Stress
Online hypnotherapy for stress
When you're already stretched, the last thing you need is another journey. Online hypnotherapy helps you relax deeply, switch off and meet the pressure with a clearer head, without leaving your home or office.
How hypnotherapy helps with stress
Stress is what happens when your body's alarm gets stuck on. Deadlines, money, family and a phone that never goes quiet keep you braced for action long after the moment has passed, until tension, irritability and broken sleep start to feel normal. Hypnosis works on that alarm directly, teaching your body and mind how to stand down.
A 2026 meta-analysis pooling five randomised trials found that mindful hypnotherapy reduced stress and distress (Padilla et al., 2026). In a German randomised trial, five weekly group hypnosis sessions reduced people's self-reported stress compared with an information booklet, and the benefit was still there at 12 weeks (Fisch et al., 2020). An earlier review found less stress after hypnosis in six of nine trials, though those studies were small (Fisch et al., 2017). The evidence for anxiety, stress's close companion, is stronger still (Valentine et al., 2019).
What we can work on
- Relaxing deeply and quickly, whenever you need to
- The particular triggers that set you off, and a calmer response to them
- Switching off from work in the evenings and at weekends
- Racing thoughts at night (see sleep)
- Perfectionism, overcommitting and finding it hard to say no
- Feeling overwhelmed, and getting your focus and perspective back
- Tension habits such as jaw clenching or nail-biting (see habits)
Why online works especially well for stress
A stressed week has no room for a cross-town trip and a waiting room. Online, a session takes an hour of your day, not three. You can book it from home before work, at lunchtime from a quiet room, or in the evening once the house has settled.
There's a deeper reason too. Stress mostly builds at your desk and in your home, so that is the best place to learn to release it. When you have found real calm in your own chair, it is far easier to find it again there on a hard Tuesday afternoon. In my experience clients relax more deeply at home than they expect, with my voice close in their headphones and nothing else asking for their attention.
What a course looks like
- A free consultation. 15–30 minutes by phone or video to talk about what's piling up and what you'd like to feel instead.
- Your first session. We map where your stress comes from and how it shows up in you, and you have your first experience of deep relaxation in hypnosis.
- The sessions that follow. Ericksonian hypnotherapy and NLP on your specific triggers, so your response to pressure changes, not just your mood on the day.
- A reset you can carry. Self-hypnosis you can use in a few minutes, wherever you are.
Sessions are an hour, by Microsoft Teams or Zoom. After 7 hours (usually five sessions), any further sessions for the same issue are £97.50 an hour: see my halve-fees promise. See how online sessions work for the practical side.
Questions about stress and online sessions
Can I have a session from work?
Yes, as long as you have a private room with a door you can close and nobody will need you for the hour. Turn off notifications, put your phone on silent, and leave yourself 10–15 minutes afterwards before your next meeting.
How quickly will I feel a difference?
Many clients tell me they feel calmer after the first session. Lasting change comes from the sessions together with the self-hypnosis you practise between them.
Is stress the same as anxiety?
They overlap. Stress is usually a reaction to pressures you can name; anxiety can carry on without an obvious cause. If worry is the main thing, see anxiety.
Will a video call really help me unwind? I'm on calls all day.
This one is different. You won't be looking at the screen for most of it: once we've talked, your eyes are closed and you're simply listening. Many clients say it's the first call of the day that gives them something back.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Format | Online by Microsoft Teams or Zoom |
| First step | Free 15–30 minute consultation |
| Fee | £150 per hour; see fees |
| Typical course | Usually around five sessions (7 hours) |
| Session length | 1 hour |
Who you'll be working with
I'm Tim Dunton. With more than 20 years' experience as a hypnotherapist and as a life and executive coach, I understand high-pressure working lives. I'm a Master Practitioner of NLP trained by Richard Bandler and John Grinder and a member of the General Hypnotherapy Register, and I've worked with business leaders, sportspeople and cast members on a Samsung global TV project. More about Tim.
The research
- Padilla VJ, Muñiz V, Scheffrahn K, Elkins G (2026). Meta-analysis of five randomised trials of mindful hypnotherapy. Behavioral Sciences 16(1):107. doi:10.3390/bs16010107
- Fisch S, Trivaković-Thiel S, Roll S, et al. (2020). Group hypnosis for stress reduction and improved stress coping: a multicenter randomized controlled trial. BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies 20:344. Full text
- Fisch S, Brinkhaus B, Teut M (2017). Hypnosis in patients with perceived stress: a systematic review. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine 17:323. PubMed 28629342
- Valentine KE, Milling LS, Clark LJ, Moriarty CL (2019). The efficacy of hypnosis as a treatment for anxiety: a meta-analysis. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis 67(3):336–363. PubMed 31251710
Individual experiences vary. See everything I can help with on what can be treated.
15–30 minutes by phone or video, no obligation. Or call 07923 495558.