Why Children Might Come to a Hypnotherapist

Issues, for which hypnotic methods and tools are a helpful response, include doing homework, performing better in the classroom, getting to school and liking it, improving grades, friendlessness, thumb sucking, bedwetting, nightmares and fear of the dark, stealing, low self-esteem, dealing with divorce or death in a family, illness - their own or someone in the family and a myriad of other problems.

One of the most frequent reasons children are brought to hypnotherapists is for learning improvement. When it comes to school life, there are many problems children can develop. This may be one of the largest areas of concerns for parents and one for which good marketing can reap good results. Such arenas as reading, writing, memory, getting homework done, grades, peer pressure and friendships, classroom deportment, self-esteem and even wanting to be in school are effectively and easily handled, for the most part, by one or two hypnosis sessions.

The Power of the Imagination

The imagination of children is very keen until parents, teachers and others interfere. In many schools, the style of teaching in the classroom can tend to rule out the playful and imaginative, once children pass the second or third grade. When adults consider daydreaming worthless, when they call attention to its “cuteness” to others and associate imagination with lying, or otherwise imply ridicule and non-belief, the child gradually lets it weaken.

The doorway between the conscious and the unconscious mind is the imagination. For children, it is relatively easy to reach at the deepest levels, in a much quicker time than required by a good many adults. Stories, adventures, visualization, imaginative games, role-playing, magic, puppets and costumes work most effectively with children. Any tools that stimulate the imagination should be at the hypnotherapist's disposal.

What Hypnosis Can Do For Children

Hypnosis works well because there are less years of reinforcing imprints on one's mind. Children are more susceptible to hypnosis. They have the drive to discover and they hunger for new experiences. They are open to new learnings, willing to receive and respond to new ideas, as long as they are presented in an understandable way. Children are usually easily relaxed and focused. They have an ability to change and to be versatile, and, before the age of twelve, to accept most ideas uncritically. They are not as dominated by rational questioning and concerns that adults have formed through their life experiences. Also, they do not have the fears and misconceptions about hypnosis that so many adults have. This makes it relatively easy to work with them.

Working with children is a wonderful specialty. The benefits of hypnosis with children are the same as for adults, as long as their problems are treated as seriously as adults. Hypnosis is a powerful tool in strengthening a child's confidence. It helps a child to feel empowered where, before, they have been “victim.” It releases willingness to use their natural gifts. It elicits talent and creativity. It provides a wonderful foundation in their education. With a good hypnotherapist, children can experience true success in their lives in all areas. They feel happier, and have a sense of real freedom.

Source: CHILDREN AND HYPNOSIS by Del Hunter Morrill, M.S., C.C.H.

Antonia Stuart-James is an English Hypnotherapist in Belgium helping people make positive change.