Green Mountain Hypnosis - Articles , Clinical Hypnosis

But Can You Be Hypnotized?

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 08:00:00 -0500

Have you ever thought, “Hypnosis sounds great, but I’m not sure I can be hypnotized. I have to be in control, and I have trouble relaxing.” Or maybe, “I’m very stubborn.” or “I don’t have a very good attention span.”

If you have, you aren’t alone, and you may be surprised to learn that hypnosis is actually a natural shift in conscious awareness that we typically experience several times a day.

Think about a time when you were working on a task, playing a game, or reading, and were so absorbed in what you were doing that everything else drifted into the background. Someone might have walked into the room and said something, and you sensed their presence but didn’t catch what they said.

Another familiar example is the phenomenon of “highway hypnosis.” The experience of driving along a familiar route, missing your exit because you were absorbed in thought, or realizing that there is a landmark or whole town you don’t remember passing.

You were using your subconscious mind in a state of “auto-pilot” to do the familiar task of driving the car while your conscious mind got bored with the familiarity and wandered off. If something on the road needed your attention, your awareness would have returned immediately, without effort.

Whenever something like this happened to you, you were experiencing a different level of conscious awareness. Moments like that mirror the same kind of focused, inward attention we create during hypnosis.

When you experience hypnosis in a session with a professional hypnotist, they use specific language patterns and suggestions to create the same type of shift in your conscious awareness. In this state, you are more receptive to new ideas and suggestions, and changes in thought patterns and behaviors can be made easily without practice or reinforcement.

What makes someone able to be hypnotized?

All that is required to be hypnotized is a willingness to participate in the process. That's it. Nothing fancy, and no special requirements. The process works with your cooperation, and you stay in control of what you choose to allow.

Each person will experience hypnosis differently, because each mind works in its own natural rhythm. The beauty of it is, there is no wrong way to experience hypnosis. Some people drift into a deeper, heavier feeling. Others stay aware and comfortable.

A skilled hypnotist is working with you, tailoring their approach so that you reach the level of inward focus and state of consciousness that allows change to happen more easily.

Why Does Hypnosis Work?

To understand how hypnosis works, it helps to look at how our subconscious mind organizes information and habits.

Your mind has layers of awareness. Your subconscious mind holds your habits, memories, emotional patterns, and responses. It speaks in imagination and emotion, and it uses information it has gathered over time to prompt your actions and feelings now.

The subconscious mind has the job of protecting us and keeping us alive. We learn from the moment we're born how to interact with the world around us, and all of those lessons and strategies stay with us until we replace them with something better.

There is a filter that sits above the subconscious mind and only allows in certain kinds of information. Your subconscious mind can't hold on to two opposing beliefs at the same time, so your filter, the Conscious Critical Faculty, only lets in information that you already agree with. This is why we think change is hard, because while we are consciously aware of how things should be different, we have trouble implementing them as new behaviors because of the filter.

Where our subconscious responds through imagery and feeling, the conscious mind uses logic, reason, and rational thinking. They work together, but they have very different roles.

When using hypnosis we use a specific set of language patterns, tonality, and suggestions designed to tap into your subconscious through your imagination. Hypnotic language allows that Critical Faculty filter to begin to lift just enough, giving us access to your subconscious mind. In this state of heightened focus we can begin to introduce suggestions for changes that you'd like to see in your life, in a state where you are more open to accepting those suggestions. Because of this, those changes begin to implement naturally and automatically.

You also have certain safeguards in place. Even in hypnosis, you cannot be made to do anything that you are not willing to do. Hypnosis can help you to eliminate the subconscious barriers that may have been holding you back, and help you to build and tap into your resource states more efficiently and effectively.

Creating Lasting Change with Hypnosis

Think of hypnosis as a way of updating old patterns, the way we update a device so it runs more smoothly. Changes can feel big and profound, or they can grow subtly in the background. Either way, they feel natural, as if these new responses have simply become the way it's always been.

All of this means that the question isn’t whether you can be hypnotized. It’s how you want to use the abilities your mind already practices every day.

Discover what changes you can create.

Use the button below to schedule a free strategy call, and let's get started!

Schedule Your free Strategy Call

Can Hypnosis Work For You?

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 12:58:42 -0400

Before I knew what hypnosis was, I was pretty sure it wouldn't work for me.

