About Me
I am a fully-qualified Clinical Hypnotherapist based in the beautiful Lincolnshire Wolds. Before becoming a hypnotherapist, I worked for many years as a nurse in the NHS, specialising in trauma care. I always believed that a significant part of my role as a nurse manager was to care for the carers, in other words, my colleagues. I really missed this when I retired so I started looking for a new way to utilise my expertise in supporting others. After a lengthy search I eventually came across hypnotherapy, and the solution focused approach seemed the perfect option. It has been a revelation and I am thoroughly enjoying the opportunity to help people overcome their difficulties and feel more positive about the future.
I gained my Hypnotherapy Practitioner Diploma with Clifton Practice Hypnotherapy Training, a recognised centre of excellence. My professional affiliations include registration with both the Association for Solution Focused Hypnotherapists and the Complementary & Natural Healthcare Council, an independent UK regulator for complementary healthcare. I have also maintained my registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. I have professional indemnity insurance and an enhanced DBS enabling me to work with vulnerable adults and children.
My Approach
When someone is experiencing difficulties in life, whether recent or longstanding, finding the courage to seek help is often the greatest challenge. When a client chooses me as their therapist, they are putting their trust in me and my ability to help them move forward and live a more fulfilled life. When you meet someone for the first time, possibly feeling vulnerable and anxious, you know almost immediately whether this person is someone you can relate to and with whom you feel comfortable. I strongly believe that my ability to gain your trust and confidence is key to the development of an effective therapeutic relationship.
We all have different behaviour styles and preferences and are naturally drawn to individuals who are similar to ourselves. My approach will ensure you feel relaxed, safe, and able to share your concerns irrespective of their nature. As your therapy progresses you may be surprised at how much you learn about how your mind works and how this influences your feelings, behaviour, and motivation.
Hypnotherapy uses imagery, visualisation, metaphor, and suggestion to help you find the solutions which are right for you. They will be your solutions, not mine, and that is why they will be successful. Why do we use imagery? Well, consider the picture of the horse on my website. There is a reason I chose Pegasus, the winged horse you may recognise from Greek mythology. His image represents strength, beauty, gentleness, and freedom. All these attributes align with the goals that most of my clients are seeking to achieve. When we use an image to explain a concept then it is frequently more memorable and retrievable than words alone.
The same is true for visualisation. This is a technique that is popular with many elite athletes, as it helps them to picture getting to the finish line first, scoring the winning goal, or clearing the highest bar. Conversely, they also use the technique to prepare for the unexpected. By visualising what action they would take in the event of something going wrong, should the worst happen, they automatically default to the solution they have rehearsed. Visualisation works because the brain cannot tell the difference between imagination or reality. If we think something is real, then the brain believes it to be so. This technique can also be used to improve confidence and sports performance, and something very similar is often used in the treatment of phobias.
The use of metaphor in hypnotherapy is helpful insofar as it allows us to describe an object or action in a way that is not literally true but helps explain an idea or make a comparison.
From an experiential perspective hypnotherapy works, but is there any scientific evidence to demonstrate its efficacy? The answer is most definitely yes. With the advent of brain scanners and their increasing technological sophistication, the body of evidence is growing. And to give further assurance to our clients, hypnotherapists are required to undertake continuous professional development in order to keep up to date with any neuroscientific research relevant to their practice.
I hope that this gives you a little more insight into the way I work, so do get in touch, and remember, there is no charge for the initial consultation.