During the initial consultation and the workings of the mind presentation, we discuss why the clients may be feeling as they do. We discuss how our minds produce chemicals or neurotransmitters depending on the situation we are in or our thoughts at the time. Our ancestors are used as a metaphor to describe what we have to do to produce the “happy” chemicals that we need a constant flow of, to lead a more intellectually controlled life.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapists do not tell the client what they should be doing, but we can question in a way that may encourage the clients to do what they need to do, or of course suggest that our other clients find certain things beneficial. In the same way we would encourage the listening of our MP3 each night before bed, as “most of my clients feel this is beneficial and speeds up the therapy process” 

We have to ensure, that right from the start, we tell the client that they will be the ones solving their own problems and they have to do all the hard work outside of the therapy sessions. The work that the client puts in between the sessions is what will help their situation the most and if they act on the advice from our ancestors, their progress will be far more effective. If we develop a good working relationship, the therapy will also be far more beneficial as we can be far more honest with clients and we should ask them, if at times they are resisting therapy by not putting in the effort needed between sessions.

As we do not normally set homework, with the exception of suggesting that the MP3 is listened to, it is difficult to set a task that we may feel is beneficial. But we can listen for the client to suggest something that we may feel is beneficial and proceed to question it until the client then thinks it’s a good idea, at this stage we could gain commitment and invite the client into trance, to process what they have just committed to. Active listening and seeing great opportunities is the key.   

During the Initial Consultation we describe what Hypnosis is, we say it is a tool that we use as Hypnotherapists, but we call it Trance, which can take away the stigma that some people have regarding the word Hypnosis. Of course, this may not be necessary as they have already come to see us for help and may be comfortable with the wording.

Trance is very ordinary in many ways. All of us go into trance many times a day, when we are concentrating on something, watching Television, at the gym or running, even when we are driving a regular route. We do it all the time.Trance is when the two mind, the conscious and the subconscious, come together in focus. You are then able to access the subconscious mind and that vast intellectual resource, enabling you to get the very best out of yourself

I often say, that our goal with trance is to guide us into a state of relaxation, where we can allow our brain to work hard on finding solutions, whist we enjoy moments of complete relaxation. I also compare trance to REM sleep, or maybe day dreaming, when the body allows the mind to process our thoughts and allow us to plan for the future, it really does depend on the client.

The main goal of any discussion around Hypnotherapy is to educate the client to the reason we do trance at the end of a Solution Focused Therapy session. We need the client to be working from the Intellectual mind, to allow them to absorb what we have been talking about and allow the prefrontal cortex to access the vast database of information that is the cerebral cortex to make their future brighter.

We also use repetition, which builds stronger learning pathways in the brain, which allows us to give positive suggestions that the brain will act on, not something the client can do if they are using their Primitive, emotional brain.

It also allows the client to leave the session feeling good, relaxed and with a reduced anxiety level. No matter how hard you try, you can’t seem to feel anxious and relaxed at the same time. Feeling happy and angry at the same times doesn’t seem to work either!!!   

We have also to remind the client that stage Hypnosis is not Hypnotherapy, our aims are for the client to have a better life and not be the star of the show.

The therapeutic relationship is the relationship developed between the therapist and client over time. Without a therapeutic relationship, therapy is less meaningful. A strong bond is extremely helpful in the success of therapy.

The therapeutic relationship has many components and varies between each individual relationship. However, there are some common characteristics.

We need to be genuine; we need the client to think we are a real human being and they can be themselves when they are with us and feel able to speak freely.

We need to be Empathetic and be able to recognise, identify and understand the situation that the client is experiencing and to understand their feelings, ideas and motivations. This is the basis and foundation for a therapeutic relationship because it establishes a personal connection between the therapist and client, allowing the client to see their therapist hears them, values and understands their needs.

We need to be trusted and be non-judgemental. For clients who find it difficult to open up or explore their feelings due to worrying that it is not safe for them to do so, it matters greatly that they can feel confident that their therapist will not judge them.

We need to be warm and show we care from the moment we first meet our clients.

Without a therapeutic relationship, therapy will be less effective. We know that this is a crucial part of therapy, in some ways the clients feels that the relationship with the therapist is the therapy. The relationship will hopefully allow the client to move towards achieving their goals

When we first see our clients for an initial consultation, we gather information using our Information gathering form and then we proceed to give a presentation of the workings of the mind, this is always customised with information taken from the client to make it relevant and specific to their needs.

During this presentation, questions are encouraged at every opportunity. I prefer to break this presentation down into sections,

The Brain

Polar Bears

Ancestors

Anxiety

Stress bucket

Sleep

The 3 P`s

Physiology

Trance

At the end of each section, I check the clients (and Companions) understanding of what has just been shared, this allows for any clarification needed to be given before we move onto the next section. We can then, at the end, discuss any further questions or queries that the client may have. In the main, the more detailed an explanation, the less questions there are. We review this presentation at every future session to further reinforce understanding.

We must ensure that the client knows what to expect from us going forward, we can discuss the format of future sessions, how many sessions we feel the client would benefit from and any other administration that we feel is needed. I always encourage clients to contact me by email with any questions they may have after the sessions and I always call them back with the answers, phone is the preferred option for contact as its more personal and allows for the clients understanding to be checked.

Putting the clients mind at ease, allowing them to see our trust in the process, will start the positive change of mindset needed immediately and give the client hope.

Our practice rooms, should be fit for purpose. We spend time in conversation and time where we are encouraging our clients into a relaxing trance, having a good environment to do this in is very important. We need to try to eliminate anything that will cause a distraction to our sessions, although sometimes things will be outside of our control, for example if a fire alarm activates or if we have a power cut or other emergencies.

