About the Somerset School of Hypnotherapy
The Somerset School of Hypnotherapy was born in early 2014 when its founders, Lindsey and Steve Extance identified an urgent need for something different in the world of Hypnotherapy Training.
The story goes:
Lindsey relocated to Somerset from a busy city lifestyle. She purchased a somewhat dilapidated farmhouse with the intention of renovating it, and then returning to practicing Hypnotherapy. The building works proved to be more than anticipated, so she needed to enlist the services of a local builder.
After inviting a number of building companies to survey and quote for the works required, Lindsey was not impressed by any of them! Then Steve arrived. Steve was the owner of a company which specialised in the renovation of period properties. His attitude was different, on arrival he first asked to be allowed to walk around the property alone for a while, just to ‘get a feel’ of things. He said he needed to ‘understand the energy’ and ‘be guided’ as to what the property wanted! Lindsey admits that she found this request rather strange, simply for the reason that Steve’s appearance was that of ‘a typical builder’, not one who would be interested in the more ‘spiritual’ aspects of life.
Steve was hired to renovate the old farmhouse which some parts are believed to date back to 1680.
As the works progressed, it soon became apparent to Lindsey that Steve was not in the best of personal health. He was rather overweight, smoked and drank heavily and his diet and stress levels were far from ideal. Obviously by now Steve knew that Lindsey was a Hypnotherapist but as he had no knowledge of the subject, he dismissed it as ‘mumbo-jumbo’!
However, as a result of his experience with Hypnotherapy, Steve found himself totally fascinated and curious to fully understand what had happened to him. Why was it that with just one session of Hypnotherapy he was able to stop smoking whereas previous methods had failed? He simply had to discover more about this incredible therapy. He embarked upon a learning journey, reading many books, trawling the internet for information and asking Lindsey to share her knowledge. Lindsey called him a ‘Hypno-Bore’!
Steve then decided he would like to train as a Hypnotherapist himself, so he searched for a suitable training course. He contacted many, but always came to the same conclusion, they did not feel ‘right’ for him. Unlike Lindsey, Steve had not been to college, he had not furthered his education since leaving school. Yes, he had a string of ‘building related’ qualifications and accreditations to his name but nothing he would call ‘academic’.
Some of the Hypnotherapy Training establishments made him ‘feel inferior’ because of this, others admitted their training was undertaken in large groups, some offered little or no practical experience other than asking students to practice outside of classroom time on friends, family or neighbours. None of this was acceptable to Steve.
Furthermore, when he examined the length of some courses and the total training period, doing the calculation of ‘classroom hours’, they amounted to ‘not many’! Additionally, after graduation support was of particular interest to Steve, yes, he always had the benefit of Lindsey’s experience to call upon but he felt that surely, trainers would support their graduates after the course, sadly in many cases, this was not offered or promises honored. Another consideration was the course fee itself. Value for money has always been close to Steve’s heart. He questioned how some courses cost literally thousands of pounds and was horrified to find that in some cases, there were lots of ‘added extra costs’ along the way.
However, putting all of that aside, something else was wrong.
Steve did not ‘feel comfortable’ with some of the ‘clinical’ or ‘impersonal, text book like attitude’ which he felt from many training schools. Steve is a very spiritual person; he is a Reiki Master Trainer and wished for more of this approach. He defines his spirituality as ‘not attached to any particular religion’ but as ‘a connection to something else’. He intended to incorporate this into his own style of Hypnotherapy. Alas, he could not find this approach from any Hypnotherapy Training establishment.
After talking to Lindsey about his reluctance to attend a school in which he did not feel ‘comfortable’, to her utter amazement he suggested that she became his teacher and even more amazing, he told her she should set up her own Hypnotherapy training school. This was not something he has suggested lightly, Steve had already identified her passion for teaching nervous adults to ride horses. He pointed out to her that she would also make a fantastic teacher of Hypnotherapy. We cannot print her reply for fear of offending someone, but in essence, her response was that she was not a ‘qualified teacher of hypnosis’. This did not deter Steve; he searched the internet to locate such a suitable ‘teacher training course’. After a while he came across a ‘School of Hypnosis’ in Yorkshire. Lindsey agreed to contact them and spoke to a Gentleman (she now calls him her ‘guru’) who asked her about her experience etc. He agreed that she had a wealth of knowledge and would make an excellent teacher of Hypnotherapy, however he also insisted that before she was allowed to attend the ‘teacher trainer course’, she would need to attend his own Hypnotherapy Diploma Course plus all of the other ‘specialist subjects and further development courses’ he offered.
After a period of repeated journeys to Yorkshire, Lindsey undertook the Hypnotherapy Teacher Trainer Diploma Course, and triumphantly emerged with her qualification.
She trained Steve in the way in which he had been searching, and he started practicing Hypnotherapy alongside Reiki and other Holistic based therapies. Having now some experience behind him and a growing passion for helping people using Hypnotherapy, Steve admitted to Lindsey that whilst she had been in Yorkshire on her course, he had set up a new company. The Somerset School of Hypnotherapy Ltd was now in existence. His vision had become reality, the school was born!
We hope you enjoyed reading this story.
It truly has been an amazing journey for both of us.
During our years of training we have met some wonderful, like-minded people. We have watched them set up their own Hypnotherapy practices and flourish. We have been there for them every step of the way, we have shared their successes and helped them through the not so successful times. We are ‘real’ people and we loved what we do. When your join us on one of our courses you will be supported all of the way and enter into our ‘family of Hypnotherapists’.
However, please just don’t take our word for it, read our reviews and even contact the authors, or us if you wish.