Inspiring Changes - Counselling, Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy

15/12/2025

**Christmas Therapy — Holding Space for Joy, Grief, and Everything In Between**

Christmas is often wrapped in glittering expectations: joy, togetherness, celebration. And for many, it is. But for others, the season brings emotional complexity. Grief, loneliness, family tension, or quiet sadness can surface beneath the sparkle. Therapy offers a space to hold all of it; the joy, the ache, and the truth.

Clients often describe feeling 'off' or 'not themselves' during the holidays. They may feel disconnected from the festive mood, overwhelmed by social pressure, or triggered by family dynamics. Some are grieving a loved one lost, a relationship changed, a version of life that no longer exists. Others are navigating solitude, estrangement, or emotional fatigue.

In therapy, we explore what Christmas means to you, not what it’s supposed to mean. We unpack the emotional layers: nostalgia, sadness, hope, resentment, love. Clients often discover that their feelings make sense, even if they don’t match the cultural script.

We also work with nervous system regulation. The holidays can be overstimulating; loud, busy, emotionally charged. Therapy offers tools to stay grounded: breathwork, pacing, boundaries, and self-compassion. Clients learn to respond to emotional triggers with clarity, not collapse.

For those grieving, therapy becomes a space to remember. We talk about the person who’s missing, the rituals that feel tender, the moments that feel heavy. We honour the love, the loss, and the ongoing connection. Clients often say, “I didn’t realise how much I needed to talk about them.” Therapy makes that possible.

For those feeling alone, we explore what connection can look like - not just externally, but internally. Clients learn to connect with themselves, their values, and their emotional truth. They begin to build rituals that feel meaningful, even if they’re quiet or unconventional.

Importantly, therapy doesn’t aim to 'fix' Christmas. It helps you experience it authentically. Whether that means joy, grief, or a mix of both, you’re allowed to feel it. You’re allowed to opt out, opt in, or create something new.

Clients often leave therapy feeling more grounded, more self-compassionate, and more able to navigate the season with choice. They stop trying to match the mood, and start honouring their own.

If Christmas feels complicated this year, know that you’re not alone. Therapy offers a space to feel, reflect, and reconnect, with care, clarity, and emotional safety.

14/12/2025

12/12/2025

**Hypnotherapy for Creative Flow & Confidence - Releasing the Blocks That Keep You Silent**

Creativity isn’t just output, it’s emotional truth. It’s how we express, connect, and make meaning. Whether it’s writing, performing, designing, or innovating, creativity requires vulnerability, presence, and trust. And yet, many clients struggle to access it. They feel blocked, stuck, or silenced. They procrastinate, self-sabotage, or over-edit. They hear the inner critic louder than their own voice.

These blocks aren’t just about discipline or time management. They’re often rooted in fear, self-doubt, and unconscious resistance. Clients may carry beliefs such as “I’ll be judged”, “I’m not good enough” or “If I fail, I’ll be rejected.”

Hypnotherapy helps bypass these blocks by working directly with the unconscious mind, the part that holds emotional memory, identity, and protective strategies. In a hypnotic state, clients access deeper resources and begin to rewire the beliefs that keep them stuck.

We use visualisation, metaphor, and unconscious dialogue to explore what’s blocking expression. A client might visualise their creative voice as a locked room, a tangled thread, or a dimmed light. Through imagery and suggestion, they begin to unlock, untangle, and reignite. These metaphors aren’t just poetic, they’re neurological, helping the brain build new associations with creativity: safety, joy, flow.

We also rehearse new behaviours. Clients might visualise sharing their work, speaking on stage, or starting a project with ease. These visualisations help the nervous system feel safe in situations that previously triggered anxiety or avoidance. Over time, clients report feeling more inspired, less inhibited, and more connected to their creative voice.

Confidence becomes a central focus. Not performative confidence, but embodied self-trust. Clients learn to anchor themselves in their values, their process, and their emotional truth. They stop chasing perfection and start embracing authenticity.

This work is especially helpful for clients who:
• Experience creative blocks or imposter syndrome
• Fear visibility, judgment, or failure
• Struggle with procrastination or over-editing
• Feel disconnected from their creative identity
• Want to create but feel paralysed by self-doubt

Hypnotherapy doesn’t force creativity, it invites it. It creates a safe internal space where expression feels possible, even playful. Clients begin to see creativity not as a test, but as a conversation with themselves.

In my practice, I’ve seen clients move from hesitation to boldness, from fear to flow. They begin to create not for approval, but for connection. They reclaim their voice, and with it, their joy.

If creativity has felt blocked or buried, know that it’s still there. Therapy can help you find it, nurture it, and subsequently let it speak.

11/12/2025

What My Clients Say About...Body Dysmorphia:
i’m not certain as to what was said or suggested but ‘something’ in me is changed; for the better; anyway i look forward to meeting you again soon.

09/12/2025

08/12/2025

**Hypnosis for Health Anxiety & Body Tension - Rebuilding Trust in Your Body**

Health anxiety isn’t just fear, it’s a loop. A relentless cycle of hypervigilance, symptom scanning, and catastrophic thinking. Clients often describe feeling trapped in their bodies, unsure what’s real and what’s imagined. Every sensation becomes a potential threat. Every ache, flutter, or twinge is scrutinised, magnified, and feared.

