Frequently Asked Questions

Click on any question which resonates with you.
If you have a question I haven’t covered below, just get in touch – I’m happy to talk about any queries  you might have about therapy or working together.

What happens in the free consultation?

We’ll spend 30 to 45 minutes talking about what’s bringing you to therapy, how I would work with you if you went ahead with treatment, and figuring out if we’re a good fit. There’s no pressure to commit and I’ll answer any questions you have – this chat helps us both make an informed decision.

Hypnosis is a natural state of relaxed, focused attention – similar to daydreaming, losing track of time in an engaging hobby, or the moments before you fall asleep.  Think about times when you’ve been completely absorbed in something like watching a film (or reading a book), and you temporarily lost track of your surroundings until the credits rolled (or the chapter ended); or times you’ve driven a familiar route and suddenly realised you’ve arrived. That’s the kind of natural, so-called ‘trance’ state of hypnosis we work with in hypnotherapy, except we use it deliberately for healing and positive change. Most of us spontaneously fall in and out of this state regularly, and it’s simply a subtle (often unnoticed) quietening down of the conscious mind, due to a shift in focused attention. This shift is a very useful state of mind to take advantage of when it comes to self-improvement, because it both accelerates learning and makes us more susceptible to taking desired changes on board.

The only unfamiliar aspect of guided hypnosis is that we’re bringing this state of mind about purposefully. Most people find the process very relaxing, and much like when it happens spontaneously, the shift isn’t always noticeable until our attention is drawn back to its default state. As with any practice, being guided into hypnosis can come more easily/readily over time, and after a couple of sessions you might find you can enter the hypnotic state more quickly, or feel as though you reach a deeper (more relaxed) state. 

Hypnosis is the process of bringing about the so-called ‘trance’ state of consciousness (which is just a subtle shift in attention and focus).

Hypnotherapy utilises the benefits of the hypnotic state to help you feel relaxed and take on positive/desired changes (e.g. habit breaking/forming, perspective shifting, confidence boosting, motivation building).

Clinical hypnotherapy builds on the benefits of hypnotherapy specifically to address and alleviate some psychological and physiological conditions (e.g. anxiety, phobias, low mood, emotion dysregulation, self-sabotage, hypertension, IBS, inflammation, insomnia, chronic pain).

No, you remain aware and in control throughout. You can’t be made to do anything against your values or that you don’t want to do (your subconscious will simply disregard anything it doesn’t want to take on board). You’ll be relaxed, but if you needed to, you could open your eyes and be fully alert immediately.

Using the example of driving without full conscious awareness – even when hypnosis occurs spontaneously, your safe arrival shows that you’ve maintained full control of your actions and done exactly what you’ve needed to keep yourself and others safe. Had anything of concern or out of the ordinary happened like an obstruction or honk of a horn, your attention would have been jolted to it immediately  . Only your attention had shifted somewhat from your outer world, towards your inner, subconscious world.

Hypnotherapy is very much about gaining control, rather than losing control (a misconception unfortunately fuelled by media and stage hypnotism).Choosing to engage with guided hypnotherapy empowers you with the opportunity to improve your awareness and ability to shift your underlying behaviours, feelings, thoughts, memories, impulses and drives, which we often feel we ‘do without thinking’, or that we’ve perhaps wished we could better control (e.g. an invasive memory, an impulse behaviour, an intense emotional response to something specific, or simply a deeply engrained habit).  

Eye Movement Desensitisation & Reprocessing (EMDR) is an evidence-based psychotherapy to help overcome trauma, emotional distress and difficult experiences.
Whenever we experience anything in life which, at the time, overwhelms our capacity to cope or comprehend, then the brain’s ability to process the event(s) as normal can be disrupted. Instead of being appropriately ‘filed away’, memories formed at times of overwhelm can become ‘stuck’ or fragmented, and remain unprocessed. These fragments of unprocessed, disturbing information can cause lingering, and sometimes progressive issues (such as PTSD/C-PTSD, intense phobias, emotional distress, unwanted physiological responses, negative beliefs about ourselves, others or the world around us, unhealthy thinking patterns or behaviours). As the name suggests, EMDR helps to desensitise and reprocess disturbing experiences so that their memory become more manageable – more like any other normal memory or past experience.

The key part of the process involves following a left-to-right sensory que (most commonly eye movements, but other senses can be used such as  alternate sounds or tapping)  whilst focusing on specific parts of the experience or symptoms you’re struggling with. With therapeutic guidance, this ‘dual-attention’ on both problem and left-to-right movement does a few things: 

  • It improves communication between left and right sides of the brain
  • It calms the whole nervous system, so you feel physically calmer too (not always instantly, but usually much more quickly than you expect)
  • It helps to re-involve parts of the brain which commonly ‘shut down’ or don’t engage as well when we’re thinking about something distressing
  • It provides a ‘helpful randomness’ which allows the brain to prioritise solving a processing problem without becoming too overwhelmed with the contents
  • It often helps you maintain better awareness of where you are in the present day whilst addressing something distressing, rather than getting lost in re-living the experience all over again

These things in combination enables the brain to reprocess what has previously kept us feeling ‘stuck’.

EMDR does not erase memories, it just removes the emotional charge from them so that they have less of an impact on our present day and future.

