Hypnotherapy For
Managing Stress Disorders

Mental Health Professional And Clinic

Chronic Stress Can Really Drag You Down In Life, Let Hypnotherapy Help You rise Above The Challenge!

Hypnotherapy For The Treatment of Stress

Stress changes lives, yours could be one of them!

Are you looking for some answers to managing your stress? Well, managing it is exactly the right strategy, because stress is not only inevitable; it is necessary. Every time we move or do something exerting, stress is the body's response to that change and, consequently, stress systems are activated. The relaxation response is the necessary reversal of the stress response. So, under the correct conditions, stress is a good thing and relaxation is even better!

The type of stress that is most often referred to when we refer to 'stress,' is psychological stress but that is only one of a few types. There is oxidative stress which produces free radicals, metabolic stress, modulating the use and storage of energy, osmotic stress, which balances the internal/external cellular environment and heat shock, which helps cells respond to environmental stressors, bacteria and certain metals. And the probability that you are experiencing many types of stress at the same time is almost a given! So if you would like to know more about managing stress effectively, then a Free Consultation is available to discuss your options, get more details here.
Consequently, most of the stress we experience is natural, necessary and not harmful, we literally couldn't survive without it! However, some of the more challenging stressors are only useful if we are able to manage and keep them within natural limits. That is what I aim to help you do with my stress management programme. It just makes sense that in order to manage stress, you have to know, the how, why and what of your stress factors and how they develop. To that end, I have been studying the brain and the very systems that are involved in the development of unhealthy levels of chronic stress. Because, when you learn to understand and manage your stress, you can better manage your life!

To discover more about stress, what it is, its causes and symptoms, please read on

Be the instrument of your own change!

Now, whether you landed here on purpose or just happened to chance upon it, really doesn't matter. What you get out of the visit, however, might! So, my aim is to make this visit worth your while and that really matters! If you are suffering from negative or chronic stress or simply want to know more about it, I hope I can answer some of your questions below. If, however, you need more specific information relating to your own particular issue, then please feel free to email me. And, if you do, I will do my best to address your specific questions (email link here).

As mentioned above, it is because hypnotherapy is such a subjective experience, that is why I provide a Free 1 hr Consultation (you can book yours here). That way, we get to meet, discuss your concerns and . . . try a demonstration of hypnosis. It may also help you to know that I have been specialising in the treatment of Stress, Anxiety and Depression for a long time now. With over 22 years and 24,000 client hours of Clinical Hypnotherapy experience; I know both my subject and what I am doing!

The stress response (fight or flight) affects us all from time to time and its effects are many and varied. However, these are complicated matters, because there are different types of stress, for example, psychological stress and oxidative stress. Psychological stress can be experienced in the form of Eustress (positive stress) and Distress (negative stress).

Oxidative stressors are more environmental, e.g. too hot, cold, noisy, crowded, dusty etc. or through things that we eat. This type of stress creates free radicals, which attack and damage our cells. This is why we need antioxidants in our diet because oxidative stress is a major cause of unnecessary inflammation. However, even oxidative stress is both natural and good, in its own unique way. It's a natural part of cellular respiration and helps in response to foreign invaders in our body's cells e.g. viral or bacterial infection, even accidents or disease etc. It's the body's defensive marshalling system, sending the troops to the front line in an emergency.

Psychological stress can be experienced in the form of Eustress (positive stress) and Distress (negative stress). In a positive sense, we see things as opportunities, challenges, things that, although difficult, are a part of our natural growth! In a negative sense, it is the outcome of overarching mental and emotional responses to the threat of danger, be it real or imagined. Too much of this leads to chronic (dis)stress the form of stress that blights the quality of our lives. However, if we have the added burden of a high ambient level of oxidative stress, well, need I say more? Truth be told, this should be obvious but seemingly isn't. We will occasionally have moderate levels of both types of stress and all things being equal, we learn to adapt and cope. Adapting and coping are natural ways in which we learn and are integral to returning to our homeostatic state of balance. A stress disorder develops when our systems fail to adapt or cope, we become hyperaroused; not a good place to be!

To discover more about stress, what it is, its causes and symptoms, please read on

How Stress Disorders Develop


Of course, the awareness of the effects and consequences of distress is nothing new. We've known about it for years now, but despite that, very little is being done (big picture) to combat the ravaging effects of negative, chronic stress in society as a whole. In fact, with the intrusion of social media into our daily lives, things are actually getting worse. So, if this resonates with you, it may be of value to you, to know what you can do about it?

Fortunately, with the help of hypnotherapy, there are things you can do but you may need to focus a little more on the things that are unique to your particular circumstances? Although it's certainly not as simple as just using hypnosis or thinking of solutions for the future, usually we have to make lifestyle changes and maybe some adjustments to life-limiting aspects of life! First and foremost, we need to address some of the fundamentals, it just makes everything you do a lot harder if you don't. So what are the fundamentals?

No. 1  on the list, is, that we have to learn to breathe properly (more about that here).

No. 2  we have to keep well hydrated. most of our brain is made up of water (55-60%) and we dilute it at our peril.

No. 3, we must feed our brain the, carbs, fats, proteins and 9 amino acids that it cannot synthesise itself.

No. 4  is sleep, sleep helps restore the stresses of the day, rebuild the brain's pharmacy and aid in the process of making new long-term memories and updating old ones.

These essential things can only come from what we eat! Of course, we will manage to survive if we don't do these things properly but surely we want more than mere survival? Of course, we do and to live a fulfilling life, we need to thrive and that's exactly how my stress management programme can help you!

