In-Person or Virtual Hypnotherapy: What's Best for You?

Your life is busy. You have to take care of many things and find the time to take care of yourself. I think that’s the most difficult part. Finding time to take care of your own physical and emotional wellbeing. You have to decide whether you have enough time to make it to the gym, or a quick home workout will do. Do you have the time to fit that therapist appointment this week? Or are you going to have to push it off again? Meanwhile the stress and your mental workload are piling up. That’s why finding that time for yourself is so important. While the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted literally everything, it did make us refocus on how, when, and where we communicate and are able to get things done - especially in the virtual space through our phones and laptops. Connecting digitally certainly has its issues, but it has allowed us to save some time for ourselves, and be purposeful in how we use it. Especially when it comes to taking care of ourselves.

We invest a lot of time and money in our physical and mental well-being. Especially if there’s an issue - you want to find a solution right away. Eating well, exercise, and therapy are all important to maintain a positive and healthy lifestyle. But bad habits are hard to break. No matter how good your diet is, how many times you go to the gym, and how often you go see your therapist, a solution for a mental “block” can be hard to find, and it can come from least expected places. Just like it did with hypnotherapy for me, which kickstarted this journey of helping people heal through hypnosis. Over the years, I’ve had many in-person and virtual sessions, both as a hypnotherapist and client. And I’ve had to adjust how I take care of myself based on my life and, sometimes, WORLD events.

For nearly 20 years, I’ve had a bad habit of cracking my jaw, and it drove me crazy! I talked to my doctor, I talked to my therapist, I talked to my husband, I even talked to myself about it - there didn’t seem to be a solution.

I remember sitting in my therapist’s Beverly Hills office, cracking my jaw, desperate to break the habit, when she suggested that I see a hypnotherapist about my jaw-cracking. It is common for different therapies to work in tandem, and there’s no ONE solution for everyone.

So I found a hypnotherapist near me, which ended up being in Santa Monica. I was living in Los Angeles at the time, so making the drive to Santa Monica was a hard bargain with LA traffic. But like I said, I was desperate. I made the appointment, hopped in my car, and drove to the Westside with doubt on my mind (of course, the traffic didn’t help). But on my way home from my first hypnotherapy appointment - I was full of hope!

It worked! For the first time in my life, I was not subconsciously cracking my jaw. An annoying habit, that followed me around like a shadow, was finally resolved. I honestly couldn’t believe it. My eyes were opened to the power of hypnotherapy to make real life changes.

I still love my hypnotherapist Kerry Gaynor, and was bummed to have to find someone closer when we moved to Glendale. Therapy shouldn’t be a chore, and it’s hard to commit to two hours on the road with a career, kids, and a household to run.

I also just had a newborn - convenience and proximity were top priorities when choosing a hypnotherapist at that time. So I started looking for a hypnotherapist I could work with nearby. After seeing with a hypnotherapist near Glendale, I also realized that, just like in talk therapy, you need to find a therapist that fits your personality. Hypnotherapy fundamentally works on the same level, but each hypnotherapist will have their own “flavor” of how they go about it. As my daughter got older, I looked for options that were a shorter drive away like Pasadena and Studio City. Believe it or not, I eventually found a great one in Malibu - and I was ready to make longer drives again.

Then the Covid-19 pandemic happened and everything went virtual. I started seeing my Malibu hypnotherapist on Zoom. You can’t beat the convenience to get amazing therapy from the comfort of my home and achieve goals that I’ve set for myself, and not have to spend productive hours driving there and back.

My goals were to improve my time management, lower stress levels and mentally take things off of my plate that I had a hard time focusing on and would spend too much time thinking about it - taking time away from more important aspects of my life. I was very pleased to see that hypnotherapy worked just as well in a virtual session as it did in-person.

The past three years have really revolutionized how people receive mental and physical care. And the truth is, it doesn’t have to be one or the other. Sometimes life gets really busy, and you only have that hour in between to fit a Zoom or FaceTime appointment. You can still accomplish what you set out to do for yourself with hypnotherapy. Other times, you have the flexibility to make the drive and get away from the household (and housechores!) for a bit.

It works just as effectively as coming in person whether in Glendale, Malibu, Santa Monica, or New York. As long as you can talk and hear each other, and have a quiet space to lay down and relax, then virtual hypnotherapy can be effective and wonderfully convenient.

However, I will say that personally I love going to see my hypnotherapist (now in South Pasadena) in person. Yes! I still see a hypnotherapist! For me it’s worth the drive because of the quality of care I receive and because it creates a separation between home and hypnotherapy. Just like someone that prefers to go into the office to keep their work and life balanced but separate. As my life changed, I changed how I approached my hypnotherapy.

Whether virtual or in-person hypnotherapy is your choice, or a mix of both, the most important thing when choosing a hypnotherapist near you is to pick someone you actually like. Having someone you trust and enjoy working with is more important than where and how your do your sessions. Establishing a rapport with your therapist is more valuable than any location.

Here are some important questions to ask when you’re trying to decide if you should do your hypnotherapy in-person or virtually:

1) Do You Have a Quiet and Private space at home?

2) How far are you willing to drive to see a therapist you love?

3) Can you easily connect with someone over Zoom?

4) Do you want an excuse to get out of the house?

5) Will driving for a long time or to a certain location give you more stress?

The answers to these questions should make it easier to decide if in-person or virtual hypnotherapy appointments are best for you. I have clients locally in Southern California and from all over the world that choose to do our sessions virtually when convenient, and schedule in-person appointments when they’re visiting Los Angeles. Finding the right balance is what matters - if you have any questions, I love consulting on what works best for you. Please reach out at your convenience!