My partner John had just come back from a hypnosis training and was excited to share what he'd learned. I remember shaking my head, thinking, "I'm a nurse. I deal in science. Hypnosis sounds like swirling eyes, swinging pocket watches, and losing control."

But the experience was completely different, and so much better, than I imagined.

The whole thing felt surprisingly ordinary. I was alert, aware, and entirely in control. I was just more open to what he was suggesting. When he asked me to think of something, or nod my head, or consider a new possibility, it was easy to go along with it. I knew I could open my eyes and stop anytime, yet I stayed because it felt genuinely good to be there.

Afterward, it was like stepping into fresh air after being in a stuffy room. My mind was clearer. I felt energized, motivated, and refreshed, as if I'd slept for hours.

And I was hooked.

Can Hypnosis Work for You?

Have you ever thought, “Hypnosis sounds great, but I’m not sure it can work for me. I need to feel in control,” or “I have trouble relaxing”? Maybe you've said, “I’m stubborn,” or “My attention span isn’t great.”

If you have, you’re not alone. Many people are surprised to discover that hypnosis is a natural state of consciousness you already experience daily.

Think about a time you were so absorbed in an activity, whether it was working intently, playing a game, or reading a great book. When you were so immersed that the rest of the world seemed to fade away. Someone might have come into the room and said something to you, and while you knew they were there, you didn’t really register what they said. In that moment, you experienced a subtle shift in your conscious awareness. And that's exactly what hypnosis feels like.

Another example is the phenomenon known as “highway hypnosis.” Have you ever driven a familiar route and suddenly realized you'd passed a landmark or entire stretch of road without noticing? Your subconscious mind was driving the car on autopilot while your conscious mind drifted off into thought. Yet the moment something required your attention, your mind snapped right back, effortlessly and naturally.

When you work with a professional hypnotist, they use specific language patterns and suggestions designed to create that same natural shift in awareness. In this state, you're more open to accepting new ideas, making it easier to change thought patterns and behaviors without struggle, pressure, or constant reinforcement.

How Hypnosis Creates Real Changes

You can think of hypnosis in the same way we think about updating the operating system on your phone or computer. When our behaviors, habits, and patterns aren’t giving us the results we want, our internal operating system is out of date. Everything still works, it's just using old and outdated information.

Hypnosis accesses your internal operating system directly, clearing out old programs and installing new information, so that everything runs a bit smoother and with better outcomes.

The changes created through hypnosis range from obvious to very subtle. Often these changes are immediately clear, like feeling calmer, more confident, or more at ease in situations that used to be difficult. Other times, these changes are quieter and become obvious when you notice how differently you respond compared to the past.

Because hypnosis works directly with your subconscious mind, your new patterns, habits, and beliefs often feel completely natural, as if that's how it's always been.

How Hypnosis Helps

The mind is remarkably good at change. And once it has the right instructions anything is possible. Hypnosis isn't about giving up control or losing yourself. It's about clearly communicating with the deeper part of your mind to make the results happen that you want.

The beauty of it is, the changes feel effortless, natural, like they've always ben there. And just like me, you can find yourself surprised by just how easy it all was to become hooked on feeling this good.

Discover How Hypnosis Can Help You Create The Changes You've Been Working For

Schedule Your Free Strategy Call Today

Schedule Your Free Strategy Call

"You are not at the mercy of anything!"

Tue, 22 Mar 2022 15:44:48 -0400

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of talking with Dr. Melissa Knight on her weekly podcast Women Living Healthy. We had a great time talking about hypnosis and how people can use it every day to live and feel better.

We talked about what hypnosis is, and how it's used, and I even guide her through a brief hypnosis session. I know you'll enjoy it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIgZtJa497M&list=PPSV

Can You Be Hypnotized?

Wed, 29 Sep 2021 17:02:14 -0400

If you have, you aren’t alone. Many people are surprised to learn that hypnosis is a natural state of consciousness that we all typically experience several times a day.

Have you ever found yourself so immersed in an activity, like working on a task, playing a game, or reading a book, that you were less aware of other things happening around you? Maybe someone came into the room and spoke to you, and while you knew they were there, you didn’t hear what they’d said? Whenever this happened for you, you were experiencing a different level of conscious awareness, and this is exactly what happens during hypnosis.

