You’ve probably seen how glamorous hypnotherapists are being portrayed in movies or TV shows. They help police solve crimes, make people obey commands, and even trace back a person’s past life. But did you know that hypnotherapy is a form of alternative medicine used to help treat various ailments?
With all the positive feedback that hypnotherapy has been receiving through the years, it’s not surprising that more people want to learn about it. If you ever wondered about becoming a hypnotherapist, you should know that there are varied requirements to become one.
Depending on the career path you choose, you may be required to at least have a bachelor’s degree. Sometimes, a medical degree or a doctorate in behavioral sciences may be required. You need to map out your hypnotherapy training to ensure a rewarding career or practice.
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The Time Has Come For Hypnotherapy
Nowadays, more people choose to use natural or non-invasive ways to improve their health. For example, advances in technology gave rise to light therapy, which has shown promise in treating various skin conditions and may even help with depression without the use of drugs or surgery.
As for weight loss, many people are sticking to natural approaches that include psychotherapy, under which hypnotherapy can be categorized. These approaches aim to bring positive changes in a person’s thoughts and emotions to improve health.
That said, people who plan on using this technique should carefully study the benefits that can be gained through hypnotherapy. Many people have enjoyed much success with hypnosis as an alternative therapeutic approach. Still, hypnotherapy has its pros and cons, which you must consider before trying it out or making it your career path.
So, What Do Hypnotherapists Do?
Before you jump into taking hypnotherapy courses, it may help to know just what hypnotherapists do. If you become one, you’ll primarily use hypnosis or a range of techniques that tap into a person’s subconscious mind through relaxation. This approach can help in bringing about behavioral and emotional changes to improve one’s health.
The typical cases where hypnotherapy can be used include substance abuse, traumas, breaking smoking habits, marriage and family counseling, pain management, weight problems, depression, stress reduction, and even phobias.
Is Hypnotherapy Right For You?
Sure, anyone can learn the tricks of doing hypnosis. But if you want to make a rewarding career out of it, you need to have the right mindset and skills to become a professional and certified hypnotherapist.
Here are six essential questions to ask yourself so you’ll know if a hypnotherapy career is right for you:
Are You A People Person?
Being a hypnotherapist means working closely with people. The work involved is similar to that of doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals. In other words, you need to take care of your patients or clients. If you want to pursue a career as a hypnotherapist, you must have the skills to make people trust you and feel comfortable around you.
Are You Comfortable In An Office Work Setup?
While there are some instances where a hypnotherapist may be called to do out-of-office work like in the movies, you will spend a big chunk of your time in a relaxed office setting. So, if you are an adventurous type who wants to go out a lot, this career choice may not be the right fit for you.
Hypnotherapy sessions are almost always conducted in the office. On the upside, since this alternative medicine approach mainly deals with the mind and emotions, it’s necessary to have a tranquil and comfortable office environment. Thus, you’ll be working in a more relaxed mode compared to other jobs.
Can You Keep A Secret?
With the relaxed and comfortable atmosphere expected of a hypnotherapist clinic, it may be easy to forget that hypnotherapy is a profession. Its practitioners are professionals. Thus, there are standards to be met. One of those would be confidentiality.
Like in a medical doctor-patient relationship, a hypnotherapist shouldn’t divulge to anyone the personal information shared by their client or patient. Talking about your patients to anyone outside your work will be a serious breach of your professionalism. It can affect your reputation and practice.
Do You Have Good Communication Skills?
As a hypnotherapist, you’ll be treating different types of clients with different cases. Unlike other jobs that are fixed in front of computers, hypnotherapy involves a lot of talking and interacting with people. So, any aspiring hypnotherapist must have good communication skills. To tap into the subconscious mind, you must have a way with words to help your patients.
Can You Run Your Own Business?
Most hypnotherapists run their own private practice. So, it would help if you had good business skills to be financially successful in this field. Just like setting up any business, your first few months will have a slow start as you establish your presence in your area. You’ll implement your own marketing strategies that include handing out business cards, joining related organizations, giving free talks about your work, and even putting out ads in local media.
Also, like a regular business, you should be able to find ways to lower your expenses while improving your margins. It would help if you put in the hours to make your practice worth all your efforts. That said, many hypnotherapists avoid the private practice route and instead apply for jobs in other clinics or a hospital setting.
Are You Willing To Take Qualifications?
As mentioned earlier, there are many requirements for becoming a hypnotherapist. It would help if you had a bachelor’s degree. But other than college courses, you also need to get certifications. There are various certification courses that you can take.
Just make sure that the training and workshops you undergo have been certified by recognized organizations like the National Council for Hypnotherapy (UK), the General Hypnotherapy Standards Council (UK), or the American Association of Professional Hypnotherapists (US).
Final Thoughts
There’s no doubt that hypnotherapy and other approaches to alternative medicine will continue to grow in the coming years. If you plan to join the ranks of successful hypnotherapists, you need to know the pros and cons of hypnotherapy. You should also evaluate yourself if you’ll fit the job. Apart from a college or a doctoral degree, it would be best if you meet other qualifications related to this profession.
Among other things, you primarily need to have good people skills, business acumen, communication skills, a firm grasp of confidentiality practices, a willingness to take certifications, and be comfortable in an office work setup.
