Hypnotherapy
Hypnotherapy is one of those practices that tends to provoke an immediate reaction — curiosity, scepticism, or a vague image of a swinging pocket watch and a man in a cape. It is often dismissed because of its association with stage shows, or approached with uncertainty born from not quite knowing what it actually involves. Before anything else, let's set the record straight.
Hypnosis is not something exotic or unusual. It is a natural mental state — one most of us move in and out of without noticing. The focused absorption of reading something that pulls you in completely. The almost automatic quality of a familiar drive. That drifting, in-between feeling just before sleep takes over. In all of these, the ordinary chatter of the mind has quietened and attention has settled somewhere specific.
What distinguishes hypnosis as a therapeutic tool is what becomes possible in that state. When the mind is less defended and more receptive, it can engage with ideas, perspectives and possibilities in a different way — not analysing or resisting, but genuinely taking them in. This is what makes hypnotherapy useful for patterns and responses that have stayed stubbornly in place despite a person's best conscious efforts to change them.
What is hypnosis?
What can hypnotherapy help with?
Hypnotherapy has a broad range of applications, with a growing evidence base behind a number of them:
Anxiety, panic and phobias
Insomnia and disrupted sleep
Stress and psychosomatic conditions
Pain management — both acute and chronic
Addictive behaviours and habits, including smoking, disordered eating and alcohol dependency
Persistent patterns of thought or behaviour that have not shifted through other approaches
It works particularly well alongside other therapeutic methods — its capacity to access material below the level of conscious thought can deepen and accelerate work that might otherwise take longer through talking alone.
I am trained in several hypnotherapy approaches and draw on whichever feels most appropriate for you — either based on our initial assessment together, or your own preference once we've discussed the options.
Ericksonian hypnotherapy An indirect and permissive approach that works with your imagination and your own inner resources, offering possibilities and inviting change rather than imposing it. Rather than telling your mind what to do, it uses metaphor, storytelling and suggestion to gently shift patterns from the inside. This approach tends to feel natural and unforced, and is particularly well-suited to anxiety, trauma responses, and deeply ingrained habits or beliefs.
CBT hypnotherapy A more structured approach that combines the principles of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy with hypnosis. This can be particularly helpful when there are specific thought patterns or behaviours you want to address — hypnosis deepens the CBT work by allowing those new perspectives to be absorbed at a less conscious level.
Parts therapy / Ego state therapy This approach recognises that we are not one unified self but a collection of different "parts" — inner states or aspects of ourselves that can sometimes be in conflict. Parts therapy works directly with those different aspects, helping them communicate, resolve conflicts, and move toward a more integrated sense of self. This can be particularly helpful for internal conflict, ambivalence, or difficulties that seem to resist change despite your best efforts.
Hypnotherapy can be offered as a stand-alone approach — for clients who come specifically for hypnosis, that is exactly what we do. It can also be used as one tool within a broader integrative counselling work, where it complements and deepens the wider therapeutic work. Sometimes clients begin with hypnotherapy alone and choose to move into therapy afterwards — that transition is always possible. Hypnotherapy with me is part of a considered, collaborative piece of work — not a generic, one-size- fits-all script.
My approach to hypnotherapy
The first session is always a conversation before anything else. We talk about what has brought you, what you are hoping to change, and which approach might suit you best. There is no pressure to move into hypnotherapy straight away — the groundwork matters.
When we do begin, you will simply be invited to sit or recline comfortably and follow my voice. Most people are surprised by how ordinary it feels — not strange or dramatic, but quietly focused, and often deeply restful. You remain aware and in control throughout. Nothing happens without your consent.
After a session, people typically feel settled and clear. For some, something shifts noticeably quite quickly. For others, changes emerge more gradually in the days that follow — in how they respond to something, or how a situation feels. Both experiences are equally valid.
Sessions are 50 minutes and are available in person in West Hampstead and Paddington/Lancaster Gate in London, and online.
What to expect from a session
"You're asleep during hypnosis" Sleep and hypnosis look similar from the outside, but the experience from within is quite different. Most people remain fully aware throughout — the mind is focused, not absent.
"The therapist controls your mind" Stage hypnosis has a lot to answer for here. In therapeutic hypnosis, you retain complete free will. A suggestion only works if you are willing to engage with it. You cannot be made to do or say anything against your wishes — during or after a session.
"What if I can't come out of it?" This has never happened. Hypnosis is a temporary state, not a condition you can become stuck in. In the unlikely event a session were interrupted, you would simply drift into natural sleep and wake normally.
"Only certain people can be hypnotised" Most people can enter a hypnotic state to a useful degree. Those who tend to respond most readily are people with good concentration, an active imagination, and a genuine willingness to engage with the process.
Common concerns
If you are curious about hypnotherapy and would like to talk through whether it might suit you, please feel free to get in touch. I am happy to answer questions before you commit to anything.