Sandra Wilson Clinical Hypnotherapy
Women's Anxiety and Trauma Specialist
Sandra Wilson
BSc hons HPD DSFH
Top-rated Clinical Hypnotherapist/
Psychotherapist
Hi, I'm Sandra, a Clinical Hypnotherapist who helps women with anxiety, ADHD, trauma/PTSD, unwanted habits, sexual/intimacy problems, menopause symptoms, low body confidence, relationship issues and low self esteem. Get in touch for a friendly chat.
I can help you feel so much better - watch my video below for a short explanation about what hypnotherapy is and how I can help!
Have you been feeling highly anxious, unable to cope or less than "good enough"?
If you are visiting my site, chances are you are feeling very anxious and you realise that NOW is the time to get some help. So many things affect us women at different stages of our lives. You may have recently had an ADHD diagnosis or suspect you might have it. Maybe you have been struggling to cope with overwhelming anxiety about your relationship or sex life. Health anxiety and driving anxiety can be common as we grow older. Perhaps you are experiencing anxiety related to peri/menopause. Maybe your body confidence is at an all-time low, and you hate the way you look (again, very common in women!). Maybe you just feel unworthy or undeserving, and unable to shake off this horrible feeling. Low self worth can happen as a result of constantly comparing yourself to others, believing you are just not good enough and lacking the confidence to take action that you probably know you really need to take - especially if it involves speaking up for yourself and asking for what YOU want! It does NOT have to be this way and you can get help - you are in the right place right now! Did you know that you have a powerful ability deep within you that can allow you to accept and love who you are NO MATTER WHAT? No matter what kind of childhood you had, no matter how badly others have treated you, no matter how much you have judged and blamed yourself and no matter how much you believe you don't deserve good things? Are you ready to start afresh? Don't waste any more of your valuable time fretting - book a call with me right now.
My video, below, explains more about what hypnotherapy is, and how I could help you. Just get in touch, it is a simple step on the road to feeling better, more in control and with a new found confidence that may just surprise you. I understand how you feel, I have been there and I came out smiling on the other side! Don't wait around for the right time, book your free 30 minute chat with me NOW!
Contacting me is very easy - please complete this form which will send me an automatic email. I will then contact you to book a call where we can discuss your own particular needs. PLEASE CHECK SPAM/JUNK for my reply if you don't receive an email to your inbox!
How can hypnotherapy help me?
ANXIETY, ANGER AND LOW MOOD
Our happiness and well-being can sometimes be hijacked by our brain's primitive "fight or flight" mechanism which is designed to keep us safe. It considers that you being alive is more important than you being happy! Typically you might notice symptoms such as panic attacks, catastrophic thinking, mood swings, negative assumptions about situations/people in your life and self-criticism. Your work might be suffering, your mental well-being might be nose-diving, your relationships may feel very strained. Perhaps you feel angry a lot - women are not generally encouraged to feel and express this. It's common to feel a loss of control over your emotions when you feel a lot of anxiety. I also work a lot with OCD, TRAUMA and PTSD which all fall under the anxiety umbrella. Hypnotherapy can help you gain control back and get some fresh positive perspective.
RELATIONSHIPS AND SEXUAL PROBLEMS
It is not uncommon to experience ups and downs in our close personal relationships, but you may just feel really unhappy with how you are being treated, or there may be a mismatch in your sex drive that is not usually a problem. In midlife years, many factors such as kids, work, ill health and looking after elderly parents can take their toll. Perhaps your relationship has run its course and you are too scared to make a change. You may want more sex - or less sex - or none at all! But your needs are not acknowledged or even respected by your partner. You may be angry, resentful and feel disconnected from them. You might also notice a lot of guilt or pressure to have sex. If you feel deep down that you are not being treated right and you need to stand up for yourself, Hypnotherapy can help you figure out what YOU want and gain confidence in how you communicate. This is an essential ingredient in a healthy loving relationship as well as an important tool in ensuring your needs are met and you feel valued/equal in your partnership. Sex issues are sometimes physiological/hormonal (your doctor could help with that) but hypnotherapy can help if the issue is psychological (it often is....)
PERI/MENOPAUSE SYMPTOMS
The menopause can be a challenging life change for so many women. It can cause unpleasant physical and psychological symptoms including anxiety, anger/rage, hot flushes, incontinence, loss of libido, insomnia and re-awakened trauma to name but a few. Women can also experience a loss of self confidence and self esteem at this time of life. It is not uncommon to feel 'past it', invisible, irrelevant, unattractive, unsexy, undervalued and taken for granted. Hypnotherapy can work on two levels : it can help you to relax deeply and it can help you to improve your sense of self-worth in your midlife years. There has been some promising scientific research into the impact of hypnosis on hot flushes too. You may already be on HRT or choose not to be - it works so well for many women, less so for others. Hypnotherapy can be helpful with "mindset" - by this I mean the beliefs you hold that feed into what you "should or shouldn't" be at your age. So much that has been written about women and menopause historically is not necessarily accurate but the tide is turning. I can help you see this important phase as a new opportunity to grow, live and love.
