The Emotional Challenges of Expat Life
Living abroad can be incredibly enriching, but it can also bring loneliness, uncertainty, anxiety and emotional fatigue. 

Many expats find themselves navigating big life changes (and all the smaller disorientation that come with the new environment and culture) without their usual support systems or a familiar sense of home.
Culture shock and the feeling of being "between worlds" is very real and can be destabilizing, at a time when it can feel like the pressure is on to be your very best and do it quickly.

As an expat in the Netherlands now and as someone who has experienced life as an international in many countries and cultures across the world, I understand this experience first-hand. So, I speak not only from my decade of experience as a therapist but from personal experience too.

At Clarity Flow Hypnotherapy, I work with solution-focused hypnotherapy, which helps you navigate transitions, strengthen inner resources, and move forward with confidence and clarity.

The Science Behind Why Online Hypnotherapy Works
Online hypnotherapy offers a powerful and flexible way to reconnect with your inner calm, wherever you are in the world. Many professionals really appreciate the ease of having therapy come to them virtually, providing that much-needed time and mental space for reflection, realignment and relaxation amidst an otherwise busy day. And, research shows that online hypnotherapy can be just as effective as in-person sessions for anxiety, confidence and emotional wellbeing, because the brain responds to the process, not the setting.

Why Solution-Focused Hypnotherapy is Ideal for Expats
What's more, at Clarity Flow Hypnotherapy, we work with solution-focused Hypnotherapy, which is ideal for empowering you to figure things out and navigate transitions smoothly.  We keep a focus on being present, tapping into and strengthen your own inner resources and looking forward with a positive mindset.

The Importance of Understanding and Being Understood in Therapy as an Expat
Understanding and being understood is so essential for successful therapy — especially when you're an expat living in a foreign country and language.  I often get approached by worn out expats who have been unsuccessful in getting the help they nead through their local healthcare system.  Sometimes they're concerns are not deemed seriously enough to warrent proper support.  Some do get a refferal but the waiting lists is dishearteningly long. Some get assigned a therapist but it's not a good match, the the therapist does not understand the context they're coming from and try to stick them in the local mold or they may have a nice therapist but communication is hindered by the English language skills of the therapist.

At Clarity Flow Hypnotherapy, we want to make sure you experience understanding and being understood on all possible levels; language, expat and cultural context, experience and the human empathy factor.   So you'll always be supported by a therapist who:

• is a native-English speaker, so clear and fluent English is guaranteed (sessions also available in Spanish),
• holds a Master’s degree in Anthropology, so is a trained expert in non-judgmental understanding and relating to the diversity of cultures and norms,
• is an expat herself,
• has 10+ years of experience as a British-qualified therapist, 
• and will not put you on a waiting list of tear you as another case file!

How to Start Your Online Hypnotherapy Journey?
If you’re ready to explore how online solution-focused hypnotherapy can help you find more balance, clarity and confidence in your expat life, click here to book your complimentary initial consultation today.


Maral Kojayan MA HPD
Clinical Hypnotherapist
www.clarityflowhypnotherapy.com

Advantages of Solution Focused Hypnotherapy
Hypnotherapy has so many benefits. It can help with a long list of problems from insomnia to anxiety related issues to confidence to fears and phobias, stress reduction, chronic pain, management of anger, other emotions and much more.

The fact that it is so versatile and can help with so many different conditions, can be considered the first advantage of Solution Focused Hypnotherapy.
“The Benefits of Hypnotherapy: How can it help you?” article looks at all the many things Hypnotherapy can help with and how. In this article we'll be looking at what makes Hypnotherapy—more specifically, Solution Focused Hypnotherapy—a good and worthwhile choice for so many people.

No Unwanted Side Effects
One of the best advantages of Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is that it's natural.
Natural means no medication or even herbal tinctures are involved. As no medication is involved, there are non of the unwanted side effects that go with them. This is great news to all those people who (in consultation with their medical doctors) are trying to move away from medication or reduce their dosage.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy uses the natural process of trance state as well as some of the best tools from modern psychotherapy to empower individuals to create the changes they want to make in themselves and in their lives.

Solution Focused Hypnotherapy does this in a couple of ways. It helps people move naturally into activating the parasympathetic nervous system, the system for rest and restoration which can often results in a natural boost that is often felt directly after a session. It also works with techniques that tap into the body's natural pharmacy. Regular sessions habituate engagement in positive activities which help towards stimulating the production of serotonin (the so called “happiness hormone”) dopamine (for motivation) endorphin (morphine-like pain inhibitor) and other 'feel-good' neurotransmitters. These neurotransmitters produce a healthy brain and body chemistry which support the body's systems in maintaining good health and coping better with life's challenges.

Complementary Therapy
Because of this, Hypnotherapy has been used in many hundreds of cases as an adjunct or complementary treatment, with positive results in hospital trials for accelerated wound healing, bone healing and for cancer care, as well as for IBS, migraines, insomnia, anxiety, weight-loss, and more studies outside of the hospital setting.

So clearly, another great advantage of Hypnotherapy is that it's a complementary therapy. As such, Solution Focused Hypnotherapy does not attempt to be an alternative to the mainstream but rather works as an additional complement for the treatment of many conditions.

It's worth mentioning that, unless specifically stated, a hypnotherapist is not a medical professional, so if you have a medical condition or are on any medication, it is always advisable to consult your doctor regarding your condition.

