About Sarah Dresser
Clinical Hypnotherapist and Coach
My Background
Originally from the UK, I have lived and worked in 6 different countries and, since 2005, Canada has been my home. After graduating I, like many others, made pragmatic choices about my career to pay off student debt and started out in an entry-level technical support role in Information Technology (IT) and, over time, worked my way up to a Senior Project Manager role.
As the responsibilities became greater, the hours got longer, the deadlines were always tight and work took over my life.
Willpower, Work Stress and Insomnia
Everything came second to work including sleep, relationships and health. When I had time to sleep, I just couldn't switch off my mind.
This was my first real experience of how willpower cannot achieve everything. I have always been goal focused: I travelled round the world solo, moved to Canada to build a new life, learned several languages, and would push myself to achieve all this and more. But willpower had no impact on sleep; it was beyond my conscious control.
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The insomnia carried on for 10+ years. I felt trapped in my own brain. My brain-body had been through too much long-term stress and could not correct itself alone.
Hypnotherapy: Retrain the Brain to Sleep Again
One day, by chance, I saw an ad for hypnotherapy and, out of desperation, I called the number.​ From the very first hypnotherapy session, I experienced a positive change. That night, I went off to sleep much more quickly and also slept more soundly. And unlike guided meditation, no long-term practice was needed to benefit. After 4 sessions, and with the help of a recording in between sessions, my brain allowed me to sleep regularly again.
Back to School
While I continued to work in IT, I went to university in the evenings to complete studies in Sustainability Management at the University of British Columbia. During that time, I became most interested in designing models of Sustainable Communities, particularly the elements of social support. I wanted to be part of something that would benefit individuals and communities: to make the individual and the collective stronger.
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After completing my Sustainability Management studies at UBC, and after a significant amount of self-directed research, I returned to hypnotherapy, but this time as a student rather than a client, and that's where I could start to see my ideal job taking shape: one where I could offer the support I had experienced myself from hypnotherapy, but at low cost or even at no cost.
My Qualifications: Clinical Hypnotherapist
I have worked as a Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist for over 10 years now. From 2014 to 2015 I completed my initial studies and was certified at all three levels as Hypnotist, Master Hypnotist and Clinical Hypnotherapist at the Pacific Institute of Advanced Hypnotherapy, the only school in North America that is university accredited under the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Medicine. The school director, Sherry Hood, is a lecturer in medical hypnosis in the University's Faculty of Medicine.
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Since then, I have continued to study and attend advanced hypnotherapy and other styles of therapy training every year as part of my ongoing learning and to satisfy my forever curious brain. The fields are evolving and I love keeping up with the latest research in theory and remain hands-on with ongoing education and practice.
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​Just how far we can go in recovery from both brain and body trauma is being pushed every year as neuroscience and, specifically, neurogenesis and neuroplasticity studies advance.
My Passion: The Power of Hypnotherapy to Retrain Your Brain
The power of hypnotherapy to access that 80% (some say 95%!) part of the brain, the subconscious, that counselling and other therapies cannot touch had really resonated for me. I have first-hand experience that even an issue that had lasted more than a decade could be resolved in a few sessions.
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My daily work is my passion. Hypnotherapy, for me, is where science and art converge: I can express my artistic joy in creative writing and recording, and also continue ongoing research into neuroscience, hypnotherapy and psychology and weave in my science-based training into a journey that embraces all the senses and all levels of your being: mind, soul, energy, body... To me, hypnotherapy is a "whole brain" approach that no other therapy style fulfills and gives results faster than any other talk therapy. I do employ techniques from NLP, CBT and coaching as they do add value, but I remain, first and foremost, a hypnotherapist.
My Values: Low Cost and No Cost Support for ALL
Hypnotherapy and models of Sustainable Communities is where my work converges: in that core belief that social and therapeutic support for ALL is a right, not a privilege.
Therapy is not and should not be a privilege for just those who can afford $100+ for private sessions. I fully believe that if we provide social and therapeutic support for all, everyone benefits.
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Hypnotherapy levels the playing field. No matter what we are born into or what happens along the way, we can still retrain the brain to release trauma, unhelpful habits and limiting beliefs. At any age, we can find freedom from even lifelong issues, and unlock our life potential. This is a message I want to send to all.
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Providing work online to now over 400,000 subscribers not only reflects my values and passion to provide support for all, but has also been just one part of a much bigger life redesign, career being just one aspect. It has taken many years and it is still a work in progress. I continue to learn, to question, to improve and to challenge myself.
If you too are wondering whether life can change, I can only say: the best way to predict the future is to create it. To create it you start by having a clear vision of the life you want to lead.
Where to Find My Work
To access online support that over 400,000 people now enjoy, you can visit my Youtube channel at www.youtube.com/UnlockYourLifeToday where you can access over 150 hypnotherapy, guided meditation and affirmations sessions at no cost. You can also download the Think Yourself Slim Program, a program I developed to overcome my own lifelong history of eating disorders and serial dieting: www.ThinkYourselfSlim.com.
Connect with me on Facebook to get previews of my upcoming work and more.
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I've also started up a Spanish version of my Youtube channel which you can access here. Tengo un canal en español ahora y lo puede acceder aquí
My Belief: The Power of Online Support to Change the World
In a world where social media seems to be more about social approval than genuine connection, we cannot underestimate the power of an online safe space where you are free to feel, and free to be as you are, in privacy and with dignity. Unlock Your Life is a place where you may start to accept: accept all that you feel, and all that you are. Acceptance is the first step to change. To do this alone can be daunting. To do this with the support from another person is liberating, uplifting even.
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Whether you are looking to heal from lifelong issues or explore the limits of the mind and the metaphysical, I hope and intend to support you to retrain your brain and unlock your life!
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