London & online appointments
Hypnotherapy for anxiety
Do you live with constant dread, overthink everything or imagine worst case scenarios? Is your anxiety exhausting you and making you miserable? I help people find relief from all forms of anxiety by working with the subconscious mind. Hypnosis can transform the way you think and feel, so you can stop being afraid and start living your life with optimism and enthusiasm.
Hello, I’m Susannah. I am a fully qualified hypnotherapist with 20+ years of experience, offering clinical hypnotherapy in the City of London, near Liverpool Street, and online. I help people manage anxiety, panic and stress, whether it has crept up recently or been part of life for years. I also support people whose anxiety is affecting their sleep, work or relationships. Contact me to find out more or book your initial consultation.
Prices and appointmentsYour first appointment includes hypnosis.
Established in 2003City Hypnotherapy Centre
20+ years of experienceClinical hypnotherapy
SQHP & HPDRecognised qualifications
London & onlineChoose your appointment format
How hypnotherapy for anxiety works
If you struggle with chronic anxiety, persistent overthinking, or panic attacks, you already know that conscious willpower is rarely enough to stop it. You have probably tried reasoning with yourself, telling yourself logically that you are safe, yet, despite all your conscious effort, your mind still races, your heart pounds and you continue to wake up with that underlying dread in your stomach.
This is because anxiety isn’t a logical response. It is an automatic, subconscious survival mechanism that has become oversensitised. To create true, lasting relief, we must address the issue at the root: within the subconscious mind.
We will work together to explore how you would like things to be different, and resolve the unhelpful thought patterns and fears that have been causing your anxiety. Our brain’s have a negativity bias, but we can retrain the mind to adopt a more positive, optimistic outlook. Each person and their anxiety is different, so your sessions will be tailored to you. You will also receive personalised hypnosis recordings to help strengthen the changes in-between sessions.
The benefits of hypnotherapy for anxiety
Anxiety hypnosis can transform the way you experience life:
- feel calmer day to day
- sleep better and wake refreshed and energised
- spend less time worrying about what might go wrong
- fewer physical symptoms, such as a racing heart or tight chest
- handle pressure at work more easily
- do the things you have been avoiding
- more patience with the people around you
- unwind and switch off in the evenings
If you would like help with anxiety, contact me to find out more or book your initial consultation.
Meet Susannah Saunders: Clinical Hypnotherapist in London
Susannah Saunders is a clinical hypnotherapist with over 20 years’ experience, helping clients with anxiety, sleep difficulties, phobias, confidence and unwanted habits.
She founded City Hypnotherapy Centre in London in 2003 and previously worked for two years as an assistant clinical psychologist within NHS Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. Her qualifications and professional registrations include:
- BSc (Hons) in Psychology
- Senior Qualification in Hypnotherapy Practice (SQHP), General Hypnotherapy Standards Council
- Hypnotherapy Practitioner Diploma (HPD), National Council for Hypnotherapy
- Registered with the General Hypnotherapy Register (GHR). Registration number: 3034
- Registered with the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC). Registration number: CNHC10269
Your appointment
£198Including VAT · approximately 50 minutes
- Individual sessions tailored to you
- Your initial consultation includes hypnosis
- A personalised hypnosis recording included
- Time to discuss your goals and review your progress
Try my free hypnosis audio
Try my free 30-minute guided relaxation audio and get a feel for my voice and approach.
What is anxiety?
Anxiety is a feeling of unease, worry or fear. In small doses it is useful, because it keeps you alert to danger and helps you prepare for challenges.
It becomes a problem when it is out of proportion, lasts for weeks or months, or gets in the way of daily life. Anxiety often comes with physical symptoms, and many people feel it most when they try to rest.
Hypnotherapy for different types of anxiety
Anxiety takes many forms, and it is common to experience more than one. Common types include:
- generalised anxiety: worrying about many things, most of the time
- social anxiety: fear of being judged or embarrassed around others
- health anxiety: persistent worry about illness
- panic attacks: sudden episodes of intense fear
- phobias: fear of something specific, such as flying or spiders
- performance anxiety: nerves around exams, presentations or interviews
- work-related anxiety and stress
Hypnotherapy for anxiety is tailored to the type you experience and the situations that trigger it.