Pleasant Process
One of the nicest advantages of Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is that it's a pleasant process. The focus of this branch of Hypnotherapy is always positive, the hypnosis itself is through visualisation and relaxation, rather than drawing up or dwelling on unpleasant episodes, which is what some therapies have been doing a lot of for many decades now. Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is a modern psychotherapy, based on neuroscience and a scientific understanding of how the brain works. Neuroscience has reviled already that the brain cannot tell the difference between what you're thinking about and what is actually going on, it has also reviled a great many things about how we perceive reality, what neurotransmitters are responsible for etc. Solution Focused Hypnotherapy has taken on-board these and other discoveries into its therapy methods, to create a powerful yet pleasant therapeutic process.

An Education
Another very valuable advantage unique to Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is that it's not only a therapy but an education. During the process you have the benefit of learning a lot about how the brain works and how to maintain well-being in the most effective, efficient and lasting way based on this knowledge. In short, it teaches you how to be and stay as your best self without long-term support from the therapist.

Very Accessible
A little known super advantage of Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is that it can be, and often is, done online via Zoom, Skype or other video conferencing apps. People sometimes have false ideas about what Hypnotherapy is and what's possible with it. The fact is that Solution Focused Hypnotherapy is a neuroscience based branch of psychotherapy, as such the only thing that's necessary is to see and hear each other. This type of Hypnotherapy doesn't need physical contact or physical proximity.

This makes Solution Focused Hypnotherapy a very conveniently accessible service for people. You can be anywhere in the world and still access a Solution Focused Hypnotherapist at Clarity Flow Hypnotherapy or other Solution Focused Hypnotherapy providers. You can even be in the same city as your therapist but choose to have sessions online which saves you time and money.

Affordable
This brings us to the last, but not least of the advantages, which is its affordability. There are two factors which make it affordable. The first is that online sessions save not only the client time and resources, but also save them for the therapist and these savings can be passed onto the client. The second factor that makes it affordable is that, unlike some therapies, services and activities people engage in, Hypnotherapy doesn't drag on indefinitely. It varies on the person and issue presented, but most people are able to resolve their problems within 12-15 sessions and do not need to revisit the therapist except if they choose to do a sort of periodic 'maintenance' because they find it enjoyable and empowering, but not out of necessity.


So, as you can see there are many advantages to working with a Clinical Hypnotherapist, in short, it's natural, complimentary, pleasant, educational, accessible and affordable, so if you're at a point where you think you could benefit from some support, it's best to start sooner rather than later.  Procrastination never solved anything, manageable small steps with support along the way often takes you a very long way, so don't hesitate to book a consultation, it's currently free at Clarity Flow Hypnotherapy.
 
TO BOOK A FREE CONSULTATION FOR CLINICAL HYPNOTHERAPY CLICK HERE

Maral Kojayan MA HPD
Clinical Hypnotherapist
www.clarityflowhypnotherapy.com

Why does it seem harder to stay happy than to stay suffering?

This is a question that comes up very often for people in all sorts of situations in life.

To really understand why many of us experience happiness and suffering in this way, a neuroscientific understanding of how the brain works is very useful.

Extremely simply put we could say we have three brains (neocortex, limbic system & reptilian brain). Two of these are relevant for the purposes of this discussion, one is a part of the neocortex, the left prefrontal cortex and the other a part of the limbic system which we sometimes refer to as the primitive brain. The left prefrontal cortex is where you could say happiness lives. That is where our solutions are, where we are creative and inventive and positive. Then there is the limbic system, within which is the amygdala, our fight-flight centre. When any insecurity/threat/stress is perceived this primitive brain takes over and stays in control until it perceives the external world to be a safe place again. Although this is effective, there are two problems with this for us modern humans in our overloaded lives.

1. By nature, this part of the brain is negative and not an intellect. This means your actions that come from here are not designed to feel good or make you happy. They are designed to stop you dying. That is it. Suffering (your own or those of others around you) is not an issue for this part of the brain so it will easily allow you to go into suffering for as long as it deems necessary.
2. Given our stressful lives, most people are living mostly with their primitive brain in the driver's seat.

The end result is that people experience suffering and they can remain suffering for what seems almost permanent, except for little glimpses of happiness. What's more, it seems difficult to come out of it, whilst it seems very easy to fall out of happiness into suffering.

The good news is, it does not have to be this way. Like most things in life, maintaining happiness can also be learnt. Happiness, interestingly, has a great deal to do with awareness and a degree of self-discipline as shown by a number of studies of Buddhist monks, which found that Buddhist monks had significantly larger left-prefrontal cortexes compared to the average population. (Look up Matthieu Ricard/Dr Richard Davidson for more info).

Now you could feel disheartened, and say, 'well, I am not a Buddhist monk, so what use is it to me'. But if you look at it from another perspective, you see that this is very good news indeed, because it means that the physical brain can actually changed based on your behaviour, your activities, your choices... Another words, the plasticity of the brain means you can change your physical brain, patterns habits and personality tendencies.

So, in the end, thankfully, the supposition in the question may not be true. Happiness can be very robust if you know how to work on yourself to develop your happiness 'muscle'. And that's exactly what I facilitate at Clarity Flow Hypnotherapy.

Why? because we all deserve to be well!

And thankfully, we can always find small ways to be better than where we are at right now, right?


TO BOOK A FREE CONSULTATION FOR CLINICAL HYPNOTHERAPY CLICK HERE

Maral Kojayan MA HPD
Clinical Hypnotherapist
www.clarityflowhypnotherapy.com