We have moved to Castlegate!

Sophie Fletcher has moved her hypnotherapy practice  in Grantham, to 70 Castlegate, NG31 6SH.  Some people may already know of Mark Duffree’s Osteopathic Clinic there, it’s a lovely, comfortable airy room.

You can still reach Sophie on 01476 575099 but Clinic days will move to a Friday from the 9th of November.

Looking forward to seeing all our clients there!

The myth of hypnosis

Hypnotised Daphne

I was watching my two boys playing this morning, when I heard one of them shout to the other, I’m hypnotizing you” and the other cry out “aggghhhh you villain” while strutting around like a robot under Machiavellian control. My children are 4 and 5 with little or no understanding of what I do for a living.

If they really believed I was a hypnotherapist and did hypnotize people for a living I’m sure not quite sure what it would do for their toddler psyches!

But where did they pick up the suggestion that hypnosis is evil, controlling and downright villainous? You’ve guessed it – the television. They don’t watch a lot, but it’s been a long holiday and and my eldest has recently graduated from Cebeebies to CITV and CBBC. Which means instead of Noddy, he gets Scooby Doo, Pokemon and Storm Hawks.

Watching a few of them with him I realized that the myth of hypnosis as a controlling force to be reckoned with was omnipresent in these cartoons. In Pokemon there is actually a move called Hypnosis with rules attached. Far too complicated for me to make any sense of but enough to know that there is actually a Pokemon called hypnos.

Evil hypnotists abound in Scooby Doo, here is a clip in which Daphne been hypnotized by an evil clown with a medallion.

I wonder if the script writer had challenged himself to shoe in as many references to evil stereotypes as possible in one sketch – and of course the fact he chose the poor vulnerable Daphne deepens the impact.

Sarah Jane Adventures, the Junior version of Dr Who, recently had an episode where an entire school of children were hypnotized by looking at a band.

All of them without fail have the villain controlling the heroic characters. Ultimately the heroes always manage to break out of their trance, usually using distraction (a hypnotherapy technique for things such as pain management)  to defeat the evil forces that threaten civilization as we know it.

So I have spent the rest of the time trying to subtly teach my children that hypnosis is actually a good thing, that it can’t control you and that in fact mummy goes to work and hypnotizes people every week. But sadly I’m no match for the hypnotic charms of Scooby Doo and the television.

And that’s the rub of it, watching television is a hypnotic act, so when, as children, we have watched programmes which incorporate evil hypnotists, we are at our most vulnerable at receiving messages. Children are still building up their belief systems and so anything they learn, especially one that has a consistent message, has even greater impact. Those messages which seem so benign and humorous are actually compounded and are being carrying forward as myths into adulthood.

Nearly every client I see that has come along because a friend has recommended it, knows that their friend talks sense and perhaps has seen the positive effect of hypnosis first hand, but still harbours the underlying apprehension that comes from watching or hearing these myths about hypnosis.

I see crossed arms and legs, people turning away from me in the chair – unable to look me in the eye. Comments such as “this is the last resort”, or “are you going to make me cluck like a chicken” are all things that I hear regularly. If I jest and say “it’s fine, I don’t have a medallion or anything like that”, I can see them instantly begin to relax in their chair.

Most clients are total converts after they experience it, comforted by the fact that they could open their eyes at any stage and the deep sense of relaxation following a session. Nearly all say they could stay there and just go to sleep.

But there is always someone who seems vaguely disappointed that I can’t make them cluck like a chicken, or make love to a broom….

Welcome to Hypnurture Hypnotherapy

Clinical Hypnotherapy in Grantham, Lincolnshire

Sophie Fletcher is a Clinical Hypnotherapist at the National Award Winning Calma Wellness Centre in Grantham, Lincolnshire.

Calma is a relaxing, comfortable clinic, which offers a range of different therapies in the heart of Grantham in Lincolnshire.  Clients come from Nottingham, Newark, Stamford, Melton and London.

Sophie is one of many therapists who work closely together to offer our clients a bespoke service.

Hypnotherapy is a wonderful therapy for tacking problems quickly and easily.  Sophie’s approach is to teach you the skills, alongside your hypnotherapy sessions,  to heal yourself.  This means that treatment is often shorter and has longer term benefit.

Perhaps you have a short term goal, or perhaps a long term problem that you have decided to overcome.   You can decide right now to take control, by taking a positive step to change your life for the better.   Call us at the Calma Wellness Centre in Grantham, on  01475 575099 to have a chat or to book an appointment with Sophie.

Sophie is fully qualified and registered with:

The National Council for Hypnotherapy :  The largest not for profit hypnotherapist member organisation in the UK, working with the Prince’s Trust for Integrated Health to reach national standards in the regulation of hypnotherapy.

The Register of Evidence-Based Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy :  A body which supports the use of evidence based hypnotherapy, meeting standards recognised by the wider medical profession.

UK Confederation of Hypnotherapy Organisations (UKCHO) : The umbrella body for all hypnotherapy organisations that meet a recognised standard of training.  All practitioners registered under this body will have a registration number.

The NHS Directory of Complementary and Alternative Practitioners

If you are looking for a hypnotherapist in Grantham, Newark, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire look no further.

For more information on hypnotherapy in Grantham, Lincolnshire click on the tabs above.