About Me
Hello, I'm Kathryn
I am a cognitive behavioural hypnotherapist based in York, working with people one to one and online across the UK. I know how isolating IBS can be, and how wearing it is to be told your tests are clear while you still feel awful. So let me say this plainly: your symptoms are real, you are not imagining them, and you are not the problem.
The work
Hypnotherapy pointed at the gut, and the thinking that goes with it
My gut-directed hypnotherapy training was developed and delivered by an NHS consultant gastroenterologist, so the work is grounded in the same clinical frameworks used in gastroenterology: proper assessment, awareness of the symptoms that need a doctor, and a structured way of working. As far as I know, nobody else in York has that specialist training. I would be glad to be corrected, because more people should.
It is not hypnosis on its own. I use cognitive behavioural hypnotherapy, which brings together cognitive behavioural techniques, mindfulness and gut-directed hypnotherapy, all aimed at the same gut-brain pattern that keeps your symptoms going. The hypnotherapy works on the conversation between your gut and your brain. The cognitive behavioural part works on the worry, the anticipating and the second-guessing. The mindfulness works on the constant scanning of your own body.
What you will not get from me is a longer list of foods to fear, or a cheerful “just relax”. What you will get is someone who takes your gut seriously, works alongside your GP and any dietitian you see, and is straight with you about what the evidence does and does not show.
How I work
You do the work. I know the way.
This is collaborative. I am the guide: I bring the tools, the structure and the support. You do the actual work, which is rehearsing what we cover in sessions until the new response is the one your body reaches for first. Nobody can do that part for you, and I will not pretend otherwise.
Every session starts with a few minutes of feedback on how the week went, and you can stop and say anything at any point. If something does not work for you, say so. There are many ways to approach the same problem and not everything suits everyone, so telling me is useful rather than awkward. Between sessions you can contact me if you get stuck.
Nothing you tell me about your health goes online. The questionnaire you fill in before we start is paper, it comes to session one with you, and it stays in a locked cabinet.
Training and registration
The paperwork, since you should be able to check it
Qualifications
- Cognitive behavioural hypnotherapist, Level 4 Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapy, UK College of Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy
- Specialist training in gut-directed hypnotherapy for IBS with Dr Elena Eliadou
- Member of the Federation of Holistic Therapists (MFHT), registered and insured through the FHT
- Member of the Institute of Leadership
Before this
Fifteen and a half years at the Electoral Commission, a law degree, and a master’s in leadership and management. Five businesses over a lifetime, the first at school. It shows in how I work: organised, plain-spoken, and allergic to promises that cannot be kept.
I am not a doctor or a dietitian, and I do not replace either. Please get a diagnosis from your GP before we start.
The other half
Confidence is the same job from the other end
Under my other name, HypnoGirl, I work on confidence: in your body, in a room full of strangers, at work and out networking. IBS teaches you to be careful everywhere, and that caution has a way of outlasting the reason for it, which is why the confidence work turns up inside the IBS programme too. Same person, same approach, two doors.
And there is a dog. Alfie is a therapy dog, and he has been known to appear on video calls.
Where to start
A free fifteen-minute call, or the free recording
If you are ready to talk, book the call and we will work out together whether this is the right path for you. If you are not, get Twelve Minutes of Calm, a free general relaxation recording, and one short email a week from Gut Feelings.