Do you suddenly feel bitter without a reason… during a perfectly normal conversation? Have you tried to forget the past but it seems like it will never let you go? Are you desperate to be happy and peaceful… but it does not seem possible? If yes, this post is for you.

Your past might seem like a big shadow demon hovering over you with a huge rake. You may have confided in people before and they may have told you that a shadow cannot harm you. “Just be happy,” they might have told you. But we know how harmful these shadows can be.

That is why you must use hypnotherapy to break free of your past traumas. As a quick intro, let’s just say that it calms you down almost immediately. 

Intrigued? Keep reading to find out more.

Overview of Trauma and PTSD

Your emotional reaction to a disturbing situation happening to you or others around you is called Trauma. An accident, destruction due to a natural disaster, assault/abuse, or any life-threatening situation can traumatise you. If you braved abuse or neglect by your family, care-givers, or partner… you may feel the same sense of sadness and fear after many years pass. It is not something you should be ashamed of. Unfortunately, people around you might tell you to do exactly that. 

Sincere advice: Don’t listen to them! Don’t be afraid of finding help.

You might not even know that your trauma never left you. Do you have flashbacks, nightmares, anxiety, depression, and a numb feeling in your mind? Your psychologist might tell you that you have PTSD if you keep feeling like this. However, you must visit a medical professional as soon as possible if you have any of these symptoms.

Another thing: You won’t be able to let go of your dark feelings if you have PTSD. You might freeze, run, or become aggressive instead. Also, you may start cancelling your plans to go out and curl up under your bedsheets instead. 

None of these things is healthy… or even acceptable… for you. 

Custom treatment methods for this disorder are: cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), antidepressants, antipsychotics, and exposure therapy. 

However, hypnotherapy is different from these approaches because it focuses on your subconscious mind to mange your symptoms.

How Hypnotherapy for Trauma Works?

By taking a structured approach. Your hypnotherapist will help you with opening your mind to reach the dormant part of your mind. The whole process goes like this:

Initial Consultation and Assessment

Objective: The hypnotherapist understands the client’s history, trauma experiences, and current symptoms.

What Happens: The hypnotherapist assesses you thoroughly. They discuss your background, specific trauma, emotional responses, and any treatments you tried before. This session also includes setting treatment goals, explaining the hypnotherapy process, and addressing any concerns or questions the client may have.

Induction into a Trance State

Objective: The hypnotherapist gives you auditory cues to help you enter a relaxed, focused state of mind. It is necessary to access your subconscious mind.

What Happens: The hypnotherapist uses techniques such as progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing exercises, or guided imagery to help the client relax. Gradually, the therapist leads the client into a deeper trance state characterised by heightened focus and receptivity. The client remains fully conscious and in control during this process.

Develop a Sense of Safety

Objective: The hypnotherapist creates a cooperative surrounding for you. It is necessary so you can feel safe enough to think about anything… good or bad.

What Happens: They guide you into a trance-like state of mind because that is how you can reach your hidden mind. During this process, techniques such as visualisations are used to instil a sense of safety. This may include creating a mental “safe space” where the client feels calm and secure. This helps the client feel  in control and safe prior to the deeper healing work.

Exploration and Reprocessing of Trauma

Objective: The hypnotherapist accesses and reframes traumatic memories, reducing their emotional charge.

What happens: The therapist gently guides the client to recall the traumatic event or related emotions. The goal is not to relive the trauma but to observe and process the emotions from a safe distance. We often introduce new resources to transform the trauma, such as inviting the adult self to protect the inner child or creating a protective safety bubble to shield from external influences.

Techniques like Inner Child Therapy and Gestalt Therapy may be employed. In Inner Child Therapy, revisiting past experiences can bring empowerment, while Gestalt Therapy allows clients to feel heard and understood as they express their true feelings to another party, such as a parent.

Positive Suggestions and Reinforcement

Objective: The hypnotherapist implants positive beliefs and builds strong mechanisms in the subconscious mind.

What Happens: While the client is in a suggestible state, the therapist introduces positive affirmations and suggestions aimed at developing resilience, self-compassion, and healthy strategies. They modify these suggestions according to your goals and what you need. This helps you make new and constructive thought patterns and behaviours.