From the therapist’s perspective there are eight phases to the process of EMDR, but from the client’s perspective: 

  • I’ll ask you some questions about the issue and the symptoms you’re struggling with.
  • I’ll support you through setting up any resources that might help before we focus on difficult things.
  • I’ll give you basic instructions involving thinking about specific things you and I have agreed upon, whilst following a left-to-right sensory que (usually eye movments, but we can also use tapping or sounds).
  • I’ll ask you to provide some very basic feeback on any changes as the process moves along.
  • We’ll touch on positive/desirable things as well as negative/difficult things.

The process is very collaborative, and we’ll regularly re-assess.

Personal experiences during EMDR vary from person to person. Most simply notice the change and flow of different thoughts, feelings or sensations as we go along. Some people see vivid images or memories, others experience subtle physical sensations or meaningful emotional shifts. Many find it less intense than they expected, though it is common to find the process a bit tiring, particularly in the early stages, or when lots of experiences are linked, or when you’re working through something with particularly strong emotions attached. EMDR processing generally works more rapidly than traditional talking therapy, and where trauma is involved, most people are surprised by how quickly the process can help them feel calmer about something that previously felt intense.

You stay aware and in control throughout, you’ll be able to stop if you need to, and I’ll guide you through the whole process.

No, this is one of the many benefits of EMDR therapy for trauma. You can talk through as much or as little detail as you need. If talking through specifics of the experience aloud is helpful to you, then you’re of course welcome to do so, and this can help me to better help you at times, but it is not a requirement. 

I’ll need some basic information, and I’ll need to ask some questions about the symptoms which continue to cause you distress in the present (to help establish the best areas for intervention), and I’ll ask about the sensory qualities of what comes up for you (to track changes and help ensure the process keeps flowing as we go along) – but I don’t have to know the specifics of what it is you’re working through, unless it’s helpful to you. 

This control over disclosure can help you feel a little safer and a little less vulnerable, particularly during the early stages of therapy when openness doesn’t always come as easily (or if you’ve previously exhausted talking through details in traditional therapy to no avail). It can also help minimise the amount of time you spend in an intense state of emotion or distress when addressing particularly difficult memories.

It’s completely understandable to feel nervous about addressing trauma. We always go at your pace, and I use techniques to help you feel safe and grounded throughout. Trauma work is collaborative and strategic – we’ll build your coping skills first before processing difficult memories.

We’ll figure this out together during our initial chat and initial session(s). The beauty of an integrative approach is that I can adapt based on what’s most helpful for you. Most people benefit from a combination of approaches rather than just one.

Yes, with your agreement, I will weave different approaches together if it’s suitable and beneficial. For example, we might use talking therapy to explore an issue, EMDR to process related trauma, and incorporate hypnotherapy for relaxation and deeper change work.
However, this depends on your needs, preferences and what therapy modalities you consent to before treatment, which is discussed during initial consultation and reviewed before we start your first therapy session.
Many people are referred for one specific type of therapy, or you might have heard great things about one and know little about another, which might cause unease about combining approaches or consenting to something you’re not completely comfortable with. I fell into this category in the early stages of my own therapy journey with an integrative therapist, and know how important it is to feel fully respected and confident in the treatment you’re receiving. This is why as an integrative therapist I list separated services on my website, and I will only ever include the approaches you consent to.

Different types of therapy work best for different people, and every therapeutic relationship is different. What didn’t work before might not be relevant to our work together. Previous experiences, whether good or challenging, give us valuable information about what you need. I’m committed to understanding what works for you and tailoring our approach accordingly.
If I ever feel I’m not best placed to provide the specialist support you need, I’ll tell you, and can help put you in touch with someone with the expertise to best help you. 
As well as finding the right type of therapy for you, alignment between therapist and client matters, and is never a reflection of your capacity to heal or experience change for the better.

Sessions are either 60 minutes or 90 minutes, depending on the treatment and what works best for you. Most people prefer weekly sessions, but we can adjust this based on your situation and preferences.

For most issues, commitment to a 5 session programme up front is required because this gives us time to work things through thoroughly and ethically (and gives you a much better chance of achieving lasting change). For some issues and modalities it would be considered unsafe and poor practice to offer single sessions.
Some simple phobias are exempt/can be addressed in fewer sessions and so booked individually – and for more complex issues we can always extend beyond 5 sessions as needed. We’ll discuss what makes sense for your situation during the initial consultation.

The professional relationship between client and therapist is crucial for effective therapy. If you feel we’re not clicking, please bring it up so we can talk about it. Whether or not we find a resolution, having these discussions in a safe environment can be of therapeutic value in itself. Oftentimes these issues can be worked through, but if not, I’m happy to help you find a therapist who might be a better fit.

Things happen, and I understand that occasionally you might need to cancel or change an appointment. I ask for 24 hours’ notice wherever possible.

Both single sessions and programmes are bespoke services. I reserve the right to charge a full session fee where insufficient or no notice is given. Pre-payments may be forfeited where appointments are not attended without sufficient notice. 

An advanced payment or deposit may be requested for therapy programmes. In addition, advanced payments in full will be requested from anyone who has previously failed to attend an appointment without notice.

Ready to invest in your wellbeing?

It’s important that you find the right therapist to support you along your journey, so I provide a free consultation to help ensure we’re a good fit before you commit to any treatment with me.

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