Hypnosis works so well with teenagers – teenagers have all the verbal understanding of adults but they don’t have a lot of our “baggage” due to being younger. They respond fast, in many ways like all children, and get great results with hypnosis.
Our beautiful teenagers have suffered a lot during the CoVID pandemic and I have lost count of the amount of mums and dads who start the enquiry conversation with “things were going well but since COVID….” Teenagers, like all young people, have a visceral need to be with their fellows. We all need company as a social species but teenagers cannot be without it. Adults can rationalise and spend more time alone but our teenagers and children need the physical company of other teenagers and children.
Since the response to the CoVID pandemic involving social isolation there has been a great increase in teen depression and self-harming behaviours. However, teenagers are already very prone to these emotional disturbances.
In hypnosis when dealing with a teenager we take a full case history as well as understand the emotional maturity of the young person. Many teenagers can appear rather worldly wise but this can be a facade and as a hypnosis practitioner and counsellor it’s important to fully understand how the teen reacts to their world around them.
We use a combination of adult and children’s techniques with the emphasis being on more reflection and understanding as the age increases. Most 14 year olds will easily participate in hypnosis with reflective techniques and visualisations.
The issues I see with teenagers are predominantly depression and anxiety and a sad increase in attempted suicides. It is so important to understand the sense of disempowerment that teens feel and the “spontaneous” nature of teen self-harm. This is a generation that is under enormous pressure from social media to parental expectation. Sometimes it all feels too much. Many teens then conversely feel embarrassed after they have self-harmed or feel they have let someone down.
I work with teens to build their inner resources with hypnosis – this involves visualisations and setting achievable, positive goals for their mental health. My focus is always on what they want to feel – it is not so much a matter of getting better grades. Often, the better grades and sporting performance, naturally follows when the young client is feeling positive and empowered. We also work on developing resilience and understanding at a deep inner part of themselves that however they are experiencing life right now is absolutely fine for them. This can be so freeing for anyone to feel. By building the inner resources to take whatever is thrown at them means the young person can access their potential without being distracted by negative constructs around them.
With social media and friends and school and family and parents the young person can easily feel lost. Hypnosis helps to achieve a real sense of self and self-acceptance which in this age group in particular is a huge step forward.