Working with a hypnotherapist for anxiety
Working with a hypnotherapist for anxiety starts with an initial consultation. We talk about how anxiety is affecting you and how you would like to feel instead.
I also explain how stress, expectations and learned reactions can keep anxiety going. Many people find this helpful, because it shows that anxiety follows patterns that can change. The first session also includes hypnosis, so you experience it from the start.
I draw on a variety of hypnotherapy approaches, NLP and EFT, choosing techniques around your needs. We concentrate on how you want to feel and the progress you are making.
What happens in an anxiety hypnotherapy session
Each session after the first starts with a conversation about what has gone well since we last spoke. Focusing on positives helps lower stress and gives the subconscious something new to build on.
The rest of the session is hypnosis, using suggestions and imagery tailored to your goals. After each session, you receive the personalised recording of that session to listen to before the next one. Listening at bedtime can also help you settle and sleep.
Physical symptoms of anxiety
Anxiety affects the body as much as the mind. Common physical symptoms include:
- a racing or pounding heart
- a tight chest or shallow breathing
- tense muscles, often in the neck, shoulders or jaw
- headaches
- an upset stomach or nausea
- feeling dizzy or light-headed
- sweating or trembling
- tiredness, even after a full night in bed
These symptoms can happen during the fight or flight response. They can also have other causes, so new or unexplained symptoms should be assessed medically. Do not assume new chest pain or severe breathing difficulty is anxiety; seek urgent medical help.
Hypnotherapy for overthinking and anxious thoughts
Anxiety often shows up as constant worry. The mind jumps to ‘what if’ questions and the worst possible outcome, and it can be hard to concentrate on anything else.
Many people replay conversations, check things repeatedly or seek reassurance from others. Overthinking can feel like problem-solving, although it usually adds to the anxiety. Because these thought patterns run at a subconscious level, they can start before you notice them.
Hypnotherapy works at that same level, helping the mind settle so worries feel less urgent.
Panic attacks
A panic attack is a sudden surge of intense fear with strong physical symptoms. Your heart pounds, your breathing speeds up, and you may feel dizzy, shaky or detached from your surroundings. Many people fear they are having a heart attack or losing control.
Panic attacks usually peak within minutes and then pass. The fear of having another one can lead people to avoid places where they have happened before. It is worth having your symptoms checked by your GP to rule out other causes.
Hypnosis for anxiety and sleep
Anxiety and sleep affect each other. Worry can make it hard to fall asleep, and many people wake in the early hours with their mind racing.
Hypnosis can help you settle before bed and change the expectation that another sleepless night is inevitable. We can work with the thoughts that start as soon as your head touches the pillow, or the panic about tomorrow when you wake at 3am. Better sleep and less daytime worry can make it easier to concentrate and cope with a busy day.
Anxiety at work
Work is one of the most common sources of anxiety. Heavy workloads, tight deadlines and constant emails can keep the mind on alert long after the working day ends.
Some people dread Sunday evenings or lie awake thinking about the next day’s meetings. Others find their concentration and decision-making suffer, which adds to the pressure. Left unchecked, work anxiety can lead to burnout.
How anxiety limits your life
Anxiety can make your world smaller. Plans start to depend on how anxious you might feel. You might turn down invitations, avoid driving or travelling, or stay away from crowded places.
Relationships can suffer too. Irritability, needing reassurance or cancelling plans at the last minute can put a strain on partners, family and friends. Over time, many people feel anxiety is making their decisions for them.
Who is affected by anxiety?
Anxiety can affect anyone, at any age. It often builds up at times of change or pressure, such as:
- a new job, promotion or heavy workload
- redundancy or money worries
- becoming a parent
- illness or bereavement
- the end of a relationship
- perimenopause and menopause
- moving home
It is also common among high achievers, who often hide it well.
What causes anxiety?
Anxiety usually develops from a mix of factors. Ongoing stress, difficult life events, personality and family patterns can all play a part. Past experiences can also leave the subconscious primed to expect danger.
Caffeine, alcohol and poor sleep can make symptoms worse. Some medical conditions and medicines can cause symptoms of anxiety too. If your symptoms are new or unexplained, it is worth checking with your GP.
