01
In Sessions
A licensed clinician, consent your teen can withdraw at any moment, a focused session, then a conversation about it in plain language. It is never a surprise and never a performance.
Hypnotherapy For Teens
A guided, focused session your teen agrees to and can stop at any point. We use it alongside the rest of the treatment plan when talking has not reached a pattern. It is never the whole program and never a stage act.
- Additional
- Ages 12-17
- Can stop
- Joint Commission accredited
- Family-owned since 2021
What this is
A Guided Session Your Teen Agrees To
This is a guided state of focused attention, used when talking has not been able to reach a particular pattern. Your teen stays in control of the session and can stop at any time. We do not do stage hypnosis, and we do not build a treatment plan around this. It stays one part of a much larger week.
When this might be worth trying
- 01
Talking Has Already Stalled
Your teen can describe the pattern clearly and still find it hard to change. Focused attention is one way in, and it is not a replacement for the rest of the plan.
- 02
Skills That Have Not Stuck
Your teen may know the breathing technique and find that it still does not work for them. A guided session is one more way in when talking has not changed the pattern.
- 03
Sleep That Is Slow To Come
A mind that treats going to bed as a threat sometimes responds to a guided approach. This is one tool for that, and we are not a sleep clinic.
- 04
They Can Consent And They Can Stop
If your teen cannot stay present, or simply does not want this, we skip it. Being able to say no is the first requirement.
- 05
Parents Who Have Only Seen It On TV
Television often shows a version of this that we do not do. We explain exactly what happens in plain language before anyone agrees to anything.
- 06
When We Will Not Use It
Psychosis, dissociation that is your teen's only way of coping, or fear of the method all mean we say no and continue with ordinary therapy.
How it works
One Session, Not The Program
Consent in the session, a plain-language explanation for parents, and a week that still runs on all the other parts of the plan.
02
With Family
You hear what this is and is not, what the goal is, and what happened afterward. You do not sit in, and you do not get a transcript.
03
Alongside Everything Else
A short practice your teen can use at night without a clinician present. The rest of the week still runs on thought work and skills.
Our approach
Consent First, Then We Decide If It Fits
Used only when talking has not reached the pattern, and skipped entirely when it is not right for your teen.
- Core of the plan
Consent Each Time
Your teen can stop at any point and stays in control, and if they do not want it, we do not do it. Saying no is treated as a real skill and not a problem.
For Problems Talking Has Not Reached
Focused attention is for a loop that worksheets have not reached, including trouble falling asleep or a body that will not follow instructions.
Alongside The Plan, Never Instead Of It
Thought work and skills training continue throughout the same week. This does not replace them, and it never becomes the headline of a stay.
A Short Practice They Can Do Alone
Anything your teen learns has to work without the clinician present. If it only works in the chair, it is not ready for home.
- When needed
We Skip It When It Does Not Fit
Psychosis, dissociation, or fear of the method means we say no. Psychiatry weighs in on that decision when the clinical team asks.
Your part
What This Is, And What It Is Not
This method is easy to misunderstand, so family work here is explanation rather than an invitation to watch. You will know what it is, what it will never be, and when we skip it.
Is this mind control from a show?
Understanding What They Agreed To
Your teen stays in control and can stop at any point. We explain it in plain language, and if something sounds like a stage act, that is not us.
Let me sit in so I know it is safe.
Hearing The Goal And The Outcome
You get the purpose and hear what happened afterward. You do not sit in, because your teen's privacy still applies and this is not a demonstration.
Send them home with a recording and we are done.
Keeping It As One Tool
A short practice may come home with your teen, and a next therapist is still the plan. We do not discharge a teen with only a file and an audio track.
Length of stay
30
days in residence, by progress
Most stays run one to three months, and this is only a small piece of some of them.
90
How This Fits Into A Stay
This is used only with teens who may benefit from it, as an addition rather than the program. Thirty to ninety days is the length of the residential stay, not of this particular work. Aftercare is still a next therapist, not a recording and a handshake.
- The first two weeks establish consent and whether this is a good fit, and we skip it if it is not.
- Most teens finish the overall stay in one to three months, whether or not this was part of it.
- Aftercare means a next therapist, a short practice if it helped, and check-ins at 30, 60, and 90 days.
When to call
Call Us. We'll Tell You If This House Fits.
If you are asking about this because talking has stalled, or because a television show gave you a certain idea of it, we're happy to talk it through. Aaron Earnest and the admissions team will be honest about whether we would use it for your teen. CBT still leads the plan, and if sleep is the only concern, our insomnia page is a better place to start.
Before you call
The Details Families Ask About First
- Who treats your teen
- Clinical care is led by Alejandro Alva, M.D., our Medical Director, and Stacia Ponce-Rodriguez, LMFT, our Clinical Director.Meet the team
- Cost and insurance
- We verify your benefits at no cost before anyone is asked to commit, with plans including Aetna, Anthem, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Carelon, Cigna, GEHA, and Magellan. Benefits vary by plan, and verification is not a guarantee of coverage.How admissions works
- How progress is tracked
- Your teen's treatment plan is reviewed as their progress changes, and discharge is planned around that progress instead of a set date. After discharge, we check in at 30, 60, and 90 days.
- Where your teen lives
- Teens live in a boys' house or a girls' house, in Orange County or Riverside County in Southern California. Families can tour the homes by appointment through admissions.Residential treatment for teen boysResidential treatment for teenage girlsTour the homes
FAQ
Questions About Hypnotherapy For Teens
Answers to what parents often ask about hypnotherapy in our program. If your question is not here, admissions can talk it through with you.
What is hypnotherapy, and is it like stage hypnosis?
It is a guided state of focused attention, used when talking has not been able to reach a particular pattern. We do not do stage hypnosis, and we explain exactly what happens in plain language before anyone agrees. It stays one part of a much larger week, not the whole program.
Can my teen say no or stop a session?
Your teen stays in control of the session and can stop at any time. If they do not want it, we do not do it, and saying no is treated as a real skill.
When would you choose not to use hypnotherapy?
If your teen cannot stay present, or simply does not want this, we skip it. Psychosis, dissociation that is your teen's only way of coping, or fear of the method all mean we say no and continue with ordinary therapy. Psychiatry weighs in on that decision when the clinical team asks.
Can I sit in on my teen's session?
You do not sit in, because your teen's privacy still applies and this is not a demonstration. You hear what this is and is not, what the goal is, and what happened afterward.
Will hypnotherapy replace my teen's other therapy?
Thought work and skills training continue throughout the same week, and this does not replace them. It is an addition, used only with teens who may benefit from it. If sleep is the only concern, our insomnia page is a better place to start.