Frequently Asked Questions

The first thing to look for when selecting a hypnotist is to see whether they have been certified by one of the two major governing organizations of hypnotists. One of those is the National Guild of Hypnotists (NGH) and the other is the American Council of Hypnotist Examiners (ACHE).
The next thing you might want to consider is if the hypnotist is Board Certified. Board certification means that the hypnotist has practiced for at least a year and has passed written and verbal examinations.
Another consideration is the level of experience of the hypnotist. Sometimes we just want to see the practitioner who is most geographically convenient or the one who has a special deal on the Internet, but when we are talking about major life changes, it makes sense to choose someone has experience in working with the issue that is concerning you.
So, call a few hypnotists and talk to them. Ask them how they address issues like yours. Go to the one who understands your situation and the one who you feel has the best chance of helping you succeed.

For clients who are unable to travel, there are alternatives. Skype sessions can be done in the comfort of your own home. It is always preferable to have face-to-face sessions in the office, but—especially in these challenging times—that isn’t always possible.
The important thing to realize is that there are practitioners available to support you, so please don’t hesitate to call if you feel you need someone to talk to.

I always tell people that they can throw out almost everything they've seen in the movies about hypnosis because none of that is true.
In the movies, they always tell the subject to "go to sleep". You don't sleep in hypnosis. That would be like seeing a psychotherapist and sleeping through the session. You would get absolutely nothing out of it.
In the movies, a person under hypnosis sometimes emerges saying: "I don't remember a thing." Again, this is not true. You not only remember, but it can be very beneficial to discuss what was felt during the session when the hypnosis is over.
You can't get stuck in hypnosis. That is very common in the movies. If you could get stuck in trance, the government would have made hypnotism illegal years ago. It isn't possible, so you don't have to worry about that.

Another concern is that hypnosis might make you susceptible to mind control. Can a hypnotist make people go out and rob banks and bring them the money? If that was possible, there would hundreds of events in history where the actions were blamed on hypnosis. There would be thousands of crimes committed because the criminal's mind was being controlled by someone else. How many crimes, on the six o'clock news, are the result of hypnosis? There aren't any because it isn't possible. And, unfortunately, those misconceptions and fears have kept many people from choosing hypnotherapy and making positive life changes.
Hypnotic trance is exactly what we enter when we are watching a very engaging movie. Our emotions and subconscious are fully engaged. Our feelings-good or bad-come to the surface. But when we are in the movies, we are still fully in control. If the person in the next seat tells us to go rob a bank and bring them the money, it isn't going to happen. And when the credits roll, we aren't stuck in trance: we go on with our lives.
It is important to understand that hypnotherapy can be a very beneficial modality on the journey of healing and personal evolution. It shouldn't be associated with fear just because of misconceptions from television and cinema.

This is one of the major misconceptions about hypnosis. The answer is “no,” and simple logic can explain why that is a silly notion.
Most of us have tried to have a conversation with someone who was asleep and discovered that all that person does in response is mumble gibberish. Contemporary hypnosis is very interactive with ongoing communications between the hypnotist and the client. So, if the client was sleeping and it was impossible to have meaningful conversations, there would be no benefit to the work and that, in turn, would mean hypnotists would be unable to stay in business.
The hypnotic experience is often like listening to a meditative recording where the client is relaxed but always in control. They are not asleep. The sleeping idea comes, in part, from the way hypnosis has been portrayed in the movies and on TV. So, the next time you see a program where a hypnotist, in some deep mesmerizing voice, says “go to sleep,” you’ll know that someone involved in the production neglected to do their homework.

In a session, the hypnotist uses what is called an induction to move a client into a state where subconscious information is easy to access. The process can vary from session to session, but often the hypnotist will try to help the client find the source or root of an issue. When the origin is uncovered, then that source material can be processed or healed and replaced by a more positive belief system.
For example, a client who has feelings of inadequacy might go back to a time when, at a very young age, a parent or teacher might have berated them for making a mistake. The words might have been especially venomous, or perhaps it happened in front of the child's friends. When that scene comes forward, that energy or belief system can be reframed in a more positive way or the client can "unplug" from the old negative energy surrounding the incident. Perhaps that person can be reminded of the success they have achieved since that traumatic moment, or perhaps they need to see that the abusive language came from someone who was projecting their own anger or insecurity at that child. There are many ways the transition can take place, but the key is to put a more positive perspective in place of those old feelings of insecurity.

