Solution Focused Hypnotherapy for Grief & Trauma
Find Calm, Support, and Emotional Resilience
Grief and trauma can leave you feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, or emotionally stuck. Whether it’s the loss of a loved one, a difficult life event, or a past experience that continues to affect your wellbeing, the emotional impact can be profound.
Solution focused hypnotherapy offers a gentle, supportive, and structured approach to help you process your emotions, reduce stress, and regain a sense of control, without reliving painful experiences unnecessarily.
Are You Struggling with Grief or Trauma?
You may recognise some of the following:
Persistent sadness, anxiety, or emotional numbness
Feeling “stuck” in your grief or past experiences
Difficulty sleeping or relaxing
Stress, tension, or physical symptoms linked to emotional distress
Avoidance of memories or situations that trigger pain
Feeling overwhelmed by intense emotions
Difficulty focusing or enjoying life
These responses are normal and valid, but they don’t need to dominate your life forever.
How Grief and Trauma Affect the Brain
When we experience loss or trauma, the brain can become stuck in heightened alert or stress mode.
This can cause:
Emotional flashbacks or intrusive thoughts
Difficulty regulating emotions
Physical tension and fatigue
Overthinking or anxiety
Solution focused hypnotherapy works to calm the nervous system, helping the brain and body shift out of survival mode and into a state where healing and emotional resilience can occur.
What Is Solution Focused Hypnotherapy?
Solution focused hypnotherapy is a forward-focused therapeutic approach that combines:
Solution focused brief therapy techniques
Neuroscience-informed psychoeducation
Clinical hypnosis
Unlike traditional therapies that may focus heavily on reliving trauma, this approach helps you develop coping strategies, calm your nervous system, and find emotional balance in the present.
It is practical, goal-focused, and gentle, allowing you to process grief and trauma safely.
How Hypnotherapy Can Help with Grief and Trauma
Solution focused hypnotherapy can support emotional wellbeing by helping you:
Reduce stress and anxiety linked to grief or past trauma
Calm intrusive thoughts or emotional flashbacks
Improve sleep and relaxation
Increase emotional resilience and self-regulation
Process difficult emotions without reliving pain unnecessarily
Restore confidence, focus, and a sense of control
Many clients find they are able to navigate life with more calm and clarity, even while still honouring their grief or experiences.
A Supportive, Safe Environment
Working with grief and trauma requires sensitivity and trust. Solution focused hypnotherapy provides:
A confidential and non-judgemental space
Practical tools alongside hypnosis
A focus on coping strategies and emotional regulation
Respect for your pace and personal boundaries
This approach helps you feel supported and empowered as you work through difficult emotions.
What Happens in a Solution Focused Hypnotherapy Session?
Each session is calm, structured, and supportive. Typical sessions include:
Gentle discussion of current challenges and goals
Psychoeducation about how stress, grief, and trauma affect the brain
Guided relaxation and hypnosis to support emotional regulation
Practical tools and strategies to manage triggers and overwhelm
You remain fully aware and in control at all times. Hypnosis is not sleep and does not involve losing control.
Meet Laura
My name is Laura Bartlett and I am a Solution Focused Hypnotherapist and Psychotherapist, with a strong academic and professional background in psychology and evidence-based therapy. I hold a BSc (Hons) in Psychology from Royal Holloway, University of London, alongside a Diploma in Solution Focused Hypnotherapy and a Hypnotherapy in Practice Diploma.
I am a registered member of the Association for Solution Focused Hypnotherapy (AfSFH), fully insured, and hold an enhanced DBS certificate — so you can be confident you are working with a qualified, professional, and ethical practitioner.
Before retraining as a therapist, I spent 20 years working in the London corporate world as an insurance broker. I have an Advanced Diploma in Insurance (ACII) and a Level 3 Diploma in Management and Leadership. My approach is practical, grounded, and evidence-informed.
A Client Story: Finding Stability and Hope After Trauma
(Details changed for confidentiality reasons)
When Emily first came to see me, she was recovering from an extremely difficult period in her life. Following a severe trauma she was feeling fragile, exhausted, and uncertain about the future.
At that point, Emily described her mood as being at “zero out of ten”. She was sceptical about hypnotherapy and unsure whether it could help, but decided to attend an initial session to explore her options.
From the very first meeting, the focus was on creating safety, understanding, and calm. Emily needed reassurance, clear explanations, and an approach that felt positive rather than overwhelming. We spent time talking about how the brain responds to trauma and stress, and how solution focused hypnotherapy works to gently support the nervous system back into balance.
Rather than revisiting painful experiences, our work focused on stabilisation, hope, and small achievable steps forward.