Hypnotherapy for stress and the stress bucket
A helpful way to picture accumulated stress is as a bucket. Work, family responsibilities and repeated worries add to it. Rest, support, enjoyable activity and time to recover give you more room to cope. It is a metaphor for feeling overloaded, rather than a literal description of what happens in your brain.
When you are already stretched, a small problem can bring on a much stronger reaction. Hypnotherapy helps you reduce that background tension and change the thoughts that keep adding to it. We can use relaxation, therapeutic suggestions and mental rehearsal to help you approach a demanding day without feeling on edge before it has begun.
What hypnosis for anxiety feels like
Hypnosis is a natural state of focused relaxation, similar to drifting off while reading or listening to music. You remain aware of what is happening and can open your eyes at any time.
Anxiety hypnosis is a clinical process, quite separate from stage hypnosis. Most people find it very relaxing, especially when anxiety has kept them on alert for a long time.
Hypnotherapy for panic attacks
Hypnotherapy for panic attacks focuses on lowering the background stress that makes panic more likely. It also works on the subconscious fear of the next attack, which often keeps the cycle going.
In hypnosis, you rehearse staying calm in places where panic has happened before, such as on a train or in a meeting. The aim is for panic to become less frequent and less intense, so you can return to places you have been avoiding.
Hypnotherapy for work stress and anxiety
Hypnotherapy for work stress and anxiety aims to help you switch off after work and handle pressure with a clearer head. Lower stress also makes it easier to make decisions and to sleep before a busy day.
You can also use sessions to prepare for situations you find hard, such as presentations or difficult conversations. Rehearsing them in hypnosis helps the subconscious link them with calm.
Everyday habits that support hypnotherapy for anxiety
Small changes can support the work we do in hypnosis and help you recover from everyday stress. Helpful habits include:
- regular exercise, such as a daily walk
- time with people you like
- noticing three things that went well each day
- cutting back on caffeine and alcohol
- slow breathing, with the out-breath longer than the in-breath
- a regular bedtime and less screen time before sleep
Hypnotherapy works best alongside habits like these.
Is hypnotherapy for anxiety right for you?
Hypnotherapy for anxiety can suit people with everyday worry as well as those whose anxiety has built up over years. It tends to work best when you are ready to make changes and listen to the personalised recording between sessions.
If your anxiety is severe, or you also have symptoms of depression, speak to your GP as well. Hypnotherapy can be used alongside medication and other treatment, and any change to medication should be made with your doctor.
Choosing a hypnotherapist for anxiety
When choosing a hypnotherapist for anxiety, look for recognised qualifications and solid experience of working with anxiety and stress. An initial consultation lets you ask questions and get a feel for how sessions work.
I hold the SQHP and HPD qualifications and have been helping people with anxiety, stress and panic since 2003.
Anxiety, hypnosis and the subconscious mind
Anxiety often feels automatic because it starts in the subconscious mind, before you have time to think. The subconscious learns from experience and reacts quickly to anything that resembles past danger, such as a crowded train or a difficult email.
Avoidance strengthens this. Each time you avoid something, the subconscious takes it as proof that the situation was dangerous, and the anxious response is reinforced. This is why reasoning with yourself often has little effect.
Hypnosis works directly with the subconscious, which is why it can help where reasoning has not. In hypnosis, we can work on the expectation that something will go wrong, build confidence in your ability to cope and rehearse a different response. You will not be asked to relive past events or traumas. We focus on the thoughts, feeling and beliefs that will support you, reprogramming your subconscious.
How I tailor hypnotherapy techniques to your anxiety
Your anxiety might show up as a frightening picture in your mind, a familiar rush of panic or a belief that you always have to be prepared for the worst. I draw on several approaches to hypnotherapy, together with NLP and EFT, to work with the way you experience it. We choose techniques around your goals and practise using them in the situations that matter to you.
How can anchoring help when I feel anxious?
Anchoring pairs a feeling you want more of, such as steadiness, with a small action you can repeat. We might practise bringing a calm experience to mind while gently pressing your thumb and finger together. For anxiety, the aim is to create a familiar cue you can use before answering a difficult call, entering a meeting or stepping onto a busy train.