Another great example is a phenomenon called “highway hypnosis” which refers to the experience of driving along a familiar route, only to find that there is a landmark or whole town you don’t remember going through. You were using your subconscious mind in a state of “auto-pilot” to do the familiar task of driving the car while your conscious mind got bored with the familiarity and wandered off. If something had changed significantly enough, your conscious mind would have snapped back to attention, all without you even being aware that anything had been happening behind the scenes.

When you experience hypnosis with a professional hypnotist or with a therapist, they are using specific language patterns and suggestions to induce the same type of alteration in your conscious awareness. In this state, you are more receptive to new ideas and suggestions, and changes in thought patterns and behaviors can be made easily without practice or reinforcement.

What Is Required to Be Hypnotized?

All that is required to be hypnotized is a willingness to participate in the process and to make positive changes in your life. No matter how good the hypnotist is, they can’t make you do anything.

No two people are just alike, and no two people experience hypnosis the same way. While some may go very quickly into a deep trance that resembles sleep, other people experience the process as a lighter state of trance and are fully aware of everything happening around them. An experienced hypnotist knows which tools and techniques to use to get each client to that state of consciousness that allows change to happen more easily.

Why Does Hypnosis Work?

To understand how hypnosis works, we can look at the mechanics of the mind.

Your mind is the conceptual framework of the processes of your brain, and it is made up of three parts. Imagine an iceberg, with the little part on top, the water line, and the big part of the iceberg underneath.

That big part represents your subconscious mind, and it is immense, and very powerful. Your subconscious mind is in charge of everything that you don’t have conscious control over, like all of your body functions, and also your habits, your behaviors, your emotions, and your inner dialogue.

Your subconscious mind speaks in the language of imagination and emotion and it's always acting in your best interest. When we experience behaviors and feelings that don't fit into how we want to be right now, that's often because the subconscious mind is working with outdated information. We learn from the moment we're born how to interact with the world around us, and all of those lessons and strategies stay with us until we replace them with something better.

The water line on that iceberg represents a filter called the Critical Faculty. That filter sits above the subconscious mind and only allows in certain kinds of information. Your subconscious mind can't hold on to two opposing beliefs at the same time oh, so your Critical Faculty only lets in information that you already agree with. This is why we think that change is hard, because while we are consciously aware of how things should be different if we have trouble implementing them as new behaviors because of the filter.

The top part of the iceberg represents your conscious mind. Your conscious mind is responsible for logic and reason and rational thinking. It's the part of you that knows how you want things to be in your life. Your conscious mind speaks in that language of logic and rational thinking, so not only does it have a language barrier with your subconscious mind it also doesn't have a way to get information through the critical faculty.

This is where hypnosis comes in. When using hypnosis we use a specific set of language patterns, tonality, and words designed to tap into your imagination. During the process your conscious mind inevitably gets a little bored and begins to wander. This detachment of the conscious mind causes that Critical Faculty filter to begin to lift just enough, giving us access to your subconscious mind. In this state of consciousness we can begin to introduce suggestions for changes that you would like to see in your life. Because the filter is thinner, you are more open to accepting those suggestions and those changes begin to implement naturally and automatically.

Creating Changes with Hypnosis

It may be helpful to think about the change process of hypnosis in the same way we think about updating the operating system on our phone or computer. When we find our behaviors and feelings aren’t giving us the results we want, it's a lot like our internal operating system is out of date. Everything is still functioning, it's just using outdated information. You can think of the process of hypnosis as accessing your internal operating system and installing patches and updates, so that everything runs a bit more smoothly, with more functionality, and better outcomes.

The changes that a person is able to create using hypnosis vary in awareness between very profound and very subtle. Oftentimes these changes are immediately obvious, such as when a person experiences less stress, fear, or anxiety in certain situations. Other times the changes are more subtle, or subconscious, and are most apparent when comparing them to past behaviors. One of the most fascinating things about using hypnosis is that you are creating changes in the subconscious mind, so it can often seem as though your new patterns of feelings and behaviors are just how things have always been.🍥

Karen Gray is a Certified Hypnotist, Registered Nurse, and Director of Green Mountain Hypnosis. For more information visit GreenMountainHypnosis.com

Get Started Now

Why Should You See a Hypnotist?

