Hypnotherapy

What this is

Let me clear the stage version out of the way first, because it is what most people are quietly worried about. You are not unconscious. You are not asleep. You do not hand over control, you cannot be made to say or do anything you would not otherwise do, and you will remember the session afterward.

What hypnotherapy actually involves is a guided state of deep, focused relaxation — closer to being absorbed in a book, or the last few minutes before sleep, than to anything you have seen on television. In that state the usual commentary in your head gets quieter. You are still there, still deciding, but less busy arguing with yourself. That is the point of it: some things are easier to look at when you are not braced.

Tapping (EFT) often sits alongside this work — sometimes in the same session, sometimes as the thing we use instead, if that turns out to suit you better.

I use hypnotherapy as a complementary approach, not as a replacement for medical care. It is a way of working with the part of you that already knows the fear makes no sense and is frightened anyway. I am honest about what it is: it does not work the same way for everyone, it is not a cure for anything, and I will not promise you a result before I have met you.

What it can help with

People usually come to me for one of these:

• A specific fear — flying, driving, needles, the dentist, elevators, heights
• Anxiety that shows up in your body before you have had a thought about it
• Trouble sleeping, or waking at the same hour every night with the mind already running
• Habits you have decided to stop and keep restarting, including smoking
• Eating patterns that have become about comfort rather than hunger
• Trauma, and living with PTSD — the tension, the startle, the broken sleep that stayed behind after something difficult
• Nerves before something specific: an exam, a performance, a presentation, a wedding
• Discomfort and tension that a doctor has already looked into, alongside medical care rather than instead of it
• Feeling stuck on something you understand perfectly well and still cannot move

With trauma, I work with what it is doing to you now, not with making you go back and tell it. I work with people living with PTSD; I do not diagnose it, and I make no promise that this removes it. You choose what we touch and when, and you can end any part of a session by saying so.

If what you are dealing with needs medical attention, see your doctor. I will say so if I think that is where you should start.

What a session is like

We work at Center St. Elie in Antelias: a quiet room, a comfortable chair, the door closed.

Nothing happens straight away. The first part is a normal conversation with your eyes open, sitting up. I ask what brought you, what you want to be different, and what worries you about the process — and if what worries you is the process itself, say so, because that is common and it is worth talking through before we begin.

When we do start, I explain exactly what I am about to do before I do it. You stay in your chair. I talk, slowly, and ask you to let your attention settle. You may close your eyes; you do not have to. Some people feel heavy and warm, some feel very ordinary and are convinced nothing is happening. Neither reaction means anything is wrong.

Throughout, you can hear me, you can hear the traffic outside, and you can speak. If you want to open your eyes, sit up, stop, or leave, you do that — nothing is holding you and no permission is required. You cannot get stuck in it.

I will not go rummaging through your past. We work on what you and I agreed on beforehand, in the words you gave me. You are never required to describe a difficult memory in detail, and you can keep something entirely private and still do the work on it.

At the end I bring your attention gradually back to the room and we sit and talk about it while it is fresh. Most people feel calm and a little slowed down afterward. Some feel emotional. Some feel nothing much on the day and notice something in the following week. All of that is within normal range.

Practical details

• Session length: Ask when you message — I’ll tell you before you book
• Fee: Ask when you message — I’ll tell you before you book
• How many sessions: It depends on what you come with. We review as we go, and you decide whether to continue
• Languages: Ask when you message — I’ll tell you before you book
• Where: In person at Center St. Elie in Antelias, or online
• Cancellations: Ask when you message — I’ll tell you before you book
• To book: Message me on WhatsApp or call 03-267-243

Common questions

Will I lose control, or say something I don’t want to say?

No. You stay aware and in charge the entire time. You are not put under and there is nothing to come round from. Nobody can be made to reveal a secret or act against their own values in this state, and if I asked you to do something you objected to, you would simply refuse — the same as you would in any other conversation.

What if I can’t be hypnotized?

People vary a great deal in how they respond, and that is genuinely fine. It is not a test and it is not a measure of willpower or intelligence. Plenty of people arrive certain it will not work on them. If it turns out not to suit you, we say so honestly and use a different approach — I work in several.

Is it safe if I have been through something traumatic?

It can be, and the safeguard is that you stay in charge of what we open. I do not ask you to describe the event, and we agree beforehand on what the session is for. If you have a PTSD diagnosis or you are in psychiatric care, tell me, keep that care, and we work around it. If I think hypnotherapy is the wrong starting point for you, I will say so rather than book you in.

Is it guaranteed to work?

No, and I would be careful of anyone who tells you otherwise. Hypnotherapy is a complementary approach. Some people find it helpful, some find it makes little difference, and it is not a treatment for a medical condition. What I can promise is that I will tell you honestly what I think it can and cannot do for your situation.

Do I have to talk about my past?

Only as much as you want to. Some people want to; many come for something entirely present-tense and we never go near their childhood. You set the boundary and I work inside it.

Should I stop my medication or skip my doctor?

No. Never stop or change prescribed medication because of anything done here. This work sits alongside medical care, not in place of it, and any decision about medication belongs with the doctor who prescribed it.

If you have a question you would rather ask before booking — including a skeptical one — message me on WhatsApp or call 03-267-243.

If you are in immediate danger or thinking of harming yourself, please do not wait for an appointment. Call the Embrace Lifeline on 1564 (free and confidential) or the Lebanese Red Cross on 140. This page is not an emergency service.