INSOMNIA
Insomnia is extremely common and frustrating. It has many causes, some physical, some environmental and some psychological. Trouble sleeping should always be evaluated by a medical professional but for the type that is caused by anxiety, hypnotherapy can be helpful. When we worry, we release a whole heap of "nasties" into our systems - hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. These are released when the 'fight or flight' mechanism is triggered, to help us run from danger. It is unsurprising, then, that we cannot sleep when we are stressed or worried. We may have worries on our minds, and we may be even more worried when we are unable to sleep, which creates a frustrating "snowball" effect. Hypnotherapy can help you relax and create goals that lead to better sleep habits, as well as challenge unhelpful thinking around sleep.
LOW SELF-ESTEEM AND CONFIDENCE
Low self esteem is a very common problem and stems from negative perceptions and beliefs about who we are and what we are capable of. You might find that you compare yourself to others, especially on social media. Thinking well of yourself is not arrogance.  If you can change the way you think of yourself, and become your own best friend instead of your own worst critic, you can change your life. Hypnotherapy can help you identify unhelpful thinking about yourself, help you to accept who you are, and help you to recognise where you might want to make positive changes. You can learn to assert yourself more confidently, trust in your judgement to make the right decisions and overcome the negative beliefs that might be holding you back, whether this relates to your career, education or personal relationships.
CHANGING UNWANTED HABITS
Do you reach for the chocolate or that next glass of wine all too often, and now it's become a habit that plays havoc with your sleep? Or clothes size? Sugar and alcohol are "quick fixes" that your brain LOVES,but as soon as you decide to quit or cut down, your willpower runs dry very fast. Hence the cycle of quit, feel deprived, need joy, quick fix, feel crappy, quit, feel deprived....you get the drift. It is not just sugar or wine, it could be pulling your hair out (trichotillomania), picking your skin (dermatillomania/), biting your nails, shopping, social media, bedtime procrastination - the list of potential unwanted habits is endless! If you have a compulsion or habit that you want to get on top of, hypnotherapy can help you get to the ROOT CAUSE very fast, and offer insight into what you need to do to ensure your "dopamine" levels are topped up in healthier ways. Sugar is a biggie - who knew that we can get the same effect just by cuddling a cat?!
WEIGHT MANAGEMENT AND HEALTHY EATING
Our relationship with food can be complex. Food nourishes us both physically and emotionally; it is certainly the latter that can cause the problems. Comfort eating is a common response to stress and other difficult emotions that we cannot sit comfortably with.  The brain's "reward" chemicals are stimulated and released when we consume certain foods, especially sugary ones - see above! We learn that in order to survive, we need to comfort eat. But we then find that our weight goes up, and our self-esteem goes down. Hypnotherapy can not only help you increase your tolerance of difficult emotions and strengthen your ability to cope but it can also help you find ways to find more joy and peace in your life. More often than not, you will naturally want to choose healthier eating habits. NB - hypnotherapy is NOT a magic wand, I cannot "programme" you to suddenly hate freshly baked bread or hot chocolate with whipped cream. It is all about recognising where these choices come from, and how you can easily make better ones over the long term.
CHRONIC PAIN, FIBROMYALGIA AND IBS
Many people are surprised to learn how helpful hypnotherapy can be for chronic pain and other chronic conditions. Pain is felt in the body but originates in the brain, and is transmitted through a complex system of neural pathways, a bit like an old-fashioned telephone switchboard. Hypnotherapy can help sufferers feel better simply by learning to relax during the trance process, but they can learn techniques to stimulate helpful neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. These can override pain messages. The solution-focused coaching part of my sessions are designed to do just that, and to help you build confidence in your ability to do those things you used to do and want to do but your condition just holds you back. Hypnotherapy is very helpful in reducing anxiety which has a strong relationship with chronic pain.