Wed, 07 Oct 2020 18:16:16 -0400

As a professional hypnotist, I am in the business of empowerment. I teach people tools that they can use to accomplish their goals. Sometimes that tool is hypnosis, and sometimes it’s NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), cognitive reframing, self-hypnosis, or something else entirely. Some of the tools I teach are more common, like active listening skills to improve professional performance and memory. And sometimes those tools are more specialized. Working with my clients, we discover together what tools will work best for them, and I can teach them to use those tools easily and effectively.

I use hypnosis to work in the subconscious minds of my clients to help change their perception of events, unlearn unwanted habits, and build better coping strategies and healthier automatic behaviors. It’s not that what they’ve been doing all along is wrong, it’s just that the information the mind has been using to make those decisions may be outdated. Using hypnotic suggestions is like installing updated information in your subconscious mind. I can introduce new ideas that create new patterns of behaviors.

What is Hypnosis?

The myths and misconceptions that surround hypnotherapy often stem from people’s ideas about stage hypnotism as well as what they see in movies and on television. In reality, stage hypnosis is basically an interactive bit of theater, and has about as much in common with clinical hypnosis as television and Hollywood movies have with real life.

The fact is, hypnosis is a clinically proven neurological phenomenon that has valid uses in managing the symptoms of many common conditions, from chronic pain to digestive issues, stress and anxiety to memory and cognition. Simply put, hypnosis is a state of highly focused attention or concentration that is often associated with relaxation and heightened suggestibility. While in hypnosis many people are much more open to helpful suggestions than they usually are.

There are many different types of hypnosis. All of them involve accessing the subconscious mind, where all of your habits, feelings, and behaviors come from and introducing a new way of doing things. Two of the most commonly used methods are “waking hypnosis” and the hypnotic trance. The “hypnotic trance” that we are most familiar with uses language and directed instruction to bring the client to a deep state that resembles (but is not!) sleep to access the subconscious mind and give helpful suggestions for change. “Waking hypnosis” uses specific language techniques to get to the subconscious while the client is fully awake and alert. “Self-hypnosis” is a way to bring yourself into a hypnotic state and give yourself suggestions that most often uses imagery and breathing techniques.

Hypnosis is powerful, versatile, efficient, and effective. It can be used as a tool for physical healing, as well as emotional healing and growth. There are no side effects, and it is completely safe and natural. Imagination is the language of the subconscious mind. Hypnosis uses your own imagination to motivate changes, build better options, better strategies, and take all these new behaviors and make them so automatic it becomes as if that's just how it's always been.

You Are Most Certainly Not Under My Control!

Contrary to popular belief, people under hypnosis are in total control of themselves and will never do anything they would normally find highly objectionable. And in order to be successfully hypnotized, a person must want to undergo the process voluntarily.

The suggestions given to people during a hypnosis session are an important part of how hypnosis works. Many people, probably yourself included, won’t accept or respond to an up-front, direct suggestion. In hypnosis, suggestions are able to get into the mind by bypassing the filter called the “critical factor” and going directly to the subconscious mind where they often take root as important behavioral or psychological changes.

The Hypnotic Process

Change is a process. Nothing is built, torn down, or rebuilt overnight, and a single session of hypnosis does not usually produce lasting results. Like everything else, there are some objections to this rule. When using hypnosis, most smokers are tobacco free after the very first session, and subsequent sessions are used to build up resources like stress management and appetite control if desired. Most often, a person will find the greatest benefit in a series of hypnosis sessions to create small, reasonable changes that you can absolutely live with, and the result is permanent change.

When using hypnosis, repetition is not needed to create permanent changes. Think of it as the difference between training and programming.

When you train someone to do something, you are using repetition to learn a pattern, habit, or behavior. We can use repetition to train the control center of the mind that a certain activity, feeling, or reaction is desirable and eventually, with enough repetition, the control center will accept the change and make it permanent.

This method is effective, and the results are usually permanent, like learning to ride a bike. But it takes a long time, and can be difficult when trying to change habits, reactions, fears, and behaviors.

When you program something, like a computer, you are writing the new behavior, habit, or pattern directly into the control center. When you download a new app on your phone you don’t have to train the phone to use the app and perform the functions. It just happens automatically from now on. Hypnosis allows you to program you mind in the same way

Why Should You See a Hypnotist?

The most frequent uses of clinical hypnosis include weight management, smoking cessation, sleep issues, and stress and anxiety relief.

