What the heck is HipGnosis?
You can read all ’bout it here!
Hah, clever spelling!
I know. It’s kind of precious, I get it. But it works, you know?
I first started talking about it as a joke and people were really into it. And… my business is a democracy. Clearly.
So how did you get into this stuff?
My father is actually a super biggified expert of hypnotherapy in Korea (he has books published and is on TV all the time, and stuff!). He used to be a very ‘straight’ psychology professor in academia and one day, he decided to go rogue and study hypnosis. Eventually he quit the university and built up an extremely successful private practice. So I grew up being his guinea pig but I always dismissed it as ‘weird’ and ‘woo-woo’ in the way that kids can be reflexively defiant of their parents. I demanded scientific evidence! Where are the studies? If it’s not bullshit, how come it’s not taught in mainstream med schools and psychology schools? Give me evidence or death!
And then… well, several things happened. One, I actually went and worked in psychiatry research in a big-name institution. Got a master’s in healthcare research, doing fancypants number-crunching to analyze and assess ‘scientific data’. And it was like,
“Oh. This is what they mean by ‘evidence-based’?”
“Oh. This is how clinical trials are run?”
“Oh. This is how the health care system is set up?”
*apply forehead to wall*
And then… well, as I like to say, I saw the light, started dipping my toes into yoga and ‘alternative’ stuff and became infatuated with the power and possibility of hypnosis!
Yes, my dad mocks me to this day. But I deserve it.
Although I did major in Buddhism in college and briefly attended a theological seminary before dropping out.
So you can say that the seeds of my embarrassing interest in human consciousness and schpirituality were there all along.
So why do you always say ‘schpirituality’? What is that?
I have a brain tick that renders me incapable of saying the word ‘spirituality’. As I just typed that word, my left eyelid twitched and I got goosebumps up and down my arms and waves of nausea overtook my stomach.
So I say ‘schpirituality’. You can read about it here.
What are your qualifications?
Besides having lots of sexy freckles, you mean?
I am certified as a clinical hypnotist from the National Guild of Hypnotists. And I’m certified as a life coach from the International Association of Counselors and Therapists. I’m training to be a NLP practitioner. I have a master’s in public health from Columbia University. And a bachelor’s in religion from Wellesley College. If you care.
I have a Certificate of Accomplishment from the Fluent Self that says I’m really good at snacking and napping. Which is very important.
Where do you learn this stuff?
You can go lots of places to learn plain ol’ hypnosis. But, if you want to learn the extra-better-er integrative version, you’d do really well to go to my teacher, Melissa Tiers. She’s an ex-rock-star ninja and a super-biggified teacher who teaches bigshot doctors and writes award-winning books, while laughing hysterically at everything and saying ‘fuck’ a lot. Also generally a completely sparkly-awesome human being. I don’t have enough nice things to say about her.
How long is a session/how many sessions do I need?
One session usually lasts between an hour and an hour and a half.
The beauty of HipGnosis is that change can be, er, disorientingly quick. Unless I have an ongoing coaching relationship with a client, a stuck situation or desired pattern change (whether it is changing a habit or dissolving a phobia) can be resolved in between 1 to 3 sessions.
But it totally depends! You should ask me if you’re interested.
Hypnosis by Skype? Really?
I know, no one is more surprised than I!
I tried it out of curiosity when I was starting out and, well, I was getting the same quality results I would’ve gotten face-to-face. So it works, crazy as it sounds.
What can HipGnosis be used for?
Anything that is a problematic pattern. Smoking, waking up in the morning, creative blocks, procrastination, heartache, chronic pain, weight loss, anxiety, depression, the list goes on…
I was told/I think I am not hypnotizable. Is this true?
There is no such thing as ‘not hypnotizable’! (There are people who would disagree with me, but um, they’re wrong.)
This is a myth propagated by early practitioners who did not understand that people vary and that a flexible approach is so important, which is kind of obvious if you think about it. Just because you’re a acupuncturist, doesn’t mean that you’re going to stick needles in the exact same places for everyone that walks in, right?
If you want to be hypnotized and are capable of following directions (and are working with a smart, astute, sensitive practitioner, ahem), you can be hypnotized.
What’s the difference between HipGnosis and therapy?
Therapy: lots and lots of talking and navel-gazing and introspection and asking “why” and probing cause and effect. Cognitive-verbal-analytic untangling of patterns at the conscious level. The therapist-client relationship is not necessarily time-bound. You can go on and on, seeing your therapist for years.
HipGnosis: dizzyingly fast change and results-oriented. engages mind and body, using my wacky energy techniques. You come, ready to change. My goal is to arm you with extremely helpful things right away; I teach them to you and show how you can use them right from the very first session so that you can take advantage of them for the rest of your life.
I love the process of becoming totally unnecessary to my clients!
What’s a typical session like?
Oh, it really, really depends. There is no such thing as a typical session because I pull things out of my toolbox based on what you need, but for a very good description of what it can be like, I refer you to here!
I’m interested and understand everything you’re saying but am still kind of creeped out by the idea of hypnosis.
Oh, I do not blame you in the least. I totally get it. In fact, I was there for the longest time despite my poor father’s attempts at proselytization!
First, I might tell you that all of my clients tell me that I made them feel super safe and in control of themselves.
Also, have you seen my video tutorials on youtube? Like the one about how to wake up in the morning or how to use EFT? My one-on-one sessions are a lot more like that, vibe-wise, than ”and now… you are getting…. sleeeeepy…”, you know?
Although there might be a little bit of that. And people always love it. And my freckles are instant decreepilyzers.
