Neuro-Linguistic programming (NLP) is one of the fastest growing developments in applied psychology.

It deals with the structure of human subjective experience; how we organise what we see, hear and feel, and how we edit and filter the outside world through our senses.

According to NLP, we have all the recourses we ever need within us, and treatment is aimed at releasing the blockages that are stopping us from tapping into our innermost potential. The unconscious mind is very wise, and when you tap into its wisdom, physical, emotional, mental and spiritual healing is possible.

Cissi Williams is a Certified Trainer of NLP, Osteopath, Cranial Osteopath and Naturopath, and she is also a Master Practitioner of Timeline Therapy and Hypnosis.

In 2005 Cissi published The Wellbeing Handbook, an A-Z guide to Holistic Healing, a practical and informative manual to modern day living. She also runs courses for personal development as well as professional Certified NLP Practitioner and NLP Master Practitioner training course.

The following case studies given by Cissi Williams combine NLP, Visualisations, Hypnosis and Wellbeing Coaching. Some of the results were achieved on her Wellbeing for Life course.

Cissi enables her clients to let go of negative thoughts and emotions associated with their past. She believes that you cannot change your past but you can change how your brain represents your past to you, and in this way you change the way you respond to your past.

Emma, in her 30s, came to see me for depression, mood swings and over-eating. She had a history of bulimia and very low self-esteem.

She couldn't remember her parents telling her they loved her. Her mother never played with her, instead her mother's way of showing love was to feed the children, and Emma always had to finish what was on her plate.

Feeling full gave her comfort from a very young age. Emma developed bulimia in her 20s, but managed to recover. Following the birth of her first child, she fell into a deep depression, which got worse after the birth of her second child.

This is when she came to see me. During her session, Emma realised that her parents had always loved her, and that they were unable to show it because of their own inner wounds.

This understanding allowed her to forgive them, and the need for the depression went away. Her depression was communicating to her that she needed to pay attention to something, she needed to heal her wounds from childhood, and that she needed to give herself the time and space to heal.

After the session she lost two stone, as her need to over eat had gone.

She was able to change her thinking about the past, and free herself from negativity. She realised it was fine to be herself and began to really enjoy life.

David was a man in his 50s who came to see me because he felt he was unable to move forward in his life.

He also suffered from insomnia, and would wake up from anything up to 20 times per night. He felt no joy. Instead, he felt a heavy sadness over his chest.

He had been for various types of therapy, and was an expert in his problems - too much of an expert, because he had over-analysed it, with the result of getting more and more drawn into the problem itself.

He had trouble committing to his girlfriend and felt unsure about whether they could ever live together. He has left his ex-wife because she was obese, and he found it difficult to be attracted to her.

During our session, we discovered that David had a very deep and limiting belief that he was bad and evil, and that he had an inner beast.

Therefore, he was terrified about letting people get close to him, because then they would find out what he truly was. This meant that he would always keep people at a distance, especially in his intimate relationships.

He discovered that part of this limiting belief has been formed when he was five, waiting for his father to come home to punish him for being naughty. This made David believe that he must be bad and evil, since he deserved to be punished in this way.

The inner beast had been formed a long, long time ago. He released this beast with a forgiveness exercise (outlined in The Wellbeing Handbook).

After his session David felt free from his fear of commitment, and was able to enjoy life and feel joy and happiness again. Something he had not done for a very long time.