Yes. Anyone who wants to experience hypnosis and is willing and able to follow some simple instructions can go into hypnosis and enjoy hypnotherapy. The better you are at focused concentration the easier you will find it to relax into the hypnotic experience. There are various different techniques to help you do this. If someone does not want to be hypnotised they will not be, there is no forcing here. It's a partnership between you and your hypnotherapist.

No. The reality is that all hypnosis is self-hypnosis. In a therapeutic (hypnotherapy) setting the person is assisted to achieve control over their lives themselves. The skill of the hypnotherapist is to help you help yourself. You remain awake and are always in control. The therapist cannot make you say or do anything you would not ordinarily do unless you wanted to.

The session begins with you talking to me about the issue you want to resolve and the results you want to achieve. I’ll also want to know a bit more about you so that I can choose the most therapeutic methods for you. We work as a partnership to find the most beneficial outcome for you. You will have time to ask any questions so that you can enter your treatment confidently and at ease. During the whole session you sit or recline in a comfortable chair. For the hypnotherapy you sit comfortably relaxing both mentally and physically while I talk to you. The first session is 90 minutes thereafter each session lasts 55 minutes.

Hypnosis is natural, and when a professional clinical hypnotherapist guides you it is a safe and gentle experience which people generally find enjoyable and relaxing. It's nothing like you might expect from stage hypnotism! It is a pleasant, relaxed, yet highly focused state, where the subconscious mind is active, and the client always remains fully in control. Hypnotherapy is the therapy carried out using this beneficial state, often referred to as a ‘trance’ state. I advise you to make sure your hypnotherapist is professionally trained as there is currently no legal requirement regarding hypnotherapy. I am a member of the British Society of Clinical Hypnosis which is a professional organisation governing the Code of Practice and Ethics of its members. Membership requires professional clinical training in the major aspects of psychology, psychotherapy and clinical hypnosis/hypnotherapy.

No. Hypnosis is very similar to daydreaming or lying in bed on a Sunday morning – you can hear what’s going on around you but you’re nicely relaxed and just don’t fancy getting up right now! It’s also like watching an enjoyable film or reading a book that you’re really engrossed in. Again you could walk away or put the book down at any point if you really wanted to.

This depends. Some people remember consciously what I say; others retain the information unconsciously. It is not necessary for you actively to remember everything as the therapeutic benefits are there anyway. It is more beneficial for you to relax in whatever way is most appropriate for you.

People have different experiences of hypnosis/hypnotherapy. Some people say they drift and feel as light as a feather; others say they feel like they’re sinking into to the chair. It changes from person to person and sometimes session to session. Generally people notice how relaxed they become. Sometimes it can seem as if although you can move and talk, you're just so comfortable you really can’t be bothered!