Steve Woods

How do you guide someone through hypnosis when they have never seen a sunset, a staircase or a beautiful landscape? As hypnotists, we frequently ask clients to picture, imagine or visualise experiences. But what happens when someone has been blind since birth? And what can working with blind and visually impaired people teach us about the way we use hypnosis with everyone? Drawing on his practical experience working with blind and visually impaired athletes through England and Wales Blind Golf, as well as his work with a blind archer, Steve Woods explores the fascinating relationship between hypnosis, imagination, sensory experience and the language of suggestion. This presentation challenges some of the assumptions we make about visualisation in hypnosis. Steve will share experiences from his work, discuss the differences between congenital and acquired blindness, and explore how hypnotic suggestions can be adapted to work with an individual's unique sensory world. But this isn't simply a presentation about hypnosis for blind people. It's about becoming a more flexible, responsive and effective hypnotist. What happens when a sighted client struggles to visualise? Are we sometimes limiting the hypnotic experience by relying too heavily on visual language? And how might engaging other senses create richer, more meaningful experiences for our clients? Through real-world examples, practical insights and a fresh perspective on familiar techniques, delegates will leave with ideas they can immediately apply in their own practice. Because perhaps the power of hypnosis isn't in what we see in our minds, but in what we experience.