{"id":3463,"date":"2020-01-24T06:15:36","date_gmt":"2020-01-24T06:15:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/?p=3463"},"modified":"2022-10-30T17:00:21","modified_gmt":"2022-10-30T17:00:21","slug":"motivational-interviewing-hypnotherapy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/motivational-interviewing-hypnotherapy\/","title":{"rendered":"Motivational interviewing in hypnotherapy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Does motivational interviewing have a place in hypnotherapy?<\/h2>\n

Some hypnotherapy clients will be highly motivated to engage in their own healthy changes, whilst others are far less engaged. These clients may expect therapy to be done \u2018to\u2019 them, and believe that it is the role of the hypnotherapist to generate that change and \u2018make\u2019 it stick.<\/p>\n

However, we know that for lasting change, the client will need to take responsibility for themselves both within and beyond the hypnotherapy session. Motivational interviewing<\/a> approaches can help the therapist to have gentle yet productive behavioural change conversations with their clients.<\/p>\n

Modern hypnotherapy is often considered a collaborative therapy and, as a result, fits very well with the motivational interviewing concept of a \u2018co-operative partnership\u2019.<\/p>\n

Unlike a problem-centred approach, motivational interviewing can work effectively in a solution-focused way, with an individual\u2019s personal values, goals aspirations and dreams to boost their motivation for change, whilst considering the client\u2019s independence. This being particularly important when desiring the client to engage with self-care and homework tasks, beyond the session.<\/p>\n

Hypnotherapists who like the optimistic and humanistic approach of Rogerian therapy (Carl Rogers) will find motivational interviewing fits particularly well with their therapy approaches.<\/p>\n

Motivational interviewing helps a client move forward from uncertainty towards connecting to the motivation to make positive decisions and to meet their goals.<\/p>\n

As motivational interviewing<\/a> engages the client\u2019s own motivation for change as well as integrating therapeutic gains, this can be particularly helpful when working with weight management, smoking cessation, addictions, anxiety and even sport performance.<\/p>\n

Indeed, motivational interviewing can be helpful in any situation where a client\u2019s lack of motivation is a significant hurdle in their ability to change.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Therapy<\/p>\n

Some therapists take a more combative or confrontational approach, perhaps telling the client of the consequences of not changing, such as saying \u201cIf you don\u2019t stop smoking you will die sooner\u201d, with a view that the pressure of the negative consequences would motivate a change (an \u2018away from pain\u2019 approach).<\/p>\n

In contrast, motivational interviewing has a more \u2018towards pleasure\u2019 application, helping the client consider their own feelings (including any ambivalence to change) and allowing them to move forward from these towards their own<\/em> motivations for change. Thus, rather than the therapist taking an authoritarian, directive approach, they instead support the client.<\/p>\n

By helping the client develop an internal desire for change they gain a more sustainable motivation for change and maintaining that change.<\/p>\n

Within the motivational interviewing process, change talk will include open-ended questions, affirmative statements and reflections. The open-ended questioning approach engages <\/strong>the client and evokes greater consideration<\/strong> and more focus<\/strong> on what is desired by the client than the simpler closed \u2018yes\u2019 and \u2018no\u2019 type questions.<\/p>\n

This is supported by reflective listening and affirmative, positive statements, which can be employed by the therapist to develop the client\u2019s sense of autonomy and belief in their ability to change. As such, the client can discover more reasons for change than they might have initially be aware of.<\/p>\n

A planning <\/strong>stage can then strengthen the client\u2019s commitment to change and help them to achieve their \u2018SMART\u2019 goals.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The RULE<\/h3>\n

There are four general principles of motivational interviewing which have a curiously oppositional acronym: RULE<\/p>\n

R<\/strong>esist any urge to change the individual through direct influence<\/p>\n

U<\/strong>nderstand the client\u2019s reasons for change<\/p>\n

L<\/strong>isten for the client\u2019s own solutions<\/p>\n

E<\/strong>mpower the client to believe in their ability to change<\/p>\n

It can be tempting for a therapist to \u2018rescue\u2019 the client, remove their distress and \u2018fix\u2019 the client\u2019s problems, whether directly or indirectly telling or guiding them towards what the therapist considers to be the solution.<\/p>\n

