As a member of the public it can be amazingly difficult to know how to find a competent and professional therapist capable of understanding and treating your particular problem. Most therapists have long and bewildering strings of letters after their names, and without years of training in psychotherapy or hypnosis yourself how are you to know what these mean?
Once you've worked out what the letters mean you may also need to consider whether all the claims are genuine, and whether one qualification is as good as another. Sadly there are quite a number of people who call themselves therapists (and especially hypnotherapists) but have little in the way of credible qualifications or experience. Finding the right therapist for you is often a matter of personal intuition, but as therapy depends on trust it is important to know that your therapists credentials are valid and from a reputable source.
Following the points below will help you to avoid inexperienced, untrained or potentially dangerous therapists:
1. Ensure that the therapist is registered and accredited by an established and reputable professional organization:
For counselling and psychotherapy look for one of -
* But beware of individuals just using the letters MBACP or saying they are a 'member of BACP' - anyone with a basic level of counselling can join but this is not the same as accreditation.
For hypno-psychotherapy, hypnotherapy or hypnosis for psychological problems or medical conditions -
These organizations guarantee a full professional training in psychotherapy or medicine with training in hypnotic techniques. Full membership (FNSHP or ADHP) represents a four year training in hypnosis and psychotherapy.
For less serious problems such as hypnotherapy to stop smoking, weight loss, stress etc - without deeper psychological complications, consider full members of NCH (National Council for Hypnotherapy), or CNHC. These organizations maintain registers but require less rigorous training.
There are quite a few other hypnotherapy training organizations which have separate websites listing "accredited graduates" - but many of these are not independent professional registers so they are no guarantee of professional standards.
2. Don't rely on statements on websites - ask to see the evidence.
If a therapist mentions a number of universities and qualifications ask to see the certificates and diplomas, as well as evidence of current membership of a professional body. This may be important if you ever feel you need to make a complaint.
3. Find out how you can end the relatioship if you feel uneasy, whose code of ethics the therapist subscribes to, and check that the therapist is fully insured in case you change your mind about the treatment later.