Weight Management Hypnotherapy

If you've spent years cycling between diets — losing weight only to put it back on again — the problem almost certainly isn't a lack of knowledge. You know which foods are healthy. You know you should eat less and move more. The real issue lies deeper: in the subconscious patterns, emotional associations and habitual behaviours that drive how you eat.

Hypnotherapy addresses weight management at this deeper level. Rather than giving you another set of rules to follow, it changes the automatic thoughts and behaviours that have been working against you.

Why Diets Alone Don't Work Long-Term

Diets rely on willpower, and willpower is a finite resource. When you're tired, stressed or emotional, willpower runs out — and the old patterns take over. This isn't weakness. It's how the human brain works.

Emotional eating, comfort eating, eating out of boredom, eating too quickly, snacking without thinking — these are all subconscious behaviours. They happen automatically, often before you've consciously decided to eat. That's why willpower alone struggles to compete.

How Hypnotherapy Helps

My approach to weight management combines practical cognitive techniques with clinical hypnosis:

Identifying Triggers

We start by understanding your eating patterns. When do you overeat? What triggers it? Is it stress, boredom, loneliness, tiredness or particular social situations? Once we identify the triggers, we can develop new responses to them.

Changing Subconscious Patterns

During hypnosis, we work with your subconscious to reshape how you think about food. This might involve strengthening your motivation, reducing the appeal of unhealthy foods, increasing your awareness of portion sizes, or addressing the emotional needs that food currently fills.

Building New Habits

Hypnosis is excellent for embedding new habits because it works at the same automatic level where habits operate. Eating mindfully, choosing healthier options, stopping when full — these become natural behaviours rather than things you have to consciously remember to do.

What We Don't Do

I won't give you a meal plan. I won't tell you which foods to eat. I'm not a nutritionist, and pretending otherwise wouldn't help you. What I will do is change the underlying psychology that has been sabotaging your efforts. Once that changes, making healthier choices becomes significantly easier.

I also won't use aversion techniques — making you imagine your favourite foods covered in maggots, or anything like that. Those methods are outdated and generally don't produce lasting results. My approach is positive, focused on what you want to achieve rather than what you want to avoid.

What to Expect

Weight management typically requires four to six sessions, spaced at weekly or fortnightly intervals. A realistic treatment plan looks something like this:

Session 1: Assessment and Foundation

We explore your eating history, identify patterns and triggers, and set realistic goals. Your first hypnotherapy session focuses on building motivation and beginning to shift subconscious attitudes to food.

Sessions 2-4: Core Treatment

Each session targets specific behaviours — emotional eating, portion awareness, snacking habits, eating speed. Between sessions, you'll practise self-hypnosis and notice which changes are taking hold.

Sessions 5-6: Consolidation

We reinforce the changes, address any remaining challenges and prepare you for maintaining your new relationship with food independently.

Realistic Expectations

Hypnotherapy for weight management is not a magic wand. You won't wake up three stone lighter after a session. What you will find is that the compulsive element of overeating reduces significantly. Clients typically report that they feel satisfied with less food, that cravings diminish, and that they can pass up foods that previously felt irresistible.

Sustainable weight loss is gradual — typically one to two pounds per week. This might not sound dramatic, but it's the approach that lasts. Over six months, that's two to four stone.

Evidence

A study published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology found that participants who used hypnosis in conjunction with cognitive behavioural therapy lost significantly more weight than those who used CBT alone, and maintained the loss better at follow-up. The NHS acknowledges hypnotherapy as an approach used for weight management.

Weight management sessions cost £70 each after the initial session at £80, or you can save with a package deal. A free telephone consultation is available to discuss whether this approach is right for you.