Frequently Asked Questions

Hypnosis is a natural state of focused attention and deep relaxation in which your subconscious mind becomes easier to access.

No, nobody can honestly promise that. I guide you to your subconscious mind — the actual change is something you do. Or as I sometimes put it: I talk the talk, but you walk the walk.

Often you won't notice right away — your subconscious keeps working without it registering consciously, and the full effect usually shows up some time later, not right after the session.

Usually it's not that hypnosis 'doesn't work' for you — it's that the style of hypnosis hasn't matched you yet. Some people need clear instructions, others respond better to stories and imagery. Trance is also trainable: the more you practise it, the easier it gets.

Yes — but not as magic. Hypnosis uses a completely natural trance state you already experience anyway, for example just before falling asleep, and puts it to deliberate use.

Hypnosis brings you into a natural state of focused attention and deep relaxation, in which your subconscious mind becomes more accessible than in everyday life. In that state, we work with suggestions rather than commands — your conscious mind usually stays present throughout.

Both use a calm, focused state of mind, but with a different goal: meditation is usually open awareness with no set direction, while hypnosis works deliberately toward a specific change.

In principle, anything your body and mind are theoretically capable of — but how much of that you actually reach depends on your own capacity for trance. Most people can access far more of their own resources with hypnosis than they think possible.

The push hypnosis gives can in principle last permanently — if you keep the momentum going. In practice, though, everyday circumstances often push back the other way, which is why progress can stall or partly reverse.

No, firm belief isn't a requirement. Openness helps, though — if you resist it entirely on the inside, you're just making it harder on yourself.

Yes, that's possible — I've done this often, mostly to recover forgotten passwords or codes. There's no guarantee, though, and the memory that comes up needs to be treated with some caution.

Yes, usually — but some medications noticeably dampen the effect. If you come to the session sober and without strong psychiatric medication on board, you'll generally experience hypnosis more intensely.

Yes, that's not a reason to rule it out. Some antidepressants do noticeably dampen the response to suggestions, though, so hypnosis can work more slowly or more weakly.

No. During the actual hypnosis there's barely any talking — the subconscious doesn't communicate in words. And anything you tell me before or after the session is covered by professional confidentiality anyway.

I work with almost everyone, as long as we talk openly about your situation first. The people hypnosis really isn't suited for are those expecting a magic finger-snap that fixes everything instantly and forever — that's a stage show, not therapy.

That fear is understandable, but usually unfounded: you stay conscious throughout hypnosis and keep control — your conscious mind is normally still present, just in the background.

Rarely anything serious, when it's done properly — the known incidents almost always trace back to inexperienced or careless practitioners. Hypnosis is a powerful tool, and like any powerful tool, the outcome depends on the skill of the person using it.

No. You stay conscious throughout hypnosis and can reject anything that doesn't sit right with you at any time — hypnosis can't make you do something that goes against your own values.

That's practically impossible. Hypnosis is not sleep and not unconsciousness — at worst, you'd simply drift into normal sleep and wake up on your own eventually, exactly like every other night.

Neither. Trance sits somewhere between waking and sleeping — your conscious mind is usually still present, just in the background, while your subconscious does more of the work.

Usually, yes — most people remember most of the session, though it often feels more like recalling a vivid dream.

Usually tiredness, a foggy feeling in the head, or unusually vivid dreams that night — this isn't a side effect in the medical sense, it's an after-effect of the deep relaxation.

Generally, yes. Give yourself a bit of time after the session instead of rushing off, though — it can take a while to feel fully back.

Most of the time you're not actually asleep — a deep trance can feel like falling asleep without being the same thing. If I do hear snoring, I just speak a little louder or nudge the chair, which is enough to bring you straight back into trance.

Usually 2 to 5 sessions — exactly how many depends more on you than on the topic. Some concerns resolve in a single session, others take longer.

About 60 minutes per session.

Often not immediately noticeable — some people notice a shift during the session itself, while for others the full effect only shows up later, once it's had time to work in everyday life.

Yes — I work primarily online with clients across Switzerland, and in my experience the effect doesn't differ from an in-person session.

Yes, the two usually combine well. Still, talk to it openly with your psychotherapist so the two processes actually support each other.

CHF 200 for about 60 minutes reflects over 1,500 hours of training and more than 5,000 guided sessions — not a pre-packaged course, but individual work on your specific concern.

The title itself isn't uniformly protected, which is why the quality of providers varies a lot. I'm a certified hypnotherapist (EZC) with over 1,500 hours of training — solid training is what to look for when choosing someone.

Yes, almost anyone can learn the basics — I co-train hypnosis courses myself. Getting to professional practice takes considerably more than a weekend course, though.

Yes, with the right guidance — self-hypnosis is its own learnable skill. Working with other people takes solid training on top of that.

No. Past-life regression isn't part of my work — my hypnotherapy starts from your actual, present-day concern, not a suspected past life.