What can I do for you?

I am one of the pioneers of Nutritional Psychotherapy in Australia, as such I am both a trained Nutritionist and a qualified, registered Counsellor / Psychotherapist (ARCAP #8250). I am therefore in a unique position to be able to provide a more holistic and complete service tailored to best suit you. I value and enjoy working with a wide range of clients - from many walks of life. In the past I have worked with Aboriginal and Asian mens groups, Gays and Lesbians, Overweight and Obese people, and those dealing with common every day stresses of life, including cigarette addiction, anxiey and depression Along with utilising traditional counselling techniques I am also one of the few approved practitioners using the new clinically proven Virtual Reality Hypnosis (VRH) . The VRH system uses state of the art technology to induce a deep meditative state. This highly effective treatment is effective for both Left and Right Brain dominant people.

Virtual Reality Hypnosis
Virtual Reality Hypnosis is used to help in a wide range of situations, including:
Acute Stress Disorder Addictions (Alcohol, Cigarettes, Drugs) Anxiety Autism Coping with Life Changes Depression Latent Viral Infections (Shingles etc) Migraines	Pain Management Performance Anxiety Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Quit Smoking Self Image Sleep Disorders (Insomnia etc) Stress Management Weight Management
A head mounted audio visual display delivers crystal clear sound and vision while removing all external stimuli. VRH refocuses the mind from pain and anxiety to pleasant sensory stimuli- potentially shielding you from full awareness of a wide range of noxious stimuli. In a virtual environment, auditory and visual overload are combined with distraction and subliminal hypnotic suggestions, leading to an altered state of consciousness, deep muscle relaxation, amnesia, time distortion and reduced levels of stress and perceived pain.

The Science Behind VRH
The central nervous system, the autonomic nervous system, neuropeptides, cytokines and hormones provide the means of communication between the mind and the body. Mind-body therapies such as guided imagery, meditation, and Virtual Reality Hypnosis, are methods of communication, which can be used to focus the mind's inner unconscious resources to activate (or inhibit) psychological or physiological responses to events such as pain. Hypnosis is a recognised medical technique used in obstetrics, surgery, anaesthesia, paediatrics, psychiatry, nursing and dentistry. In surgical environments, painless operations have been reported using hypnosis instead of pharmacologic anaesthesia and analgesia. In medical intensive care units, burn injury pain control has been reported using hypnosis when opioid medication was shown to be dangerous or ineffective. Virtual Reality Hypnosis has been used successfully in all of these environments and continues to be used everyday.

Acute Stress Disorder		Back to list
Dayle Atkin was severely burned in the Bali bombing of 2002 and spent 6 weeks in hospital undergoing multiple surgeries painful daily bandage changes. Dayle also developed acute stress disorder as a result of his experience. Virtual Medicine was called to help treat Dayle using Virtual Reality Hypnosis when pharmacological pain therapy was unable to control his pain. Dayle recalls the bomb blast -"I think I was knocked out unconscious. Something hit me in the nose and when I woke up I just knew I had been in a bomb blast. I was never on fire… it was when I was climbing the wall that I could feel my skin melting and when I got over the wall I could already feel the blisters on my arms and back."   About the nightmares and associated traumatic stress disorder
"There was the night I jumped out of bed. I thought I was back in the Sari Club and I panicked and I knew I couldn't walk - I just jumped out of bed. I must have thought I was climbing and fell to the floor and crawled behind the door and wouldn't let the nurses or doctors in. I guess I was just petrified." "I was trying to get some sleep, but getting the bed changed all the time and the interruptions… I was lucky to get an hour and a half sleep if that." Morphine provided no pain relief "I don't know if it was just my system but… the pain… they (pain killers) weren't working. I had the morphine drip in and I was pumping it in and having all these dreams…" Virtual Medicine were asked to introduce Virtual Reality Hypnosis to Dayle's therapy "… I remember them telling me they were going to use hypnosis on me… I was never a believer… I'd seen it on TV and thought 'what a load of rubbish', but I had to try something so…" After Dayle's first session with Virtual Reality Hypnosis. "I remember waking up and I didn't know how long I slept, but I thought 'gee that actually did work!' I could tell in myself that it helped, because my mood had changed and I wanted to know what was going on, on the outside and how many Australians died…" "It's so hard to describe… how it transformed me from being out of this world in a state where nothing was real, I couldn't see a future... Where afterwards (after VRH) I was thinking 'I might be able to get better' - I think this is going to work, I can see the difference… I was healing, I was talking to people. It definitely changed my thinking patterns overnight… I don't know how long I slept for, but I know it was a good sleep" 11 days later Dayle relapses into an anxiety attack. "… I think it was while I was having a bath… I heard her mention to another nurse 'oh they're not looking good - I think we're going to have to operate' and it just set me off into troppo land. I was upset and carrying on saying 'why are you doing this to me?' …and it all started again. And I think I had a panic attack that night." "… I asked for it back… I remember saying 'can you please get me that gentleman with those (VRH) glasses' , because I'd seen how it worked. It's pretty hard to tell people that it works until they experience it. Dayle's mother speaks about the ordeal. "...he just seem to come back to life… I mean, before he had the hypnosis (VRH) he had the doors shut, we couldn't open the curtains, everything had to be dark, he wouldn't talk with people, he wasn't eating - we were forcing food and drink down him." "But, I think within 12 hours of the first hypnosis (VRH), we had the door open, the curtains were open and he was starting to eat. I think that was one of the biggest differences and also he was starting to sit up more in the bed because up until then he was in the fetal position…" "Gradually, after 24 hours and even 48 hours - incredibly big difference in him… Once the pain was easing off he started to make contact with people again… You could see it in the expression on his face. He wasn't as haggard looking as he had been. Dayle has not suffered any post traumatic stress symptoms since leaving the hospital and is now leading a normal life.

