FAQs
Q: I've tried breaking bad habits many times and nothing has worked. What do you do differently?
A: Have you ever put together a New Year's resolution list? Were you still dedicated to breaking your bad habit in February? There are multiple factors that must be addressed properly for personal change. One of them is any baggage we might still be lugging around with us from our past. Are you fearful of confronting others? I'd be interested to learn your assumptions as a child when you might have heard mom and dad disagreeing.
Another factor to effective personal change is the degree of conflict. Would you believe we sometimes continue a bad habit because we receive some sort of benefit from having this feeling or doing this activity? Your habit and your goal to change really have to be creating enough conflict within you to be dedicated to change.
To answer this question, I integrate "traditional counseling" to address the conscious mind in preparing for change, but then I also utilize hypnosis therapy to get at the enormous amount of old assumptions, opinions, beliefs and experiences that are guarded by our subconscious. Working together, we get rid of the reasons for the inappropriate behavior and replace that with healthy goals and priorities.
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Q: What is the difference between hypnosis therapy and talk therapy?
A: Talk therapy is an effective treatment to get our conscious mind to think about how to change an old or limiting habit. But habits operate within the subconscious mind. To effectively change a habit, especially one based on emotional conflict, we also need to be able to connect with the subconscious mind. Changing Habits, LLC, of Northeast Wisconsin has designed a system that treats both the conscious and subconscious. Hypnosis therapy is used to help the subconscious part understand how the habit is limiting and assist the subconscious in deleting the limiting habit identified.
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Q: Is hypnotherapy dangerous?
A: The short answer? Definitely not. This year marks the 50th year in which hypnotherapy has been supported by the American Medical Association. Doctors and dentists have used hypnosis therapy for decades to help clients block out the pain of childbirth, teeth drilling and many other experiences.
A person being professionally hypnotized never surrenders himself or herself over to the hypnotherapist. The client always remains in complete control. If a suggestion is made that the client is not comfortable with, the client will automatically reject it.
A combination of board-approved academic training and clinical training are required in order to be a practicing member of the National Board of Clinical Hypnotherapists.
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Q: What types of habits are best suited for this type of change?
A: Remember, a habit is something you do, feel or believe without thinking. Simply consciously trying to change a habit is often times not enough. Fox Valley-based Changing Habits, LLC, uses an exclusive process that addresses both the conscious and subconscious and is able to work with virtually any negative or limiting personal habit. Habits take various forms. Personal habits are not always physical like over-eating or under-exercising. There are also emotional habits such as anxiety, trauma and low self-image, as well as psychological habits like learning and skill development.
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Q: I've always had low self-esteem. What type of approach would you use to try to change this?
A: Great question! There are a lot of people living with the same limiting habit. Low self-image typically develops when an individual repeatedly experiences events that he or she interprets as, "I'm not good enough" or "I'll never amount to anything." These repeated thoughts turn into beliefs, which live in the subconscious mind and surface automatically when the person has a choice to make. Conscious efforts to overcome a poor self-image are often times not enough because nothing is done to adjust the fundamental belief lodged deep within the subconscious. Changing Habits, LLC, uses counseling and psychotherapy to work with both the conscious and subconscious.
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Q: I carry a few extra pounds and I've tried many diets, which never work for very long. Could your approach be used to change how I view snacks?
A: Junk food eating is a habit. It is a repetitive behavior we often do without thinking why we are eating or what we are eating. I will always remind a Changing Habits client that the subconscious is the keeper of the habits. To make effective personal change, we need to address the subconscious as part of the plan. Let me ask you a question related to weight management: Do you believe that ice cream and potato chips taste good? What do you think would happen if you believed these snacks didn't taste good? Your beliefs also reside in your subconscious mind and need to be addressed when changing habits.
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Q: Can I use my health insurance to pay for appointments?
A: I am a provider for many of the local health insurance plans. If I am a provider for your plan, I will take care of submitting all claims to your insurance company. I offer a sliding fee scale for those clients who do not have insurance or if I am not a provider under your plan. My sliding fee scale is based on total household income. I will review all of that with you doing your free consultation.
Unfortunately, no insurance plan covers hypnosis therapy. All of my clients receiving hypnotherapy are on a sliding fee scale. Again, the fee is based on a client's total household income. I gladly work with my clients on arranging payment plans. I expect my fees to be paid, but I am sensitive to a client's current financial situation.
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Q: Where can I go to find out more information on your practice and counseling techniques?
A: If this Web site hasn't done it, let's get together for a free 20-minute consultation. We can talk about your symptoms and goals and discuss the treatment I would recommend toward personal change if we have the opportunity to work together.
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