Frequently
Asked Questions
Am
I unconscious during hypnosis?
No, you will be aware of every that's happening. However,
you will be in a deeply relaxed state. Most people find the
experience very pleasant and comfortable and say they would
have liked to have stayed there for longer.
Can
you make me tell you anything under hypnosis?
No, I can't. You retain control. If I ask questions and you
don't want to answer them, then I can't make you. Anyway,
I'm only interested in details that relate to the particular
problem you've come to me for help with, and even with that,
if you don't want to tell me you won't.
Can
you make me do anything you want, like being a chicken or
a dog?
If I wanted you to be a chicken or a dog I'd ask you out of
hypnosis. That sort of thing is reserved for entertainers
and extraverts who like to show off and play pretend games.
It has no place in serious hypnotherapy. Hypnosis can reduce
inhibitions but it still can't make you do anything you don't
want to do.
How
successful is it?
This is a difficult one to answer because every individual
is unique, and every treatment is unique. I work in a similar
territory to that of a Clinical Psychologist, treating similar
problems. Interestingly patients don't seem to have the same
need for psychologists to demonstrate how successful the treatment
is going to be before starting, as they do for hypnotherapists.
Psychologists are allowed months or years by their patients
to bring about desired change, yet there is an expectation
that a hypnotherapist should be able to achieve the same results
in one or two sessions.
What
I can say is that people who come to see me, stick with the
treatment and follow my advice, rather than giving up after
a couple of sessions because they were expecting a miracle
and didn't get one, tend to feel much better and experience
an improved quality of life. Those who have unreasonable expectations
tend to give up quickly.
Those
who are willing to stick with the process improve.
Also
the nature of the problem itself is a factor. A phobia that
causes an intense fear reaction, even just thinking about
the object of fear, is quite easy to fix quite quickly. Yet
chronic anxiety, lack of self-confidence, and low self-esteem,
are all problems that require a much longer time period, and
more co-operation from the sufferer to alleviate.
Can
it do me any harm?
If you suffer from epilepsy, or experience psychotic episodes,
then hypnosis is not advised other than under the supervision
of a medical doctor or psychiatrist. Hypnosis is as safe as
falling asleep. Hypnosis is deep relaxation with suggestion
and guidance from the hypnotherapist as to where your subconscious
mind needs to focus. There is nothing harmful in relaxation,
and words are just words. In my years as a hypnotherapist
I have never had anyone suffer any harm from listening to
my CD's and tapes or from a one-to-one session with me - just
the opposite in fact. Many people have received great benefit
from the experience.
How
long will it take for my CD's or tapes to arrive?
My intention is to have orders despatched within 48 hours
of receipt of notification of payment. You will receive an
e-mail to confirm your order. You will receive an e-mail when
your order is despatched. UK orders are despatched by First
Class post, so delivery should be within one or two days from
despatch. International orders by Air Mail so delivery should
be within one or two weeks from despatch.
Quit Smoking
available
as CD or MP3 dowload
About
the Stop Smoking Treatment
What
if it doesn't work, £100 is a lot of money for something
that doesn't work?
For someone who smokes around 20 a day, £100 is around
3 week's cigarette money - that's all; just three weeks worth
of cigarette money. There are, of course, no guarantees because
hypnosis can't take away your freedom of choice. What hypnosis
does is to assist in making sure that your choice to smoke
or not to smoke is a free one and not one born of any craving
or desire. And since no one who desires good health and long
life would freely choose to smoke, there really isn't a problem.
But on the cost issue, if hypnosis stops you smoking for just
three weeks then it won't have cost you a penny, and if it
stops you for four weeks then you are making money - money
that you can spend on treats for yourself or save for something
special. Because cigarettes are generally bought one packet
at a time you don't notice quite how much the habit is costing
you, and you probably don't like to think too much about quite
how much you spend each year on sabotaging your good health.
If you think in terms of the cost of a holiday, or a good
night out, or a week's worth of groceries, or how much it
costs to have a plumber just knock on your door… then
you'll realise that £100 to restore health and well-being,
help you smell nice, be pleasant to kiss, and no longer be
a social pariah is actually incredibly good value.
How
successful is it?
New Scientist vol 136 issue 1845 - 31 October 92, page 6
Hypnosis is the most effective way of giving up smoking, according
to the largest ever scientific comparison of ways of breaking
the habit. Willpower, it turns out, counts for very little.
