Sexual Abuse and Hypnotherapy
Sexual abuse and hypnotherapy is a very controversial topic – or it should be controversial – because you must exercise extreme caution when using hypnotherapy with clients who have been sexually abused. One of my graduates is working with two young women in her London clinic. Both have been referred to her by their Mum. Her mum is keen to help the girls to ‘move on’. The girls want to feel more confident in life and to be less anxious about things they feel challenging.
Do Not Use Direct Regression With Victims of Trauma
This therapist is making great progress. However, as a well trained hypnotherapist, she already knows that you cannot use direct regression to bring abused clients back into an abuse ‘scene’ or experience. I’m not even going to mention false memory syndrome or confabulation in this short post, instead I want to speak about how unethical it is to run the risk of your client saying ‘it feels as if it is happening all over again’.
What Mum needs to know is this: Getting long term lasting results takes time. There are no quick fixes or magical wands. Hypnotherapy isn’t wishy, washy magical thinking – done right it uses a set specific processes grounded in scientific evidence and methodology to build confidence, trust rapport and social engagement while working with polyvagal nerve to reduce arousal of the survival response.
Parents and Loved Ones Can Be Impatient
In cases like this, it is a good idea to speak to the parent who is funding therapy and let them know that good therapy takes time. If they don’t understand the pacing required to successfully work with the verbal and body based trauma narrative – they might inadvertently sabotage their adult children’s success. Parents who are accidentally being pushy might cause your clients to lose faith in you and think things should be moving faster. If they end up giving up rather than staying the distance then they will get nowhere fast. The internet is filled with quick fixes and magical cures – any hypnotherapist who tells you they can ‘cure’ you or who uses the word ‘cure’ is falling foul of advertising standards. So choose your therapist carefully and when you’ve found a client centred one who puts you first – stick with them – they will help you put the past behind you and move on.
Develop Social Engagement and Give Your Clients a Trauma Grounding Kit Before You Attempt To Do Any Kind of Deep Work
The very first thing that this therapist has done, was helped her clients to develop their own trauma grounding kit. You can watch the short fifteen minute Master Class on the importance of developing a trauma grounding kit by clicking <<< HERE >>>
Free 15 Minute Working With Trauma Master Class
Here’s what you will learn…
As part of my Healing Trauma With Hypnosis Training I’ve produced a free Master Class. It’s short and to the point.
- Three critical pre-therapy tools to help your clients develop a personal grounding kit
- Two ways trauma presents itself in therapy
- Why it’s important to give your clients a coping skill straight away
- How to switch from the verbal narrative and move to the soma narrative effortlessly
- What to do if you have limited therapy experience and have to refer
- Ways this approach will benefit you and your clients even if you have lots of experience
- Understand why it can be difficult to make progress with clients who have experienced trauma