How do you use the swish technique for anxious expectations?
The swish is an NLP imagery exercise that changes the picture you automatically associate with a situation. If an upcoming conversation brings an image of yourself freezing or falling apart, we can practise bringing a more useful picture into focus: you listening, pausing and speaking steadily. It gives you a different response to rehearse when that familiar trigger appears.
How can the rewind technique apply to anxiety?
Sometimes a particular experience keeps colouring what you expect next, such as a frightening journey or a moment when you felt humiliated. With your agreement, rewind uses guided imagery and a comfortable sense of distance to work on the emotional response to that memory. The aim is to help you approach similar situations feeling more settled in the present.
How can guided imagery help with anxiety?
Guided imagery gives you a way to practise calm responses in your imagination. We might rehearse the whole sequence of an anxious morning: waking, getting ready, leaving home and arriving where you want to be. You can imagine taking your time and coping with each step, using pictures, sounds or a simple sense of what you would like to feel.
Why use metaphors and stories for anxiety?
A metaphor can make a familiar worry feel easier to work with. An oversensitive alarm, for example, can describe feeling on edge, while setting down a heavy bag can represent handing back responsibilities you have been carrying for everyone else. I use images and stories that make sense to you, helping you explore a calmer relationship with your thoughts and feelings.
How do you use EFT tapping alongside anxiety hypnotherapy?
EFT, or Emotional Freedom Techniques, combines gentle tapping on points on your face and body with attention to a feeling or worry. We can use it alongside hypnosis as a practical calming exercise. You might practise with the nervous anticipation before a phone call or the unsettled feeling after a stressful conversation, and learn a routine to use between appointments.
Which types of hypnotherapy do you draw on for anxiety?
I use clinical hypnosis with therapeutic suggestions, and draw on solution-focused, cognitive behavioural, Ericksonian and curative approaches where helpful. These give us different ways to work with anxious expectations, beliefs and familiar reactions. Your sessions can bring several methods together, with the emphasis shaped by how anxiety affects your everyday life. My about hypnotherapy page explains the approaches in more detail.
What does solution-focused work look like for anxiety?
We make your preferred day concrete. You might want to eat breakfast comfortably, concentrate at work or enjoy an evening with friends. We look for times when parts of that already happen and build on them. In hypnosis, we can rehearse those useful responses, while our conversations help you notice progress and choose manageable next steps.
How can cognitive behavioural hypnotherapy help with anxious thinking?
This approach brings attention to the links between what you think, how you feel and what you do. If a message from your manager immediately means trouble in your mind, we can explore a more balanced expectation and rehearse opening it calmly in hypnosis. The work connects a different way of thinking with a practical response you can use afterwards.
How can Ericksonian hypnotherapy help me approach anxiety differently?
Ericksonian methods use conversational language, stories and indirect suggestions to help you find your own responses. For anxiety, I might draw on an experience when you handled uncertainty well, or use a story that helps you approach a change with more flexibility. The language and imagery are chosen around your interests, experiences and way of understanding things.
How can curative hypnotherapy apply to anxiety?
Curative work explores the meaning and beliefs associated with a difficulty. With anxiety, that might involve a strong feeling that you must keep everyone safe, always get things right or stay ready for something going wrong. Where this approach fits, we work on those underlying beliefs alongside the day-to-day changes you want to make.
How do we choose which anxiety techniques to use?
We start with your experience and what you want to change. A vivid picture of something going wrong may lend itself to imagery work; a predictable wave of nerves may be a useful place to practise an anchor. We review how you feel and what is changing between sessions, then adapt the work and your personalised recording around your progress.
When anxiety keeps finding something new to worry about
You might feel reassured after a conversation, then find yourself turning the same question over again an hour later. Or one worry settles and another takes its place. In sessions, we can work with that recurring pattern as well as the subject of the latest worry: noticing the urge to check, allowing a question to remain open and bringing your attention back to the day you want to have.
We make the work relevant to ordinary moments: waiting for your phone to ring, opening an email, settling down after a tense evening at home or meeting friends while you feel anxious inside. Progress might mean doing something you have been putting off, spending less time seeking reassurance or feeling more able to choose your next step.