Earlier this month the Institute of Actuaries published the
results of a study it commissioned which showed that the mortality
rate for smokers is twice as high as for nonsmokers, and that,
on average, a smoker dies 6 years earlier than a nonsmoker.
What
if I experience craving?
Craving is unlikely to be experienced, but before the final
hypnosis session starts I tell you what you can do should
you experience any momentary feelings of discomfort. In the
unlikely event (so unlikely that no one has as yet done this)
that you are struggling, I'm happy for you to come back for
another session at no additional cost. I want to help you
give up and am willing to offer support after the two treatment
sessions are over.
Why
does it take two sessions?
It takes two sessions because I'm doing more than just hypnosis
in order to maximize the effectiveness of the hypnotic aspect
of the treatment. To do it all in one session makes the session
too long for comfort. The sessions are in two parts. The first
part is talking to you about smoking and about your habit,
and dealing with conscious blocks to giving up. The second
part is the hypnosis which deals with the subconscious blocks
to giving up. Effective treatment needs to impact both conscious
and unconscious resistance to giving up.
Do
I stop smoking after the first session, or just cut down?
Neither. The first session is preparation for giving up. It
prepares both conscious and subconscious parts of your mind
so that on the second session giving up is accomplished easily
and effortlessly. You can carry on smoking as normal after
the first session but you will probably find that your desire
to do so is diminished, and your pleasure is lessened.
On
Weight Control
Is
hypnosis better than Slimming World or Weight Watcher's?
Slimming World and Weight Watcher's use public weighing, public
praise for weight loss, group support and encouragement, and
a dieting regime that limits calorie intake while providing
a balanced nutritious diet. This is fine for some people,
but others prefer to do their body re-shaping in private.
Hypnotic weight control provides the support and encouragement
that is so useful without the public weighing. With hypnosis,
lowering calorie intake is not the focus, it is a consequence
of the subconscious shifts that the hypnotic suggestions are
designed to bring about. There is no 'dieting' with hypnosis,
that is to say that there are no rules about what you should
and should not eat. This is important because cravings quite
often arise around 'forbidden fruits'. The subconscious shift
is focused on encouraging a different view of Self so that
there is no desire to pollute that Self with anything other
than healthy, nutritious, tasty foods.
What
is hypnosis like?
Hypnosis is just like being cosy, and dreamy in bed on Sunday
morning. There is an awareness of surroundings, but a willingness
to drift with the images that appear like dreams. It is an
enjoyable state of deep relaxation in which the subconscious
mind is ready to accept suggestions that bring about desired
changes.
How
effective is it?
Hypnosis is not a magic wand. It cannot make you lose weight
while you continue to eat what you've always eaten, and continue
to spend all day sitting down. It is a technique that makes
desired change easier and more effortless to achieve. Some
motivation to lose weight is needed for success, as is a willingness
to change what is eaten, and a willingness to make necessary
lifestyle changes. Hypnosis helps to make the process easier
and more natural so that the desired changes seem effortless,
and so that desires to eat are desires for healthy nutritious
foods.
How
much weight will I lose?
A healthy weight loss is around 2-3 lbs a week to start with.
Anything more than that loses muscle rather than fat and does
you more harm than good. This is not fast enough for most
people, but most people are trapped in a cycle of diet, rapid
weight loss for a few weeks, weight loss reduces and becomes
difficult, get fed-up with the struggle, give in, put the
pounds back on, hate the way you look, get depressed, start
all over again…
Weight
loss is not the focus. The focus is your target weight and
hypnosis just sets you up to successfully, comfortably, effortlessly
arrive at your target weight in whatever time it takes to
achieve. Hypnosis focuses on creating in your subconscious
mind an image of the new you and as long as you hold on to
that image your subconscious mind will assist you in bringing
it about. With hypnosis the aim is a permanent lifestyle change
that you are comfortable and at ease with that will gently
guide your body to its ideal weight and then keep it there.
Do
you have anything on tape or CD for weight loss?
A two disc Weight Control program is available on CD for £19.99.
This is useful for those who feel the need for daily encouragement,
as well as for continued encouragement after a series of one-to-one
sessions.
Weight
Control Program
available
as CD or MP3 dowload
|