Over the following weeks, Emily attended weekly sessions. She noticed that she began to feel calmer and more grounded after each appointment, and gradually started to look forward to returning. The structure and positivity of solution focused hypnotherapy helped her feel supported without pressure.
As her nervous system settled, changes began to show up in everyday life. Tasks that had previously felt overwhelming became more manageable. Her motivation slowly returned, and her confidence began to rebuild.
By the end of eight sessions, Emily rated her mood at eight out of ten—a significant and meaningful shift for her. She described feeling more present, more capable, and more connected to life again.
One of the most powerful changes was behavioural. Emily joined a local dance club—something that would have felt impossible just weeks earlier—and began completing items on her to-do list that had once felt insurmountable. These were not forced changes, but natural outcomes of feeling more stable and regulated.
Reflecting on her journey, she shared that while life is not “perfect”, she now wants to live, feels hope for the future, and has rediscovered enjoyment in things she never thought she would again.
Client Testimonials
“I was recommended to Laura for help with Anxiety & Grief. I gained an understanding of how the brain works and how to use this understanding to overcome these issues. I also understand that it takes time and hard work to reverse the way my brain has always dealt with these issues.” — JO, Female, 75
“I decided to try hypnotherapy with Laura after a severe mental breakdown Christmas / New year. I ended up on a mental health ward after not wanting be alive anymore. I was sceptical about hypnosis but Laura instantly made me feel at ease in her taster session. She was so informative and knowledgeable about the brain. The therapy was solution focused and very positive. The results have been unreal. Transforming verbal goals into physical outcomes. I have joined a running club and been able to complete tasks on my to do list that felt so overwhelming. I might not be perfect but I wish to live now and have found enjoyment in things i never thought I would.” — HR, Female, 24
Flexible Sessions - in-person or remote
I understand that life is busy. Initial consultations and subsequent sessions can be in-person, remote or a combination of the two - whatever works best for you
In-person sessions in a relaxing private environment
Solution focused hypnotherapy in the local areas of Hadleigh, Leigh-on-Sea, Benfleet, Chalkwell, Southend-on-Sea, Canvey Island, Dunton, Laindon, Basildon, Horndon on the Hill, Corringham, Stanford-le-Hope, Pitsea, Thundersley, Hockley, Hawkwell, Rochford, Westcliff-on-Sea, Wickford and Rayleigh.
The surrounding area includes Hadleigh Country Park and Hadleigh Castle.
There is plenty of off-street parking available and the nearest train stations are Benfleet (c2c line), Leigh-on-Sea (c2c line) and Rayleigh (Great Anglia line).
Therapy sessions work equally well over Zoom
Live too far away or struggle to fit in travel time? Do you not drive or just prefer sessions in the comfort of your own home?
As well as in-person sessions, Brighter Future Therapy Practice also offers online sessions anywhere in the world. Hypnotherapy has been shown to be equally effective in person or virtually.
To date Brighter Future have helped people in Australia, Canada and America. And virtual sessions have also been carried out with clients throughout the UK.
Frequently Asked Questions About Grief And Trauma
Can hypnotherapy help with grief?
Yes. Solution focused hypnotherapy can be very supportive for people experiencing grief.
Grief affects both the mind and body, often keeping the nervous system in a heightened state of stress. Hypnotherapy helps calm this response, supporting emotional regulation, better sleep, and increased resilience.
This approach does not aim to remove grief or rush the process, but to help you cope more gently, feel less overwhelmed, and function more comfortably day to day.
Is hypnotherapy suitable for trauma?
Yes, when delivered by a trained and ethical practitioner, solution focused hypnotherapy can support people affected by trauma.
This approach focuses on stabilisation, nervous system regulation, and coping in the present, rather than revisiting or reliving traumatic events. Sessions are adapted to your pace and comfort, with safety and emotional containment as priorities.
Will I have to talk about or relive my trauma?
No. Solution focused hypnotherapy does not require you to relive or describe traumatic experiences in detail.
The focus is on how trauma or loss is affecting you now, and on building calm, coping strategies, and emotional resilience. You are always in control of what you share, and nothing is forced or explored unnecessarily.
How does hypnotherapy help after trauma or loss?
After trauma or bereavement, the brain can remain in “survival mode”, leading to anxiety, emotional overwhelm, sleep problems, or intrusive thoughts.
Hypnotherapy helps by:
Calming the nervous system
Reducing stress and hypervigilance
Supporting emotional regulation
Improving sleep and relaxation
Increasing resilience and stability
This creates the conditions needed for natural healing and adjustment.