Does Hypnotherapy need a rebrand?

"Oh, are you going to make me walk around like a chicken?”

It's probably the response I've heard most since telling people I'm training in hypnotherapy.

And honestly? I get it.

When most people hear the word hypnosis, their mind doesn't necessarily go to therapy. It goes to a stage, a swinging pocket watch, someone clucking like a chicken and an audience having a good laugh.

But here's the problem: that isn't clinical hypnotherapy.

And perhaps we've done ourselves a disservice by allowing the word hypnosis to become synonymous with stage entertainment for so long.

So, what actually is hypnosis or trance?

Trance or being in a state of Hypnosis is a naturally occurring state of focused attention. Think, being on auto-pilot whilst driving a regular route or whilst running. We all go in and out of trance on a daily basis.

Whilst in trance, you are always completely in control and there is never an element of taking over someone's mind.

In Hypnotherapy, trance is used as part of the session to relax you, with the aim of replicating your REM sleep, which is where we process challenges from our day and lives to take them from being emotional to narrative. It's really healthy for our brains to be in this place, especially when we are in a positive, rational mindset - which is the aim of the first part of a Solution-Focused Hypnotherapy session.

Why is it called hypnotherapy?

The above explains perfectly why Hypnotherapy - it's literally combining the two parts of the session; while therapy describes its therapeutic application and the first part of the session, ,"hypno" is referring to the hypnosis element, which is rooted in neuroscience and significant research.

There seems to be a common misconception, that Hypnotherapists hypnotise their clients into feeling better, this is incorrect - the first half (or talk therapy part) of a session is where the magic of getting better happens, and then the second part is where clients relax into trance with a calming hypnotherapy experience, helping them digest and process what's been discussed.

What neuroscience tells us.

During a free initial consultation, you will explain your symptoms and what you want to achieve, and you will learn how the brain works and how hypnotherapy can help you.

In a nutshell, the concept and aim of hypnotherapy is to move you from your primitive brain, where your Amygdala is located (Flight/Fight/Freeze), to the intellectual brain (your pre-frontal cortex), so you can properly assess a situation and come up with solutions. Because our primitive brain is designed to protect us, it's literally programmed to default to the negative and to look for danger.

The more we practice moving our brains to the intellectual part, the more it becomes the norm. We work together to empty what is known as our stress bucket, build resilience and stay in our intellectual brains longer term.

And no, I can't make you do anything you don't want to do

So, back to the chicken.

No.

I'm not going to make you cluck.

More importantly, clinical hypnotherapy isn't about taking control away from you. It's actually the opposite, it's about giving you control back!

You remain aware and able to respond throughout hypnosis. You're not unconscious, asleep or under my control.

The therapeutic relationship is collaborative. You are still you. You are simply a more resilient you.

Why does this matter?

Please stop thinking hypnotherapy is silly...

When we reduce hypnotherapy to stage tricks, we risk dismissing a therapeutic approach before people have even had the opportunity to understand it.

There are people who might benefit from it who will never enquire because the word itself makes them think of magic tricks.

And that's why it might need a rebrand.

Not necessarily a literal change to the name.

A rebrand in terms of public understanding.

So, does hypnotherapy need a rebrand?

Maybe the word doesn't need changing. Maybe what needs changing is what we think when we hear it.

I'm so proud of what I'm training in and I'm already seeing the significant impact Hypnotherapy can have on people's lives. I've experienced it myself. I simply want the understanding of Hypnotherapy to become more mainstream.

So the next time someone tells me, “Oh, are you going to make me walk around like a chicken?” I might laugh. But then I'll tell them what hypnotherapy actually is. Because perhaps the best rebrand hypnotherapy could have isn't a new name. It's better understanding, so it can help more people.

Find your calm. Find your power.

A Calm Space with Chelsea