A Meeting of Two Minds, the Creation of Ideas!
A Hypno-therapeutic intervention is as much an art form as it is a science. It is, and almost certainly will remain, a meeting of minds, a meeting where two or more people form a bond of friendship and trust because the more trust there is, the more likely the client will be willing to open up their mind-heart. And what never ceases to amaze me is the way some really crucial information just suddenly surfaces after many sessions, almost if it was it was inconsequential. Of course, there is seldom, if ever, a conspiracy to conceal vital information, it is merely, in my opinion, a case that certain memories surface, maybe to something the therapist said or perhaps didn't say. Maybe a wry expression or a stilted tone of voice; who knows? The facts are though, that any number of sensory stimuli can elicit deep-seated memories. Where they came from or how they arose is not as important as the fact that they did! As a consequence of the unfolding of a life's journey, it is discovered that both the trauma and the cure are in the story; the memories!
Like all professionals, the therapist learns on their feet, they make mistakes, to err is human or, upon reflection, they realise there was something they could have said or perhaps given the discourse a new perspective or direction. The important thing is, that their arsenal of experience grows as much by experience as by study. Perhaps one of the most compelling reasons for this is the fact that each client is unique, no two people have the same DNA or fingerprints and no two people have the same life experience. Families are the archetypal epitome of that example, in any given family of three or more, there will inevitably be three or more individual personalities, each unique, with different opinions of a shared life!
So, as a profession, hypnotherapists are constantly looking for new strategies or ways of working. We seek new ways to help clients to discover the immense pool of resources that lay within them and this is so important; because only the client can process their psychology internally. So, it is without a doubt, the new way the client starts to process their thoughts that will ultimately set them on the path to recovery and healing. For the most part, the therapist does not administer medication and they cannot operate on their client's brain either! So, since we can neither medicate nor operate; what then causes the obvious change in the client's psychology? Firstly it is memories that change, memories locked deep in the brain's vault of protected survival strategies. Once the memories have changed, through a process known as consolidation and reconsolidation, perspective is the next thing that changes, history cannot change but the way we choose to see and respond to it, through our brain/mind, very definitely can and does bring about that change.
That is why, in my opinion, hypnotherapy stands out among all other psychological interventions. It does so because, in a sense, it delves into the realm of mental fantasy. It allows us to indulge in a brief encounter of a reality we wish to experience, the fantasy of a life free of anxiety or thoughts that are so clear, it's as if we can see all the way out into the deepest reaches of the universe. Or perhaps the nebulous feelings of being emotionally free, no longer shackled by the images of the past, the nightmares, the flashbacks from the past long gone. Just for a moment, we get to experience a different life, a different self and that is really important because within those moments are the neural correlates of a different emotion, a feeling if you will, a feeling that allows us to feel better, better about yourself, better about life. It's as if at that point in time, right there, in our minds, a new sense of self is born. Perhaps that feeling a Christian feels when they are reborn; their past is forgiven, and their future is assured. All of a sudden a meaningless life has meaning, a life of doom and depression now has a purpose and they, at last, have hope.
So, if you want freedom from the ghosts of the past, if you want a new start, a new future, a life with a promise of hope and of dreams that turn into realities; then allow me to show you the way; the way into the most wonderful thing in creation, the mind; Your Mind!