This isn’t attention-seeking or irrationality, it’s the nervous system trying to protect you. Health anxiety is often rooted in past experiences of illness, loss, trauma, or emotional neglect. The body becomes a battleground, and the mind a hyper-alert sentinel. Clients may spend hours researching symptoms, avoiding medical appointments, or seeking constant reassurance. And yet, the anxiety persists.

Hypnotherapy offers a gentle, effective way to interrupt this loop. It doesn’t dismiss symptoms or offer false reassurance. Instead, it helps clients restore trust in their bodies by calming the nervous system and reframing unconscious beliefs.

In a hypnotic state, the mind becomes more receptive. We use guided imagery, breathwork, and therapeutic suggestion to create new associations with bodily sensations. For example, a client who panics at the feeling of a racing heart might visualise that sensation as a wave, rising, cresting, and passing. They begin to interpret signals with curiosity rather than fear.

We also explore the emotional roots of health anxiety. Often, it’s not just about the body, it’s about control, vulnerability, and fear of loss. Clients may carry unconscious beliefs like “If I’m not hyper-aware, something bad will happen”, “My body is unpredictable and unsafe” or “I have to be in control at all times.”

In hypnosis, we gently challenge these beliefs and offer new ones, suggestions such as My body knows how to heal or I can trust my sensations. The brain begins to build new pathways that support calm and embodied trust.

We also work with body tension, the physical manifestation of anxiety. Clients often experience tight shoulders, clenched jaws, shallow breath, or digestive issues. Hypnotherapy helps release these patterns by guiding the body into parasympathetic rest. Clients learn to breathe deeply, soften muscles, and anchor themselves in the present moment.

This approach is especially helpful for clients who:
• Experience panic attacks or chronic worry about health
• Feel overwhelmed by bodily sensations
• Avoid medical care due to fear
• Struggle with sleep, digestion, or chronic tension
• Have a history of trauma, illness, or caregiving stress

Importantly, hypnotherapy doesn’t replace medical care. It complements it, especially when emotional and neurological factors are involved. It helps clients differentiate between real symptoms and fear-driven interpretations. It builds emotional resilience and body literacy.

Clients often report feeling more grounded, less reactive, and more able to engage with their health calmly. They begin to trust their body’s signals, respond with care, and live with more ease. Health anxiety is a sign that your system needs support. Hypnosis offers that support gently, respectfully, and effectively.

If your body has felt like a source of fear, know that it can become a source of wisdom. Therapy can help you rebuild that relationship - one breath, one belief, one moment at a time.

05/12/2025

**Hypnotherapy & EMDR for Perfectionism & Shame - Releasing the Pressure to Be Enough**

Perfectionism isn’t just about high standards, it’s often rooted in shame, fear of failure, and conditional worth. Clients may feel driven, anxious, and never 'enough'. They might excel externally while crumbling internally. They may struggle to rest, ask for help, or tolerate mistakes. And beneath it all, there’s often a voice wondering if I’m not perfect, will I be loved?

Therapy helps unpack this voice and rewrite the script. Both hypnotherapy and EMDR offer powerful tools to work with perfectionism at its root; the unconscious and emotional memory systems that drive these patterns.

Let’s start with EMDR. This modality helps desensitise emotional memories that fuel shame and fear. For example, a client who was harshly criticised as a child may carry a deep fear of making mistakes. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation (I use eye movements) to reprocess these memories and reinforce adaptive beliefs, such as “I’m allowed to learn,” “I’m safe even when imperfect,” or “My worth isn’t conditional.”

Clients often report feeling lighter, less reactive, and more able to show up authentically. EMDR doesn’t erase the past, it helps the brain store it differently. The emotional charge fades, and new beliefs take root.

Hypnotherapy complements this beautifully. While EMDR targets past experiences, hypnosis can work with present beliefs and future behaviours. In a relaxed, focused state, clients explore the unconscious narratives that drive perfectionism, such as “I have to earn love”, "I’ll be rejected if I fail” or “I’m only valuable when I’m productive.”

In hypnosis, we gently challenge these beliefs and offer new ones: “I am enough,” “I can rest without guilt,” “Mistakes are part of growth.” These aren’t just affirmations, they’re neural rewrites. The brain begins to build new associations with rest, imperfection, and self-worth.

We also use guided imagery to rehearse new behaviours. Clients might visualise setting a boundary or receiving feedback with calm. These visualisations help the nervous system feel safe in situations that previously triggered shame or anxiety.
This work is especially helpful for clients who:
• Struggle with burnout or over-functioning
• Fear criticism or rejection
• Avoid vulnerability or emotional expression
• Feel paralysed by decision-making or creative blocks
• Experience chronic guilt or imposter syndrome

Importantly, therapy doesn’t aim to eliminate ambition or excellence. It helps clients separate their worth from their output. They learn to pursue goals with joy, not fear. They begin to rest without apology, connect without performance, and live without the constant pressure to prove.

Perfectionism isn’t a personality trait; it’s a survival strategy. And therapy helps you retire it, gently and effectively. If you’ve been living under the weight of “not being good enough,” know that you are. Therapy can help you feel it, live it, and believe it.

04/12/2025

Getting diagnosed with ADHD recently made so much make sense. I’d struggled for years without knowing why. The diagnosis helped, but working with you has been a total game-changer. I’m way better at managing my emotions now, and I can actually focus during conversations! I really appreciate how you adapted to work with the way my brain works too! !