If you are considering training as a hypnotherapist or would like to learn how to use hypnosis for yourself or for use informally with family and friends, you may feel overwhelmed by all the courses on offer. Sadly, at present there is no one regulating body that oversees all hypnotherapy training, although there are several UK hypnotherapy organizations that have been set up to try to improve standards of hypnotherapy training courses. Due to the lack of one overseeing organization, it can be really tricky knowing which courses are of good quality and which will provide you with the skills to practice as a competent therapist.

I have recently completed a certified hypnotherapy diploma and I chose my hypnotherapy course based on recommendation from other people, who had undertaken training with my chosen company. The Trance forming Minds course offered by People Building, a self-development training company in the U.K has been assessed and validated at Practitioner Level by The General Hypnotherapy Standards Council (UK). Graduates from this course are eligible for professional registration with The General Hypnotherapy Register (the GHSC's Registering Agency) at full Practitioner status, together with the acquisition of the industry-based award- The General Qualification in Hypnotherapy Practice (GQHP).

I chose to train with People Building, because I was satisfied that the training content was comprehensive and that classroom time amounted to 150 hours, which is more then what other courses I looked into were providing. Lets face it, there are plenty of trainers offering to train you in a weekend or a few days, but would you really want to then go and start treating people who may be fragile or unwell and who deserve to be treated by a therapist who knows both how to assess their needs and formulate and then implement a treatment plan competently.

Unlike, some of the other hypnotherapy courses around, the hypnotherapy diploma course offered by People Building involved intense practical application and did not rely mainly on students clocking up practical experience in their own time. What this means is that you get to apply the hypnotherapy skills you learn in theory in front of trained and experienced hypnotherapists and therefore you are constantly supervised and given feedback.

The team were really supportive and completing a hypnotherapy diploma is really enjoyable as you get to experience trance yourself many times throughout the training. This is crucial if you want to practice as a hypnotherapist and you will also gain an insight into factors, which enhance or interrupt your trance experience, which you will find invaluable once you are practicing.

Trance-forming minds is run over three months and is split into 5 days of classroom work each month, with additional tasking which must be conducted in between each course in order to meet the required numbers of hours for certification. I would recommend this course to anyone considering undertaking hypnotherapy training.