Hypno-ACT
Be Present
Open Up
Do What Matters
At Wigan Anxiety Centre we offer Hypno-ACT to help clients to overcome their stress, anxiety and fears and start to live the life they want.
Hypno-ACT combines ideas and techniques from hypnosis, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). It is a new and exciting form of helping that aims to give clients a range of skills that they can use in their daily life.
Hypno-ACT is mainly focused on the here and now, rather than rehashing the past. It is an evidence-based approach to helping that is based on the current research and thinking into stress and anxiety disorders.
Our aim is to help you to live recover from your stress and anxiety and to live a better life.
If you are new to hypnosis, it is understandable if you are a bit uncertain about what to expect. If your only experience of hypnosis is what you have seen on television, or stage hypnotists you might even have the wrong impression of what will happen during a hypnotherapy session.
It is best to think of hypnosis as a state of focused attention. You (usually) close your eyes, to reduce distractions, and then you simply follow the instructions that the hypnotherapist gives. The research shows that when we focus our attention in this way, we are more receptive to the suggestions that are made.
So, in hypnosis, if I suggest that you take a deep breath and relax, and you follow that instruction, you are more likely to feel relaxed.
If I suggest that you imagine yourself in the future feeling calmer and dealing with your anxiety, and to focus on how great it feels, you are more likely to feel confident about yourself and your abilities.
So, in hypnosis, you can use that state of focused attention to create positive and meaningful thoughts, feelings and sensations.
In hypnosis:
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a mindfulness-based therapy that has a simple core message: accept what is out of your personal control, and commit to action that improves your life. 100’s of research papers have shown that it is effective for a range of issues, including stress, anxiety, panic attacks and phobias.
The goal of ACT is to create a rich and meaningful life. It does this through focusing on developing a range of skills that help you to build a new relationship with your thoughts and emotions.
The 3 main goals of ACT are:
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a talking therapy that focuses on how your thoughts and behaviours can affect that the way that you feel. CBT covers a wide range of different techniques and ideas that can be effective at helping with anxiety disorders.
3 of the most useful techniques from CBT that we incorporate into treatment are:
Eye Movement Desensitisation & Reprocessing (EMDR) is a technique that was developed to help clients overcome trauma, but it can be used for a variety of emotional issues. It involves the client focusing on thoughts and feelings, while at the same time watching the movements of the coach’s finger. EMDR can create rapid change in some clients.
Although very often used for clients with post-traumatic stress disorder, EMDR can also be an effective technique for a wide range of issues, including;