It is also effective in relieving the effects of digestive issues like IBS and other medical conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure. In many cases, hypnosis is the best first choice in pain management.

Hypnosis is used by business executives to improve confidence and performance. Imaging standing in front of a crowd and speaking with ease and confidence, or easily remembering client details on command.

Professional and weekend athletes use hypnosis to hone their skills and perfect their game. If you have trouble getting the perfect swing or shot, hypnosis can help.

What’s interesting is that you don’t have to be sick or injured or have a bad habit that you need to quit. Many people use hypnosis to improve an already great life. Others use it as a way to relax and reenergize. Hypnosis can (and should) be used as a way to keep you mentally and physically healthy, much like meditation, exercise, and yoga.

Try It For Yourself

You can easily test the benefits of self-hypnosis for yourself. Simply sit down and get comfortable in a quiet setting. Think about something you want to change, some way that you want to be better. Now close your eyes and take a few deep, slow breaths. These deep breathes get you in a mild trance and a state of comfortable relaxation. In this state, imagine yourself exactly how you want to be, being able to do the thing you want to do, as if you have already reached your goal and are already living in your success. Repeat this phrase to yourself ten times either out loud or to yourself:

“Every day, in every way, I am better and better!”

By engaging the imagination and using the direct suggestion in the relaxed state of trance you created for yourself, you are using hypnosis to create real and positive changes in your life.

Using self-hypnosis is a skill that is most effective when it is practiced. Even though a five-minute session can prove very helpful to some people, we recommend using the exercise above for a full week. Try it just before going to sleep, and look for changes in yourself that reflect your goals, like feeling more relaxed, calmer, fewer cravings.∎

Get Started Now

Using Hypnosis for Pain and Anxiety

Mon, 04 Feb 2019 14:49:04 -0500

The idea of hypnosis in healthcare might seem strange or even scary, especially if your first exposure was watching Jafar hypnotize the Sultan in Aladdin, or laughing at your high school classmates during a stage show. In movies, hypnosis is often portrayed as a form of mind control, but when administered by a qualified professional, it can be helpful for treating a number of conditions. Here’s what the research says about its potential benefits.

What is Hypnosis?

According to the American Psychological Association, “hypnosis is a procedure during which a professional suggests while treating someone, that he or she experience changes in sensations, perceptions, thoughts, or behavior.”

I like to explain it to my clients as a "heightened state of awareness and control where you are more able to accept new ideas and suggestions."

Clinical hypnosis puts you into a state of concentration that’s a lot like what you experience when you get lost in a book, movie, or exercise, says Carol Ginandes, an assistant professor of psychology at Harvard University. “We naturally go in and out of that state probably several times a day while we’re awake, whenever we become absorbed in something we’re doing,” she says.

The goal of clinical hypnosis is to help you learn how to access that natural hypnotic state and focus it to create changes in patterns of behavior, Ginandes says.

Being hypnotized can help address psychological problems such as generalized anxiety disorder, phobias, panic attacks, body image issues in cancer survivors, post-traumatic stress disorder, and more. It can also help people with insomnia fall asleep faster, make it easier to quit smoking, and aid weight loss. Hypnosis can even help people relieve pain, deal with skin disorders, and experience fewer migraines.

Hypnosis is not a substitute for medical treatment. Hypnosis is a wonderful adjunct treatment to use in addition to whatever care and expertise is available. No matter what issue you are addressing, I always recommend that you talk with your primary care provider first. Get a diagnosis and start your treatment plan there.

Whether you are using hypnosis, massage, acupuncture, or working with a naturopath or chiropractor, you know that each modality has its own benefits and they all complement each other well. (This is why we sometimes call them "complementary therapies.")

We should all be getting massages, seeing a chiropractor, working with a nutritionist, and seeing a hypnotist. The mind and body have a complicated relationship, and each of these therapies have benefits in improving your overall health.

How Do I Find a Hypnotist?

Look for someone with the right training and credentials. In the US, there is no standard legislation pertaining to the practice of clinical hypnosis, so take your time and do your research. You will want to work with someone who belongs to a reputable organization and can tell you about their initial and ongoing training.

I suggest that you look for someone who has a "client-centered" approach. This means that the whole process is designed to address you specifically. Be careful of those who offer to "fix your problems in one session." Hypnosis is a process, and you should be learning skills and abilities that you can use long after your sessions are over.