But the things we can control, we must make sure we do so with our client’s comfort and wellbeing in mind. Noisy environments, are best avoided, constant chatter and voices from outside of the therapy room can be off putting to the client and therapist, passing traffic strangely can sound reassuring and isn’t quite such an issue. Cramped rooms can feel like we are invading a client’s personal space and rooms that are too large feel, cold and clinical, we need cosy, but enough room to feel relaxed and to be able to sit comfortably at an appropriate distance to the client. Too hot or too cold, heating must be set at a nice ambient temperature, we really don’t want clients shivering or feeling too hot.

Clients need to feel that our sessions are private, we need a practice room that gives this feeling, free talk is always encouraged and if a client thinks they may be over heard, this will be a difficult thing to achieve. I also believe that the entrance needs to be discreet, no big bold signs stating the nature of the business inside, clients may feel that passers by will know why they are entering the building and this may put them immediately off guard.

Common sense is the key, we should question, whether we as therapists would be comfortable to receive therapy in the room we are proposing our clients will use, if not, we change it, if so, we use it. 

It is far too easy to assume that clients understand what we are saying, regular checks should be made to make sure that the language we are using is easy to understand and what we are saying is relevant. We should ask questions, for example “does that make sense” or “does that sound familiar to you” we should look out for body language, the client may nod, smile or show emotion at a particular section of the Initial consultation, they may even offer suggestions to the similarity to themselves during the presentation.

Reviewing “how the mind works” from the Initial Consultation, on sessions 1 onwards, helps to ascertain if the client has remembered the previous presentations and is a measure of their understanding.

I encourage questions at all times and suggest that if there is something that the client doesn’t understand, then it is my lack of care in explaining it correctly that has caused them to not understand.

The more the client understands, the more tools they have to find solutions!

Verbal communication is using speech to exchange information, emotions, and thoughts. Non-verbal communication is conveying and exchanging messages without the use of spoken words.

Our communication with our prospective clients starts at the very first interaction that we have, whether in person, on the phone, email or text. The first opportunity to communicate, may not be verbally or written, it could be when we first see our client walking towards our practice, the way we look and behave at this very first instance, has an effect on the communication that will follow. If we are smiling, with an open posture, maybe we raise our hand to wave, we are giving a positive, welcoming image, which we hope would encourage the client, through the subconscious mine mirroring us, to do the same. A client would find it difficult not to smile in return as the brain would be matching the therapists’ actions in a positive way, allowing the left pre frontal cortex to start to take intellectual control.

Positivity, is the key to positive communication. The therapist should at every opportunity, seek the good in everything and not dwell on the bad. We of course show empathy and we wouldn’t have a smile glued to our faces whilst a client tells us what we can help them with, but we would find the good and compliment them on how strong they have been to take the first steps to making their life better. We would put their minds at ease when they tell us their symptoms and explain how the mind works and why they are feeling like they do and what we can do to help, this in itself lifts the clients’ spirits.

The way we question is important, we can use open questions, when we would like the client to tell us something, for example “how did you find the strength to do that “this allows a broader answer than a closed question when we just need a short answer, for example “are you fearful of dogs”. When we question and receive answers, we use non verbal communication, we smile, we keep eye contact we nod when we agree, we may mirror the clients’ behaviours discretely to reinforce that we are just like they are. We show through body language that we are interested.

Facial expressions are very important, if a client says they are an 8\10 on the happiness scale whilst they are frowning and looking at the floor, then this answer may need a little more questioning. On the other end of the scale, if a client is 1/10 and smiling like a Cheshire cat, this may be a nervous smile, hiding embarrassment, the eyes will often give this away, they will often dart around when a client is not saying what they truly feel. Our facial expressions are important too, we need to show what we feel when we are not speaking, we haven’t always got to have a smile, but an open inquisitive look encourages the client to speak.

Sometimes, saying nothing and looking at the client in an open way encourages the client to speak, no one likes silence and we need the client to do the talking and fill the gaps.

Even when we are communication in a written format, positivity is key, if we are making appointments, we may add at the end of the email or text, “looking forward to seeing you on Tuesday” or “great to see you yesterday, would you like the same slot next week” subtle little comments that are positive and welcoming.

Listening is a vital component of effective communication. Not being listened to, can have a negative impact on the quality of the therapy that the client receives. Effective communication does not just involve speech, its also the eyes, the ears and body language. Listening cannot be a passive activity; it takes effort and genuine engagement. Words need to be heard, considered and digested. When we are listening, we should always look at our clients, not spending too much time making notes, this gives us the opportunity to see what they are saying and how they are saying it, they may be saying one thing, but their body language could be saying something else. We should always be attentive and interested and we should never interrupt and always allow the client to come up with their own solutions.

When we ask questions, we should accept what the client says and then maybe use their answer as a question to check understanding. It is all to easy to ask a question badly and of course get an answer that wasn’t aimed for, by checking that the client understands the question, we should get the required response.

Facial expressions are so important, we can tell if someone is just saying what they think they should say by looking at their face, or maybe saying something that they don’t truly believe. It’s very hard to hide emotion, unless our client plays poker for a living.

One of the ways we communicate is through repetition, we have a set format and we revise the workings of the mind metaphor, we discuss scaling and the miracle question at every session, this is affective in allowing the client to absorb what we wish that they understand.

We must always adopt an open posture when receiving answers to questions, it shows we accept what the client is saying, we may choose to fold our arms when we may not agree, but this should be done selectively and without any confrontation, just a little subconscious message being sent to the client, without mentioning it.

Effective communication is the key to the Solution Focused Hypnotherapy process and we must use all that we have to ensure we demonstrate it.