As a practicing hypnotist, I share office space with a wide range of psychotherapy and counseling practitioners at Portland Therapy Center. There are many paths that can help people heal, and we are fortunate to live in a time with so many options available.

So, what is so different about hypnosis?

First off, hypnosis is simply different from therapy. Hypnotists help a client literally change how they feel by using natural states of trance. Yes, there is talking involved, but Hypnotists don't diagnose clients, nor is it necessary. Imagine if you could swap out one feeling for another, any time, at will. Imagine if you could think any thought without distress. Imagine your conscious and subconscious mind cooperating. Imagine if you could set a goal, and that goal was so attractive it would pull you inevitably into a new state of being. If you can imagine any of those things happening, then hypnosis may have something to offer. Hypnosis is not 'thinky', it's not based on how smart or well-read you are. Hypnosis is a way to have a guide assist you in going the direction you wish to go. In that way, you are your own therapist and you diagnose yourself.

I recently had a client who had a recurring pain show up, in a certain part of their body, whenever a certain type of life event would happen. For some reason, a spot near their stomach would knot up whenever they got in a particular argument with their partner. This puzzled them for years, as there was no discernible logic to the pattern. With one hypnosis session, we found the source of their pain and they were able to clear it out of their body and pick a new path.

Another client had been feeling stuck for so long they were afraid they would always be in that state, as they had grown used to it. With hypnosis, they were able to let go of 'feeling safe by being stuck' and reconnect with their own sense of purpose.

In hypnosis, change happens fast. This makes sense when you experience it. When an old pattern is revealed, the unconscious power it had goes away, and all that energy comes back to you. A good hypnotist removes or collapses time, and the benefits of this approach are naturally instant. I often will work with a client and their therapist to create an outcome that is right for them, so in this way hypnosis works quite well with other forms of therapy, and vice versa.

The advances in the field in the past 50 years are staggering, as well as the general acceptance by the medical profession. If you're interested in learning more, Dr. David Spiegel provides an excellent overview of the state of the profession here: https://www.ihmc.us/stemtalk/episode-45/

My own approach is a magic carpet journey. We can and do go anywhere and everywhere during a session, with the normal boundaries of space and time suspended. The simple act of changing your perspective works its own magic, and by creating alignment between the conscious and subconscious mind, all kinds of good change occurs. It's your energy, how do you want to use it? Visit www.flowhypno.com to learn more.