Meet the Therapist: Danielle Clarke

Danielle Clarke is a hypnotherapist in Essex and online

What attracted you to become a therapist?

My younger brother took his own life when he was 24. It is because of this that I like to help people before they get to that stage.

Where did you train?

I trained with CPHT at Anglian Ruskin University in Chemlsford.

Can you tell us about the type of therapy you practise?

I practice solution-focused hypnotherapy. I chose this type of therapy as it is a solution-focused therapy rather than a problem-focused, which makes it a very positive forward-looking type of talking therapy.

I help my clients to focus on the positive aspects of their lives and to think about what they want their life to be like using solution-focused questioning and scaling. This helps them to see they can change things one step at a time.

How does hypnotherapy help with symptoms of anxiety?

I see many clients with anxiety disorders. I teach my clients about the brain and why we can suffer the way we do with anxiety, depression, OCD etc. This gives the client an understanding of why they feel the way they do and in turn gives them hope for change.

I teach my clients how anxiety is created through negative thinking and that we all have a stress bucket and when this stress bucket is full we end up in a vicious circle of negative thinking. We can empty the stress bucket and help clients to restrict what they put into the stress bucket; the more they have in their stress bucket the more time they spend in the primitive negative emotional brain.

This is a very brief overview of what I can teach my clients about the brain and a big part of why this therapy is so successful in a relatively short period of time.

What sort of people do you usually see?

I work with client's from the age of 12 upwards. The majority of clients suffer with anxiety disorders. I also work with client's with depression, phobias, stress, sleep issues, confidence building.

I work with clients individually. If working with a minor then I have the consultation with both the parents and the child and then the child has the sessions on their own.

Have you noticed any recent mental health trends or wider changes in attitude?

I've noticed I am now getting a lot of men making contact for help, which is good as men tend to bottle things up. And the rise in levels of people with anxiety been dramatic, and I've had a noticeable rise in minors suffering with their mental health.

It seems that people are more open to talking about mental health now.

What do you like about being a therapist?

I love to see my clients make those positive changes, it's so rewarding. At the start of each session I always ask for 10 things that have been good since the last session it's always nice to hear their 'what's been good' answers.

What is less pleasant?

If I am unable to help someone, someone who needs medical attention.

What books have been important to you in terms of your professional and personal development? Do you ever recommend books to clients?

The Chimp Paradox aligns nicely with what we teach about the brain. Derren Brown's bootcamp podcasts. The Mindful Way Through Depression and Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before are also great to recommend to clients.

What you do for your own mental health?

I like to practice what I preach: 'Positive actions, positive interactions and positive thoughts'. I work out regularly, read, play the guitar and do nice things that I enjoy with my friends and family.

What's your consultation room like?

It's a nice calm relaxing environment down a private road. We have a comfortable arm chair for our clients and when it's time for the trance or hypnosis we get a foot stall and a blanket for our clients.

What do you wish people knew about therapy?

I wish they knew how quickly they can get back to themselves. It can take as little as 4-6 sessions with solution-focused hypnotherapy. I also wish people knew how much they will learn about the brain and how to take back control.

What did you learn about yourself in therapy?

I learnt to be more mindful and understanding of others, and to recognise when others or myself are operating in the primitive part of the brain, which in turn can help to de-escalate situations.

Contact Danielle here

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