Curiously, such fixing, particularly with \u2018strong\u2019 persuasion, can have a paradoxical effect in therapy where the client then resists the therapist\u2019s persuasion or direction. This can reinforce any resistant aspects of a client\u2019s view of the issue.<\/p>\n

For example, with a client who is looking to reduce their alcohol intake. If they are treated as \u2018having a problem\u2019 and told perhaps, \u201cyou should cut down or quit drinking\u201d, the client may respond defensively, such as with, \u201cI am fine, it isn\u2019t that bad\u201d.<\/p>\n

Another example might be the weight management client who has sore knees. When it is suggested that they might engage with some light exercise to help with their weight loss, they might respond with concern that the exercise would make their knees worse.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Motivational<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Within a consultation it helps for the therapist to suspend their own perceptions of what might motivate someone to change, and focus on understanding their client\u2019s own motivations.<\/p>\n

This could be as simple as asking them what they would want to make a change and how they might do it, as opposed to telling them what or how to change. It can be surprising quite how much more information can be gathered by truly listening to the client.<\/p>\n

Indeed, good listening during a consultation is a skill! Good listening will also help the therapist avoid overloading their clients with too much information. Just because you know all the facts about a condition\/solution, it isn\u2019t always appropriate to tell all of them<\/em> to the client.<\/p>\n

Throughout this process, the therapist may employ the differing styles of \u2018following\u2019, \u2018directing\u2019 and \u2018guiding\u2019.<\/p>\n

A following<\/strong> style can be useful during the initial phase of the client telling their story, before moving into more of a directing<\/strong> style to focus the client on the options for change and then a more guiding<\/strong> approach to explore how the client might continue their change process beyond the therapy session.<\/p>\n

Such a transition can help avoid being overly client-focused, which can have its own challenges, particularly where a therapist lets the client lead the session and takes a passive role, following their story and potentially getting lost in the process.<\/p>\n

In addition, within motivational interviewing there are 5 key skills to keep in mind: Expressing empathy, avoiding arguments and judgements, developing discrepancy, moving beyond resistance, whilst supporting self-efficacy.<\/p>\n

Encouraging disclosure of the client\u2019s issues and barriers to change by using empathy<\/strong> and avoiding judgement<\/strong> is a great place to start. For example, by saying, \u201cI can understand why you might light up a cigarette when you are feeling stressed\u201d.<\/p>\n

You can then move from a position of empathy to one where you are helping the client observe the difference between where they are presently headed and where they would like to be to achieve their goals.<\/p>\n

For example, helping a client discover the discrepancy<\/strong> between their goal, which is to be healthy, whilst indicating that they are smoking 40 cigarettes a day. The therapist will use a gentle questioning approach to help the client move beyond any resistance<\/strong> to change.<\/p>\n

The questioning approach helps lead the client to a natural conclusion. Where there is resistance, rather than being overly directive or manipulating the client, the therapist will develop the client\u2019s point of view and offer alternative ways of thinking for the client to consider. This helps develop a client\u2019s belief in their choice for and ability to change, so supporting self-efficacy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

When considering the commonly held principle that \u2018the suggestions we give ourselves are the most powerful\u2019, ultimately, by helping a client a client to discover and engage with their own solutions, a therapist will help the client to connect with ways of change that are going to be the most accurate and meaningful for that particular client.<\/p>\n

This then leads to stronger and more effectively targeted goals, leading to more focused treatment plans and greater therapeutic effectiveness. Motivational interviewing can help the hypnotherapist make any hypnotherapy session truly bespoke to their client.<\/p>\n

– written by Dr Kate Beaven-Marks<\/strong>
\n(HypnoTC Director)<\/p>\n

\"Dr<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Does motivational interviewing have a place in hypnotherapy? Some hypnotherapy clients will be highly motivated to engage in their own healthy changes, whilst others are far less engaged. These clients may expect therapy to be done \u2018to\u2019 them, and believe that it is the role of the hypnotherapist to generate that change and \u2018make\u2019 it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":5975,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[26],"class_list":["post-3463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-applying-hypnotherapy","tag-dr-kate-beaven-marks"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3463"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8966,"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3463\/revisions\/8966"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5975"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hypnotc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

We hope that this blog about motivational interviewing in hypnotherapy<\/strong> has been helpful. If you have any questions about this topic or anything else for that matter, do please get in touch<\/strong><\/a>, because we\u2019re always happy to help!<\/p>\n