Meet the Therapist: John Turland
John Turland is a hypnotherapist in Reading and online
What attracted you to become a therapist?
I was attracted to it because I wanted to be able to help my existing life coaching clients much more effectively.
I found that most of my clients had blocks such as low confidence, fears, phobias, anxiety and depression, which were holding them back from achieving their goals. So I realised how powerful it would be to offer both therapy and coaching together!
Where did you train?
I trained with The School of Rapid Transformational Therapy, as a clinical hypnotherapist and a rapid transformational coach.
This school was founded by internationally recognised therapist and bestselling author Marisa Peer and is based on her work of more than three decades.
Before this I trained as a life coach with Robbins Madanes Training and as a certified high performance coach with the High Performance Institute.
Can you tell us about the type of therapy you practise?
RTT is hypnotherapy blended with other types of therapy.
When the client is hypnotised, they are fully in control – they are in a relaxed, trance like state, similar to being absorbed in watching TV. I chose to train in RTT, as I heard how fast and effective it is and the way it works made complete sense to me.
So many people go about their lives with behaviour patterns of getting angry and upset and don’t understand why. Certain things trigger them, seemingly for no reason, often it comes up when looking after the children, or in their intimate relationships. And they look back on what happened afterwards, feeling bad about it and wondering why they are behaving in this way.
They are stuck because of things that happened in the past, often when they were children. RTT offers a way to overcome this, often in just one session, sometimes in two or three sessions, depending on the issue.
We use hypnosis to connect with the client’s subconscious and go back to the root cause of the client’s issue. And once we actually understand where it comes from, the client is strengthened and empowered – they can finally let go of the limiting beliefs that have been holding them back for so long!
We use hypnosis to help the client let go of the old beliefs they are ready to let go of, that are no longer relevant to them as an adult, living their own independent lives. Each RTT session includes other important elements to aid understanding, empower them and heal their inner child. And they get a personalised hypnosis recording, using their own words on how they want to be thinking, feeling, and behaving (of 15 to 20 minutes) to listen to for 21 days, to lock in the progress they made in the session.
How does Rapid Transformational Therapy help with overcoming fears or phobias?
We would quickly find the root cause of the fear/phobia, as once we understand this, we have that power over it and can finally let go of it. Later in the session, we would also look from the perspective of what ‘job’ the fear has been doing for you – as it started in the first place because your mind was trying to help you in some way. This always gives fascinating insights and is a powerful part of the session. It gives you the understanding and power to decide if it is helping you in any way as an adult, or whether it is time to release it and let it go.
The hypnosis recording you receive is full of positive, empowering language, telling your mind that the fear no longer affects you and how confident and relaxed you now feel. Listening to it for the 21 days makes sure that the fear remains gone for good.
What sort of people do you usually see?
I work with adults on a wide range of issues and I specialise in confidence, self-esteem, anxiety, fears, anger management and phobias.
Have you noticed any recent mental health trends or wider changes in attitude?
It looks like having therapy and coaching is gradually becoming more common, as people understand how much it would benefit them.
What do you like about being a therapist?
It is immediately rewarding as I can see the client releasing negative things and healing their inner child before my eyes. I love seeing how the client feels at the end of the session; they are stronger, more empowered and they often say the feel lighter, having released things that they were previously unaware that they have been carrying around for years.
I also very much enjoy doing the follow-up call a week later, where we discuss the positive changes that client (and often other people close to them) have noticed since our RTT session.
What is less pleasant?
Seeing how the client has often been suffering from the issue/s for such long time, which has severely impacted their quality of life and of those close to them. I wish they had reached out to a therapist for support much sooner.
How long have you been with Welldoing and what you think of us?
I have been with Welldoing for just over a month and have found them friendly and supportive.
Do you ever suggest books or apps to clients?
Yes, I do! For RTT and therapy I often recommend Marisa Peer’s books, including I Am Enough and Tell Yourself a Better Lie.
I also recommend Gabor Maté’s books, including Scattered Minds, which is about the origins and healing of ADHD.
And Johann Hari’s excellent book Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression and the Unexpected Solutions.
For coaching, I recommend Mindset by Carol Dweck, on developing a growth mindset, You Are Awesome by Matthew Syed (growth mindset book for children aged seven and above) and High Performance Habits by Brendon Burchard.
What you do for your own mental health?
I make sure I walk and move every day and spend time in nature when I can.
I make time for things that recharge me, including reading fiction books and getting enough sleep.
You are therapist and coach who is based in Reading, but works with all your clients online. What can you share with us about working in this way?
I have found that my RTT and life coaching sessions work just as well online using Zoom, as they would in person. And I can work with anybody who needs my help worldwide, as long as they have an internet connection. Having the sessions online saves my clients travel time and costs and they can be in the comfort of their own home.
What do you wish people knew about therapy?
That it benefits everybody, as we all have patterns of behaviour from things that happened when we were growing up, that are still causing us difficulties today. We all need to share our feelings with someone, understand how the past is affecting us and heal emotionally.
I would also add that there are so many different types of therapy, people are all unique and they should look into more than one type, to see what they resonate with and what works best for them. Welldoing is an excellent platform on which to do this!
What did you learn about yourself in therapy?
Firstly, I learnt that I actually had been needing therapy for a long time and that I should have tried it many years ago!
I learnt how much unconscious patterns of behaviour had been making me feel fearful and stopping me from getting close to other people and being in a relationship.
I learnt that my self-talk was having a negative impact on my confidence and self-belief and that by understanding how the brain lets in whatever you tell it, I could be conscious of what I was saying to myself and make it positive and empowering instead.
Contact John here
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