How do virtual sessions work with hypnosis?

Embarking on your journey to overcome Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID), whether that means becoming comfortable in your food preferences or expanding your food preferences, can be empowering. While in-person has been the only option for a long time, virtual therapy is becoming increasingly more and more popular and has been found to be just as effective as in-person therapy, even for hypnosis.

What to expect your first virtual session with Kelly?

Trying out something new can be a little nerve-racking; often, knowing what to expect can help reduce anxiety and stress. In your first session with Kelly, she won’t yet use hypnosis. You will focus on:

• Getting to know each other – This is a very important part of hypnosis! It’s important that you trust and are comfortable with the person who will be helping you. This is also a great time to become more comfortable speaking with someone through a virtual platform.
• Discussing feeding history, concerns, strengths & interests – We will discuss your feeding history and what may have led to some of your feeding concerns in the first place. For kids, we will discuss their likes/interests and what they’re good at (it’s not all about stressful eating!). We will discuss what your goals may be since every person’s goals are different (and aren’t just related to food expansion). 
• Discussing your why & the changes you want to make: It’s important to be aware of your “why”. Why do you want to change your eating habits? Maybe you want to socialize more by eating out with friends. Maybe a health concern or maybe you are feeling isolated from others. We will discuss what foods YOU are interested in eating, tasting, or trying and the changes that you want to make.

How do other virtual sessions work?

After our first session together, you will be sent an audio where you can practice getting into a very relaxed, hypnotic state (nothing to do with eating). Once you are comfortable with this, we will begin to work on having you relax or go into a deep, hypnotic state in the following sessions. This is when we will work on feeding concerns and then taste some new foods as you progress!

Then, in the following sessions, we will:

• Break down any barriers that are and have been inhibiting your ability to try and taste new foods
• Work on reducing the irrational fears that may be getting in your way of exploring new foods
• Work on stress and anxiety reducing techniques to help you overcome common food tasting fears, such as vomiting, gagging, etc.
• Incorporate newly discovered foods into your every day food rotations and routines
• Decrease stress around going out to eat or eating with family members
• Learn to celebrate the small wins and victories, an important step in your journey to feeling successful
• Talk about avenues to new foods, such as food chaining and other small changes you can incorporate into your diet

There are several benefits to virtual sessions, such as reduced travel time, increased flexibility with scheduling, increased opportunities for parent and family coaching, and increased comfortability receiving support while in your home environment.

Interested in virtual therapy and hypnosis sessions for yourself or your child? Contact Kelly and Infinity Hypnosis at [email protected] or check out her website at https://infinityhypnosis.com/ to book a free consultation. 

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