Addictions		Back to list
Virtual Reality Therapy has been effectively used in the treatment of addiction to Alcohol, Benzodiazapam (sleeping pills), Cigarettes and Food. VRT was successfully trialled at Monash University, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Department of General Practice; and the Panic, Anxiety and Depression Association to manage withdrawal symptoms. VRT has clinically proven to be effective in stopping smoking long-term. Dianne, Joe, Michael and Tracey were all long-term heavy cigarette smokers who battled to give up smoking using a variety of methods including, patches, gum, cold turkey and traditional hypnosis, all to no avail. Using Virtual Reality Hypnosis, not only have they stopped, 2 years later they continue to lead smoke-free lives.

Anxiety and Stress		Back to list
Jemma experiences a great deal of stress and anxiety in her job and has developed a sleeping disorder over the years ranging from disturbed dreams and poor sleep through to insomnia. Virtual Reality Hypnosis (VRH) helped Jemma to regain control of her anxiety and a more stable sleeping pattern. Jemma talks about her anxiety "The reason I wanted to try the hypnosis (VRH) was because I was giving a presentation and I was a little uncomfortable and not very relaxed about the whole thing.. I'm not a very good sleeper at night time. I dream a lot … and there are things that are going on at the moment". Jemma talks about her first treatment with VRH "We tried it out (VRH) and it did actually help me sleep. For two nights straight I slept extremely well. I didn't dream which I do quite often"
How did Jemma feel immediately after the VRH session? "My body felt really, really heavy. It actually took me about a minute to be able to move my feet, my legs and my hands… It worked really well… I felt really relaxed for the rest of the day - even after giving my presentation." "It was as though all of my worries and all the things I'd been thinking about just went away for that particular day and even during the night time… I got a lot of complements from people saying that 'you're looking really good - well rested', so that was quite interesting."

Autism

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The use of a virtual reality hypnotherapeutic procedure was trialled (4 sessions over 2 weeks) with 2 boys (aged 14 and 15 years old) to determine if it was effective in reducing anxieties and/or alleviating any symptoms associated with their autism. Results indicated that the procedure had no effect on autistic symptoms. Nevertheless, the parents of both boys reported that their son enjoyed the sessions, was attentive and relaxed throughout and that they would pursue this treatment if it were available. Furthermore, they indicated that they believed it was an effective technique to gain their son’s attention, and this, combined with the fact that the boys found it enjoyable and engaging, led them to believe there is significant potential for this particular treatment modality. Swinbourne University of Technology, Faculty of Life & Social Sciences Austin, D., Abbott, J., Carbis, C. Contemorary Hypnosis, Vol 25, No. 2 (2008) PP 102-109

Coping with Life		Back to list
The Virtual Reality Hypnosis Coping modules are designed to change negative beliefs and catastrophic thoughts at a subconscious level and replace them with positive coping strategies. The ability to cope with stress is one of the most important factors in the psycho-biology of health and illness. Psychological factors that influence coping ability (i.e. personality, beliefs and the way we think) are more important predictors of morbidity, disability and disease outcomes than the severity and duration of pain and sickness. The way we think plays an important role in shaping our response to pain, sickness, anxiety, panic, depression, and deciding the progression and outcome of diseases like AIDS, cancer, viral infections, heart disease and acute asthma. Our ability to deal with unpleasant circumstances (i.e. coping ability) is shaped by our own unique life experiences. Coping strategies created around a framework of negative beliefs and negative expectations about pain, sickness, and disease can lead to poor treatment outcomes.

Depression		Back to list
Tim has battled with high levels of anxiety and depression for some years. These feelings have effected many aspects of his life and made even simple daily tasks difficult and stressful. Tim uses VRH to regain control of his thoughts and slow down the perceived racing pace of the world around him.

