Hypnotherapy for social media is all about dialling down what we all do.
Scroll too much.
Compare too much.
Feel the urge to frequently check social media, dating apps, online games, texts, the news or email too much.
You’re drawn to check Instagram or TikTok too much.
It’s too much to just sit and do nothing at all.
You even reach for your phone to avoid chatting with the people around you.
And your anxiety goes sky high when you can't find your phone, or the battery is about to run out.
Your phone isn’t a way to escape. It’s trapped you.
How does social media work?
It’s what’s known as the attention economy. It’s a marketing strategy. Companies want to capture and hold your attention. And our attention is a limited resource.
So in the background companies use data analytics and algorithms to predict what you might like and then give you ads and content to keep you there.
Basically companies try to grab as much of your focus as possible target you with ads. And it’s made the company owners multi-billionaires.
What’s the best way of doing this? Playing on our feelings.
And it works. It gives us the tools to film our lives, curate a version of out live that looks wonderful, create the fear of missing out (FOMO) and that we are wonderful and adventurous (YOLO).
But it has the opposite effect. It can lead to isolation and disconnection. You feel everyone else is having a better time. You’re up for hours watching what you think are cute films (otters and Bernese Mountain dog puppies are my weakness) that take you down more and more and deeper and deeper rabbit holes. Before you know it, it’s 3am.
How can hypnotherapy help?
Hypnotherapy for social media is basically getting you back in control of your life. There no other word for it, but addiction. You’ve formed an unhealthy habit with a manipulative machine.
Here's how hypnotherapy can be used to address social media addiction:
Breaking Addictive Patterns:
Hypnosis can help you break the patterns of compulsive social media use. You see social media for what it is. You set boundaries to how much you use. You don’t just fritter away the hours. You choose to use social media more intentionally.
Reducing your anxiety and emotional Dependence:
Hypnotherapy can look at you underlying anxiety or emotional dependence to excessive social media use. For example, you think that sending links to friends is keeping in touch, makes you the ‘fun one’ in your group, the cool hunter, or the first out there with a joke that’s doing the rounds. It’s not a real connection.
Rebuilding Self-Esteem:
Comparison is the thief of joy. We need to stop this. You thinking everyone else out there is somehow leading a better, more exciting, glamorous, adventurous life. No they’re not. They’re just spending more time curating one. It’s a form of lying. And working together we can get you to walk away from this.
Get back to the real world:
Hypnotherapy for social media can help you get ‘out there’. Outside preferably. The benefits of being in the great outdoors are well known. Hypnotherapy can help you rediscover what is called, “real-life activities and relationships”. In other words go for a walk with a friend, go for a run. And remember there’s no such thing as bad weather only bad clothing choices. This isn’t being extreme. Read this.https://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/the-knowledge/7-reasons-why-getting-outside-is-great-for-your-mental-health.html Just Google, “benefits of being outdoors”.
Desensitisation: One of the techniques of hypnotherapy for social media is called hypnotic desensitisation. It’s similar to treating other addictions. You can see yourself not needing the online world for stimulation. It can simply pass you by. Why? You’re good enough without it.
What do psychologists think of hypnotherapy?
Using hypnotherapy for social media is a valid method. Hypnosis is more than just a stage trick. And psychologists and other researchers have found that it can be useful in treating mental health problems.
What is the success rate of hypnotherapy?
The best figure I can find is 93%. (Of course I’d find the best figure, I’m a hypnotherapist.)
Barrios, Ph. D., presented a review in the journal "Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice" and in American Health magazine. Barrios, a psychologist, conducted analysis in 1970, and found the following:
Psychoanalysis needs 600 sessions to get a 38% success rate
Behaviour Therapy needed 22 sessions to get a 72% success rate
Hypnotherapy needed 6 sessions to get a 93% success rate
Here’s a link to the research paper.
Is hypnotherapy better than counselling?
All talking therapies are same, same but different. And ultimately you choose the one you’re most comfortable with.
But one of the advantages of hypnotherapy is its ability to access the subconscious mind. Unlike traditional counselling, which primarily focuses on conscious thoughts and behaviours, hypnotherapy goes beyond the surface level and taps into the subconscious realm of your mind. This means that it can make a real lasting change for the better at the very deepest level.
I’m James Thomas. Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapist.
When it comes to hypnotherapy for social media use one of the things I love to instil is the art of doing nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Well, you’re not really doing nothing. I’m teaching you how to let everything pass you by. Not be so needy for news, attention or other people’s stories. Let nothing take your attention away from the here and now.
So, strange as it may seem, I’ll ask you to read this poem. It’s called ‘Leisure’ by William Henry Davies.
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
Feel free to email me at jamesthomas@thegentlemind.co.uk or call 07787563099.
I’m in Leeds, York, Lincoln and Louth.
Oh, and one final note. I feel this quote sums it up nicely.
“When the phone was tied with a wire, humans were free.”
