Hypnosis
Hypnotherapy at New Body -- New Mind
How we practice hypnotherapy
Hypnosis at New Body – New Mind is a collaborative and active process, with client empowerment being our highest priority. Therefore, you will actively participate in the structuring of your hypnotherapy program, including setting up the goals for each hypnosis session. Throughout the hypnotherapy process, you will progressively learn self-hypnosis. Ultimately, you will learn how to manage your problems independently, using the tools and strategies acquired through hypnotherapy.
What can I use hypnotherapy for?
When clients contact us to schedule hypnotherapy sessions they are motivated by a desire to change something about themselves.
The majority of our hypnosis clients want to learn how to manage stress more effectively. Unfortunately, stress is a part of life: we cannot prevent stressful situations from happening, but we can learn how to respond to stress in a way that is emotionally and physically healthy.
Some people want to change negative beliefs, perceptions, thoughts or emotions, unwanted automatic behaviors, addictions, habits, or body reactions and replace them by positive ones. Others seek hypnosis to alter central processing of sensory information (e.g. block perception of pain).
Many clients pursue hypnosis to improve their work, athletic, or academic performance; some of them seek help to enhance memory, concentration, and retention of information in order to improve school performance or better prepare for important tests or examinations.
And since there is a growing awareness of the effectiveness of hypnosis in treatment of various medical conditions, many of our clients use hypnosis to supplement medical treatment of physical or emotional problems (IBS, SIBO, anxiety, panic attacks, OCD, insomnia, TMJ, fibromyalgia, headaches, infertility, sexual dysfunctions, … to mention just a few), control side-effects of medications, or to prepare for surgical procedures and help with post-surgical recovery. Read more about conditions most frequently treated with hypnosis
What will happen during my hypnosis sessions at New Body – New Mind?
It is our belief that the brain establishes new neurological pathways in the same way that your body learns new movement patterns. When you are learning a new dance, you need to repeat the same sequence until it becomes automatic. Therefore it seems logical that practice of self-hypnosis and reinforcement of the suggestions that you’ve accepted during your hypnosis sessions will enhance the results of your program.
At New Body – New Mind we will record your hypnosis sessions and we will give you MP3 recordings of the parts we’ll want you to work on at home.
During your first visit, we’ll review what problem(s) you want to work on with us and we’ll help you clarify your goals. We will also look at your medical history and discuss any previous interventions you might have tried. Once we are clear about your goals, we will explain to you what approaches may be used during your hypnotherapy process. Then we will decide together on the course of action.
After we establish clear, functional goals for your hypnotherapy intervention we will review with you what hypnosis is and explain to you how we’ll conduct your session. We will also explain how you will feel when you enter a hypnotic trance and answer any questions you may have.
Once you are ready, with your permission, we’ll start guiding you into hypnosis by giving you specific verbal instructions designed to help you enter a hypnotic trance. This part of hypnosis session is called the Induction Phase. Most our clients want to include stress management in their hypnosis intervention, so our hypnotic inductions always have a relaxation component. Throughout the Induction Phase we will monitor your responses and we will adjust induction instructions accordingly to make sure that you enter the appropriate level of hypnotic trance. We will test your trance depth at the end of the Induction Phase.
Once you are in a hypnotic trance, we will start Suggestions Phase of your hypnosis session. During the Suggestions Phase you will be using your mind to create thoughts and mental images intended to facilitate the changes that need to happen for you to meet your self-improvement, health or wellness goals.
After all suggestions are delivered, you will bring yourself out of hypnosis. Once you emerge from hypnosis you will feel rested and relaxed, but totally alert and sharp. You will be fully functional; you will be able to drive safely and return to your usual activities right after the session. Before you leave our office we will discuss your experience, review the goals for the next session, and explain to you how to work with the recordings of your session until you come back to us for a follow-up.
Your follow-up session will have a similar general structure as your first session. We will review your responses to the previous session followed by the hypnotic induction, suggestions, return to the usual waking state, and discussion.
During your hypnosis sessions you will be sitting in a comfortable recliner chair. The room will be well-lit and we may play relaxing music in the background. Even though it’s not necessary for you to close your eyes, nearly all our clients choose to keep their eyes closed because it helps them focus on the mental work they are engaged in during the session.
The number of sessions required to reach your goals will depend on the specifics of your case. Three to five sessions are typically sufficient to address one issue.