How Shropshire ex-teacher is helping children and teens with exam stress solutions.

Clarissa Woodcock, Shropshire Hypnotherapist draws on her experience at sharp end of education and opens her hypnotherapy business to helping children and young people with exam stress with her award-winning programme Calm Kids.

Clarissa has seen plenty of exam stress first hand.  As a teacher, she watched year-after-year as children and young people battled with their nerves and worries in the face of exam pressures. She remembers one particular youngster,

“This young person was so fearful of failure that he couldn’t even cross the threshold into the exam room. That’s how bad it was. I felt helpless, watching him struggle and putting so much pressure on himself. He had become trapped and depressed. I tried to support him but my professional role and desire to do the right thing were completely at odds. “In the end, he had to take some time out and start afresh the following next year. When he returned, he was a completely different. His looked more relaxed and was more confident. “It turned out, he’d been for hypnosis and I was amazed by the change in him.”

This episode had a significant impact on Clarissa. She decided to make a career change and re-train as a clinical hypnotherapist.

“I tried some hypnotherapy myself and thought it was brilliant. I discovered an excellent hypnotherapy training college and signed up.” Following eight months of training and examinations, in which she gained a Diploma in Hypnotherapy, an advanced qualification in Child Hypnotherapy and more recently has devised her own programme Calm Kids Coaching an initiative which is spreading throughout the globe. This year Clarissa has already been inundated with parents wanting help for their children and believes her own experience at the sharp end of the education system gives her a unique insight into the problems faced by 21st century pupils.

An estimated 300,000 young people in the UK have anxiety disorder and these numbers are growing and peaks at the time of exams. Stress and anxiety can lead to more serious illnesses such as IBS and heart disease. Clarissa adds: “Hypnotherapy can empower people to have the courage and gain the tools, to deal with their own issues.” Clarissa is quick to dispel any preconceptions that hypnotherapy involves ‘controlling’ a subject. “There are always going to be those people who think what I do is like stage hypnotists do, but it’s nothing like that. I work mostly with people on stress management, anxiety and panic attacks and confidence building. I can’t make people do anything they don’t want to do. My job is to bring people into a relaxed state - the kind of trance you’re in watching TV or daydreaming in - and when you’re in that highly suggestible place, you can better take on board the instructions you need to help you meet your goals. “

“Work is really picking up at my practice now. I’ve been working quite a lot with children who are having trouble sleeping and have been seeing children as young as six for anxiety.

“I’ve also deliver Calm Kids Workshops Exam Preparation which I deliver at local schools in the run up to SATs and GCSEs”.

 “Most people who come through my door are really positive about what they think hypnosis can do for them. Although there are always those who will respond easier to hypnosis than others, I’ve haven’t met anyone I haven’t been able to help so far.”

You can book in with Clarissa by visiting her profile page Clarissa Woodcock

Or you can visit www.ClarisaWoodcock.com Calm Kids Coaching & Stress Solutions.

Or call 07762259128

Clarissa has a couple of top tips for children and teens heading into SATs and exam season:

• Try some breathing exercises. Breathing helps with relaxation
• Focus on one thing at a time. We’re all guilty of trying to do too many things at once but watching a screen or having TV on in the background while you’re trying to hit the books will be counter-productive.
• Make sure you’re taking some leisure time to switch off afterwards and allow your brain to relax.