Has anyone tried hypnotherapy?

[hypsto]

I have a session booked and don’t really know what to expect. Have tried lots of things over the years, but this is an attempt to go a little deeper. Talking therapies don’t seem to have got to the root of my troubles.

Any testimonies appreciated!

I've used Paul McKenna's Fear of Flying DVD and it did help me enough to be able to fly short haul without a problem.

But something else showed me how powerful hypnosis is: many years ago I was watching Channel 4 late at night and there was a short film about phobias. It said to make fun of them, and it had a cartoon spider with a hat and boots on dancing about. I was sleepy when I was watching it and thought nothing of it. But a few days later I saw a spider in the house and felt nothing. Not my usual fear or revulsion. It was like seeing a fly. I'm still not keen on the big hairy ones but I can put them outside without a problem, now, and I just ignore the others! So it worked for me and I wasn't even aware of it!

I have- I had two sessions to stop smoking, it completely worked.
i saw someone for anxiety it didnt really help but did help with flight anxiety. I switched to another hypnotherapist and after two session my anxiety had reduced significantly.

Hypnotherapy pretty much saved my life from an eating disorder. I had thought it was a load of shite and tried it as a last resort really, but I’d recommend it to anyone now.

Not a great test of hypnotisability.

Many people can't be talked in hypnosis. All this lying on a sofa and having a therapist try and talk you in to trance might work for a few, but it's useless for many people. It's why stage hypnosis generally doesn't work on most people. Rapid inductions, which are brain overload and confusion, are the way to go.

What do you mean by your last sentence?

Thanks for the mentions, I should have chosen an easier to remember user name! Although what I do is called remedial hypnosis, as taught by Tim Box, there's no trance involved – it's much more like a talking therapy, albeit that your subconscious is an active part of the conversation.

Theres' a lot of debate, and research, about whether everyone is 'hypnotisable' or not. For me I find that about 10-15% of people don't respond, which is why I do a free consultation first – it would be unethical to charge people without knowing (or being as sure as I can be) that the therapy is going to work. It may well be that 'my' 10-15% would respond differently to another practitioner on another day, talking about a different issue.

Because it's a two way conversation, remedial hypnosis is less about relaxing and more about solving problems. Recently I've worked with tinnitus, alcohol addition, suicidal ideation as a result of childhood neglect and a phobia of bridges and escalators!

I’m desperate to try hypnotherapy for my almost lifelong emetaphobia. It’s quite expensive though and it does worry me that I’ll spend £££ and be no better. I’ve tried literally everything else

Apologies for getting your username wrong @Eyesopenwideawake....but i was quite close 😄

Ask the hypnotherapist to check that it will work for you; they should be able to give you a free or 'tester' session.

With the two I’ve contacted, they didn’t seem to offer that.
where about are you based? You sound like you could work wonders on me!

I don't have a minds eye so don't know if that's why hypnotherapy has never worked on me .

Without looking it up, in which hand does the Statue of Liberty hold the torch?

I'm in Portugal. I work via Zoom for people who aren't able to visit in person!!

Not having a minds eye is not being able to call up an image of something .
For example , if you were trying to hypnotise me you might ask me to imagine a place that is special to me , imagine walking through a field of wild flowers , or a forest , or,
Laying on a hot beach with the sea lapping , of course,I know what's it like to be in those places but if I were to close my eyes and actually create an image in my mind , I am unable to . I can tell you the sea is blue and the sand is yellow but I don't see it .
Likewise I know what my child looks like but again I can't create her in my minds eye / imagination .
Also when I'm reading a book , I can't imagine what the characters look like .

@FieldOfBeans did you go to a hypnotist who specialised in eating disorders? How many sessions did you need?

I went to a hypnotherapist that specialised in OCD, which was the primary cause of my ED. I had 3 sessions, but there was significant improvement of my condition after just one session, which was mind blowing for me.

Thank you @FieldOfBeans that's really interesting. I don't think I have OCD, just madly annoying food noise constantly running in my head.

I get you. I don't use trance so I don't use the imagery you mention but I do work with the imagination so it would be more difficult for you.

I’m going to my session this morning and I cannot wait. I’m all the emotions…nervous, excited, scared, hopeful. I really hope it works because I damn well want it to.

Good luck!

@Eyesopenwideawake treated me last year for my chocolate ‘addiction’ - I thought it would take loads of sessions but after just one I was 90% better!
I’m still not keen on chocolate- it has been life changing. Sometimes my head wants some, so I buy it but actually don’t really enjoy eating it and often end up binning it.

I can’t tell you what a huge change this is for me. Also working over Zoom was fine.

Thank you @Eyesopenwideawake!

Good luck today OP.
i like hypnotherapy, but found it very much depends on the practitioner! I had one experience that profoundly changed my life for the better but sadly that person is retired now. Then had another experience where it was less helpful because I didn’t like the person at all and probably felt I couldn’t relax.
Hope you get a positive experience!

@scarletwidowthat’s incredible.

My worry is I have such a long list of things I want to target I’ll have to go to twenty sessions.

Did your chocolate addiction cure have knock on effects in other areas?

I tried it with two different hypnotists- both highly recommended and well regarded, for weight loss, but sadly it didn’t work.