Children and Hypnotherapy

Many people are surprised to discover that hypnotherapy techniques can be used very effectively with children from as young as three years old. The truth is children can sometimes be even more receptive to treatments than adults.

This is mainly because children already spend much of their time in a kind of natural ‘trance’ anyway, totally engrossed in whatever activity is preoccupying them at any given moment.

When we observe children listening avidly to an exciting story, absorbed in an engrossing play activity, or glued to the television when their favourite programme comes on, they are exhibiting trance-like behaviour.

Children are also expert in using their imagination & creativity – needing little or no encouragement to enter into their own inner world.

This innate ability to engage with their intensely rich and vivid imaginations makes children ideal candidates for hypnotherapy – although the techniques a therapist uses with a child will usually differ from the approaches they may use with adults.

Stories, role-play, puppets, magic tricks, dressing-up and visualisations are all highly effective ways of engaging children in the process of therapy.

I also find that children are often much more open to new experiences and do not usually have the same fears or misconceptions that an adult might have accrued about hypnosis.

Challenges for Children

The world in which we live provides many challenges for children. Like adults, they have their own problems and at one time or another, will experience stress or anxiety. This can manifest itself in a number of different ways – all of which can have a huge impact on the family as well as the individual child.

Sometimes a child may feel overwhelmed or may not even understand why they are acting or feeling the way they do and in these cases, therapy could be of benefit.

Parents seek help for their children for a wide range of issues which include: bedwetting, confidence and self esteem, toilet training, fear of the dark, fear of the dentist, school phobias, unwanted eating habits, thumb-sucking and school performance – the list is endless and amazingly diverse.

A therapist would usually be willing to discuss any issue in detail with a parent before advising whether they felt hypnotherapy would be an effective course of treatment.

Finding a Therapist

Not all therapists are comfortable with children or particularly want to work with them, so it is important not to make this assumption.

The key to finding a good therapist for your child is to look for someone who has a genuine interest in this area of work and who can relate to both you and your child. It sounds so obvious, but the therapist should understand that any child’s problem is just as serious and important as an adult’s.

Parents are also vital to the success of therapy, so although the child should be at centre of the sessions, parents should also feel involved and included in the process.

MG