Latent Viral Infections		Back to list
Karen was in a state of high anxiety due to a very stressful family crisis coupled with a stressful workload which appeared to manifest itself in a severe case of Shingles. Her treatment with Virtual Reality Hypnosis and subsequent recovery has astounded all involved. Karen talks about her symptoms "I was under a lot of stress with work and my eldest boy, who was critically ill… we nearly lost him - so there was a real lot of stress there which probably caused the shingles to appear. I was in pain and itching constantly and not sleeping well… The pain would have been about 7 out 10." Karen talks about her first treatment with VRH "I went under the hypnosis (VRH) instantly the pain had gone… it went instantly as soon as the session had finished and then the next day, when I woke up all the spots had gone. I had no pain and no itching… I could sleep a lot better whereas before with the pain and the itching I wasn't sleeping well - I found myself to be sleeping all night again." Karen has not had any relapse of shingles and has made a full recovery.

Migraines		Back to list
Wendy Taylor has suffered from chronic migraines for the last 20 years and often spends weeks at a time on drug therapy and has endured surgical procedures in an attempt to control the pain and allow her to lead a normal life. Wendy speaks of her condition since using Virtual Medicine's pain management system Virtual Reality Hypnosis. Wendy tells us of her migraine battle to date "I've suffered chronic migraine for probably 20 years - the last 15 (years) have been really bad, to the stage where I have been hospitalized with them… I can get them once a week, but the problem is that they can last for weeks on end…" Wendy talks about her first treatment with VRH "I was at the stage that afternoon that if I had gone to the doctor, he would have put me in hospital with it (the migraine)… You gave me the virtual hypnosis and it did clear - brought it back down to about a 3 (pain rating out of 10) and I went home and slept it off.
Then we had it (the VRH treatment) for the next few nights and I had a really good run for a while because I was migraine free… I was free for about 10 or 12 days, which is a really good run for me… And I probably felt the best I'd felt for a good long time." Richard Taylor, Wendy's husband talks about the VRH treatment "I saw a great difference between medication - what she'd been taking for relief of the migraine and the hypnosis therapy machine which seemed to bring Wendy back to earth within about four sessions… After Wendy comes out of a migraine situation, she's got the wrinkles and the aging look about her - on her face - but once she came out with the machine (VRH pain management therapy), the wrinkles weren't there and the taughtness of the face and the stress just wasn't on her face. It was a nice clear face, bright eyes…" Wendy continues to use the VRH system for ongoing management of her migraine pain and has substantially reduced her reliance on drug therapy and the frequency of her migraine episodes is now less than half.

Pain Management		Back to list
This unique and effective therapy is used in hospitals and private practices around Australia. The system has been successfully used in pain management across a wide range of conditions, including severe burns patients, back injuries, migraine, shingles, general anxiety and non specific pain syndrome. Many people in trauma environments experience uncontrolled pain, despite recent advances in pain management. During intense pain, opioid analgesia may not provide adequate relief, so other pain management strategies need to be considered. VRH has been used successfully in people with burn injuries , back injuries, shingles, migraine, post surgical pain, neuropathic pain and other conditions where pain is complicated by anxiety. The system has been extensively tested and researched in clinical trials and various studies in Australia and the USA, where it has shown a significant reduction in pain perception, and reducing stress and anxiety levels. The system has been in commercial use in medical practices across Australia since 2005 and its use continues to grow.

Performance Anxiety		Back to list
Richard Moir, Junior World Champion and Australian Championship professional golfer uses Virtual Reality to control performance anxiety.

Sleep Disorders		Back to list
Liz has suffered from insomnia for a number of years and more recently has experienced migraine headaches on a regular basis. A friend recommended Virtual Reality Hypnosis to her and she spoke about her experiences. Liz talks about her insomnia "I lacked sleep… I'd go to sleep okay and in the middle of the night I'd wake up and just lay there for a couple of hours - not really thinking about anything in particular, but the time the alarm clock was due to go off, I was ready to go back to sleep." "I do suffer from migraines… headaches quite frequently… they have probably been worse over the last 18 months than they have ever been…
How did Liz feel immediately after the VRH session? "I felt like I wanted to go to sleep - incredibly relaxed to the point where I was ready to go to sleep. I felt so deeply relaxed like I'd just had a massage " How did Liz sleep that night after VRH? "Fantastic - really, really good… Slept like I hadn't slept for a long time… Like they say 'slept like a baby'."

What you need to do now..
1. If you're ready to see how virtual reality hypnotherapy can improve your life, book now using my online appointment diary system.
2. You have more questions about virtual reality hypnotherapy... call now 8096 7049 or 0437 280 911 for your obligation free consultation.
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