Ego Strengthening and Future Pacing

Objective: The hypnotherapist strengthens the client’s sense of self and prepares them for future challenges.

What Happens: The hypnotherapist works on enhancing the client’s self-esteem and inner strength, often through affirmations and visualisations. Future pacing means that you can visualise upcoming negative situations and apply your new skills. This practice will prepare you for real life situations and make you more confident.

Gradual Return to Conscious Awareness

Objective: The hypnotherapist safely guides the client back to full conscious awareness.

What Happens: They bring you out of your trance gently. How? They may count or just suggest that you wake up. Note that you will remember everything that happened in your trance-like state. You can discuss your findings and make plans for the next session.

Post-Session Reflection and Integration

Objective: The hypnotherapist reflects on the session’s outcomes and plans further treatment.

What Happens: You discuss the session with your therapist. You can be as random and chatty as you want. However, you must focus on the memories and emotions you felt. Also, tell them how you felt about the positive suggestions. You can plan the next steps together, which may be about more hypnotherapy sessions or additional therapies.

It is important to remember that each person’s journey with hypnotherapy is different, and you can adjust the process to suit your needs and preferences.

Is Hypnotherapy for Trauma Scientifically Proven?

Research indicates that trauma-focused therapies can lead to a reduction in symptoms for 60-90% of individuals, varying based on the specific therapy and individual characteristics. 

For example, clinical hypnotherapy is very beneficial for people suffering with trauma. Studies show that 70-80% of participants got better. This approach facilitates healing by accessing and dealing with trauma-related issues within the subconscious mind.

More research must be done to prove hypnotherapy as a standalone treatment for trauma. However, ongoing studies show that it is a useful part of a detailed treatment plan.

Trauma Hypnotherapy vs. Other Treatment Methods

Trauma hypnotherapy is different from other modalities, i.e. talk therapies and medicines because it focuses more on accessing the subconscious mind. It allows you to recognize and resolve traumatic memories at a deeper, subconscious level while custom talk therapies focus on changing conscious thoughts and behaviours. 

This is particularly beneficial for addressing deeply rooted emotional responses that may not be easily accessible through those therapies. 

Hypnotherapy aims to deal with the underlying emotional and psychological roots of trauma unlike medication, which primarily addresses the symptoms of trauma, such as anxiety and depression. Medications can provide relief but often do not resolve the core issues. 

Hypnotherapy changes you for the better (that’s what you have heard for each and every therapy and medicine… we know). However, its edge is your subconscious mind.  Also, it does not have side effects like medicines. This is great if you want to choose a wholesome treatment method. You can discuss with your therapist and combine hypnotherapy with other methods too.

Related Read: How to Overcome Childhood Trauma? Ways to Heal Childhood Trauma as an Adult

Why Use Hypnotherapy for Trauma?

Here are some advantages:

• Non-Invasive and Drug-Free: It is a natural method without meds. You don’t even need occasional injections or IVs here.

• Safe Surroundings to Recall Trauma: You revisit your hurtful memories through hypnosis without getting overwhelmed. Your hypnotherapist is always there to help you go through it.

• Emotional Regulation: This method helps you make fruitful future plans, strategies and emotional regulation skills. You can reduce your anxiety and depression by dealing with hidden issues you didn’t know were there.

• Self-Awareness: You might learn more about your subconscious inner self. It allows you to replace your negative thoughts with positive behaviour. This self-awareness develops a sense of control that speeds up your healing journey.

• Long-Lasting Results: Hypnotherapy can create lasting changes by targeting the root causes of trauma and reshaping the way you perceive and respond to your experiences.

Case Study: How Laura Won Against Her Trauma with Hypnotherapy

Laura’s journey is a strong and hopeful proof of how you can use hypnotherapy to overcome the deep-seated effects of your trauma. from a fearful, anxious, and overwhelmed person, she turned into a collected and peaceful lady. 

She learned to control her emotions and reactions in negative situations. Her case proves that hypnotherapy can cure emotional wounds and increase personal growth.

