Happy Boxing Day!

This is my 49th blog of the year. I started on the 13th January 2011 and have managed to write a post a week, publishing every Monday at 9am. Writing the blog has made me look more deeply into the wonderful world of hypnosis, looking at how it is portrayed in the news, how people’s  perception of it is changing, celebrities that have used hypnosis, different areas where hypnosis can be used, and approaching people with new ideas.

On a personal level it has also made me realise that I can write. Having dyslexia, I never felt that writing was my strong point, but I let go of the fear of failure and started to write.

I feel extremely lucky to do my job. I love the challenges I come across and find myself humbled by the people I meet and the strength they manage to find as they work with me to help themselves. I have worked with wonderful people this year, helping them to see that they can change the way they think and approach a situation to turn their life around. Many times I have walked out of the clinic with the biggest smile on my face, feeling very lucky to have been able to help someone help themselves. 

I am looking forward to the clients I will work with in 2012 and to continuing on this wonderful journey.

Thank you. Enjoy the rest of the Christmas break and have a brilliant new year. Make 2012 the year that you start working with the most powerful tool you will ever be given, the power of your mind.

“Erika has helped me more than you can imagine possible. I came to her in the middle of a nervous breakdown suffering from deep grief and traumatised by my loss. She helped me work through all the pain, the complex issues, build on all the positives in my life with a calm gentle manner that has within months enabled me to look forward to Christmas with a smile on my face and genuine happiness. But more than this she has left me not needing her anymore!! – That’s what I call a good therapist!” M, London


"Erika has helped me to regain my positive outlook on life! I've gone from being stressed and confused a month ago to now feeling more focused and confident. With Erika's help I've become decisive enough to make some big changes that have set up an exciting future for me. The results of our sessions have been better than I could've expected!" A, London


“I haven't touched a cigarette!! Today is my 16th day as a non-smoker - I'm so proud of myself but don't want to get complacent. The first few days were really tough, but since then it has got easier and I think about it less and less. I've even been out with people at work or pub and have just stood with them whilst they smoked and it’s actually been fine. I'm starting to feel better in myself, have a bit more energy and plan to start jogging next week. So thank you very much! I'm still taking it one day at a time but those days are getting easier.” L, London


"I just wanted to say thank you for all your help and excellent advice. I’m certainly feeling a lot better generally and couldn’thave done it without you. Thank you!" G, London

© EKTherapies

Stress: Can We Look at it in a Different Way?

The more I work with clients the more I realise that so much of how we feel is down to our perspective. We can be sat in a room and nothing can change and yet we can make ourselves feel stressed as we allow our minds to worry about all the things we have to do. With Christmas round the corner a lot of people feel under an extreme amount of pressure and stress, but if we change the way we view things could we feel less stressed? Christmas is meant to be a time to spend with loved ones and have a few well-earned days off.

I came across this description of how to deal with stress and I thought it was worth sharing.

"A young lady confidently walked around the room, explaining stress management to an audience. She raised a glass of water, and everyone knew she was going to ask the ultimate question, 'half empty or half full?'. ...She fooled them all... "How heavy is this glass of water?" she enquired with a smile.
Answers called out ranged from 8 oz.to 20 oz.


She replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance. In each case it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes."

She continued, "And that's the way it is with stress. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on."

"As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden - holding stress longer and better each time practiced.
"So, as early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don't carry them through the evening and into the night. Pick them up tomorrow.

"Whatever burdens you're carrying now, put them down for a moment. Relax, pick them up later after you've rested. Life is short. Enjoy it, and conquer that stress!"

The power of the mind means that we can create stress from either a perceived threat or a real threat. If we never put down that glass of stress and allow our minds to be free to enjoy the moment we are in, we are never giving our body or mind the chance to unwind. The more we put down the glass of stress and allow our minds to unwind, the lighter the glass will become as it starts to empty, releasing the stress from the day.

It sounds so simple and it can be. I have worked with MDs of companies who seem to be carrying the world on their shoulders and no doubt have stressful jobs; even after one session they begin to see there is a different way, they can feel differently, they can feel calm and enjoy the success of their carriers. You can start helping yourself to manage your stress levels today - with a Hypnotherapy, CBT & NLP session with Erika, you can learn the tools to manage your stress and bring back the feeling of relaxation and happiness in your life. With 2011 nearly at a close it is time to enjoy the festive period and start to put into practice how you want to begin 2012. You don’t have to have a life full of stress and anxiety.

