I am really struggling at the moment with a severely anxious client.  We have done two excellent hypnotherapy sessions, with counselling in between, but he seems to be deteriorating rather than improving. 

He came initially with a fear of flying but it was almost immediately evident that this was a symptom of a much deeper seated anxiety.  He has had very difficult childhood experiences which are clearly now playing a part in his current terrified and anxious state.  He has stepped back from a very stressful job, but his system has been on 24 hour alert for so long, that it seems to have set itself to hyper vigilance and so far we have not managed to turn it down or off.  He is finding it almost impossible to enjoy the moment and is completely submerged in pointless and unfounded worries about the future. 

As is so often the case with such patients, it is only when their lives take a turn for the better and they have an opportunity to relax and enjoy life, that the anxieties surface.  It seems the body and mind get so used to being on watch 24 / 7 that they just cannot stand down and relax.

Fortunately his GP has been sensible and sympathetic and I am sure we will win through in the end.  I did feel some very valuable work was done in our last session that will have a benefit in the coming days.  Fingers crossed, at least.  He is such a very likely young man it makes me wish I really did have a magic wand in my toolbox to cure him instantly instead of going through the long and very, very painful process with him.

I am not a collector.  I don't think I have ever had a collection of anything in my life.  If you collect, you are ultimately exploited by the providers of the collectibles, it seems to me.  I do sometimes like to bring home something from a trip - an ornament, a picture, maybe just a pebble or shell to remind me - maybe that too is a form of collecting. 

I am a wanderer, a voyager, a butterfly, a "fly by the seat of my pants" type of person.  I react and create.  I have faith and intuition.  These reflections are in response to an article I have just read in The Garden magazine about foxgloves. I love foxgloves.  I played with them a a child, making thimbles and dolls cups, and came to no harm. We have wild ones in the garden now which pop up every year in different places, dappled pink and beautiful.  I wonder why one would want to collect dozens of different adaptations when there is so much to enjoy about the original.

Clients say my home is a haven of peace.  It is peaceful.  It is also wild, structured and calm.  Lots of contradictions perhaps, but for me the perfect place.  I have lived in this house now for longer than I have ever lived anywhere in my whole life - 18 years in July.  And whilst I used to enjoy settling in and adapting each new place, staying in one place has enabled me to develop it into somewhere where I can be completely relaxed and at peace with myself. 

A few years ago I was constantly making a statement about me, about my life, my achievements.  Now I am relaxed and content within myself and I hope I provide a peaceful, safe place for clients to find their own way to relax and resolve their problems.

Came back from the US completely chilled but it didn’t take long for life to kick back in. A couple of nights of poor sleep, piles of washing and another suitcase to pack and unpack.... maybe two short trips away were not a good idea right after crossing the Atlantic!

A great session of hypnotherapy with a willing and responsive client can be even more relaxing than a holiday, though, and that’s what I had today. Client so deep and so amazed at the feeling of comfort and relaxation that deep trance induces. As one of two clients have said to me recently, “You could bottle that”. Well, maybe not bottle it, but I can produce an individually tailored CD following a session to maintain the feeling of wellbeing and relaxation.