There are myriad forms of therapy to choose from, whether it's mainstream or of the alternative variety. Whatever area of your life it is that might be in need of a boost, the sheer volume of choice alone can be overwhelming at times.
Do you need acupuncture or reflexology, aromatherapy or sports massage? Would you be more suited to cognitive behavioral therapy or person-centered counseling? Could a life coach really help you, or should you try neuro-linguistic programming?
So with all these seemingly endless options, why should anyone choose hypnotherapy?
As a hypnotherapist, I've seen first-hand the incredible changes that this form of therapy can bring. I once had a client with an intense phobia of maggots who couldn't so much as utter the word without experiencing a strong physical and emotional response. But after just two sessions she found that she was able to talk about them comfortably and was also willing to watch videos of them online without feeling disturbed. She was hardly able to believe her progress.
Something I hear a lot from clients is, "I've tried everything, but I just feel hopeless." Another client I worked with suffered from Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) for several years. She also struggled with her weight as she tried to find the source of what was causing the pain she had suffered daily. Her motivation and mood were at an all time low, and she was almost at the point where she had given up hope.
When she decided to try hypnotherapy, her pain and food problems diminished significantly. She began to enjoy planning and cooking meals, something which she'd previously avoided, and by the end of her course of therapy she was no longer experiencing episodes of IBS at all. I just wish that she had come to see me sooner!
Here are three reasons why hypnotherapy could work for you, too:
1. It's highly effective and transformative.
Many of us know exactly what we should be doing to address the situations we're uncomfortable with. When we want to lose weight we know we shouldn't eat emotionally, and that we should finally get around to joining that Zumba class or hiking group. We understand that logically, it's extremely unlikely that we'll be involved in a plane crash, so we should just book that long-awaited holiday. And when we're ready to quit smoking we know that we simply shouldn't light up that cigarette!
And yet...
Sometimes those shoulds and shouldn'ts seem to only take us so far, before we reach a seemingly insurmountable hurdle that even the strongest willpower just can't quite conquer. This is because we're trying to address these issues on a purely conscious level, which is similar to applying a bandaid over an internal wound. Sooner or later, we need to deal with the root cause.
While other talking therapies deal with the conscious mind — the part you're using right now to read this — hypnotherapy engages your subconscious. This is where all your experiences, knowledge, memories and habits and stored, even when you're unaware of them from a conscious point of view.
A phobia for example, may have been triggered by an event during childhood, perhaps seemingly innocuous at the time. The sufferer is usually unable to recall this trigger with the conscious mind. Hypnotherapy helps us to confront these memories and reprocess them, allowing phobias to be left behind for good.
2. It's faster and more affordable than conventional therapy.
"How long will I spend in therapy?", is like asking, "How long is a piece of string?" Everyone is different and everyone's individual needs and circumstances vary. There is no definitive answer. However, while some talking therapies can require commitments of a year or more, hypnotherapy tends to be a much faster solution. The average length of time I spend with a client is around 4-6 weekly sessions, to create sustainable changes which some have been trying to implement for years.
That's not to say that hypnotherapy is a "quick fix." Unfortunately there is no magic wand, no miracle cure, and if I could just click my fingers and change lives then believe me, I'd be a lot richer! Hypnotherapy is something that we, my client and I, do together — they commit to their intentions and I give them the metaphorical assistance they need.
So, not only will a course of hypnotherapy not take up too much of your time, it also works out to be much more affordable. It would be nice if we all had unlimited time and resources to spend on ourselves but the fact is, most of us don't. Juggling family, friends, work and other commitments (never mind trying to squeeze in that precious "Me Time"), is difficult enough without adding a weekly therapy session for goodness knows how long.
3. It's versatile and applicable to many different ailments.
It's difficult to think of an issue that hypnotherapy couldn't help with. You may be familiar with hypnotherapy being used for weight loss or smoking cessation, but did you know that it's also used before and during childbirth and increase self-esteem?
Chronic pain, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, tinnitus, and IBS, are all issues I see on a regular basis. Moreover, a legitimate boost in academic performance has also been proven. Students have found that a course of hypnotherapy increases their information retention for exams and assignments.
Hypnotherapy teaches you how to relax and stay cool and confident under pressure, while also improving your communication skills. So if you've got an important interview coming up and you're worried that you'll forget what you wanted to say, hypnotherapy can give you the confidence boost you'll need to land the job.
Is insomnia keeping you up all night? Hypnotherapy helps find the cause of your sleeplessness, while giving you strategies to calm and quieten your busy mind, making it easier to drift off into restful slumber.
Does anxiety prevent you from living the full life you long to lead? Hypnotherapy helps change the way you perceive stressful situations, and provides you with a toolkit to help you manage and prevent anxiety.
It doesn't matter whether your concern is about decision making, bereavement, obsessive compulsive disorder, addictions, relationship troubles or just about anything else — hypnotherapy could be just the cure you've been searching for.
Photo Credit: Stocksy
No comments:
Post a Comment