Racing thoughts at night
The day goes quiet and your head does not. You go back over it, again and again.
Solution focused hypnotherapy · psychotherapy · EMDR · Bristol & online
Anxiety isn’t a weakness.
I’m Steph Waters. I work with anxiety, overthinking and sleepless nights — in Pucklechurch or online, at your pace.
- 5.0 from 115 Google reviews
- Pucklechurch, Bristol
- Face to face and online
01 — What anxiety looks like
It is not one thing. It has a shape.
These are the ones people bring to me. You do not need to fit a description exactly, and you do not need the right words before we speak.
Overthinking conversations
You leave a room and replay every word, looking for the thing you got wrong.
Feeling on edge
A low hum of alarm in the background, even on an ordinary day.
Not being able to switch off
Rest does not arrive. Even a quiet evening feels like something you should be doing better.
Work stress and burnout
Pressure that follows you home, sits down with you, and is still there on Sunday.
Low confidence
Anxiety makes ordinary things feel like a risk. That is tiring in a way people do not always see.
Knots in the stomach, chest tightness and panic attacks are part of the same picture. You can just tell me what it is like for you.
02 — Still Water
One drop. Then the surface settles.
Solution focused hypnotherapy is less about what happened, and more about what you want instead. That is the whole idea, and it is where the hour goes.
Forward looking
Most of the hour is about what you want to be different, and the smallest next step towards it. The past is not ignored. It is just not the whole hour.
How the brain works
I explain how the mind builds its patterns, why anxiety repeats, and how a new pattern is made. Understanding it tends to take some of the fear out of it.
Relaxation and visualisation
The second half of a session is guided relaxation and visualisation, shaped around what you have just said. You are awake, comfortable and in control throughout.
Everyone responds differently, and nothing here is a promise of a particular outcome. It is what the sessions are for.
03 — How it works
Four steps, and no surprises.
The first step is an initial consultation. You do not have to decide anything before it, and you can stop after it if it is not for you.
The initial consultation
We meet face to face in Pucklechurch or online via Zoom. You tell me what you would like to change, and I explain how the brain works and why we respond the way we do.
We agree what you want to change
Not a list of problems. A clear picture of how you would like things to be, and what would tell you it is shifting.
Sessions, with relaxation and visualisation
The work itself: solution focused conversation, then guided relaxation shaped around what you have just talked about. At a pace that suits you.
We review
We look at what has changed and decide together whether to carry on. No fixed number of sessions is agreed up front.
04 — Also for
Not everything is anxiety.
Smoking and vaping
Stopping smoking or vaping, worked through in the same solution focused way.
Phobias, including flying
Specific fears, including a fear of flying. We work on the fear itself rather than avoiding it.
EMDR for trauma
Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing, for trauma — a separate way of working, not hypnosis.
If what you are bringing is not on this list, ask. I will tell you honestly whether it is something I work with.
05 — Fees
Fees on enquiry.
I do not publish a price list. Ask me what a session costs before you book, and I will tell you plainly.
Fees on enquiry
Ask before you book and I will tell you what a session costs, so there is nothing to work out on the day.
Online sessions are available for anybody out of area.
Initial consultation
We talk about what you want to change and how the brain works. Face to face in Pucklechurch, or online via Zoom.
Fees on enquiry
Sessions
Solution focused conversation, then guided relaxation and visualisation. Face to face or online.
Fees on enquiry
Out of area
Online sessions are available for anybody out of area, on the same basis as face to face.
Fees on enquiry
To ask about fees, email me or call 07976 984 169.
- Training
- The Clifton Practice of Hypnotherapy Training, Bristol
- Qualified
- January 2018
- Memberships
- DSFH · AfSFH · CNHC
- Insured
- Fully insured
06 — About Steph
I came to this through a book.
I came across a book on hypnotherapy, read it in a couple of days, and was hooked. I tried it for my own development before I ever thought about training. Then I trained at the Clifton Practice of Hypnotherapy Training in Bristol, and qualified in January 2018.
I am a Clinical Hypnotherapist, Psychotherapist and EMDR Therapist, specialising in solution focused therapy. I am fully insured, and a member of the Association for Solution Focused Hypnotherapists (AfSFH) and the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC).
What I like about this way of working is that we do not spend months on the history of the problem. We spend the time on the life you would rather be living, and on what makes that possible.
I work from Shortwood Road in Pucklechurch, and online for anyone out of area.
07 — Reviews
In their own words.
5.0
/ 5
“I decided to try hypnotherapy after countless amounts of CBT for anxiety and anxiety related disorders. Steph is amazing and made me feel so at ease, I felt much more relaxed after even just a few sessions. She taught me about how the mind works and how to stay positive, and I can honestly say it has changed my life!”
“Thank you so much to Steph for helping me to quit smoking/vaping. It has been 9 months now since I had my session and I have not even felt like I need my vape. Here's to a healthy future!”
“I can't recommend Steph enough. I contacted her because over the last few years I've started to struggle more and more with a phobia of flying. I can't believe the difference the sessions with Steph made. I slept well the night before...no having to force myself on to the plane. There was a little turbulence during the flight (my biggest trigger) and I remained confident and comfortable. I can't thank Steph enough. I love to travel and now feel far more confident making plans.”
Reviews are quoted as published. Everyone’s experience is different.
08 — Questions
A few things people ask.
If your question is not here, email me and I will answer it.
What does solution focused mean?
It means the sessions look forward more than back. We spend the time on what you want to be different and the next small step towards it, rather than on the whole history of the problem. The past is not ignored. It is just not the whole hour.
Is it like stage hypnosis?
No. You are not asleep, and you cannot be made to do anything you would not choose to do. Guided relaxation is a focused, comfortable state, and you can open your eyes and stop at any point.
Face to face, or online?
Both. I work from Shortwood Road in Pucklechurch, and online via Zoom. Online sessions are available for anybody out of area.
How many sessions will I need?
It varies from person to person, and I will not promise a number. We agree the pace together and review as we go, so you always know where you are.
What about medication?
I do not change or advise on medication. Tell me at the initial consultation what you are taking, and speak to your GP about any changes to it.
Is it confidential?
Sessions are confidential. If you would like to know how your information is kept before you book, ask me and I will explain it.
Not sure whether this is for you? Ask first — there is no obligation.
09 — Contact
Tell me what you would like to be different.
If you would like to begin, get in touch. We can start with a short conversation about what has brought you here, and whether I am the right person to work with.
- Practice
- Shortwood Road
Pucklechurch
BS16 9PL - Phone
- 07976 984 169
In Pucklechurch, or your own room.