FAQs

Below are answers to some questions people who are unfamiliar with hypnotherapy often pose. If your question isn’t addressed here, call or email me.

What is Hypnosis?

Hypnosis is a completely natural state of consciousness. Most people experience hypnosis thousands of times during their lives – they just don’t know it! Whenever you lose yourself in a good book or movie, whenever you drive right by your exit without noticing, that’s a form of hypnosis. Moreover, you experience the low-frequency brain wave pattern that is characteristic of hypnosis at least twice each day: when you are just drifting off to sleep, and when you are just beginning to awaken in the morning.

In a sentence, hypnosis is a meditative state in which a person becomes more aware and focused and is more open to suggestion. It feels a lot like daydreaming. When in the hypnotic trance, you can enjoy a profound state of relaxation and heightened imagination. The hypnotherapist uses this to guide you through barriers and difficulties that may be blocking your success.

I’ve seen shows at the fair. Is that what this is?

No. Stage hypnosis is a show that utilizes willing participants and the hypnotic trance strictly for the purpose of entertainment. While it is an ample demonstration of the power of the subconscious and the imagination, it does not employ therapeutic techniques to assist you in achieving your goals.
What hypnosis is not, is the popular depiction in movies: a sinister, goateed man dangling a pocket watch in front of a subject who is powerless to resist. Bunkum. While this may sell movie tickets, it gives a complete misrepresentation of what hypnosis is, and what it can do for you.

Contrary to popular misconception, you never give up your self-control when in hypnosis. Rather, you are empowered to fully realize your power of choice. No hypnotist can ever make you do, say, or believe anything that is contrary to your ethics and value system.

Why should I use hypnotherapy?

My goal is to use modern clinical hypnotherapeutic practices to empower each client to discover the power the mind has to accomplish great things. Hypnosis can help you access this profound ability that everyone has to accomplish what might otherwise be difficult or impossible.

What should I expect from hypnotherapy sessions?

Our relationship might begin with a free 15 minute phone consultation. You and I will talk about your issues and the therapeutic process. We will decide if hypnotherapy is appropriate and discuss the possible therapeutic paths we might take to achieve your goal. Should we decide to proceed, we will make an appointment for our first session.

Hypnotherapy is not a process that takes months or even years to have a positive effect. Typically we will spend 2 to 5 sessions in the accomplishment of your goal. Each session lasts approximately 1-2 hours. Some individuals and issues require fewer sessions, while others need more.

Sessions take place in my cozy home office. As we begin hypnosis, soft music will play in the background as you relax in a recliner. I’ll use any of a number of techniques to guide you into the deeply relaxed, highly focused state characteristic of hypnotic trance. From there, we’ll address your specific issues. At the end of the session, I always give post-hypnotic suggestions for you to feel wonderful! Usually, you’ll remember everything that takes place during a session.

Can I use hypnotherapy if I’m seeing a psychiatrist or medical doctor?

Hypnosis is a great adjunct to cognitive therapies as well as medical therapies. Hypnosis has been recognized by the AMA (American Medical Association) since 1958 as “a legitimate and safe approach to medical and psychological problems.” Stress and pain management, for example, are used extensively with hospice patients to greatly improve their comfort during the difficult end of life. Many hypnotherapeutic techniques prove to be of great benefit to those addressing depression or disease. In fact, hypnosis has been used throughout the world to induce analgesia or anesthesia in medical and dental patients. Many expectant mothers learn hypnotic techniques to enjoy a stress-free and trauma-free birthing experience. Hypnosis is also used with great success for people who have cancer, fibromyalgia, IBS, AIDS, and other immune system disorders/diseases.

Hypnotherapy is not a primary medical methodology, it is an auxiliary methodology. If you are experiencing a medical or psychiatric issue, consult your primary care provider.

What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

Keep looking until you find a hypnotist you “click” with. Hypnotherapy can delve into some tender issues sometimes, so you have to trust your hypnotist.

Different people and different issues require different amounts of sessions for optimal success. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that a “one-time cure-all” session is necessarily the best for you.

There is no one style of hypnosis that is “the right one”, or “the best one”. More important than what style of hypnotherapy your practitioner prefers is how well you connect with each other.

Look for someone with a few years of experience, and with more than one training under their belt.

If you were a customer, what do you wish you knew about your trade? Any inside secrets to share?

Much like an MD has little-to-no training in nutrition (that’s why you see a nutritionist), most psychiatrists/psychologists have only a cursory acquaintance with the hypnotic arts.

Hypnosis is a brief self-help intervention. Most issues only require a handful or two of sessions for resolution. And by self help, I mean your hypnotist acts as a guide or coach, rather than doinking you with a magic wand or pill that miraculously “cures” all. So, it’s much like your golf pro can help you to DRAMATICALLY improve your golf game, but you still have to walk the links and swing the club. Be 100% willing to change or try something new, and your success increases exponentially.

Hypnosis is a means of accessing the parts of your mind that you normally have limited access to while in a conscious, wakeful state. There is nothing inherently esoteric or woo-woo about hypnosis. The hypnotic trance is a naturally occurring state of mind we drift in and out of all the time – all on our own! Your hypnotist simply harnesses this naturally occurring state of mind to help you achieve the change and success you’re wanting.

What questions should a consumer ask to hire the right service professional?

Ask what their program is like for the issue you’d like to work on. Get as much detail as possible. Not only does this make you an informed client, but it helps you to evaluate whether this hypnotist is a good match for you. Your hypnotist should be willing to answer all your questions completely, and spend the time you need so that you understand the therapy that you’ll be purchasing.

If a certain spiritual belief is important to you, make sure your hypnotist is ok with that. Your hypnotist certainly does not need to follow your specific spiritual belief, but if they disagree with it strongly, you may have trouble connecting with each other.

Why does your work stand out from others who do what you do?

I take no cookie cutter approach. Each session, each program is custom designed for the individual I’m working with. Because of that, my clients are more likely to achieve lifelong success in the areas we work on.

What do you like most about your job?

Not long ago, I was working with a client who had struggled with weight her whole life. As a result, her self-esteem was in the toilet. She had no confidence in herself, and a fearful, defeatist attitude toward most things in life. You could read it all over her face, and in the way she carried herself. When she came in for her the third session, I took one look at her and literally said “wow”! She looked fantastic! Her whole countenance had changed. She had lost about 12 pounds at this point, but that wasn’t it. Even more than the physical changes her body was in the process of, she had changed on the inside. She looked bright, happy, and energetic. She smiled more. She carried herself with pride and confidence. When we talked, she confirmed that what I’d observed was indeed true. Her whole attitude had changed for the better! For perhaps the first time she believed that she was conquering her weight demon for good, and that changed everything in her life. That Ah-ha, epiphany moment my clients reach, that’s why I do this work.

Do you do any sort of continuing education to stay up on the latest developments in your field?

My view is, if you’re not constantly learning, you’re constantly forgetting what you’ve learned.

So, I’m always taking workshops, online training seminars, and refreshers. It’s exciting to learn new techniques and methodologies, and to learn what new thing has worked well for others.

If i ever get to the point where I feel I’ve learned all there is to know, that’s the point where I hang up my hat. Because that’s the point where I’ve stopped learning, and started forgetting.

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206-499-3057 • LM@MillsHypnosis.com