You can also find hypnotists that have a medical or mental health background that can help to give you a more rounded experience. If you have a problem during your session, such as accessing traumatic memories, you want to be with someone who is qualified to help you cope. A qualified hypnotist will be able to adjust the session to meet your needs. For example, while treating trauma patients such as combat veterans and rape survivors, some patients responded better to treatment with their eyes open.

Here are a few other ways that hypnosis, done correctly, could help you.

Hypnosis Could Help People With IBS.

Hypnosis can help people deal with the bloating and misery of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). IBS is a functional gastrointestinal disorder, meaning that it’s not explained by a structural or biochemical abnormality, but instead by dysfunction between the gut and brain, says Olafur S. Palsson, a professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

“In [people] with IBS, the brain often fails to dampen uncomfortable sensations from the intestines, and sends signals inappropriately that disturb their functioning and contribute to producing diarrhea or constipation,” Palsson says.

Hypnosis may help the brain correct this inappropriate sensitivity and restore healthier, more comfortable bowel function by allowing people to pay less attention to sensations in the gut, he adds.

Hypnosis Could Help Relieve Chronic Pain.

“A big part of how we [experience pain] is based on what the brain is doing with that information,” Jensen says. When a body part is injured or inflamed, your brain takes input from the body and creates pain as a warning signal, or it doesn’t. Put simply, hypnosis can help refocus the brain on more pleasurable sensations, Jensen says. For example, he might invite a patient to remember a time when they were happy and ask them to re-experience that joy. Or he might ask them to imagine a powerful analgesic making the painful area more comfortable.

Hypnosis Could Make Your Skin Look and Feel Better.

For acne, rosacea, or eczema, your first line of defense is probably a skin cream or other topical product, but hypnosis may also help. These skin problems are caused, at least in part, by inflammation, says Philip Shenefelt, a professor of dermatology at the University of South Florida. “If a person is tense and upset, [those feelings] can aggravate skin conditions via an inflammatory reaction,” he says. Hypnosis may help soothe inflammation by calming your autonomic nervous system, which can have a delicate interplay with your skin, he adds.

Hypnosis Could Make Surgery More Pleasant.

Hypnosis has been shown to reduce anxiety, decrease recovery time, speed up healing, and decrease dependence on medication in patients undergoing surgery, says Jessie Kittle, a clinical assistant professor of medicine at Stanford University. “In procedures where the patient is awake, like biopsies, hypnosis can decrease procedure time, by decreasing the need to pause to deal with discomfort or opioid side effects such as low blood pressure,” she says. Hypnosis can also be used during the pre-op period to help people manage the fear of needles, surgery, or pain, and help prepare patients to better manage post-op discomfort, nausea, and anxiety, she says.

What Else Should I Know Before I Try Hypnosis?

It helps to start with realistic expectations: Sometimes people have a misconception that hypnosis is an instant fix or a magic wand. Hypnosis requires collaboration with your hypnotist. The process of using hypnosis is not something they “do” to you, but a set of skills that you learn with their help. Be prepared to work with your hypnotist to get the benefits.∎

Karen Gray is a Certified Hypnotist, a Registered Nurse, and the Director of Green Mountain Hypnosis. For more information on how you can use hypnosis to change your life, contact Karen at karengray@greenmountainhypnosis.com, or (802) 566-0464.

Interview with a Hypnotist

Sun, 17 Dec 2017 23:28:58 -0500

Change Your Mind, Change Your Life!

My name is Karen Gray.I am a Registered Nurse, a Certified Hypnotist, and the Owner of Green Mountain Hypnosis. I first got interested in learning more about hypnosis when a friend of mine got certified as a hypnotist, and told me all about it.

At first, I was skeptical. As a Nurse, I worked in a world that consisted of science and evidence-based practice, and hypnosis seemed too far out of that field for me. But the more he told me about it, the more I realized that I had been using the fundamentals of hypnosis for years! As I was distracting patients from painful procedures by helping them to visualize a more pleasant experience, and assisting others to use their imaginations to reduce their pain, I was using Hypnosis!

I was officially hooked the moment I was hypnotized for the first time. The experience was profound and I went from being a skeptic to a firm believer in that one session. And the more I learned about hypnosis, the more I believed that I could use those methods in my Nursing career to help my patients more effectively. That was my initial goal when I travelled to Virginia to earn my hypnosis certification from one of the leading Hypnotists in the country.

