“In his splendid essay called On an Apparent Intention in the Fate of the Individual, Schopenhauer points out that when you reach an advanced age and look back over your lifetime, it can seem to have had a consistent order and plan, as though composed by some novelist. Events that when they occurred had seemed accidental and of little moment turn out to have been indispensable factors in the composition of a consistent plot.

So who composed the plot?…”

Imagine this: you're standing in front of a sea of faces, all staring at you. Your heart is pounding so loud it feels like everyone can hear it, and your palms are slick with sweat. The words you so carefully prepared seem to scatter like confetti in a windstorm, and you’re left wondering how you got yourself into this position in the first place. Sound like your worst nightmare?

If you’ve ever felt this way—whether speaking in public, performing on stage, or even presenting at work—you’re not alone. The fear of public speaking and performance anxiety is one of the most common fears people face. Would you be surprised if I told you that the methods used by some of the most successful athletes and public speakers to conquer this fear involve hypnotherapy? (I hope not, you’re on my hypnotherapy blog after all) Curious? Let me explain!

I recently had a client tell me after our session that she was “the most relaxed she’s ever felt, maybe ever.” While this may sound like a bold statement, it’s not an uncommon experience with hypnotherapy. When people think of hypnosis, they often think of shifting pervasive patterns or engaging in deep emotional work (or being turned into a chicken on stage), but what gets overlooked is one of hypnotherapy’s most powerful gifts—the art of deep and profound relaxation.

For being a state of doing “nothing”, sleep is incredibly important for literally everything in our lives. It’s kind of amazing how vital this state of non-doing is for our health. Go one night without sleep and you’ll notice your mind is wandering, your focus is weakened, your motivation low. Go a week without sleep and you’re in danger of severe side effects—even death. For individuals who deal with insomnia or anxiety and stress when trying to sleep, the struggle is real. If you find yourself counting sheep with little success or feeling increasingly frustrated as the minutes tick by, you’re not alone. Hypnotherapy for sleep, specifically transpersonal hypnotherapy, offers a powerful, compassionate approach to peeling back the layers of wakefulness and inviting deep, restorative rest.