Frequently Asked Questions
The basics
What's the difference between hypnosis and hypnotherapy?
Hypnosis is a state of mind. Hypnotherapy is the clinical use of that state toward a defined outcome.
The state itself is ordinary and naturally occurring. You have been in it — absorbed in a film to the point of forgetting the room, or driving a familiar route and arriving with no memory of the drive. Described clinically, it is focused, absorbed attention in which the mind becomes markedly more responsive to suggestion. It can be produced by a recording, an app, a stage performer, or by yourself. Being in it is pleasant, and on its own it is not treatment.
Hypnotherapy is what a trained clinician does with that state. The work begins before any induction, with assessment: what the pattern is, what maintains it, what you want in its place, and whether this is the right approach at all. Then interventions chosen for your particular pattern, delivered while the critical, analytical layer of mind is quiet enough for them to land. Then integration — connecting what shifted to how you actually live. The state makes the work possible; the assessment and the interventions are what make it therapy.
Worth knowing: in the United States, neither hypnotist nor hypnotherapist is a protected title, and the field is unregulated. The words alone tell you nothing about the training behind them.
What certification actually means in this field →
What's the first step?
A free, 30-minute fit call — a conversation to establish whether this is the right work for what you're carrying. If it isn't, you'll be told so directly and pointed somewhere better suited. Book a fit call →
What happens after I book?
You'll get a confirmation email straight away, along with a prompt to activate your client account — that's where your paperwork, scheduling and session materials live. There's nothing to prepare for the fit call itself. If we go on to the Discovery Consultation, you'll receive your intake forms and an invoice through that same portal, and we'll take it from there.
What happens on the Discovery Consultation?
It's a complete standalone session, $250, 75–90 minutes: comprehensive assessment, goal-setting, a full hypnosis experience, and a debrief producing your personalized roadmap — including the minimum number of session hours your situation needs. Whatever you decide afterward, the session's value is yours to keep.
How do I know if I'm a fit for this work?
The people who do best here have usually already worked on themselves in good faith — therapy, coaching, meditation, self-development — and have a stress, sleep, mood, habit, confidence, or performance pattern that persists anyway. If you understand your pattern and can't change it, you're in the center of what this practice offers.
Do I need to be in therapy, or done with it, to work with you?
Neither. Some clients are in therapy now — common here, and the two coexist well. Some finished long ago. Some have never gone. Others work with me alongside their physicians, using this work to support how they live day to day with what their medical team looks after: the stress, the sleep, the tension. All of them are welcome to reach out.
The one line that matters: hypnotherapy here is never a replacement for diagnosis, treatment, or management of a condition. That belongs with medical and mental-health professionals. And where symptom management of a diagnosed condition is in the care of a licensed clinician, I'm glad to coordinate as adjunct care.
Who is this not for?
Anyone seeking insurance-covered care (this practice is private pay), diagnosis, or treatment of a medical or mental-health condition — that belongs with licensed clinicians. Intake screening exists to keep everyone inside those lines, honestly.
Money
Do you take insurance?
No — all services are private pay. For specific clinical concerns, HSA/FSA funds may be used with a letter of medical necessity from a physician or other qualified medical provider — this path isn't available for self-development goals. Ask on your fit call.
Do you offer payment plans?
Yes — on the Transformation Intensive. You can pay in full, or split the cost into two or three equal monthly payments, charged automatically to the card on file. The first payment is due at purchase, and sessions begin once it clears. The Breakthrough Series is payable in full before your first session. Full amounts are on the Services & Pricing page.
Are programs refundable?
No — programs are purchased as a whole and aren't refundable once begun. But your hours don't disappear either. They're yours for twelve months from the date of purchase, at whatever pace suits you.
The structure is built so you never have to commit further than you can see. The fit call is free. The Discovery Consultation stands alone at $250 and tells you what the work would actually involve before you buy anything larger. Only then does a program make sense, sized to the minimum your situation needs. Each step gives you enough to decide the next one on solid ground.
What if I need to cancel or reschedule?
No problem. Just give at least 24 hours' notice — through the scheduling tool or by replying to your appointment reminder — and rescheduling is simple. Late cancellations and missed sessions are charged the full fee for the session booked; if the session came out of a program balance, 60 minutes is deducted from your remaining program hours instead. Payment is due at the time of your appointment and may be made any time in advance, and a card on file secures your bookings. Stated here plainly so nothing ever surprises you.
Is there a guarantee?
No — and be wary of any practitioner who offers one. Change-work outcomes depend on the pattern, the fit, your readiness and motivation, and your individual responsiveness to the work — exactly the factors the Discovery Consultation exists to assess honestly, before any program is recommended. What you can expect here: straight assessment, a recommendation sized to the minimum your situation needs, and a direct answer at every stage about whether the work is doing its job.
Sessions
How do sessions happen?
By video, wherever you are; sessions run 60–75 minutes. Selective in-person availability exists in Berkeley for Bay Area clients.
How does this work over video?
Anywhere you can be genuinely uninterrupted for the hour — door closed, phone silenced, pets settled elsewhere. A laptop or tablet works best; a phone is fine if it's propped rather than held, with the camera on your face and shoulders. Have whatever makes you comfortable within reach — a blanket, a pillow, water. You'll be sitting back or reclining for much of the session, so set yourself up the way you'd want to be for an hour of rest.
What is a session actually like?
A focused conversation first, to sync up on your progress since the last session — then guided, deeply absorbed inward focus that most people describe as profound, even extraordinary relaxation, aware throughout — then the change-work itself, then a debrief. You remember the session, you stay in control, and you can pause at any point. Most clients come to look forward to the hour itself. The full walkthrough →
How often are sessions?
Ideally every one to two weeks, straight through — momentum is part of the method. Longer gaps are accommodated; scheduling is never a reason to delay beginning.
Privacy
Is what I share confidential?
Yes — everything you share, from the fit call onward, is held in confidence within the confidentiality framework of the ACHE Code of Ethics, and shared with no one absent your written consent or a legal requirement, such as risk of harm, abuse, or a court order — the same exceptions every helping professional carries. Discretion is a foundation of this practice; many clients are private people in visible roles, and the practice is built around that reality.
Will anything go to my employer or insurer?
No. This practice is private pay and independent — there is no insurer, employer program, or third party in the relationship. Records live in a secure, HIPAA-compliant practice-management system and go nowhere without your consent.
Do you work with minors?
The practice primarily serves adults. Work with young people (age 6+) happens occasionally, with written parental consent, and is decided case by case in conversation with parents — reach out and ask.
A question this page didn't answer?
Ask it on a fit call — free, 30 minutes, straight answers. Or write to skye@deepwavehypnotherapy.com.