Dawn Griffith is a therapist and coach based in the United Kingdom. She offers a variety of therapy services to individuals seeking support for a range of issues, including anxiety, depression, relationship problems, and trauma. She has helped people with addiction, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and more get their lives back on track by using hypnotherapy, past-life regression therapy (PLRT), and EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique). MysticMag finds out more.
Can you tell us about your experience and training in hypnotherapy?
I first came across NLP. I read some books and attended a 6-week adult education evening class. After leaving my employment as a hairdressing lecturer in 2011 at a local UK college, I had the opportunity to complete my first training. I stayed with the same company to gain further accreditation in Timeline Therapy, Hypnosis and Master NLP.
I enjoyed the first course so much and could see the benefit of the uses in so many areas of life, but for me to use it as a therapeutic tool to help young people struggling with the changes they go through, and partially the ones that are on probation. My main interest was in addiction due to my struggles with alcohol abuse, so I continued to study in this field.
I continued to study with a training company called Quest and gained my HPD (Hypnotherapy in Practice Diploma). I like the modality of Hypnosis because of the benefit to clients over a short period instead of the years of seeing a therapeutic counsellor.
How do you incorporate this modality into your therapy practice, and what are some of the benefits that clients can expect to experience from hypnotherapy?
A client’s individual needs lead a session. In the first session, we discuss the problem and look for the root cause. First-time clients can be nervous and may have only seen or heard about stage Hypnosis.
I end the session with relaxation so the client is comfortable with my voice and experiencing going into a light hypnotic trance.
I usually send a personalised Hypnosis Mp3 with the client’s solutions and words used in a session. I ask them to listen for three weeks in the evening before they sleep. The suggestions are reinforced in the client’s mind creating lasting change. Also, the neurones will be rewired to the client’s desired state. Neurones that fire together wire together. When they no longer have fears, phobias or sabotaging behaviours like craving sugary foods, alcohol abuse or anger outbursts when driving, they can move forward to create fulfilling and happier lives.
You also offer past life regression therapy (PLRT) – can you explain what this involves and how it can help clients to address and heal from past traumas or experiences that may be impacting their current lives?
Regression and Past life regression are still hypnotherapy. So it is the client being relaxed and then accessing the subconscious to allow the client to go back to a past life, either their own or an ancestor’s life. I first experienced a neutral PLRT with a friend and enjoyed looking at previous existences. I also felt that it explained my current life. So I went on to work on family issues with positive outcomes.
I then went on and trained as a Past Life Regression Therapist.
If we think of the body as a vessel or a pressure cooker, the emotions we experience bubble up inside to explode eventually. These show themselves through both physical and mental issues. It works by releasing the emotional energy trapped in the client’s body from the energetic memory store.There is a fallacy; you must believe in past lives for it to work. However, if you allow yourself to be open to the possibility of Hypnotherapy or PLRT and follow the process, anything is possible.
The difference between therapeutic Hypnotherapy and PLRT is that after the client has been relaxed down into a trance, they will go back in time, possibly through a tunnel with doors and choose a door or through a mist; it could be travelling on a boat back in time, each therapist will have their preferred ways of working.
PLRT has had success with relationship issues and physical ailments, for example, back pains, migraines, PTSD, anxiety addictions and much more.
Another modality you use is the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) – can you describe what this is and how it can be used to address issues such as anxiety, trauma, or other emotional challenges?
Many research and study papers have been published on the effectiveness of the emotional freedom Technique. EFT or tapping is another way to release the emotions stored in the body caused by the fight or flight response. For example, when I think of speaking on a public platform, the brain will have accumulated in the subconscious a memory, e.g., the 3 or 4-year-old that was made fun of as they sang a song.
A buried memory gets activated every time the thought of speaking in public arises; the fight or flight is then triggered, followed by shallow breathing, heart racing, maybe palpitations in the heart and feeling sick. So, a lot is going on.
Tapping on the acupressure points slows the sympathetic system, returning balance to the parasympathetic.
The EFT process begins with a setup statement, e.g., “even though I feel all this sickness in the pit of my stomach when I think about speaking in public”, followed by a positive, ” I deeply love and accept myself “. This is done whilst tapping on the side of the hand, called the karate chop. After three times repeating the statement and tapping on the side of the hand, you tap on the other points, which are the corner of the eyebrow, the side of the eye, under the eye, under the nose, and in the crease of the chin. (I imagine this as a question mark) the collarbone, under the arm and the top of the head; either hand can be used.
Sometimes I will ask the client to tap whilst holding the image or memory of an event and whilst tapping to be aware of thoughts that come up for them. This is another way the subconscious can help us discover the root cause of a feeling or behaviour that isn’t serving us.
EFT has successfully been used for PTSD, trauma, addiction, anxiety, etc.
How do you work with clients to determine which modality or combination of modalities suits their specific needs and goals? What are some critical factors you consider when making these decisions?
Before working with a client, I will sit quietly and tune out from myself by meditating or listening to music, clearing my energy, and raising my vibration. Then, I can be present with the client and step outside of my ego self-identity.
Part of the training with Quest was to see what the client brings on the day rather than pre-plan. I use and trust the intuitive senses and allow myself to be guided in the moment. I also send out a questionnaire about the problem they are experiencing along with finding out the preferred language style, visual, auditory or kinaesthetic and send them a relaxation Mp3 that they can listen to.
Have you found that helping to heal others has deepened your spiritual growth and development?
I grew up with a great love for animals and nature and knowledge and abilities that I didn’t understand until I came across spiritual teachers. My parents were both quite spiritual people for the times. My mother was a head groom and consulted an Ouija board when horses were sick with great success. My father’s mother’s family were Romany Gipsies (Gyspy Lee). Working in the healing field has enabled me to step out of the closet; many like myself can now bring spirituality and science together to bring about change for our struggling clients.
If you would like to find out more about Dawn Griffith, visit https://dawngriffith.co.uk/
