Can hypnotherapy help with weight loss?

The short answer is Yes, the chances are high. But first, let us rephrase this. Using the wording ‘Weight loss’ is almost like assuming the issue you are dealing with is to do with your actual weight. And therefore, will simply vanish when the weight is lost.

Now firstly we can look at two individuals with the same body weight and both can look very different in shape, size, and distribution. One may have a higher percentage of muscle mass than the other one and both individuals can experience different health concerns or body image issues. This can affect a wide range of people, even those you may look at and assume are healthy and confident.

I much prefer the term weight management. It is inclusive of many of the variables people struggle with like keeping their current weight or wanting to tone up in which case your weight may even increase.

Secondly weight alone should not be the motivator for you to make the decision to change your diet and activity levels because motivation and willpower alone are not sustainable. Simply losing weight alone does not guarantee health, happiness, and external valuation.

So, what is your WHY?

If your answer to this question sounds something like: “because I need to” or “because I’m not pretty like this” then let us dig deeper. We need to continue to ask ‘why’ to get to the root cause.

·      Are you wanting to be healthier?

·      Hoping to become happier?

·      Gain confidence

·      Love your body again

I am afraid to say that all the above cannot be guaranteed when losing weight!

But sure, starting to get outside more and connecting with nature, moving more, and possibly even connecting with others by joining a club or Pilates class will help. Your stress levels will decrease and this will cause a chain reaction that will possibly help you eat less ‘out of control’ if that is what you currently do when you are stressed.

And of course, by eating less sugar your skin might brighten up which may lead to more confidence and which may then lead to you making healthier food choices.

See you never know the snowball effect one little change can have.

Understanding and knowledge is key

Once we get to the bottom of your WHY we can work with that information a lot easier. Often enough we can get an answer if we ask the right questions but sometimes your subconscious mind may hold on to this information and so we work with NLP techniques and hypnotherapy to uncover your truth on the same level.

I had many clients work with me to improve their diet and activity levels without wanting to lose weight. Worries about Type II diabetes, increasing weight, loss of control over eating behaviour and struggling to change behaviours despite their good knowledge of food were some of the concerns.

Not all diet related issues have one sole reason that is clear to understand. The range of reasons is endless. I have seen people’s difficult relationship to food start in childhood as a learned behaviour, people having traumas and people struggling to make healthier choices because of their lack of knowledge around food. In some cases, it can be several events both big and small. As you can see this is a very broad and complex topic so I will keep it short.

So how can hypnosis help me lose weight?

I am first and foremost a clinical hypnotherapist, regression hypnotherapist and NLP practitioner. This means I work mostly with the subconscious mind. The subconscious mind is a big part of your brain where all the information gets stored, literally everything that happened before this moment. Beliefs, memories, habits. It gets filtered in there meaning whatever you believe, gets stored in this way whether it’s right or wrong, real, or imagined. Because of this filtering process it’s not that easy to change habits and beliefs but with your conscious mind calm and quiet the subconscious mind can be virtually reprogrammed.

In some instances when we encounter a blockage, we could use regression to root cause hypnotherapy to get to the bottom of the issue that is stopping you from further progress.

We call these road blocks secondary gains. There may be a reason not to do something that subconsciously is stronger than conscious reasons to lose weight. Whether or not you remember consciously, your answers are all stored away and accessible on a subconscious level.

Will hypnotherapy alone help with weight loss?

There is no general answer I can give you in this blog because I do not know you yet. Once I have a clear understanding on the issue at hand and we are working out a plan of action I may recommend other healthcare providers to you, that I trust, that can help you on your journey working alongside me.

How many sessions would I need?

Just like it took a while to learn these behaviours and habits you are now struggling with, it will take a while to install a new program. Depending on the person I would say 3-6 sessions will suffice for most.

You may want to start with a hypnosis recording to listen to at home and get used to my voice and the feeling of being in a hypnotic state. I will share the link to my shop below.

What can you expect when working with me?

A holistic approach. We start at the beginning. Doesn’t every weight loss coach do that? Not necessarily. Often weight is at the top of the priority list. You may get certificates for losing weight or focus on diet alone and the ‘what not to do and eat’. We will start at the beginning. Getting to the root cause of your problem because we want lasting change and not a quick fix!

Overeating, binge eating and emotional eating are all just down streams of a much bigger problem.

If you are running a bath and it’s overflowing, would you dry up the water around the bath or turn off the tap?

Think about it 😊