If anxiety centres on a specific situation, my phobias page, fear of flying page and arachnophobia page explain how I work with those fears.
Research on hypnotherapy for anxiety
Clinical hypnosis and anxiety
A 2019 meta-analysis by Valentine and colleagues reviewed 15 studies containing 17 trials. Hypnosis reduced anxiety compared with control conditions, and results were stronger when it was combined with other psychological interventions. The studies covered different settings and kinds of anxiety; this is encouraging evidence, rather than a promise of the same result for everyone.
Understanding the treatment options
NICE recommends established treatments including CBT and applied relaxation for generalised anxiety disorder, and CBT for panic disorder. Hypnotherapy can be discussed as part of your wider support, taking account of any diagnosis and treatment you already receive.
The NHS also explains common symptoms and when to get medical advice.
Research links checked: 23 October 2026.
Page reviewed by Susannah Saunders, clinical hypnotherapist (SQHP, HPD), November 2026.
Anxiety hypnotherapy FAQs
Questions about hypnosis for anxiety, symptoms, choosing a hypnotherapist and appointments in London or online.
How anxiety hypnotherapy works
Yes. Hypnotherapy can help reduce anxiety by changing the thoughts, expectations and automatic reactions that keep you feeling on edge. I use clinical hypnosis alongside NLP and coaching, with work on the specific problems you describe, such as worrying before meetings, feeling panicky when you go out or struggling to switch off at night.
Hypnosis uses focused attention and therapeutic suggestion to help change how you respond to anxious thoughts and situations. In sessions, I use techniques such as mental rehearsal, imagery and work on limiting beliefs. For example, we can rehearse speaking in a meeting while changing the expectation that you will embarrass yourself.
I mean working with learned reactions that happen automatically. You might know a situation is safe but still tense up or feel your heart race. Hypnosis gives us a way to address those responses, alongside beliefs such as ‘I can’t cope’, so you can respond with greater calm and confidence.
A 2019 meta-analysis of 15 studies containing 17 trials found that hypnosis reduced anxiety compared with control conditions. Benefits were greater when hypnosis was combined with other psychological approaches. The studies covered different settings and forms of anxiety; the findings do not give an individual success rate or a fixed number of sessions.
Solution-focused hypnotherapy helps you identify how you want to think, feel and behave, then uses conversation and hypnosis to practise those changes. For anxiety, that could mean travelling without constant dread, contributing to meetings or going to bed without rehearsing everything that could go wrong.
CBT examines the relationship between thoughts, feelings and behaviour and is a recommended treatment for anxiety. Hypnotherapy uses hypnosis and therapeutic suggestions to address reactions and expectations. My approach draws on several methods, including cognitive approaches, NLP and coaching. Tell me about any therapy you are having so we can discuss how hypnosis would fit.
Meditation often involves practising awareness of thoughts and sensations. Hypnotherapy is a treatment in which I use suggestions, imagery and other techniques for a particular problem. Both can involve focused attention and relaxation, but an anxiety hypnotherapy session includes therapeutic work on the fears and reactions you want to change.
Yes, you can seek hypnotherapy for longstanding anxiety. We look at what is keeping the anxiety going now, including avoidance, repeated worry and self-doubt. You do not have to remember an exact starting point. The plan depends on your symptoms, previous treatment and what you want to be able to do more comfortably.
Anxiety symptoms and everyday situations
Hypnotherapy can help you change repeated worst-case thinking, replaying conversations and constantly questioning your decisions. I use hypnosis to address the expectations and self-criticism behind the worry, alongside rehearsal of situations where you want to feel more at ease. We can also identify checking or reassurance habits that keep the worry going.
Hypnosis can help reduce anxiety-related tension and work on the fear attached to sensations such as blushing, trembling or a racing heart. Treatment includes calming the stress response and changing anxious expectations. New or unexplained physical symptoms should be checked medically rather than automatically attributed to anxiety.
Hypnotherapy can address the fear of another panic attack, anxious interpretations of bodily sensations and avoidance of places associated with panic. I use suggestions and rehearsal to help you approach those situations with greater confidence. Tell me about any diagnosis and current treatment; the NHS explains treatment options for panic disorder here.