Wherever you are and whatever you are doing over the Christmas period, have a wonderful Christmas.

© EKTherapies

40% of Cancers are Due to Lifestyle According to British Journal of Cancer

The BBC reported last Wednesday that over 40% of cancers are due to our lifestyle. As you read this  don’t feel down hearted, but realise that you can take control of your life and help yourself to have a healthy future. Even changing a few things can help you to feel fitter and healthier and to give your body the best chance of remaining healthy.

Michelle Roberts, the health reporter for the BBC, wrote a fascinating article. To read it in full please click here.

“Nearly half of cancers diagnosed in the UK each year -over 130,000 in total - are caused by avoidable life choices including smoking, drinking and eating the wrong things, a review reveals.

Tobacco is the biggest culprit, causing 23% of cases in men and 15.6% in women, says the Cancer Research UK report.

Next comes a lack of fresh fruit and vegetables in men's diets,while for women it is being overweight.

The report is published in The British Journal of Cancer.

Its authors claim it is the most comprehensive analysis to date on the subject.
Lead author Prof Max Parkin said: "Many people believe cancer is down to fate or 'in the genes' and that it is the luck of the draw whether they get it."
"Looking at all the evidence, it's clear that around 40% of all cancers are caused by things we mostly have the power to change."
For men, the best advice appears to be: stop smoking, eat more fruit and veg and cut down on how much alcohol you drink.

For women, again, the reviews says the best advice is to stop smoking, but also watch your weight.

Prof Parkin said: "We didn't expect to find that eating fruit and vegetables would prove to be so important in protecting men against cancer. And among women we didn't expect being overweight to be more of a risk factor than alcohol."

In total, 14 lifestyle and environmental factors, such as where you live and the job you do, combine to cause 134,000 cancers in the UK each year.

About 100,000 (34%) of the cancers are linked to smoking, diet, alcohol and excess weight.

One in 25 of cancers is linked to a person's job, such as being exposed to chemicals or asbestos.
Some risk factors are well established, such as smoking's link with lung cancer.

But others are less recognised.

For example, for breast cancer, nearly a 10th of the risk comes from being overweight or obese, far out  weighing the impact of whether or not the woman breastfeeds or drinks alcohol.

And for oesophageal or gullet cancer, half of the risk comes from eating too little fruit and veg, while only a fifth of the risk is from alcohol, the report shows.
For stomach cancer, a fifth of the risk comes from having too much salt in the diet, data suggests.

Some cancers, like mouth and throat cancer, are caused almost entirely by lifestyle choices.
But others, like gall bladder cancer, are largely unrelated to lifestyle.

The researchers base their calculations on predicted numbers of cases for 18 different types of cancer in 2010, using UK incidence figures for the 15-year period from 1993 to 2007.

Dr Rachel Thompson, of the World Cancer Research Fund, said the report added to the "now overwhelmingly strong evidence that our cancer risk is affected by our lifestyles".
Dr Harpal Kumar, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said leading a healthy lifestyle did not guarantee a person would not get cancer but the study showed "we can significantly stack the odds in our favour".

"If there are things we can do to reduce our risk of cancer we should do as much as we possibly can," he said.

Public Health Minister Anne Milton said: "We all know that around 23,000 cases of lung cancer could be stopped each year in England if people didn't smoke.

By making small changes we can cut our risk of serious health problems - give up smoking, watch what you drink, get more exercise and keep an eye on your weight."

Whilst not all cancers or any illness are completely preventable some cancers are. Start making the changes today to help your body and mind be as healthy as they can be - book a Hypnotherapy, CBT & NLP session with Erika and begin to take charge of your health.

© EKTherapies

Looking for an Unusual Christmas Gift?

Do you know someone who has always been curious to know more about hypnotherapy? Is there someone who would benefit from having some new tools in their toolbox to help them take the step to achieving their goals?

If you are looking for a different gift idea why not give someone a Hypnotherapy, CBT & NLP consultation. The session is an hour long and it will give them a chance to learn a bit more about hypnotherapy and to see how hypnotherapy, CBT & NLP can help them to achieve their goals.

Even after just one session they will feel empowered and confident that they are starting to head in the right direction, taking steps to achieve their goals. There is no obligation for them to have more sessions.

Don’t take my word for it, here are a testimonials from people who have started to work with the power of their mind.