Once I learned how truly powerful hypnosis is for changing people’s lives, my focus turned to opening my own hypnosis practice in the Upper Valley.

I am licensed as a Registered Nurse in Vermont and New Hampshire, and have been practicing nursing for over a decade. I have Specialty Certifications as a Hypnotist in Pain Management and Stress Management, though I work with clients on a variety of issues, including weight management, fears and phobias, quitting smoking and improving their quality of life.

I run a client-centered hypnosis practice, which means that each client has a unique experience that is designed to meet their specific needs and challenges. There are quite a few hypnotists that run their business with the “One Size Fits All” model, so that each client they see gets the same scripted sessions. Rather than applying the same cookie-cutter method to every person I help, I will carefully consider the best approach for each of my clients. After all, you are a unique individual. Shouldn’t your hypnosis experience reflect that?

I start by talking with my clients about what their goals are, and what changes they want to make in their lives. Often, this is all the information that I need to begin working on making those changes a reality.

Before I put my client into the hypnotic trance, I talk to them about what hypnosis is, and I explain some of the science behind how it works. I take the time to answer all my clients questions and make sure that they have all the information they need to be successful.

Because almost all of us are carrying around some emotional “baggage” that is weighing us down. almost all of my programs include some “emotional housekeeping” This isn’t about revealing your deep dark secrets or having you talk through your issues. This is simply a proven hypnosis technique for allowing you the space and ability to release some of those emotional barriers that you have been holding on to.

Stress is such a prevalent part of our lives that many of us are suffering from the effects of chronic stress. I start by teaching my clients how to use Abdominal Breathing to immediately release stress. In that first session, we tend to work on the “emotional housekeeping”, ego-strengthening, and laying the groundwork for making their changes a reality. In the next sessions, we build on the previous session, making the desired changes more permanent, and increasing the magnitude of the change.

I often use a number of different techniques, such as direct suggestion, NLP, shifting modalities, re-framing, direct line transformation, passive suggestion, empowerment, regression, and visualization. These are all proven techniques, and which one I use depends on what the client's goals and specific needs are, and what techniques they will respond the best to.

My underlying goal is to empower my clients to make the changes in their lives that they want to make. I give them as many tools as I can to accomplish their desires. Each Hypnosis Package includes at least 3 hypnosis sessions, at least one audio hypnosis program on Mp3, and detailed self-hypnosis instruction.

Almost all of my clients experience profound changes in themselves after the very first session, and come back the next week excitedly telling me about how they didn’t even have a slice of cake at the office party, never felt the craving for a cigarette, or felt more confident than they have felt in years!

I offer 3 types of Programs to my clients:

Hypnosis for Change - These 3-session packages are for those who want to eliminate unwanted habits, behaviors, and fears. They are designed for the rapid and lasting resolution of a specific issue. These packages begin with a minimum of three sessions and include an audio hypnosis program and self-hypnosis instruction.

Life Coaching Hypnosis - These multi-session packages are for those who want to amplify their lives - propelling themselves to the next level both personally and professionally. These sessions are designed to increase performance and self-efficacy within and outside of your career. Life coaching packages include up to a dozen sessions over a longer period of time, and include at least one audio hypnosis program, and self-hypnosis instruction.

“Mental Spa” Relaxation Experience - These single “Mental Spa” sessions are intensely relaxing and are designed to provide deep mental and physical relaxation and rejuvenation. Each unique and powerful hour-long hypnosis session is specially created to leave you with a profound sense of calm, a renewed focus, feeling stress free, and as though you have just had a full night’s sleep.

No matter what changes you want to make in your life, and no matter how “stuck in your ways” you believe you are, hypnosis can help. Even if you have “always been afraid of ____”, or you have tried to make this change in the past and been unsuccessful, hypnosis can help.

Choose the Program that is right for you, then call or email me to set up your first appointment. Make the investment in yourself. You will never regret it!

“Believing and investing in yourself is the best way to shift your thinking from a paradigm of excuses to one of solutions.” - Farshad Asl

For more information on using hypnosis to change your life, visit our website at www.GreenMountainHypnosis.com, or contact Karen at karengray@greenmountainhypnosis.com, or call (802) 566-0464.