Generalised anxiety can involve worry about many different parts of life, rather than one specific fear. Hypnotherapy can address persistent tension, catastrophic thinking and difficulty switching off. We can work with examples from your day, such as worrying about family, health or work. Tell me if you have a diagnosis of generalised anxiety disorder.
Yes. Social anxiety hypnotherapy can address fear of being judged, blushing, saying the wrong thing and replaying conversations afterwards. In hypnosis, we can rehearse social situations and work on the beliefs that leave you expecting rejection. Read more about my hypnotherapy for social anxiety.
Yes. I help people with racing thoughts, a shaky voice, going blank and fear of being watched when speaking. Hypnosis can address anxious expectations and help you mentally rehearse contributing to meetings or giving a speech with confidence. My public speaking hypnotherapy page explains this work in more detail.
Yes. If you lie awake worrying or wake and immediately start thinking about tomorrow, hypnosis can help change that response. I use suggestions for rest and work on the expectation of another bad night. Sessions can address both daytime anxiety and sleep-related worry. See my insomnia hypnotherapy page.
Hypnotherapy can help with fear of making mistakes, self-doubt, speaking in meetings and anxiety before difficult conversations. We can use hypnosis to challenge limiting beliefs and rehearse those situations with more confidence. Tell me which parts of your working day are difficult so the sessions address the problems you actually face.
Sessions, progress and home practice
We talk about your anxiety, how it affects you, your health and any treatment you are receiving. I explain the approach I recommend and answer your questions. Your first appointment includes hypnosis as well as this discussion, so treatment starts during the first session.
People describe hypnosis differently. You might feel physically relaxed, absorbed in my voice or focused on an imagined experience. Some people notice lightness or heaviness; others feel quite ordinary. There is no special sensation you need to produce. I adapt the pace and techniques to how you respond.
Yes. A busy mind does not mean you cannot benefit from hypnosis. You do not have to empty your mind or get relaxation ‘right’. I can adjust the pace, use a different way of directing your attention and work with the tension or expectations that make relaxing difficult.
The number of sessions depends on your symptoms, how long they have been affecting you, previous treatment and how you respond. I discuss a plan with you and review it as we go. A single worry about an event can need a different approach from anxiety affecting several parts of your life.
Some people notice a difference after the first session, while others need several appointments and practice at home. We look at changes outside the session, such as less avoidance, fewer hours spent worrying or feeling more comfortable at work. Feeling relaxed during hypnosis is useful, but everyday changes are how we judge progress.
You can ask about hypnosis even if you have tried counselling, CBT or another approach. Tell me what you tried, what helped and what remained difficult. That information helps us decide what to include in treatment and whether my approach is a suitable next step for you.
Yes. After each session, you receive the personalised recording of that session to listen to between appointments. Repeating it reinforces the suggestions and techniques we have used together. Listen somewhere safe and comfortable where you can give it your attention, never while driving or doing anything that needs your full attention.
No. You can book without knowing why the anxiety started. We can begin with what happens now: the situations you avoid, the thoughts that repeat and the physical reactions you notice. We discuss past experiences when they are relevant, rather than assume every anxiety problem has one hidden cause.
London, online appointments and other treatment
I offer one-to-one anxiety hypnotherapy at City Hypnotherapy Centre, Longcroft House, 2–8 Victoria Avenue, London EC2M 4NS, near Liverpool Street station. You can also choose online appointments. Contact me to ask about availability and which format you prefer.
Yes. I offer individual anxiety hypnotherapy sessions by Zoom. You need a quiet, private room, a reliable connection and a phone, tablet or computer. Online appointments include the conversation and hypnosis, with the same opportunity to discuss the anxiety you want help with.
An anxiety hypnotherapy session costs £198 including VAT and lasts approximately 50 minutes. Your first appointment includes hypnosis as well as the consultation. You receive the personalised recording of your session to use between appointments. See the fees and appointments page for full booking information.
Tell me about any medication and the condition it is prescribed for when you enquire. We can discuss how hypnotherapy would fit alongside your care. Keep taking prescribed medication unless the clinician who prescribes it advises a change; booking hypnosis is not a reason to stop or alter it yourself.
