Once welcomed in to the therapy room the process of fact finding can begin, this is a reciprocal process with both wanting answers to the many necessary questions they have. A therapist can initially find out what it is that has brought the client to seek hypnotherapy, what problem do they wish to address. By seeking out the reasons for the client being there the hypnotherapist can look further in to the background of the client. What other remedies have they sought before, have they received counselling, how long have they had the problem, why are they choosing now to address it, has anyone influenced them seeking help. Other factors may influence the problem they are wishing to solve, for example the desire for weight loss may be linked to low self esteem issues stemming from childhood. By pinpointing as accurately as possible the root cause of any problem means a greater rate of success. The therapist can use this time to educate the client about the process of hypnotherapy, the importance of defining the problem and how the course of therapy will take place. The more the client understands about the entire process the more confident in it and the therapists abilities they will become establishing good rapport and making communication more open and honest. Many people will still be under the impression that any hypnosis will be like stage hypnosis where someone is put in a trance and made to do ludicrous acts; it is important for a therapist to outline the differences and what exactly is going to happen, what a trance state feels like, how the subconscious mind is reached in order to affect changes, what they may experience during and afterwards and most importantly emphasise that the client is in control at all times. Many hypnotherapists produce a leaflet explaining the process which the client can take away with them to read before the therapy begins.
However the initial consultation isn’t only about targeting the problem and any underlying issues. There are other important and ethical steps to be covered. Such as the client’s medical history and background, whether they are taking any medication. It is of paramount importance to discover whether a client has any mental health issues that cannot be dealt with using hypnotherapy. Hypnosis can only be used to treat neuroses and not psychoses. For the safety of both client and therapist it must be established whether a client has had any history of a psychotic disorder. People with psychoses are often unaware that they have a problem; there are two types – functional psychoses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and organic psychosis such as alzheimers and Parkinson’s disease. By asking relevant questions a hypnotherapist should be able to pick up clues to whether someone has a psychotic disorder during the initial consultation and refer them to the correct experts or their GP.
A set of questions are asked during the initial interview at the ‘notation’ stage where a therapist will have a written list of questions on a form to fill in. These include name and address and contact details; this is vital for being able to communicate and clients should be asked the name by which they prefer to be called and whether certain phone numbers can be called or messages left on an ansaphone. Other questions include occupation or previous occupations which help to build up a picture of who the client is and if they have or have ever suffered problems through work which may be affecting self esteem. GP name and address is included even though it is unlikely a therapist will contact a GP or a GP will divulge information about a patient but it is an indicator if the client is reluctant to give the name and address something may be amiss. By asking what medication the client is taking and any family medical history allows the therapist to check with the British National Formulary directory to see if they are being treated for something that ethically the therapist cannot treat. There will be some more probing questions such as relationship problems, hobbies, financial problems, phobias and fears, therapy experience, childhood experiences. As mentioned before these questions will not only alert the therapist to whether he can ethically work with a client but will also highlight if there is any background to the current problems they are seeking to redress.
A therapist can also use this time to make sure they do not already know the person they are about to treat or are close to any immediate family members. The therapist must also ensure they do not have any personal sexual attraction for the client and vice versa, in these cases it would be unethical to allow the therapy to go ahead as this would interfere with therapy and the client needs to be referred to another therapist for treatment.
Asking the notation questions is an excellent time to build rapport. Whilst putting the client at ease the process of hypnosis can be addressed and how the course of treatment is to progress. A lot of people who visit a hypnotherapist will have very little experience or knowledge about how the therapy works and will be anxious to have this explained to them. The hypnotherapist will be able to ascertain how many sessions any particular client will need initially and fees can be agreed upon at this stage. By outlining what hypnosis is and how it works, what a client is likely to experience and what may happen the client will feel more at ease and feel more likely to trust not only the therapist but the process itself. The client needs to be encouraged to ask as many questions as they like.
The initial consultation is also perfect for assessing a client’s modality type whether they are kinaesthetic, visual or auditory. This is vital to be able to write a personalised induction which will help put the therapist in touch with the subconscious of the client far more successfully allowing the best opportunity for changes to take place. A therapist will be able to look for clues such as language cues, lateral eye movements, voice, tone, breathing, posture and gesture to ascertain the modality type. They can even use a screed assessment to work out whether a client would prefer an authoritarian or permissive style of induction. This can be in the form of a questionnaire directly asked to the client or the therapist can make their own notes during the initial consultation to be referred to afterwards. The therapist can get a good idea of a ‘special place’ the client may have that can be described during hypnosis, any likes, dislikes, favourite colours, smells, childhood memories that may be of relevance. It is fundamental that their goal with hypnotherapy is clearly expressed and make sure the goal is attainable.
The client can also be reassured as to confidentiality, with the process of secure and coded filing explained. This will help the client to feel they can ‘open up’ fully and trust that their details will be kept secure.
Some hypnotherapists will use this time to try out some suggestibility tests to see how open someone is to hypnotherapy and there are many short tests that can be used for this purpose. This will give a useful insight in how to approach individuals and how many sessions may be likely depending on the problem presented.
In conclusion the initial consultation is a vital and important part of the entire process of hypnotherapy. Ethical issues are important and it is at this stage discoveries are made as to whether it is ethical to continue with a particular client or not. It is important for both hypnotherapist and client to ‘get it right’ to feel at ease with each other, know that they can work together to achieve the successes they both want for the client. By asking pertinent questions a therapist can gain useful insights in to the character of a client, some personal history which will aid pinpointing the root cause of a problem, build rapport and trust, make modality assessments which will be used throughout the course of the therapy and of course educate the client as to their own professional abilities and the process of hypnotherapy. For the client they too can gain a useful insight in how much they are going to be relaxed and trust their therapist, how the process will work, costs and timescales involved. It all aids to relax the client and open them up to hypnotherapy and increase the likelihood of a successful result.
References
Hypnosis For Change Josie Hadley, Carol Staudacher
Principles of Hypnotherapy Vera Peiffer