Choosing A Hypnotherapist

What you are paying for when you see a therapist is their time, qualifications, experience and knowledge of the techniques that are going to help you to get the results you want. You need to be aware that if you are “shopping” for therapy, you may not be comparing “like” with “like”.

TIME / COST – Session time varies between therapists – some therapists spend half or ¾ hour with the client, some an hour, and some an hour and a half. The cost may be less per session, but you may need twice as many. How long are the sessions? How many sessions will you need? And how much time are you paying for?

QUALIFICATIONS - There are different levels of qualification – Certificate (often awarded after a short or weekend course, and skills may be limited), Diploma – (usually involves more extensive study, students are required to pass an exam and undertake case studies, which are assessed)

Choosing A Hypnotherapist - Are they an

Advanced Hypnotherapist, a member of the NRAH National Register Of Advanced Hypnotherapists and using NLP. If not they may be using suggestion therapy only, taking more sessions which has a low success rate.

I am an Advanced Hypnotherapist

EXPERIENCE – Some therapists work part time, some do it as a “hobby” or sideline, and some may only see a few clients a week. If a therapist has been qualified for 10 years, and only see 5 clients a week, they will be less experienced than a therapist who has been qualified for 5 years and sees 15-20 clients a week.

DEPTH OF KNOWLEDGE – Is the therapist up to date with the latest techniques? If they qualified 10 years ago and have done no extra training since, you may not be getting the best therapy that is available today. Certainly, hypnotherapy has advanced quite a lot in the last 5-10 years. Are they qualified / experienced in several different therapeutic techniques? and can they adapt and combine techniques to suit you? Will your programme of treatment be individual and tailored to you? (this will not be possible if you are in a group or a having the therapy with a friend at the same time). Research has shown that success rates are much higher for individualised treatment programmes because everybody is different. Are they used to working with the issue you want help with?

DO YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH THE THERAPIST? – This is important, as you will be working together. Most therapists will offer a free consultation so that you can meet with them and find out more, and ask any questions that you may have.

PROFESSIONALISM & ETHICS – Most suitably qualified therapists will belong to a professional register. This means the therapist will be bound by a code of conduct, confidentiality and ethics. The main recognised and accepted professional bodies are:

General Hypnotherapy Register (GHR)

General Hypnotherapy Standards Council (GHSC) – part of GHR

British Society of Clinical Hypnosis (BSCH)

National Register of Advanced Hypnotherapists (NRAH)

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