Learning hypnotherapy, weekend 2.1

Following on from the first weekend of the hypnotherapy diploma I'm doing, last weekend was another school weekend. This time covering age regression. It's very odd having such vivid memories from being 5. Everything was crystal clear. I'm not fully convinced that the memory was what actually happened, rather than just my brain making up a convincing situation for back then (it was just a normal day, with me playing with toys on the living room floor). On the way back up from age 5, I also stopped of at 12 and 19. Still wasn't quite as strange as being 5 though :) I think I found it more interesting from the therapist point of view than from the clients, and it was also the first time I'd had anyone speaking while in trance - it was lot like someone speaking when they're just starting to wake in the morning (which I should have probably expected, seeing as they're in a hypnopompic state at that time).

Given that we were just practicing in the classroom, we obviously stayed away from visiting any stressful memories, but I can see how useful this technique would be to help people deal with things from their past. Although there was still a fair few abreactions (spontaneous emotional release, such as crying or laughing) from various people. Abreactions are one of the things that doing a hands on course helps a lot with. If they had happened to me while practicing stuff I'd learnt from books, I think I'd probably have crapped myself and think I'd broken the person or something :)

The 2nd day of the weekend was going to be covering past life regression, but thanks to all the snow we had that weekend, two of the lecturers couldn't make it so we had to postpone it. Shame though, cos that would have been interesting. Not that I believe in past lives, but it still would have been good to see what my brain conjures up for me :) Looks like I'll have to wait a little longer to find out the answer to that one.

A new non-smoker

The follow up to my first smoking cessation session was yesterday. I think it went really well, and I definitely feel more confident about my abilities now. I was speaking to my friend today, and he's very pleased with how he's feeling at the moment. He also mentioned that he's noticed how bad cigarettes smell. He's even noticed the smell of cigarette smoke on some of his clothes. He did wonder if he wanted a cigarette last night while he was with other people smoking, but as soon he did - he took a deep breath, and then exhaled and felt nice and calm without the need for a cigarette (the deep breath thing was a kind of anchor I'd installed to make the cigarette craving go away). The thing that surprised him about it wasn't that it worked so well, but that he didn't seem to decided to use it. He just did it automatically without thinking. Hopefully it wont wear off before he's completely passed the wanting to smoke stage. It's a bit early to say for sure how well it's worked, but if he is finding anything difficult, I'll happily do some 'top up' session for him.

I should be doing another smoking cessation session early next week for his girlfriend, she wants to quit smoking as well. So if they're stopping to smoke at the same time, it should make it easier for both of them.

Something that did seem slightly unusual is that he's the only person (so far) that's thought the hypnosis part of the session lasted longer than it really did. Everyone else has always been surprised that it took a lot longer than it seemed to them. Everyone is different though, and I'm sure he wont the only person to make that comment.