Hypnotherapy for Young People

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​How Safe, Gentle Hypnosis Can Help Your Child Resolve Issues Ranging from Weight Control, Poor Self-Image and Lack of Confidence to Fears, Phobias, Stress and Anxiety

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​For those of us who have long passed our childhood days, it might seem that youth is a glorious, trouble-free time full of fun and adventure. Many older adults dismiss the issues affecting our children, tweens, teens and young adults as “trivial” or “just part of growing up.”  Nothing could be further from the truth, which many younger parents now recognize.

Subconscious Issues Can Affect a Child’s Life Today and Tomorrow

Psychologists today agree that the stresses and anxieties, fears and phobias, and issues with self-image and self-confidence faced by our young people will remain in their subconscious minds for their entire lifetimes. These hidden messages will shape their futures, influencing how they choose their relationships, interests, and careers.

Knowing the Underlying Cause of Your Child’s Problem May Help Resolve the Issue

In my practice as an Advanced Clinical Hypnotherapist, I have seen major issues that were initially caused by minor mishaps or misunderstandings, and minor issues with deeper roots than anyone had suspected. Here are just a few recent examples:

> Weight Control. Sometimes childhood weight issues are resolved easily with just a few hypnotic suggestions for better portion control, healthier choices and/or increased exercise. Last year, I treated a sweet, loving, overweight boy whose mom thought hypnosis might help him eat healthy foods and avoid snacking on chips and soda. After a few sessions, though, it became apparent that he was overeating to assuage the pain of feeling abandoned by his father when his parents divorced many years ago. A few additional sessions helped this young man to understand that he hadn’t caused the breakup of his parents’ marriage, and that his dad (who had since started a new family) still loved and valued his first-born son.

> Difficulty Making Friends. One of my recent clients is a highly intelligent tween who has trouble making friends. Her parents hoped I could help her get over her shyness. In our initial session, it was obvious that this middle-schooler was articulate and precocious well beyond her years, but showed an unexplained lack of self-esteem. A short regression under hypnosis uncovered the frustration the child had felt as a preschooler due to a speech delay in early childhood. Her inability to communicate then had long-since been resolved, but her current unwillingness to try to engage with others just needed a nudge in hypnosis using positive reinforcement.

> Fears and Avoidance. I've helped an enormously talented teen gymnast whose fall during a past competition seemed to be making her afraid to attempt the difficult routines in which she previously excelled. Everyone believed that she was afraid of getting hurt again. When the traditional hypnotherapeutic methods for overcoming her fears didn’t prove helpful, I began to suspect that something else was preventing her from returning to competition level. Using guided imagery, this amazing young woman realized that her subconscious mind was telling her that the limelight of competition gymnastics was causing her too much stress and anxiety, and that she’d be happier using her wonderful athletic ability in basketball – a sport she loved, and in which she could excel as an integral part of closely knit team of like-minded young athletes.

> Gender Identity. More than ever before in recent history, boys and girls who previously might have hidden their innermost feelings about their gender issues, afraid of parental shame, peer disdain or society’s disapproval, are openly expressing their doubts, fears and preferences. One of my clients is a bright teen with gender identity issues resulting in a profound lack of self-esteem and poor grades. Although her family is certain that this is “just a phase” she’ll grow out of in time, this teen is adamant that she has always felt like she was a boy in a girl’s body. My role as a hypnotherapist isn’t to advise young people about gender identity or sexual choices. Instead, my job is to shore up their self-esteem, making certain that they gain the confidence needed to be the best possible version of themselves – at home, among friends and in school. With that goal in mind, this teen and I have been focusing on replacing her negative feelings and actions about her self and her body with positive messages of self-acceptance.

> Stress and Anxiety. More than half of my clients, no matter how young or old, come to me hoping I can help them deal with stress or anxiety. One mom brought in her beautiful stepdaughter who had been suffering from debilitating panic attacks, constant stress, and a clear lack of confidence. In cases like these, I always begin with the basic hypnotic techniques for coping with stress and anxiety to provide some immediate relief before moving on to deeper hypnotherapy which might uncover the roots of the problem. Under hypnosis, this troubled young adult surprised us both by remembering the constant feeling of fear she experienced as a consequence of spending her earliest years living with a mentally unstable birth-mother. Since this realization, verified in fact by her father and others, we’ve successfully embarked upon a series of hypnotherapy sessions designed to allow her to deal with her past memories and her current feelings about her mother without experiencing the negative emotions and self-destructive behaviors.

Hypnosis Uses the Power of the Mind to Help Your Child Succeed

When you bring your youngster to me to resolve issues like these, they will find that hypnosis feels like a guided meditation they might find in a yoga class or by listening to a relaxation app. Often, I can help my young clients modify their thoughts, feelings and behaviors quickly and easily using the power of positive suggestion, guided imagery and simple post-hypnotic suggestion. Occasionally, though, I need to literally ask the subconscious mind for help understanding the root cause of the problem and enlist its aid in bringing about the change we’re hoping to achieve. No matter which of the many tried and true methods I choose to use from my hypnotherapist “toolbelt,” my goal is always to help my youngest clients resolve their issues while protecting them from any distress, discomfort or embarrassment during our time together.

Hypnotherapy Can Remove Blocks to Your Child’s Progress Before They Become Too Deeply Rooted

My point is simply that the old-school idea of expecting young people to “grow out of it” or “put the past behind them” may not always be the best method for helping our children fully realize their potential. Parents today are more in touch with their children’s emotional and psychological needs, and are willing to take the time to find the right resources to help their youngsters cope with the stressors of the culture in which we now live. In many cases, hypnotherapy offers a safe, gentle way to clear the subconscious blocks to your child’s progress and well-being before they become so deeply rooted that they have a profound effect on his or her personality and approach to life.

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Hypnotherapy uses gentle meditation and relaxation techniques to help thoughts and troubles fade into the background – allowing the mind to embrace new methods for coping, and replacing old negative message with positive thoughts and actions. Unlike the “stage” hypnotists you may have seen on television or in the movies, I am an Advanced Clinical Hypnotherapist, certified by both the American Academy of Hypnotherapy and the International Hypnosis Federation. As such, it’s very important to me that every one of my clients (young and old) remains in complete control during hypnosis, remembering everything we’ve said and done, and emerging feeling wonderfully refreshed, relaxed and alert.
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If you have a child who you think might benefit by hypnotherapy, please don’t hesitate to call me at 973-657-0571 or leave me a message below. I’m always available to answer your questions.
 

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