Everything you need to know about managing your stress is included in my programme and that includes an advanced hypnotherapy technique. In fact, this is an integral part of what you will experience in my therapy This method is tried and tested and it is much more effective than just focusing on the roots of the problem or focusing on the future. For sure the past very likely played a part in creating the challenges you are facing and the future will play a part too. But life is a "now, in the moment experience" and that is an area I pay particular attention to. Life is a trilogy of the past, present and future and this means that learning to experience life as it is happening becomes imperative. The past merely guides us to where we need to go to understand the probable root causes and how they evolved over time. As we progress, becoming mindful of now, we begin to learn new ways of being, and then, observe and experience life. This enhanced method of self-discovery and inner learning is what allows us to hone, polish and tap into the process of life. So, as we increase the awareness of life, as it is happening, from there a better future becomes the collateral effect of that process! Incidentally, when you have more awareness of 'Now' you actually have the potential to make better memories of this new experience! Ultimately, this means your memory recall of that past, will be an enhanced memory, simply because you were both at home and the lights were on!

Because there are many ways to help people in distress, you'll naturally want to know which is the best for you; won't you? Well, I can tell you from experience, as a client myself and as a therapist, that hypnotherapy is one of the most effective ways and here's why!

Stress is perhaps, the most pervasive feeling of the modern-day lifestyle and yet, it is as old as life itself. Stress is the brain's response to sensory stimuli, (anything that is, or perceived as, dangerous or life-threatening), this occurs naturally-nonconsciously, i.e. outside of your conscious awareness. In addition to this sensory stimulation, memory records the narrative of these types of events. This simply means the sensory stimulus has a fast and effective shortcut (memory) to the desired or undesired outcome, meaning, it happens lightning fast! However, just to confuse things a little, the feelings that we associate with being stressed are something else entirely. The physical feelings of stress are actually a part of several separate brain systems working together and independently. Collectively the awareness of the subjective experience of fear is fairly unique to humans. For us, this means it is actually possible to be (dis)stressed without having any conscious awareness of it! It also means that we may be unaware of the specific causes of our distress. This lack of conscious awareness can affect our behaviour in ways that may allow us to believe that others are the source of our problems? Technically, I call this, 'if it wasn't for you syndrome,' however, they may just be responding to what they see as our dysfunctional behaviour! Overreacting in ways that are out of context or too severe, i.e. above and beyond what would be a reasonable response etc. are characteristic traits of a chronically stressed person. As is tardiness, making more mistakes than normal, poor judgments, bad decisions or irrational emotional responses etc.

To discover more about stress, what it is, its causes and symptoms, please read on

Treating stress is essential to managing life

The word stress, in modern-day parlance, refers to psychological (dis)stress or negative/chronic stress. It is the over activation of the fight or flight response, essentially, to dangers that are largely not present or not really life-threatening! Of course, there are situations globally where people are in real life-threatening situations, but that's a different situation altogether. And while their stress can still be chronic and therefore, harmful in the long run; it really is necessary because they are in real danger! Another aspect of what we call stress is anxiety, essentially anxiety is the anticipation of danger or something fearful. No matter whether we are suffering from stress (an actuality) or anxiety (a possibility), the system behind these experiences is the same. It is called the stress response, (aka fight or flight), which is caused by the activation of the sympathetic nervous system. This activation starts in the hypothalamus of the brain via the anterior pituitary gland, which stimulates the HPA axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis), releasing cortisol into the bloodstream. 
Another system involved is the sympatho-adrenomedullary system, which releases adrenaline and noradrenaline, making the heart beat faster. It is also worth mentioning the Locus Coeruleus (LC), a small structure in the pons of the brain stem, which also plays a role in mediating the stress response. The LC also plays a considerable role in mediating the way our body responds to stress, both emotionally, via the sympathetic nervous system as well as many other brain regions. It also influences us cognitively through higher cortical structures, e.g. the prefrontal cortices, cingulate cortex and various reward pathways. This is important because the LC is the main producer of noradrenaline (norepinephrine) in the brain. During sleep, PGO waves, precede REM sleep (more about this below) and REM almost halts all production of noradrenaline in the brain, effectively creating a more restful brain!

Some examples of modern life stressors are:
1. you are in debt and interest rates rise, making an already bad situation worse
2. you're in your late 40'/50' etc. and get retrenched and feel threatened by younger people in the job market.
3. You become obsessed with the amount of negative news you hear every day but look at the news sources even more ( confirmation bias)
4. you are in line for a promotion and a someone new, maybe a colleague, that everyone likes, including your boss, shows up and you feel threatened
5. you grow distant from your family and believe your spouse or partner may be cheating on you
6. you begin to get feelings of paranoia and believe people are out to get you
7. you start having some health issues, e.g. forgetfulness (which is a symptom of stress) and think you may have the onset of dementia
8. you seem to have more arguments than usual and people start avoiding you
9. you may have an undiagnosed condition or suspect you have one (hypochondria) etc. etc.

These are just a few ways that modern life affects our mental health but there are many more variable symptoms of stress. This can be paradoxical because the stress response follows a known and predictable pathway (as mentioned above, the HPA axis). However, the way we each experience and respond to the stress response can take many forms and affects us in many different ways.


The stress response (fight or flight), which occurs within a few milliseconds, happens outside of and before we could possibly have conscious awareness of it. However, it has to be said, that under normal circumstances, this system works extremely well to keep us safe and has no known long term effects. Of course, there is a caveat to that! The caveat is, that we should only experience it when we are in danger, under the threat of attack or if there is potential for injury. When we become chronically stressed (unless we're in a dangerous environment, e.g. Iraq, or Syria), the system malfunctions, and we become hyperaroused, overreactive and snap at the slightest thing!

To discover more about stress, what it is, its causes and symptoms, please read on