV, hypnotherapy is not something ‘done to you’ while you wait for the magic to happen. Whilst the results you achieve may seem magical, it very much requires you to be proactive and committed. It will have been well worth a little bit of time and effort once you have successfully changed things, right?

Of course we’ll discuss the techniques, strategies and actions you’ll need to take and make sure that you have all you need to apply them in a progressive and positive way that works for you. This helps to firmly embed changes into your life and ensures we are making progress even when we are not together.

Usually we start our sessions weekly and then, as things improve, we can extend that period so you know that things are improving and getting better and that the changes are getting firmly embedded into your life.

As mentioned above, in most cases I recommend a series of sessions as this supports long lasting change and momentum and this is much more likely to deliver the kind of success you are seeking. Over the past fifteen years of helping people as a full time hypnotherapist in Ely and Newmarket, I have found this to be the most effective way of achieving benefits and positive results.

One reason I am so passionate about helping you succeed is because of how I have benefited personally from hypnotherapy. From childhood and for years afterwards, I struggled with anxiety, social phobia and low self-esteem. I spent hours of my life ruminating, worrying, over-thinking, berating myself, being unhappy and avoiding many situations.

Willpower, self help books, affirmation audios, training courses and hypno-analysis all failed to help me. It wasn’t until hypnotherapy that I was able to overcome my issues and move forward with my life. I researched, studied and qualified as a hypnotherapist in 2010 with a mission to help as many other people as I can to break free of their limitations, problems and issues and get on with living life.

Since then I’ve helped thousands of people all across the world with their issues. I’ve appeared on BBC Radio and in numerous local and national publications. I’ve also been published in a professional hypnotherapy book and received multiple coveted national hypnotherapy and local business awards. I’m told by my hypnotherapist peers that my practice is one of the most sought after by people who are seeking effective help.

If you are currently struggling then that first step is easy. Contact me now and come along for your free consultation.

 

What Happens in a Hypnotherapy Session?

But first, a little about what happens in a hypnotherapy session when you work with me.

After you free initial hypnotherapy consultation, we move on to your first session. In this session we talk through in detail what you are currently doing and experiencing. We cover your thoughts, feelings and behaviours, along with anything else that could be related. We’ll also cover your goals from your sessions and how you’ll know things are improving.

After that it’s a combination of what we do during the sessions with the hypnosis, plus I’ll be giving you specific things you can do outside the sessions to support your progress. These may be ways to calm feelings, interrupt thoughts, hypnosis audios or small behavioural tasks. Subsequent sessions follow a similar pattern of reviewing what has changed since the previous session, building upon your strategies and techniques for thought and feeling management and, of course, your hypnosis to prime your mind for change and success.

During the hypnosis you are mentally calm  and physically relaxed. You won’t need to say anything and I want you to engage in the kind of ideas, thoughts, focus and imagination that I’m guiding you through. You create the psychological expectation for the positive changes you will experience outside the session. These are supported by the strategies and techniques that you can use to take control over your own thinking and to keep the positive momentum long after you have achieved your goals and completed your sessions.

 

You can also find hundreds of articles on this website covering specific issues such as anxiety, phobias, confidence, self-esteem and weight loss.

If you are currently struggling and you want to feel better and better then, no matter whether you have had any therapy before or not, I believe that hypnotherapy can help you. Do arrange your free consultation as I want to be sure you are comfortable with me and how I work before you start your sessions. We’ll talk all through what happens in a hypnotherapy session and I’ll answer all of your questions.

I’ll look forward to hearing from you and meeting you soon.

To your health and happiness, 

Dan Regan

Winning Anxiety Hypnotherapist in Ely & Newmarket

 

Struggling with anxiety, stress, worry and fear and need some help? Find out how I can help with a Complimentary Hypnotherapy Strategy Session. Learn more here: Appointments

Find out what hundreds of other people have said after their hypnotherapy sessions with Dan: Hypnotherapy Testimonials

And check out these popular and powerful hypnosis downloads that can start helping you right away with anxiety, confidence and more: Hypnosis Downloads