Wednesday 23rd January was the date for the second Shepton Health and Well Being Event. Based in the Council Chamber at the Council Offices in Shepton Mallet, the therapists taking part looked forward to another successful event, following last year's busy night. 

The varying therapies on offer included Aromatherapy, Reflexology, Yoga, Bowen, Kinesiology, Emotional Freedom Technique and, of course, Hypnotherapy. 

After last year's event we were all expecting to be busy throughout. Unfortunately, the attendance was poor. The cold weather must have put people off. The people that did turn up though were loving it. They were able to experience longer example sessions than they would have done otherwise and the evening was still a great success. 

We would all like to thank the Council for holding the event once again and, of course, the public who attended.

Look out for future events by checking the NEWS page on this website.

Last Sunday (29th April) I was at HQ in Clifton, Bristol to learn more about Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and the role Solution Focused Hypnotherapy (SFH) can play in helping someone with this condition. Having had IBS myself some time ago, I was looking forward to this CPD.

Helen Green was the tutor and she delivered an excellent lesson, filled with fascinating information and plenty of laughs.

IBS can be a very serious condition if left to itself. It's important that anyone suffering from it seeks medical diagnosis before looking for further help.

We were made very aware that SFH has been proven to help people with IBS and, indeed, was the number one choice of therapy for many.

If you have IBS and are seeking help, please do get in touch. I'll be glad to help. Below are some of the notes I took during the day.

• The Gut has a dedicated nervous system
• The Brain & Gut are in constant communication with each other
• 95% of Serotonin is produced in the Gut
• ⅓ of Gut Bacteria is common to all, the other ⅔ are totally unique to each person
• Stress always makes IBS worse
• The cause/s of IBS are currently unknown

Yesterday (Sunday 25th Feb 2018) I was at HQ to attend the CPD on the science behind the Initial consultation. If you have had a consultation with a Solution Focused Hypnotherapist you will know what I mean here. If you haven't, it's where we explain how the brain works (in simple English), how we get stressed and anxious or depressed and why, and what we can do about it. 

This CPD broke this explanation down and analysed it using research papers from the last 12 months to endorse what we say with credited research. In other words, to prove that it is true.

It was a fascinating course expertly explained by our own Dr Rachel Gillibrand. Rachel explained how she went about her mammoth task, with plenty of humour thrown in, as well as clarifying some of the statements in more detail, finishing off with a QA session in the afternoon that was equally enjoyable.

If you have not done this CPD yet I can highly recommend it.

A couple of weeks ago I was at HQ for another CPD.

​This time it was to learn how hypnotherapy can help those who suffer from OCD. Note the word 'suffer'. Most of us have some form of OCD, checking locked doors more than once, routines that help us feel secure etc. The difference with the majority and those who suffer is we can still cope if we are unable to do our standard routine or ritual, the sufferer will not and will be quite anxious about the whole thing. 

The CPD was excellently chaired by Claire Brigg and the whole session was very informative and encouraging. We all felt we had learned a lot from this session. 

I was up at Clifton Practice on another CPD course all day yesterday (Sunday). It was about how to help clients improve and strengthen their willpower.

It was hosted by the excellent Matthew Dyson who delivered the course in a very relaxed and entertaining manner. Coming up with various quotes and providing us therapists with the many ways we can help the client.

A lot was learned and it was great, as always, to catch up with my fellow colleagues again. It's interesting to find out how they are doing and encouraging to know hypnotherapy is becoming more and more popular.

​ Here are some of the points that I found interesting, and may be of use to know.

• A study shows people have willpower challenges 25% of their waking hours (day), and fail in 50% of them.

• 20 seconds is usually long enough to wait to avoid a temptation.
• 5 minutes of exercise will increase willpower capability.
• People are more disciplined earlier in the day.
• Delayed gratification results in a higher reward (ie; waiting for something).

If you'd like some help improving your willpower, then get in touch.

Wish you could buy a voucher to help a friend or a loved one have hypnotherapy?

Well wish no more. Vouchers can now be purchased from Hidden Treasures in Commercial Road, Shepton Mallet. 

The vouchers are available for the value of £5, £10, £25 or £50. Please look at the RATES page (Payment Methods) for Terms & Conditions.

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I'm now on Instagram. Here I'll be posting positive quotes and sayings as well as adverts for markets, fairs and talks.

​To follow search for Merryfield Hypnotherapy.

I am now in a position to accept credit cards should that be your favoured payment method. It's done via SumUp and uses a small card reader and an app on my mobile. After payment is given you have the option of a receipt sent to you by text or email. 

I have recently joined the Hidden Treasures team of Therapists that provide their services to the general public. Based in Commercial Road, Shepton Mallet the shop offers new and second hand items with the Healing Rooms based at the rear of the building for the therapists to use. The therapies currently on offer are Reflexology, Reiki Healing, Acupuncture, Bowen Technique, Kinesiology, Solution Focused Hypnotherapy and much more. I highly recommend a visit to the shop to find out more. 


Left: Hidden Treasures shop front.


Below: One of the high standard treatment rooms

After being away from Hypnotherapy for so long due to my recovery from a Stroke I thought it would be wise to attend this two day refresher course to make sure I was up to date and to give myself a push to get the business going again.

Hosted by David Newton and Susan Rodrigues it was like old times. Plenty of information mixed with interesting anecdotes and much laughter. It was great to meet up with an old colleague again as well as to meet some new ones. Now looking forward to putting it all in practise.