"Erika kindly explained to me the benefits of hypnosis and I subsequently had three sessions in order to tackle issues with confidence. Immediately after the first session I noticed a difference and this continued throughout the course. Every session Erika gave me techniques to ensure I could manage my confidence levels outside of the sessions, which was extremely useful. Erika exudes positivity and professionalism which puts you at ease with the process and I was confident that she was able to help me. I am very glad I attended the sessions, as it has completely changed my life and I would recommend it to anyone to enhance their life." Liz, London

"Erika has helped me to regain my positive outlook on life! I've gone from being stressed and confused a month ago to now feeling more focused and confident. With Erika's help I've become decisive enough to make some big changes that have set up an exciting future for me. The results of our sessions have been better than I could've expected!" Andy, London

Click here to see the kind of things that can be treated.

Please contact Erika to arrange a personalised gift voucher today. This Christmas, give someone the gift of working with the most powerful tool they will ever have: themselves.

"The greatest revolution of our generation is the discovery that human beings, by changing the inner attitude of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives." William James

© EKTherapies

What is Fight or Flight Response?

Fight or flight is a natural healthy response within our body to a perceived threat or danger. Thousands of years ago we led very different lives, much more physically challenging and dangerous lives. We didn’t have sharp claws or teeth to protect us from the world around us, and we had to be able to react very quickly to threats around us. In those days there were two simple choices, we could either fight or we could run (flight).

The fight or flight response is one of the most important parts of our make-up and a highly efficient survival response for dangerous times. When we are in fight or flight mode hormones like adrenaline and cortisol are released; these speed up the heart rate, slow down digestion, and shift the blood flow to major muscle groups, giving the body a burst of energy and strength so we can react to the situation at hand. In the times of cavemen the threats were simple and straight forward - a wild animal or a member from an enemy tribe for example - these were very serious and dangerous threats requiring a quick reaction.

Nowadays we still have our fight or flight response; the dangerous situations have changed, but the biggest difference is that we now don’t always release that pent up stress.

Our bodies are built to deal with short times of heightened awareness and stress, it is a vital part of our survival, but the problem comes when we continue to keep our bodies in the heightened state, the stress state.

Our body/mind can’t differentiate between a real threat and a perceived threat. You can get the same chemical reactions just by thinking about a stressful situation, for example, a bill needing to be paid,  going over a situation you experienced – reliving it in your mind, or worrying about an upcoming situation; then when it happens it was so much better/easier than you thought, but all that energy you spent worrying about it has had a harmful effect on your body.

Our body tries to re balance but the hormones are still flying around; gradually they begin to have a permanent effect on our health, long-term health problems start to develop.

The wonderful thing is that you can control this; you can learn what your stressors are and how you can de-stress yourself. A hypnotherapy, CBT & NLP session can help you by working out a range of mechanisms with Erika which will equip you to deal with stress better for the rest of your life.

© EKTherapies

Surgeons told to Hypnotise your patient

Came across this article by Amelia Hill written for The Observer in June 2009 and had to share it.

“Doctors should be taught to hypnotise patients not to feel pain instead of using general anaesthetics during some operations, the Royal Society of Medicine will be told today.


In what he has described as a "clarion call to the British medical profession", Professor David Spiegel, of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences at Stanford University in the US, will also call on the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) to add hypnotherapy to its list of approved therapeutic techniques for the treatment of conditions ranging from allergies and high blood pressure to the pain associated with bone marrow transplantation, cancer treatment and anaesthesia for liver biopsy. Nice has already approved the technique for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome.


"It is time for hypnosis to work its way into the mainstream of British medicine," Spiegel will say at the joint conference of the Royal Society of Medicine, the British Society of Clinical and Academic Hypnosis and the British Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis.
"There is solid science behind what sounds like mysticism and we need to get that message across to the bodies that influence this area. Hypnosis has no negative side-effects. It makes operations quicker, as the patient is able to talk to the surgeon as the operation proceeds, and it is cheaper than conventional pain relief. Since it does not interfere with the workings of the body, the patient recovers faster, too.


"It is also extremely powerful as a means of pain relief. Hypnosis has been accepted and rejected because people are nervous of it. They think it's either too powerful or not powerful enough, but, although the public are sceptical, the hardest part of the procedure is getting other doctors to accept it."

