Integrating Informal Hypnosis into Counselling
Inner Change Therapy integrates hypnosis, generally of an informal nature, into a primarily experiential style of counselling, addressing both the conscious and the unconscious minds for inner healing and change.
Conscious and Unconscious
In therapy, change needs to occur both on the conscious and unconscious levels for lasting results. Some therapies serve the conscious mind well, such as Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy; others serve the unconscious better, such as Hypnotherapy. Then there are those that serve the imaginative mind (both conscious and unconscious), such as Solution-Focused Therapy and Narrative Therapy, while still others, such as Process-Oriented/Experiential Therapy and Mindfulness Therapy can be really helpful where bodily sensations need to be dealt with (as in stress, substance abuse or food cravings). It sounds like I use a lot of “therapies” but for maximum effectiveness, there is a need to use different approaches depending on client needs but by and large, there are only three underlying philosophical principles I work from:
1) Supporting present negative thoughts, emotions and bodily felt senses;
2) Working with past negative emotions and experiences only if they are still relevant to the present;
3) Helping clients envision and believe in future positive outcomes.
Because Inner Change Therapy does away with psychoanalysis or pathologizing of conditions, therapy is more time- and cost- effective as well as more empowering.
The process involves healing any past emotions that are still relevant. This is usually done through age regression with helpful new meaning and understanding added. The resolution of current conflicts and struggles is facilitated through experiential counselling. Future possibilities are explored, using multiple viewpoints and the client’s own resources. This is sometimes done through role playing another person, or the “problem” personified. This is followed by a hypnosis session, to facilitate deeper change on two levels: conscious and unconscious. The hypnosis used is generally non-directive, more permissive and is never from a prepared script, because no two persons have the same experiences. Another advantage of this model of therapy is that it allows for, in some cases, content-free reprocessing so that intimate details and uncomfortable events do not have to be divulged and can be processed faster than retelling (the unconscious mind works at lightning speed). What’s more, it is a much more efficient way of using valuable therapy time, unless the sharing of the content is therapeutic to the client. Working content-free means the client only needs to name the emotions and the presence of bodily sensations but not the details because he/she already knows them!
My Background
From clinical hypnotherapy to counselling, I have been a therapist since 1998. I am a Clinical Member of the Australian Hypnotherapist Association and a Level 2 Member of the Australian Counselling Association. I have had over 3,000 client contact hours working with all kinds of issues. Because of the collaborative approach, the experiential leanings and the brief therapy paradigm I use, I am able to work with all issues and in some instances, I work content-free. I integrate mostly informal Clinical Hypnosis with many other counselling practices such as Solution-Focused Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Experiential Therapy, Brief Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy, and other models of therapy, as appropriate. I consider myself a “multi-modal” therapist because I believe therapy should be not fixed by therapist orientation, but should be according to client needs at any given time for maximum effectiveness. I work with individuals, couples and families. I describe my style of therapy as Inner Change Therapy, because that is the focus of my work: people seek change (in thoughts, feelings, relational styles, behaviours, sensations, insights, etc) from maladaptive to adaptive functioning that becomes natural and intrinsic. I help facilitate that change as we explore alternatives and journey together, albeit briefly, typically in three to five double-sessions.
I am a Christian therapist working within the Christian principles of love, acceptance, humility and respect and I work with all people with all beliefs. I am a health fund provider.
Comments
I hope you identify with what you are reading and that you will book a session to start your own inner change journey. If you have any stories to share, questions you want answered, or comments to make, please post comments on the Testimonials/Comments page.