There are several signs to indicate when someone is in hypnosis. Here are just a few. One of the easiest to observe is rapid eye movement or REM. A second indication is often a change in the breathing patterns of the client: the breathing becomes much calmer and more peaceful. Another sign of hypnosis is a change in the time it takes for the client to respond to a question or comment. In the waking state an individual will usually respond to a question in 2-3 seconds. In hypnosis, that response time might be ten to fifteen seconds and sometimes it can stretch to a full minute. The slower response time simply reflects a deeper level of relaxation. Other indicators can sometimes include the lessening of wrinkles and worry lines making people look younger and less anxious. While the younger appearance in hypnosis is—unfortunately—only temporary, there are hypnotists who are studying the potential of using hypnosis to ward off the effects of aging.

This is a very important question, and the answer is an unequivocal ‘no.’
So, how do they get people to do some of those amusing things we see on stage? First, most of those shows are in nightclubs where people have had a few drinks which lowers their inhibitions. Second, they ask for “volunteers.” Shy people won’t go up on stage. The kind of people who volunteer are the same people who would do crazy things in front of an audience even if they weren’t hypnotized.
You can rest assured that people in hypnosis will not do anything against their will. If the hypnotist asks them to belt out a show tune, you are likely to be entertained. If the hypnotist asked them to rob a bank, the volunteers would immediately come out of hypnosis and the show would be over.
And think about this: if hypnotists could get people to rob banks, there would be unscrupulous people out there taking advantage of that, and we would be seeing stories about hypnotized robbers on the news every night.

In hypnosis the work is focused on the subconscious mind. When we try to think things through or use reasoning, we are using the conscious mind.
Our negative feelings come from within the subconscious mind, not the critical or conscious mind. We do our thinking and try to figure things out with our critical mind, but that is not where the source or roots of the issue reside. Here is a more detailed explanation of how this works:
Inside our brains, we have a conscious and a subconscious mind. The conscious mind, or what is often referred to as the critical mind, is the part of the brain that is logical and analytical. It does the reasoning for you. It is the part of the mind that keeps you functioning throughout the day and makes most of your daily decisions. When you do things like work on the computer or pay bills, you are working with the conscious or critical mind.
The subconscious mind stores our habits, beliefs, behavioral patterns, anxieties and fears. It is the part of our mind that makes us feel and experience emotions. When we experience things like anxiety, sadness, fear or anger; when we demonstrate compulsive behavior like perfectionism; or when we have an insatiable craving for food or sweets, we are responding to the information or programming of the subconscious mind. All of our life issues are stored in the subconscious mind, and in order to make genuine and lasting changes, those changes and the healing must take place at the subconscious level.
So, to get to the root of those negative feelings, it makes sense to use hypnosis to access the subconscious information.

When using hypnosis for weight management, we work on everything from snacking, exercise, eating healthy meals, reducing the amount of food consumed (if necessary), emotional eating, self-esteem issues, managing stress and disconnecting from things that make people turn to food.
The key to a successful weight management program is identifying and processing the emotional issues that create unhealthy eating habits and cause people to hold onto weight, so that is one of the main focuses of the program.
Sugar addictions, soda addictions, people who eat when they aren’t hungry or people who always want food at the same time of day or night are all indications of non-beneficial subconscious programming. In other words, the conscious mind isn’t telling the individual they need food to survive. Instead, the subconscious mind, which holds our fears, anxieties, beliefs, memories and experiences is making us believe that eating food might make us feel better.
To address these beliefs, it is important to go to the source of that non-beneficial programming, the subconscious mind, and the most efficient way to do that is through hypnosis.

When it comes to things like weight loss, a lot of people get excited about new meal plans or diets or changes in routine in which they set out to make lifestyle changes. All of that can be very positive when it comes to dealing with weight management.
Unfortunately, many people don’t stick to those positive changes. What causes this breakdown? It goes back to the roots of their situation. As the old cliché says: “it’s not what you’re eating, it’s what’s eating at you.”
A successful weight management program looks at what set the unhealthy dynamic into motion in the first place. For example, if a young child didn’t feel loved when they were young, they might have used food to help comfort them. As an adult, they might still use food as a substitute for connection. That individual can get on a new meal plan for a couple of weeks, but if something triggers that unloved feeling, the new diet can fall apart if the root of the pattern is not addressed.

Many health concerns have been raised around the consumption of soft drinks. Links have already been established between sugar sweetened drinks and the risk of diabetes. Artificial sweeteners in sugar-free drinks have been associated with weight gain as well as other serious health issues, and now, artificial sweeteners have been proven to triple one’s chances of stroke and dementia. (This is according to a study published in Stroke, the journal of the American Heart Association.) And that study was looking at people who drink just one soda a day.
The good news is that hypnosis can help. People commonly seek hypnotists for smoking cessation in hopes of taking away the desire to do something they know is not healthy for them. The desire to drink soda can be addressed in a similar way.
Also, in weight management programs that utilize hypnosis, the hypnotist will address the desire to consume foods that do not contribute to our nourishment or well-being. That includes soft drinks, too many carbs and too many sweets.
So, it may be time to consider a lifestyle change where you give up soft drinks and focus on what promotes a healthy body. When science gives us a warning, it is important to pay attention.

