David Kay
Hypnotherapist & Anxiety Specialist

Need help? How to find a good therapist

Getting the Help You Need Safely

The good news is that with increasingly high standards set by the major hypnotherapy professional organisations, getting the help you need safely is simply a matter of following a few simple guidelines. It is best not to just go through a directory or Internet listings phoning each number until you get a response.

In order to help you choose a properly trained and genuine therapist I have compiled the following advice:

Skills and Competence

Plan A: The short cut method:

Check that the therapist belongs to one of the major hypnotherapy or psychotherapy organisations. There are quite a few of these, and following my own research I have compiled the following list.

These organisations are largely agreed on requirements for membership and progression, such as substantial classroom study, professional insurance, supervision for new members and further training:

Association for Professional Hypnosis and Psychotherapy (APHP)

Association of Christian Counsellors

British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP)

British Institute of Hypnotherapy (BIH)

British Society of Clinical Hypnosis (BSCH)

General Hypnothearpy Register (GHR)

Hypnotherapy Association (HA)

National Council for Hypnotherapy (NCH)

National Council of Psychotherapists (NCP)

National Register of Advanced Hypnotherapists (NRAH)

National Register of Hypnotherapists and Psychotherapists (NRHP)

UK Council for Psychotherapy

It is perfectly okay to actually ask to see an up to date certificate of membership, or go to the organisation's website and get the therapist's name from their list of practitioners (use the appropriate link above).

Plan B: only applies if you are interested in a therapist from another organisation not mentioned above

Check! that the therapist has undergone a course of around 150 hours of classroom training over about a one year period. In my opinion, correspondence or Internet courses are not sufficient.

Check! that the therapist carries an up to date certificate of professional insurance that covers hypnotherapy and psychotherapy. It's okay to ask to see it!

Check! whether the outfit seems professional, especially if you are seeing someone in their own home. Ask yourself: can I really relax here? Trust your intuition.

Check! It is an advantage if the therapist also has an up to date CRB enhanced disclosure. These were difficult to obtain until recently but are now available to all practitioners.

Personal Qualities - this is important regardless of qualifications and memberships

Positives: The "good therapist" is always in the same pleasant mood, and genuinely interested in you. The genuine therapist will have no agenda other than a desire to help you get better, whilst making an honest living.

Negatives: The therapist should not be aggressive, over-controlling, cold or detached, soppy or mothering, and should not flirt with you.

Any of the following should sound the alarm:

! You feel no warmth or empathy from the therapist. Think: if you don't sense that the therapist cares about you at all, they probably don't.

! The therapist overreacts emotionally, is easily upset during the session, or when you don't do what s/he wants.

! The therapist seems to want to control everything, wont' answer questions, show you certificates, or you find him/her aggressive or unnerving.

! The therapist seeks to stop you from taking prescribed medication. (This could have severe consequences)

! The therapist keeps suggesting or directing you to memories, interpretations or solutions you do not recognise. This is called 'leading' and has the potential to spoil any success you might have, or even make things worse. Think: if you can't remember something, may be it never happened.

! The therapist suggests a sexual relationship, or a social relationship outside of the consulting room.

Getting the right type of therapy

There are many different styles of therapy. Make sure that the person you are going to work with actually practices (and believes in) a style of therapy suited to what you want. If you are new to most of this or really don't mind "as long as it works", find an experienced therapist who practices a variety of different methods. S/he will then be in a reasonable position to advise you.

Some examples of very different styles of therapy are:

Analysis, regression, psychodynamic therapy - seek to resolve the root causes of your problems in childhood

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) - seeks to change the way you think and behave now

Solution focused therapy, suggestion therapy, NLP - brief therapies that move you towards solutions to current difficulties

Transpersonal therapy - looks for answers in the transcendent or spiritual dimensions of human existence

Do you need a specialist?

Many minor problems can be dealt with effectively by any properly trained therapist. But if you suffer from a more serious problem, such as depression or an anxiety disorder, you will do best to find someone who specialises or is particularly experienced with your kind of problem.

Free Advice

If you would like further explanation of these points please email me using the following link. I will try to answer any questions within 2 working days.

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