Therapist Biography - Ginny Foy
Ginny Foy - practicing in Fareham, Gosport, Portsmouth and Southampton
We've asked some of our therapists to tell you a little bit about themselves, their background before they trained with the IAPH, and their experience of the IAPH and its training.
Your main town(s)/cities(s) that you practice in:
Fareham, Gosport, Portsmouth, Southampton
What was your background before you trained to be a Pure Hypnoanalyst?:
World Health Organisation working on the classification of Diseases. Computer Programmer and IT Support. Various diplomas in Complimentary medicine and healing techniques.
What made you choose a career in Pure Hypnoanalysis?:
My background in medicine and an overwhelming interest in Psychology combined with always wanting to know WHY!
What age were you when you trained with the IAPH?:
52
Had you ever studied hypnotherapy / psychology / counseling etc before training with the IAPH?:
Studied Psychology/Human Biology in my 20's
If you had studied hypnotherapy / psychology / counseling etc before, how did our training and support compare to the others?:
The training and support in the IAPH is directed at the behavioral side of psychology and this is where my interests lay. The quality of training and support is very 'personal' in the IAPH, you are not just a trainee or a practitioner, you are part of a close community of friends from the 'Guv'nor' at the top to the newest trainee there is a network of support and wisdom to draw on.
What made you choose the IAPH Successful Hypnotherapy Diploma Course, as opposed to any of the others available?
Although I was interested in how Hypnosis can be used therapeutically I did not want to do a 'directive' therapy. Pure Hypnoanalysis is very much a partership. I am not doing something 'to' a client but doing something 'with' them. I also did some local research and the IAH practitioners were the ones who had been in business for years. others seemed to come and go!
How did you find the combination of home-study, and hands-on training seminars and workshops?
When I started my study with the IAPH there were very few seminars available but now there are always new opportunities to learn more and study our craft in greater depth. The original training material gave me the opportunity to study at my own pace.
Did you receive enough support and mentoring throughout your studies, or could you have done with more?
I would have benefitted from a 'mentor', someone I could contact to ask for help. Although Rob was available and always helpful, I was always reluctant to bother him in the early days as I felt my questions would be too simple. I hope that in future a mentoring scheme could be set up.
Did you find it easy to use the online support forum, both for your questions/answers, and downloading the free video and audio lectures?
These were not available during my training but I use them now and always find them extremely useful.
After passing the course, did you feel that you were adequately prepared for your own private practice, or did you need any extra help or support?
There is a huge amount of support within the organisation for setting up your own business and although this was not available when I first started I have made good use of the material over the years.
How easy (or difficult) was it setting up your own hypnotherapy clinic, and starting to treat your own clients?
In retrospect it wasn't that difficult as I practice from an annexe at my home so I didn't have to worry about premises. I could also start at my own pace with a few cients to get used to this way of working. I learned slowly and asked a lot of questions - happily there was always someone around to answer them for me. There was also a local support group which was of immense value to me and gave me a lot of confidence that I was going in the right direction.
Now you are in practice full-time, what is life like as a busy hypnotherapist?
Life is the best it has ever been!!! I am my own boss. I work at the pace that suits me. I make a difference to people's lives and my curiosity about what makes people 'tick' is always being satisfied. I belong to a fantastic network of friends who are committed to making this therapy the best and most efficient that it can be. I feel that, as I approach my 60's, I am more excited and challenged than I have ever been and I continue to learn and grow - I couldn't ask for more!
