Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many therapists have moved to telehealth. I am among those therapists. Despite some growing pains (aka some technology issues that were only just a little embarrassing but not egregious), telehealth has been working quite nicely with hypnosis. Why? Because in my office, clients wear a pair of headphones and so do I while doing hypnotherapy. What’s nice is that over telehealth, things feel pretty similar–you can hear my voice through headphones and I can hear yours. For some sessions, I also play pre-recorded audio tracks, which patients hear over their headphones via telehealth. The major difference is that I keep an eye on you over a secure video so I can monitor how you’re reacting and feeling during the session.

As a hypnotherapist, I felt like it was important for me to experience hypnosis over telehealth. I recruited a colleague who uses the same protocol to test it out. Though talking before the session felt less personal than in-person, the hypnotherapy session itself didn’t feel all that much different from what I’ve experienced in the past. (Some of you might know this, but I found hypnoanalysis by seeking therapy myself, so I have a lot of experience with the protocol from the client perspective.) My colleague played the relaxation over the headphones and the relaxation was just as relaxing as in person; in fact, I may have been SLIGHTLY more relaxed because I was in a calm, peaceful place in my apartment and didn’t feel as much “pressure” to relax. The session itself went really smoothly; she kept the video camera on me to watch how I was doing. After the session was over, I was both impressed and excited at how well telehealth worked for hypnosis.

Although I myself miss the in person connection with people, I have been pleased with how well hypnotherapy via telehealth is working. Of course, when I can, I will be heading back to the office; however, telehealth is opening up a lot of possibilities to provide therapy for people who don’t have a lot of therapists in their areas.

Please reach out if you have questions about hypnosis via teletherapy.