There are numerous ways hypnotherapy can help with infertility. Perhaps the most important benefit is stress reduction.
The hypothalamus gland is like the control center for reproduction, but it is also highly sensitive to stress. As much as a woman may want to conceive and go full term, the pressure to do that can sometimes be overwhelming.
Our bodies can either be in reproductive mode, when there is low stress, or survival mode when the stress is high. When stress and anxiety elevate, some of the survival mode reactions include the production of cortisol (the stress hormone) and activation of the sympathetic nervous system (creating physiological reactions such as an elevated heart rate). Those reactions produce a fight or flight response, which puts the body into survival mode.
Can our bodies be in both the survival mode and the reproductive mode at the same time? It appears that the answer is “no” as women in survival mode often struggle to get pregnant and stay pregnant.
Hypnotherapy can help women reduce their stress through techniques like self-hypnosis and visualization. And remember, it is important to release old issues as it is often our “stuff” that lies at the root of the stress.

Many medical doctors say that a woman’s fertility starts to diminish at age 35, but that statement might be a bit of a generalization. In my practice, I have found many exceptions to that rule.
I have noticed that if a woman has taken good care of herself by eating well, exercising, and not having engaged in long periods of drug or alcohol use during her lifetime, the window of opportunity for reproduction seems to be open for a much longer period of time.
In my book, The Mind-Body Fertility Connection, after each chapter, I invited women from my practice to share stories of their fertility journeys. Three of the thirteen women who shared their stories were age 45 when they had those babies, all healthy babies. Three of the other 13 women who wrote accounts went on to have a second or third baby in their forties.
An important element of fertility appears to be how well a woman has taken care of herself during her lifetime, and, of course, how mindful she is about her health in the present.
Another key factor, in my opinion, is addressing any emotional blocks and reducing stress. Those two factors can cause the body to shift from reproductive mode into survival mode. That is where hypnosis can help.

Millions of women around the world struggle with infertility. They often seek out expensive medical treatments to promote conception when the true cause of their infertility is often buried in the subconscious mind.
For decades, infertility was regarded as strictly a physiological issue. People were told that the mind and emotions had nothing to do with getting and staying pregnant. But how could something connected to intimacy issues, abusive family dynamics, inappropriate touching/uncomfortable predatory situations, miscarriages, terminations, past relationships, religious beliefs, past sexual abuse, societal beliefs and judgements, issues such as guilt and shame, self-esteem concerns, control, perfectionism etc. etc. not be connected to our feelings and emotions? Is it realistic for us to believe that none of those issues have any influence on our physical bodies, the stress we feel, or the ability to become pregnant? All of those things add to our stress, and stress is the main reason people can’t get pregnant. Quite simply, stress puts us in survival mode and takes us out of reproductive mode. If the real causes of infertility were strictly physical and women simply needed drugs and medical procedures to get pregnant, then why are the success rates of assisted reproductive techniques (the true rates reported by the CDC) so disappointing?

In The Mind-Body Fertility Connection, my goal was to offer insights into an area that is critical to conception but has been widely overlooked in the past. With the exception of a handful of pioneering practitioners around the world who have discovered the importance of this work, this is a virtually unexplored area. Very few books on the market deal directly with the mind/body connection to fertility.
As I have worked with the subconscious minds of thousands of women over the years, I have gained-and offer in the book--a new and different perspective on what I have observed to be the true causes of infertility. It is time to look at this condition realistically. If millions of women around the world-including over seven million in the U.S. alone-have are being annually diagnosed with unexplained infertility, then it is time to take a closer look at the mental and emotional connection to infertility. After all, the diagnosis of "unexplained infertility" means that there is no physiological explanation for the condition.
This book is for the woman who is looking for a new perspective on infertility, one that offers solutions and techniques for taking charge of her ability to conceive. The Mind/Body Fertility Connection is written by a practitioner who specializes in working with infertility clients, understands the real blocks and issues that prevent conception, knows how to process and heal those issues and whose writing captures the strategies and solutions in a clear, easy to understand language.