Your wound is the place where the light enters
Rumi
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WHY SOLUTION-FOCUSED HYPNOTHERAPY?I practice solution-focused hypnotherapy which combines psychotherapy with hypnosis. I will not analyse why you have your problem during our sessions because I want to help you to focus on your goals and feel better more quickly. You may find this approach a little different but many of my clients say they find it refreshing and empowering, as it enables them to learn about how their minds work, and discover how much power they have to make positive changes. A typical session will involve around 40 minutes of talking, where we will discuss your overall goals and the steps needed to get you there. The remaining 20 minutes is spent in "trance". This is a deeply relaxing experience where you are firmly in control but your conscious (and sometimes negative) inner "chatterbox" is quietened down, enabling me to communicate with your subconscious mind. I will make positive suggestions during this time to help your subconscious mind absorb the changes you want to make.
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WHAT EXACTLY IS HYPNOSIS AND HOW DOES IT WORK?A hypnotic "trance" can be an incredibly relaxing experience that puts you in touch with your subconscious mind. Trance is a natural state of consciousness that we go into several times a day. Have you ever enjoyed a pleasant daydream? Have you ever been so engrossed in a film or a book, that the outside world fades away? If the answer is yes, you were in a trance! It simply means channelled, focused attention on one particular thing. Many people don't realise that when we feel emotional pain and ruminate on our problems, we are also in a trance state. We are exclusively feeling something or thinking about something. In a therapeutic setting, your focus will be on the sense of your body and mind relaxing completely, under my guidance. You will be listening to the sound of my voice, but remain in control at all times. I will gently guide you into a deeply relaxed state so that you are able to absorb therapeutic messages contained within a pleasant visualisation. This state of consciousness will enable you to bypass your negative inner critic, so you are able to take on board the changes you need to make for your benefit. When your conscious mind is free from all its chatter, your subconscious mind is easier to communicate with.
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WILL I BE ABLE TO GET HYPNOTISED?In theory, some people are more susceptible than others, but it is possible for the most cynical, resistant person to be hypnotised. It is important to come with an open mind, and not have any fixed expectations. Most people find the process deeply relaxing and pleasant. If you are committed to getting the best out of the experience, you won't put up any resistance (consciously or subconsciously!). It's also important to bear in mind that hypnotherapy is a two-way process; I do not wave a magic wand and make your problem disappear. Your engagement and involvement throughout the process will be necessary for the success of your treatment.
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DOES HYPNOTHERAPY WORK?If I were to ask everyone who has ever had hypnotherapy, they would all report back different experiences. Some might say yes straight away, but others might find that the effect is more subtle. It might not be immediately obvious. The mind is a strange and compelling thing that we still don't fully understand! What I will say is that when you focus on your problem, it tends to hang around. When you analyse why you have your problem, you could end up tying yourself up in knots trying to find answers. Ask yourself this : do you believe in your mind's ability to overcome barriers, many of which are self-constructed whether we realise this or not? Hypnotherapy can help you to challenge these beliefs and what we are capable of. You will gain better insight into how your mind works and learn techniques to move beyond your problem. It is NOT a magic cure but many people find it offers them a new way of seeing themselves. It is very empowering to know that you are more in control than you think you are, and you are capable of more than you have ever imagined. I have been there too, and it helped me enormously.
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DOES THE SUBCONSCIOUS MIND REALLY EXIST?If I were to ask you if you had ever forgotten to breathe, chances are you would say no, it is automatic. That is because your subconscious mind breathes for you, when your conscious mind is elsewhere. If it were left to your conscious mind, you might forget because of all the other things that you have to think about! Many of our physical and mental processes are subconscious. That is, we do them without awareness. Have you ever driven somewhere familiar and not remembered exactly how you got there? If it is a familiar journey, it is logged in your subconscious. If someone were to step out in front of you and you had to do an emergency stop, would you think about it? No, you would just do it! In a very similar way, negative thoughts and emotions are the same. They just happen, and this can often be the result of unhelpful patterns logged in the subconscious. Through hypnotherapy, I can help you identify and change these patterns.
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DO YOU WORK WITH CHILDREN?Hypnotherapy works well for both adults and children. I have worked successfully with school-avoidance in particular. I hold an enhanced DBS certificate and I am qualified to work with children. Children respond well to hypnotherapy as they have such dynamic imaginations! However, I do not practice hypnotherapy on children younger than 8 years old and not without a parent present at all times. I am happy to have an informal chat about your child's needs and to decide if I am the right person to help them.
Contact Me
If you would like to book an appointment for a consultation please call, email or text me by clicking on links below. I will ring you at a mutually convenient time. If you subscribed to my mailing list, you will get a free consultation (see homepage)
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My appointments are generally offered online via Zoom which is very easy to use. The benefits of online appointments include greater flexibility on timings, being in the comfort of your own home and not having to travel through busy rush hour traffic! If online appointments don't suit you, I may be able to offer face to face - just contact me to discuss options.
Email : sewhypnotherapy@gmail.com
Tel: 07734328834