When people first hear the word hypnotherapy, they often bring a collection of ideas from television, stage shows, or old movies. They may imagine losing control, being put “under,” or having someone else take over their mind. That is not the work I do. In a therapeutic setting, hypnosis is a natural state of focused attention and increased inward awareness. It is not sleep. It is not unconsciousness. It is not performance. It is a way of quieting the surface noise of the mind so that deeper patterns, feelings, memories, and resources can be reached more directly.
Hypnotherapy uses that focused state for healing and change. Sometimes the work is practical and specific: quitting smoking, reducing anxiety, changing a habit, improving confidence, preparing for a medical procedure, or working with pain. But in my experience, people are rarely just a symptom. A person who comes in with anxiety may also be carrying grief. A person who wants to stop smoking may be trying to soothe loneliness or anger. A person who feels blocked may be facing an old wound, an inner conflict, or a question of identity. Good hypnotherapy listens for the whole story beneath the presenting problem.
That is where the word transpersonal becomes important. Transpersonal means “beyond the personal,” but it does not mean vague or abstract. It means that we are not treating the person as a collection of behaviors only. We are working with the whole human being: the emotional life, the body, the subconscious mind, the imagination, the spiritual dimension, the symbolic life, the search for meaning, and the lived experience that shaped the person. When someone asks me, “What is transpersonal hypnotherapy?” I usually say that it is hypnotherapy that respects the full depth of the person sitting in the chair.
Some approaches to hypnosis are built almost entirely around suggestion. A person comes in with a habit, the hypnotist reads a script, and the client is told to change. That can be useful in some cases, but it is not always enough. Human beings are more complex than that. If a habit, fear, or emotional pattern is rooted in an unresolved experience or an unconscious belief, a simple suggestion may only touch the surface. Transpersonal hypnotherapy asks what the symptom is connected to, what meaning it has carried, and what deeper part of the person is trying to be heard or healed.
My own path into this work shaped the way I practice. My training at Juilliard gave me a deep respect for presence, voice, attention, and the subtle communication that happens beneath words. The Colorado School of Counseling Hypnotherapy gave me a strong foundation in clinical hypnotherapy and counseling methods. My training and association with the field of transpersonal psychology and hypnotherapy deepened my understanding of the spiritual, symbolic, and experiential dimensions of healing. Over the years, these influences have become one integrated way of working.
A session with me is not a stage hypnosis show, and it is not a mechanical script. We begin with conversation. I want to understand what brings you in, what you have already tried, what has helped, what has not, and what you hope might be different. I listen for patterns, but I also listen for the person behind the pattern. Your language matters. Your history matters. Your beliefs matter. Your doubts matter too. I do not need a client to believe anything in particular. I do need them to be willing to approach the work honestly.
When we use hypnosis, I guide you into a relaxed and focused state. You remain aware. You remain in control. You can speak, pause, ask questions, or stop. In that state, the conscious mind often becomes quieter, and the subconscious mind becomes more accessible. That is where we may work with old emotional associations, inner imagery, unresolved grief, protective patterns, fear responses, or deeper questions of meaning and direction. The work is gentle, but it can also be profound.
Transpersonal hypnotherapy may be especially helpful for people who sense that their issue is not only behavioral. Some clients come because they feel stuck in a pattern they understand intellectually but cannot seem to change. Some come after loss, trauma, anxiety, or a major life transition. Some are facing questions of purpose, identity, spirituality, or inner conflict. Others are simply tired of treating the surface of the problem and want to understand what is happening at a deeper level.
This does not mean every session is mystical or dramatic. Often the deepest work is quiet. A person may come to understand why a part of them has been afraid. They may discover an inner strength that has been buried for years. They may release an old association, soften a long-held tension, or find a new relationship to grief, fear, or self-trust. The change may be practical, but the route to it honors the whole person.
I have practiced this work for 34 years, and I still approach it with respect. No two people are the same. No two sessions are exactly the same. I do not believe in forcing change, and I do not believe in reducing human suffering to a formula. I believe in creating the conditions where the deeper mind can do what it is capable of doing when it feels safe, heard, and properly guided.
If you are curious about transpersonal hypnotherapy, or if you are wondering whether this approach might be right for you, I invite you to call and ask questions. You do not need to know exactly what you need before reaching out. Sometimes the first honest conversation is simply a way to begin.