In my fertility book, I talk about a research study involving psychosomatics, the belief that our mental and emotional state can affect the health of our physical bodies. Doctors have said for years that too much stress or emotional upset can be at the root of physical issues such as headaches, high BP, digestive issues, skin rashes and so on. However, doctors always looked at fertility as simply a biological issue: thoughts, emotions, fears, stress etc. had nothing to do with it. Now with seven million women diagnosed annually with "unexplained infertility" in the U.S. alone, it is time to rethink the old beliefs. After all, seven million women are being told that nothing is wrong physically. That is a strong indication that thoughts, emotions, anxieties, fears, stress have everything to do with conception.
One of the breakthrough studies in this area was the Psychosomatics study from the 1970's which included a woman named Rena who really wanted to have a baby. Rena was a healthy 23-year-old who had some deep-seated fears about pregnancy and childbirth. The women in her family had a history of very difficult pregnancies and as much as Rena wanted a baby, she was full of fear about what might happen if she became pregnant. During the study, Rena continued to struggle with infertility. Finally, when the doctors started to monitor her more closely, they discovered that-as a result of Rena's fear-the muscles around her fallopian tubes would tighten and essentially close the fallopian tubes during ovulation. After ovulation, when the chance of becoming pregnant was gone, the tubes would open again, and everything would appear normal.
This study was very important because it was the first one that connected emotional stress with a physical response that resulted in infertility. Since the Psychosomatics study, there have been numerous mind-body fertility studies that show how important it is to process issues and reduce stress in order to promote fertility.

In our society, stress has become such a familiar component of our make-up that we learn to live with that anxiety as something that is present in us all the time. Oftentimes, when I guide clients into a deeply relaxed hypnotic or meditative state, they are amazed by the extreme change they are experiencing. It isn't uncommon for some people to cry because they begin to realize how much pressure they have been carrying around for most of their life. This stressed condition, the fight-or-flight mode, has become such a familiar feeling that people aren't aware of it. We become accustomed to how it feels.
When the body goes into fight-or-flight mode, the adrenal glands produce cortisol, the stress hormone. It is putting us into a defensive or survival mode and takes us out of reproductive mode. The blood goes to the extremities so we can run fast or punch someone if we should need to defend ourselves; however, this takes the blood and energy away from the core of our body. The uterus and the reproductive system need that energy and blood flow to function properly become depleted. It takes away the likelihood of conception. In other words, when our hypothalamus gland senses stress, it assumes that we are in danger-perhaps running for our lives-and the last thing it wants to do is create a pregnancy under those conditions. That is why reducing stress is such an important part of the fertility process. It is important to remember, stress is not just our current day-to-day obligations; most of our stress comes from our old unprocessed emotional issues.

Hypnosis is a modality that helps people directly access the subconscious mind. Most of the time, we operate within the constraints of our conscious or critical minds which is where we do our thinking, reasoning, analysis and logic. The subconscious mind is the part of us that holds our memories, experiences and the source or roots of all of the issues and lessons we face in our lifetimes. It is in the subconscious realm where we have a connection to the spiritual world. It provides access to communicate with our inner spirit or soul, and it allows us to tap into the reason we are here and what we are to learn. It is the window to higher knowledge. Throughout history, the great spiritual leaders and teachers have gone into prayer or meditation to enter a subconscious trance state in order to access the guidance they needed to help mankind. Only the subconscious mind can open a window to communications and wisdom from other dimensions, not the critical mind.

The term alchemy goes back thousands of years. It refers to transmutation or change. Most people are familiar with the alchemical reference of turning lead into gold. That was the goal of the alchemist: to create or facilitate positive transformations. Over time, the term became associated with healing because people would go to an alchemist to get herbs or potions. Carl Jung applied the term to psychoanalytic methods where part of the process was working with archetypes and inner guides. In hypnosis, in very general terms it has come to represent work where the client brings in guides to give them advice or council in hopes that the client can bring positive transformations to their life.

This is what I say about that in the book:
"New discoveries in science have become so prevalent lately that it seems like the textbooks, and many of our old assumptions about biology, have quickly become outdated. One of those old beliefs-that has been proven false is the assumption that our cells have rigid programming and simply carry out their specific functions while being oblivious to the outside world. Biologists now know that cells are not impartial microscopic forms with rigid programming; instead, our cells are continually changing, responding and reacting to stimuli from their environment."
Our cells have what are called cell receptors. Cell receptors are like little ears attached to each cell. Those receptors are listening to what we say: our thoughts, our words, our beliefs and our feelings. If we are very positive in our thoughts (i.e. "I never get the flu."), that is what we manifest. Conversely, I believe we can create negative dynamics (i.e. "Every time I go on vacation, I get sick.") if we aren't careful.