What Is Hypnotherapy?

Hypnotherapy is a psychological therapy that uses hypnosis, a natural state of focused and absorbed attention, to help you change patterns of thought, feeling, behaviour and physical response that willpower alone has not shifted. A trained hypnotherapist guides you into that state and then works with you, through suggestion, imagery and mental rehearsal, towards a goal you have agreed together.

I have practised hypnotherapy in London since 2010, and this is the question I am asked most often. It usually arrives just before the second one: "Will I be asleep?" You will not. This guide explains what hypnotherapy is, where it comes from, what it can help with and what the NHS and the research actually say, so you can decide whether it is right for you.

Definition: Hypnosis vs hypnotherapy

Hypnosis is the state. The Society of Psychological Hypnosis, part of the American Psychological Association, defines hypnosis as a state of consciousness involving focused attention and reduced peripheral awareness, with an enhanced capacity to respond to suggestion. In plain terms, your attention narrows, the background chatter of the mind quietens and you become more open to new ideas and more capable of creatively integrating them in your life.

Hypnotherapy is the treatment. It is the use of that state by a trained practitioner for a therapeutic purpose, such as easing anxiety, improving sleep or changing a habit. Hypnosis is the vehicle; hypnotherapy is the journey you take with it.

Most of the fear around hypnotherapy comes from the third column. On stage, it can look as if people lose control. In a therapy room, the opposite is true: you stay aware, you can hear everything, you can speak or open your eyes at any time, and nothing can be suggested to you that goes against your values. In fact, hypnosis increases your capacity for mind body communication, meaning you are actually more in control, rather than less. The quality of your awareness during hypnosis is much clearer, less cluttered and crowded compared to your everyday state of awareness.

A short history of hypnotherapy

Hypnosis has a longer and more scientific history than most people expect.

• The 1770s. The Viennese physician Franz Mesmer claimed to cure patients with "animal magnetism". A French royal commission, which included Benjamin Franklin, concluded in 1784 that the effects came from imagination rather than magnetism. In a sense, that was the first evidence of the power of suggestion.
• The 1820s. Étienne Félix d'Hénin de Cuvillers moved away from the idea of the existence of a magnetic fluid, emphasised the role of mental processes of imagination and suggestion, and coined a system of scientific names using the prefix "hypn", in terms such as hypnosis, hypnotist and hypnotic, from the Greek hypnos, meaning sleep.
• The 1840s. The Scottish surgeon James Braid imported the name hypnosis into the English speaking world and described it as a state of concentrated attention with specific physiological and psychological qualities.
• 1955. The British Medical Association recognised hypnosis as a valid treatment for some psychological and psychosomatic conditions.
• The twentieth century. The American psychiatrist Milton H. Erickson developed a more conversational, individual style of hypnotherapy, built around each client's own language and resources. This is the tradition I trained in, with teachers who studied directly with Erickson.
• Today. Brain imaging shows that hypnosis changes activity in the networks that govern attention, body awareness and self monitoring. I explain the findings in what happens in the brain during hypnosis.

What happens in a hypnotherapy session?

A session with me lasts an hour. We begin by talking about what you want to change and what a good outcome would look like. I then guide your attention inward, using your breath, relaxation and imagery. There is no swinging watch. Once you are absorbed, we do the therapeutic work, and I bring you back to full alertness. Most people describe the experience as deeply relaxing, like the moment just before sleep, but with a clear and focused mind.

You will usually remember the session, and most clients leave with a short practice to use on their own between sessions. I describe each stage in detail in how hypnotherapy works.

What can hypnotherapy help with?

Hypnotherapy is one of the most researched complementary therapies, and the evidence is stronger than its reputation suggests:

• Irritable bowel syndrome. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends considering hypnotherapy for people with IBS that has not responded to medication after 12 months.
• Anxiety. A 2019 analysis that pooled 17 trials found that the average person treated with hypnosis reduced their anxiety more than about 79% of people in control groups.
• Pain. A review of 85 controlled trials found that hypnosis reduced pain by 42% in highly responsive people and 29% in moderately responsive people.
• Across conditions. A 2024 umbrella review of 49 research syntheses, covering 261 studies, found positive effects in almost every comparison, with the largest for pain, medical procedures and young people.

In my practice, people most often come to me for anxiety, stress, insomnia, panic attacks, confidence and stopping smoking. You can read what the research says about the main ones in the 7 benefits of hypnotherapy.

Hypnotherapy is not a cure for everything, and it is not a replacement for medical care. The NHS advises that it may not be safe for people with epilepsy, schizophrenia or a history of psychosis, so please speak to your GP first if any of these apply to you.

Types of hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapists differ in how they use the hypnotic state. The main approaches you will come across are:

• Direct suggestion hypnotherapy. Direct, positive suggestions given in hypnosis, often used for a single habit such as smoking.
• Ericksonian hypnotherapy. An indirect, conversational style that uses metaphor and your own words, so change feels as if it comes from you rather than being imposed. This is my main approach.
• Cognitive behavioural hypnotherapy. Hypnosis combined with techniques from CBT, such as challenging unhelpful thoughts and gradual exposure.
• Practising on your own. Hypnosis is a skill you can learn. I teach most clients a simple version to reinforce our work between sessions.

Is hypnotherapy regulated in the UK?

Not by law. Anyone in the UK can call themselves a hypnotherapist, which is why choosing carefully matters. The NHS advises choosing a practitioner who belongs to a professional register accredited by the Professional Standards Authority. Before you book, ask any hypnotherapist:

1. Where did you train, and for how long?
2. Which professional bodies are you registered with, and are you insured?
3. How many people have you seen with a problem like mine?
4. When would you suggest I see my GP or another professional instead?

A good hypnotherapist will be happy to answer all four. For transparency: I hold two postgraduate diplomas in Ericksonian Hypnotherapy and NLP from the British Hypnosis Research and Training Institute, I am registered with the General Hypnotherapy Register and the General Hypnotherapy Standards Council, and I am fully insured. You can read more about my training.

Is hypnotherapy right for you?

Hypnotherapy works best when you want to change something and are willing to take part. It is not something done to you; it is something we do together. Many of my clients notice a difference after the first session, although the number of sessions you need depends on what we are working on. I explain this in how many hypnotherapy sessions you will need, and why lasting change is rarely instant in is hypnosis really a quick fix?

I see clients in person at my practice in Camden, London and online by video. If you are unsure whether hypnotherapy can help with your situation, get in touch and we can talk it through.

Frequently asked questions