Hello! My name is Amanda Coles and I spent over 20 years working in Corporate HR before retraining as an NLP Hypnotherapist and Life/Business Coach. But I have a confession to make, and it took me years to confront it. Throughout my 20’s and 30’s I suffered with anxiety, stress and panic attacks brought on by numerous personal issues and too much stress at work.
In 2013 my GP wanted to give me anti-depressants. They are commonly dispensed by GP’s who struggle in a short 10 minute window to get to the root cause of problems. In fact, they are so common that 1 in 6 adults between the ages of 18-64 are currently on anti depressants, and according to the latest study by the Mental Health Foundation 23% of all absences in the workplace are mental health related and it is the leading cause of absence in the UK. Having worked in HR I have seen for myself the rise in mental health problems.
A Better Alternative
I decided to investigate alternative and complementary therapies rather than take anti-depressants. Waiting times on the NHS for CBT were up to 2 years and so in desperation, I turned to hypnotherapy.
It was so successful I decided to retrain as an NLP Hypnotherapist and Life/Business Coach. I now combine my HR background with my experience as a Coach and Hypnotherapist and I work with companies to implement mental wellness strategies and individuals who want to re-engineer their lives for greater success.
What is hypnotherapy? One of the questions I am always asked by potential clients is will you make me cluck like a chicken? My answer is always the same – only if you want me to. As far as I’m concerned it’s unlikely to be a solution to your problem.
Hypnotherapy is not something you need to believe in for it to work and more than you have to believe in gravity to fall off a building. So is it all just suggestion and placebo? No. It is scientifically proven that the process of hypnosis causes specific physiological, neurological and physical changes in your body and brain.
It is not something I do TO you, it is a collaborative process and you simply need to give yourself permission to heal yourself and through my unique blend of therapy, motivate you to a successful outcome.
Does it Work?
So how effective is hypnotherapy?? A study conducted by American Health Magazine found that only 38% of patients recovered after 600 sessions of psychoanalysis. In behavioural therapy, it took 22 sessions for 72% of patients to recover but after just 6 sessions of hypnotherapy, 93% of patients recovered.
We all know that mental health problems are on the rise. The pressure of stress found at work, within relationships, through comparison with others and within a drive to “succeed” can affect everybody, no matter what your background is.
The reality is however that hypnotherapy helps to treat more than just anxiety and stress. It has been scientifically proven to have many other uses, and that’s because nearly everyone can benefit from learning how to relax, how to think positively and use their imagination to rehearse the positive changes they would like.
Mental Health in the Workplace
The estimated cost of mental ill-health to UK employers each year is between £33 billion and £42 billion.
Organisations suffer the consequences of poor mental health. A CIPD study highlighted the impact that mental ill-health has on companies and found that:
– 37% of sufferers are more likely to get into conflict with colleagues
– 57% find it harder to juggle multiple tasks
– 80% find it difficult to concentrate
– 62% take longer to do tasks
– 50% are potentially less patient with customers/clients.
As an employer, you can help manage and prevent stress by improving conditions for staff at work. But you also have a role in making adjustments and helping someone manage a mental health problem at work as mental health is covered as a disability within the Equality Act of 2010.
So what can you do practically?
By constructing and implementing mental wellness strategies within your workplace you can reduce absenteeism and presenteeism, increase engagement and staff retention – all proven ways to increase profits.
So in summary, hypnotherapy is not the woo-woo, voodoo magic it is so often portrayed in the media, rather it is a safe, effective, fast and drug-free method for improving your health and happiness – who wouldn’t want some of that?
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