Ashland is known for having some of the best kept secrets, and the Ashland School of Hypnotherapy is one of them, but not for long! Rochelle Jaffe, the founder and director is here to tell us about the school and the programs she’s been offering for the past 5 years.
Many of us are familiar with what hypnosis is, but there’s a little more mystery around hypnotherapy. Can you explain to us the difference and how hypnotherapy and hypnosis work?
For millennia, healers have used deeper states of conscious to help people to enter a healing state. Hypnotherapy is one of the most effective ways to enter into that state, in which we’re connected with the stillness and deeper intelligence that exists in all of us, beneath the chatter of the usual thinking mind. We differentiate between that, and hypnosis, which is more about controlling than helping people to find their own deeper kind of control, and is often used for entertainment.
I see that you’re a Clinical Hypnotherapist. What is your background, and how did you first become interested in hypnotherapy?
I first became interested in hypnotherapy as a counselor, 21 years ago. I’d just started my practice, and found that when I spoke to my clients in a certain way, they would become very peaceful and inward, and would have a more meaningful session in which they’d gain more insight, and, more importantly, feel that a real change had taken place. They’d come back the following week, and say, “Let’s do that again.”, but I didn’t know how to repeat it so easily. My work with hypnotherapy came out of the desire to develop the ability to enter that deeper state that was so healing and transformative. I began to teach about six years ago in order to share what I’ve learned, and what I love, about hypnotherapy.
The Clinical Hypnotherapist designation indicates that I’ve had hundreds of hours of training and experience. I’m also a Hypnotherapist Examiner and Instructor with the American Council of Hypnotist Examiners, as well as being certified by the International Medical and Dental Hypnotherapy Association, and others.
The trainings you offer sound wonderfully different than what I usually see offered. One program that I know will speak to a lot of people is called Life Beyond Food: Weight Loss Hypnotherapy. How does this program work, and how does hypnotherapy help with weight loss?
Hypnotherapy is very helpful with weight loss. The American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, and the National Institute of Health all support the use of hypnotherapy for habit change. Hypnotherapy supports the internal changes that change the desire for food as emotional sustenance. It helps strengthen motivation, and helps people to resolve issues related to overeating, and to connect with resources that provide strength and clarity in difficult moments that might have resulted in reaching for chocolate. It has been extremely helpful to me personally.
Your certification program sounds like it’s the foundational piece of your school. Can you tell us about how a person becomes a certified hypnotherapist through the Ashland School of Hypnotherapy?
Yes, we offer a 200 hour professional certification that provides the foundation for anyone who’d like to know more about hypnotherapy, and especially for those that would like to use hypnotherapy professionally. We are beginning a new training in May, with four 5-day retreats, scheduled a month apart. It’s highly experiential, so students come away with a real confidence in their ability to use their skills. We also offer ongoing support for graduates, including regular supervision sessions, and teleseminars. Our school is the only ACHE nationally certified school in Oregon. We submit our curriculum for review bi-annually.
Your website mentions professions where hypnotherapy techniques would be highly beneficial such as nursing, eastern and western medical practitioners, and even fitness instructors. Can you give us a few examples of the ways that hypnotherapy could be used by some of these professionals?
Hypnotherapy can be used to manage pain, to improve sleep, to alleviate anxiety and discomfort during and after medical procedures, and to help patients to connect with a deep sense of peace and self-care that facilitates healing. Research shows that when a patient receives hypnotherapy before a surgery, they recover faster, have fewer complications, and even save on medical expenses! Hypnotherapy is used by doctors, dentists, nurses, and many others. It is one of the best- and quickest- ways to help people enter a healing state. It helps people to connect with their own capacities for health and healing. It is one of the parts of my practice that I find most inspiring.
What new programs do you have coming up?
Our weight loss program, Life Beyond Food is a 5-day retreat April 12-16. Students will learn an 8-step program that is very effective. In May, we begin our 200 hour Professional Certification Program. We’ll be teaching Medical and Dental Hypnotherapy in the fall. If you’d like to learn more, you can reach us at 541-488-3180, director@ashlandschoolofhypnotherapy.com, or on the web at www.ashlandschoolofhypnotherapy.com