Tell me what therapy you are receiving and what you are working on. We can discuss whether adding hypnosis would be useful and how the approaches would fit together. If you are under the care of a mental health team, please mention that before we arrange treatment.
I have a BSc (Hons) in Psychology, a Hypnotherapy Practitioner Diploma and the Senior Qualification in Hypnotherapy Practice. I established City Hypnotherapy Centre in 2003 and am registered with the CNHC and GHR. You can read more on my experience and qualifications page.
Look for specific changes in situations that used to be difficult: contributing to a meeting, going out without cancelling, sleeping with less worry or recovering more quickly after a stressful event. We discuss these changes at appointments and adjust the work around anything that remains difficult.
Yes. You can send an enquiry or call 07973 896907. Briefly explain what you want help with, any current treatment and whether you prefer London or online sessions. I can answer questions about my approach before you decide whether to book.
Specific worries and patterns of anxiety
Hypnotherapy can work on the cycle of checking your body, searching symptoms online and needing repeated reassurance. In hypnosis, we can address frightening expectations and practise tolerating uncertainty without immediately checking again. Health anxiety does not mean every symptom is anxiety: new symptoms still deserve appropriate medical assessment. CBT is also an established treatment to consider with your GP.
Yes. Sessions can address the thoughts that arrive as soon as you wake, such as expecting a difficult day or checking how anxious you feel. Hypnosis gives us a way to rehearse a calmer start and reduce the pressure to feel completely fine before getting on with your morning. We also look at sleep and the stress you carry into the evening.
Hypnotherapy can help with anxiety, disrupted sleep and loss of confidence during perimenopause and menopause. Sessions can address what has changed for you, whether that is panic before work, irritability or feeling less able to cope. My menopause hypnotherapy page explains symptom support and the research on clinical hypnosis for hot flushes.
Anxiety can affect digestion, and worrying about stomach symptoms can add to the stress. Hypnotherapy can address that anxiety and the expectation of symptoms when travelling, eating out or going to work. Persistent digestive symptoms should be assessed by your GP. If you have IBS, see my IBS and gut-directed hypnotherapy page for more specific information.
Sessions can address repeated fears of rejection, reading too much into messages and needing constant reassurance from a partner. In hypnosis, we can work with beliefs about your worth and rehearse responding with greater calm when you feel uncertain. We also distinguish anxious assumptions from genuine problems in a relationship that need attention.
Hypnotherapy can help you respond differently to unwanted thoughts, so having a thought does not automatically lead to hours of analysing it. We can work on the meaning you attach to it and the urge to seek certainty. If intrusive thoughts come with compulsive checking or rituals, tell me: OCD needs an appropriate assessment, and CBT with exposure and response prevention is an established treatment.
Yes. Many people carry on working, caring for family and meeting deadlines while privately feeling exhausted by worry. The term high-functioning anxiety describes that experience, rather than a formal diagnosis. You do not need to wait until you can no longer cope to ask for help. Sessions can address over-preparing, perfectionism and the feeling that you must always be in control.
Hypnotherapy can help you prepare for situations you have started avoiding, such as travelling, meetings or social events. In hypnosis, we can rehearse taking manageable steps and work on the expectation that anxiety will be unbearable. We agree practical goals that fit your circumstances, so progress means doing more of what matters to you, rather than waiting to feel no anxiety at all.
Choosing an anxiety hypnotherapist and getting started
Look for recognised training, experience with anxiety and a clear explanation of how treatment would address your concerns. Ask about fees, recordings and how progress is reviewed. Rapport matters too: you should feel listened to and comfortable discussing what is happening. You can read about my experience and qualifications and contact me before booking.
There is no single best hypnotherapist for everyone. Qualifications and relevant experience are important, but so is how comfortable you feel with the therapist and their approach. Reviews can help you learn about other people’s experiences; they cannot predict your own result. Try my free hypnosis audio to hear my voice, or contact me to discuss what you need.
You can try my free 30-minute relaxation hypnosis audio to get a feel for my voice and the experience of listening. It is a general relaxation recording, rather than a personalised treatment for your anxiety. Get the free hypnosis audio here. Listen somewhere quiet and safe, never while driving.