Professor Marie-Elisabeth Faymonville, head of the Pain Clinic at Liege University Hospital in Belgium, who has operated on more than 6,000 patients using hypnosis combined with alight local anaesthetic, said: "The local anaesthetic is used only to deaden the surface of the skin while a scalpel slices through it. It has no effect inside the body.

"The patient is conscious throughout the operation and this helps the doctor and patient work together.The patient may have to move during an operation and it's simple to get them to do so if they remain conscious. We've even done a hysterectomy using the procedure."


The theory behind medical hypnosis is that the body's brain and nervous system can't always distinguish an imagined situation from a real occurrence. This means the brain can act on any image or verbal suggestion as if it were reality. Hypnosis puts patients into a state of deep relaxation that is very susceptible to imagery. The more vivid this imagery, the greater the effect on the body.

Dr Martin Wall, president of the Section Hypnosis and Psychosomatic Medicine at the Royal Society of Medicine, said hypnosis fundamentally alters a subject's state of mind. Hypnosis is not, he said, simply a matter of suggestibility and relaxation.
Nice said it would welcome submissions for hypnotherapy to be considered as an approved therapeutic technique on the NHS if it could be cost-effective, and consistent delivery could be guaranteed.

But Professor Steve Field, who chairs the Royal College of General Practitioners, said he was sceptical as to whether hypnotherapy could meet these standards.
"It is a useful tool used by some GPs and patients for relaxation, but I don't think it is something that we should support being rolled out to all medical students and all doctors,"  he said.


"We can't call on the NHS to support it without there being a firm medical and economic basis, and I'm not convinced those have been proved to exist."


It is brilliant to see hypnotherapy becoming more and more recognized for the amazing therapy it is. Although there is still a long way to go and there needs to be guidelines put in place for governing bodies etc, it is a great step in the right direction.


To find out what other things hypnotherapy, CBT and NLP can help with please click here.

Does Hypnotherapy Really Work?

When I tell people I’m a hypnotherapist, they often ask “does hypnotherapy actually work ?”

For years within science, there were debates as to whether hypnosis existed or worked and sceptics often claimed that people in hypnosis were play-acting. But that has now all changed. In February 2002 the first conclusive scientific proof that hypnosis produces clear changes in the mind was presented by Professor David Spiegel of Stanford University School of Medicine in California at the America Association for the Advancement of Science conference.

Eight subjects were hypnotised and monitored using special scanning techniques called PET (Positron Emission Tomography) which measures blood flow to the brain.

Professor Spiegel said: “When people believe there is colour in the picture, their brains process the colour even if it isn’t there. They are not just telling you what you want to hear; the way their brains respond to the information is actually being changed. Under hypnosis, believing is seeing.”

Spiegel’s findings demonstrate that hypnosis has biological as well as psychological effects, disproving the cynics and supporting the application of hypnosis in a medical setting.

Spiegel said: “There has been a whole school of argument that hypnosis is nothing more than an exaggerated form of social compliance. This is evidence that they are not just telling you what they think you want to hear. They are actually perceiving things differently.”

For many of us, having scientific proof will help us to believe in hypnotherapy but there will be people who ask: “Is it all just a placebo?” With any therapy or drug there is always a placebo element to it – you believe that by taking this pill or receiving that therapy you will get better. By telling this to your mind it begins to happen. Hypnotherapy in that aspect is no different from any other treatment but it is also highly effective at changing the patterns we get into so that we can look at things in a new way and achieve our goals. Even the NHS has now recognised the benefits of hypnotherapy.

Look at other aspects in life where we are driven by our subconscious and the messages around us, such as in the media where the subliminal messages we pick up around us can influence our choices.

Marketers use branding to tap into our subconscious – take McDonalds for example. Their colours are red and yellow/golden, that’s because, according to the colour theory, these colours are known to subconsciously trigger hunger and/or induce excitement. These colours encourage guests to spend more and leave quickly, which is exactly what fast food restaurants want you to do. McDondalds has now started making the stores green, which is a colour we associate with health and the environment. As the world is becoming more conscious about the effects that certain foods have on our health and the damage we are doing to the planet, McDonalds is moving with the times making their fast food restaurants remain appealing.

Personally I have experienced many clients changing the way they look at a situation, their perception and becoming much happier people. I find my work so rewarding, seeing someone transform from the very first session full of anxiety to now enjoying life far more.

It is time to start working with your mind, take the first steps today to achieving your goals.

Click here to see what kind of things can be treated using Hypnotherapy, CBT & NLP.

© EKTherapies