Background

Laura had a horrible experience that destroyed her mental and emotional health. A home break-in made her afraid of everything and everyone… so much that she couldn’t get out of it. As a result, she became hyper-alert, had bad dreams every night, and couldn’t stay alone for long. These symptoms made her daily life miserable.

So, what happened finally? She pushed her friends away. She avoided every possible situation that reminded her of that break-in. What’s more, she couldn’t focus on her career properly because she was forever looking over her shoulder.

Finally, she realised that her trauma was overwhelming her. So, she decided to visit a therapist.

Finding Help

Laura chose hypnotherapy after searching long and hard for a suitable treatment method. The idea of “using your subconscious mind to resolve your trauma” piqued her curiosity and interest. So, she found a hypnotherapist who was an expert in treating traumas.

Using Hypnotherapy to Manage Trauma

Laura’s treatment involved a personalised hypnotherapy plan adjusted to her specific experiences and symptoms. The initial sessions focused on building trust and creating a safe space for Laura to explore her feelings. 

Our hypnotherapist explained how hypnotherapy could help reframe negative associations, unlink the emotions of traumatic memories and bring empowerment.

Induction and Deepening

The hypnotherapy sessions began with Laura being guided into a deeply relaxed state through progressive relaxation techniques and guided imagery. We call it induction. 

It helped Laura enter a trance state where her subconscious mind became more open to accept suggestions. Then, her therapist used deepening techniques to let her stay in this state without feeling afraid.

Trauma Reprocessing

Laura’s therapist guided her to visualise and focus on her trauma once she went into a trance. The goal was to allow Laura to observe the event from a safe distance, helping her process the emotions associated with it. 

We invited adult Laura to come into the scene to support, nurture and empower her younger self, gaining the learnings from the experience. 

Laura felt great! She felt as if she had thrown off a huge burden from her shoulders straight into the dumpster. She let go of her murky, broiling memories and moved into the sunlight (metaphorically). 

Positive Suggestions and Reinforcement

Our hypnotherapist introduced inner child empowerment, broadened Laura’s perspective, and fostered forgiveness in back-to-back sessions. They knew what she actually wanted from this therapy, any therapy… a feeling that she won’t have to look over her shoulder for the rest of her life. 

These suggestions helped her rearrange her thoughts about the trauma. The affirmations also increased her tolerance level. For instance, suggestions like “I am safe and secure in my home” and “I am in control of my emotions” were reinforced during the trance state.

Ego Strengthening and Future Pacing

A critical component of Laura’s treatment was ego strengthening. Her therapist focused on enhancing Laura’s self-esteem and inner resilience—this involved visualisations of successful managing scenarios and affirmations of her strength. 

Future pacing was also used, where Laura envisioned herself confidently handling situations that previously caused fear, such as being alone at home.

Outcomes and Progress

Laura benefitted so much by selecting hypnotherapy for her treatment. She reported a serious reduction in her trauma-related symptoms over time. 

Nightmares and the constant state of hypervigilance diminished. Laura found herself able to stay alone at home without overwhelming fear, a milestone she had not imagined possible.

Laura experienced a bigger change in herself… more than she had imagined. Her mental well being got better along with her anxiety. She met with her friends again, found new hobbies, and became a generally happy person. 

Her confidence in the workplace improved, allowing her to take on new challenges and responsibilities. Hypnotherapy also helped her understand her inner self better… along with how she communicated with others. She made progress quickly once she realised her shortcomings.

Result

Laura’s case tells you about the importance and weight of hypnotherapy in recovering from trauma. By accessing the subconscious mind and working through deeply ingrained fears, hypnotherapy provided Laura with a pathway to healing and personal growth.

You must consider hypnotherapy to manage your own trauma If you were moved by Laura’s experience.

In a Nutshell

Hypnotherapy is a safe and wholesome treatment method that helps you resolve your hidden traumas. You can revisit and change your built-in responses in hurtful situations by reaching out to your subconscious mind. 

If you want to try and see if hypnotherapy can come through, our team of experienced and compassionate hypnotherapists is dedicated to help you. So, Book a Free Consultation, and don’t let trauma control you—make it happen with hypnotherapy!