You can contact me directly without a GP referral. Tell me about any diagnosis, medication or other treatment when you enquire so we can discuss whether my approach fits your needs. If anxiety is new, severe or accompanied by unexplained physical symptoms, a GP assessment is useful alongside considering hypnotherapy.
You do not need to practise hypnosis or prepare a detailed account of your life. It helps to think of a few specific examples: when anxiety starts, what you do to cope and what you would like to do more comfortably. For Zoom appointments, choose a private room, check your connection and find a comfortable place to sit.
No. Some people imagine clear pictures; others respond more to words, sounds, feelings or simply a sense of what is being described. I can adapt suggestions and rehearsal to the way you experience them. Hypnosis does not require you to produce a perfect mental image or pass a test of imagination.
Hypnotherapy can help you reduce persistent anxiety and change habits that keep it going. The goal is to feel calmer and able to handle situations with more confidence. Some anxiety is a normal response to pressure, so I do not promise you will never feel it again. Recordings and the techniques you learn give you ways to support yourself when life becomes stressful.
Speak to your GP if anxiety is severe, persistent or making everyday life difficult, or if symptoms are new or unexplained. New chest pain, collapse or severe difficulty breathing needs urgent medical assessment rather than being assumed to be panic. The NHS guide to anxiety, fear and panic explains treatment and support options.
Anxiety in real life: reassurance, uncertainty and everyday pressure
Why does reassurance settle my anxiety for only a short time?
Reassurance can bring immediate relief, while the need to feel certain brings the question back again. We can work on recognising that pattern and practising a steadier response when the urge to ask or check appears. For worries about illness, my health anxiety page explores how checking and reassurance can become part of the cycle.
Why does my mind find a new worry as soon as one is resolved?
When you are on high alert, your attention can move from one possible problem to the next. We can focus on that habit of scanning and anticipating, alongside the worry itself. Hypnosis, imagery and practical exercises give you ways to rehearse feeling more comfortable with uncertainty and returning your attention to what you are doing.
Can hypnotherapy help with dread while waiting for an important phone call?
Yes. We can work with the anticipation, the conversation you imagine and the feeling that you need to stay braced until the phone rings. An anchor or mental rehearsal can help you practise listening, taking a breath and responding at your own pace, whether the call is from a manager, an organisation or someone you find intimidating.
Can you help when another person's stress leaves me feeling anxious?
Yes. Living with someone who is under pressure can affect your own ability to settle, especially when sleep and routines are disrupted. We can work on staying supportive while making room for your own rest and needs. Imagery, calming exercises and clearer personal boundaries can become part of your sessions and home practice.
Can hypnotherapy help when frightening news stays in my mind?
Yes. We can explore the images and predictions that keep replaying after you hear something upsetting, then practise bringing your attention back to the present. Your sessions might include imagery, therapeutic suggestions and a more deliberate routine for reading or watching the news, so you have space to feel informed and enjoy everyday life.
Why do I feel anxious hours before something happens?
Anticipatory anxiety is the worry you feel while imagining an upcoming event. Your mind may rehearse an awkward conversation or a difficult journey long before you get there. We can use that same ability to imagine things to practise a more helpful sequence, with manageable steps and a clearer sense of how you want to respond.
Can we work on worrying that other people will notice my anxiety?
Yes. We can work on the fear of being judged, the pressure to appear fine and the habit of monitoring yourself throughout a conversation. In hypnosis, you can rehearse feeling more at ease, focusing on the people around you and taking part in your own way. My social anxiety page gives more detail about this kind of worry.
Can we work on the exhaustion that comes with constant worrying?
Yes. We can explore how much of your day is spent anticipating, replaying conversations or staying ready for problems. Sessions can focus on winding down, protecting time to rest and rebuilding a steadier daily rhythm. Your personalised recording gives you a regular opportunity to settle and practise the work between appointments.
Anxiety hypnotherapy in London and online
City Hypnotherapy Centre
Longcroft House, 2–8 Victoria Avenue
London EC2M 4NS
The practice is a short walk from Liverpool Street station. You can also choose an online appointment by Zoom.
If you would like to hear my voice before booking, try my free 30-minute relaxation recording.
Enquire about anxiety hypnotherapy
Tell me what you would like help with and whether you prefer an appointment in London or online.
