Week 3 Review of Nerva Hypnotherapy App

We've made it to the end of week 3 of my gut-directed hypnotherapy sessions for IBS. This means that I'm already halfway through my treatment program. I thought it would be a good time to catch up and update you on how it's going and how I'm finding the Nerva app so far. (Affiliate link).

Ad: This post includes references to a gifted service I received in return for my feedback and an honest review. Edit Nov 2021: Some of my latest posts and videos are kindly sponsored by Nerva. Edit May 2024: Nerva has just launched an affiliate program. I may now receive a small affiliate commission on all qualifying purchases through my links. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Jump to:

• Comforting Hands
• How did week 3 go?
• How am I Feeling at the Midway Point?
• Nerva Audio Clip
• Visual Inspiration Gallery
• 10% Discount Off Nerva App
• Comments

If you haven't yet seen my other weekly review posts then I recommend you start with those;

• Introduction to gut-directed hypnotherapy for IBS
• Week 1 review
• Week 2 review

Comforting Hands

The theme we're focusing on this week is comforting hands. The idea of hands being placed over an area of pain or discomfort to help soothe is a familiar one. I hope that, like me, you have fond memories of the soothing hands of a parent or caring adult. Checking your temperature, rubbing the tingle from a banged funny bone or cupping a scraped knee.

I've personally spent more nights than I care to admit, self-soothing my IBS and PMS. My arms wrapped around my bloated, cramping stomach or rubbing the pain away.

As a qualified massage and complementary therapist, I've been privileged to witness the power of healing touch many times. Forever in awe of the way clients surrender to relaxation beneath my hard-working hands. I knew immediately that the theme of comforting hands was going to be one that resonated with me.

As with the inner river session, my first impression was that the scenario could do with a bit of fine-tuning. The setting for comforting hands is the beach. Think sunlight, fluffy white clouds and gently lapping waves, you get the picture. We continue through the scene and end up lying on a warm towel. Finally, our hands provide comfort to our tummies. I think this is a concept that will bring positive associations for a lot of people. I'm just not sure a public beach is the right place for it. 

I would have much preferred to visualise being in a spa, therapy room or private relaxation area, rather than getting sand in all the wrong places, with kids and dogs playing frisbee around me. Just as before, once we descend deeper into the session then the setting holds no real importance. But if only for the sake of my pedantic creativity, I like to set the right mood from the outset. 

All that being said, I definitely relaxed deeper into it this week. I felt a few more little nods and jumps as I drifted into a light sleep. This is something that hasn't yet happened during the other sessions. I expect it could be explained by the fact that I've listened most days whilst lying in bed, unfortunately not always by choice.

How did week 3 go?

This brings me to how I've been feeling this week. I'm usually pretty keen to get straight on with my therapy first thing, after my morning walk. Luckily for me, I tend to stick to morning sessions. By Tuesday afternoon I was struck down with the worst migraine I've had in years. Almost a week later and I'm still sensing the after-effects behind my eyes. 

Now before anyone asks, I honestly don't think it was in any way sparked by the hypnotherapy. I think it was likely a combination of sleep deprivation and menstrual migraine. It occurred after a particularly bad night's sleep, towards the end of my period. Whatever the cause, I was in bed from 2 pm on Tuesday and could barely think or see straight for the remainder of the week.

Thankfully, the fact that you can listen to the app with your phone in sleep mode meant that I could continue with my daily sessions. For the rest of the week, I listened screen-free and on a low volume. I did however skip the deep breathing exercises some days as they aggravated my dizziness.

Despite my lingering aversion to light, noise, movement and pretty much everything other than sleep, I was genuinely surprised by my willingness to continue the sessions. I think it's a testament to the fact that I get so much relaxation from them. On some level, I felt that they would be able to help, or at the very least, not hinder my recovery.

How am I Feeling at the Midway Point?

I'm pleased to say that I'm enjoying the sessions, making time for them in my day and looking forward to them. I wouldn't say it's become a habit as I'm fortunate that my day is pretty flexible so I do slightly vary the times I listen, but I haven't missed a day yet.

I honestly feel that if I did need to fit the sessions into a very tight schedule each day that they are short enough to do so without too much difficulty. From the first session, I loved the noticeable feelings of calm, balanced energy that I felt afterwards. I think that this is really what's helped me to make time for the audio each day. I'd much rather listen to a session, knowing how I'll feel afterwards, than spend time passively scrolling through the internet, my emails or social media. 

Over the past 3 weeks, since the sessions began, life has continued as normal and I've been able to keep up with the daily sessions throughout;

• Decorating several rooms in the house 
• I've had my period 
• Managing an ongoing health issue with our dog. This means she's had to sleep with us, on our bed every night whilst wearing a cone of shame. (If you know, you know)
• Close family members dealing with serious health conditions, surgeries and treatments.
• Currently, planning, packing and preparing for our holiday next week. We're hoping that no further COVID government guidelines come into force that potentially means we have to cancel. 

Any one of these situations would usually be enough to cause me a fair bit of anxiety. The knock-on effect is that my food choices have veered very much towards chocolate and comforting carbs. I would also expect to have felt some pretty major FODMAP and stress-related flare-ups by now. As a generally anxious person, I still have many moments in a day where it all gets a bit much. Despite this, I feel that the effects of my anxiety are not impacting my gut as they typically would.

Other than the migraine attack, the only noticeable symptom I've had is that the closer we get to our holiday, my farts have got a little fouler but the rest of my symptoms have been pretty minimal. I'm definitely having fewer bowel movements each day. This usually leads to severe bloating, frequent toilet trips and urgency. I often feel as though I need to go but nothing comes. Thankfully this isn't happening at the moment and it's starting to feel as though my new, predictable, normal is going twice a day. This is down from 4 times on an average day and anywhere from 10+ on a stressful day.

I fully intend to keep up with the daily sessions next week. Let's be honest, if I can't find 20 minutes for relaxation on holiday then I'm doing it wrong. This might mean that the remaining weekly reviews are posted a bit behind my real-time sessions as I take a little break from blogging. However, I'll be keeping detailed notes in my food, mood and poop journal. That way you won't miss out on my weekly musings or have to rely on the hazy recollections of my pina colada soaked brain.

Please don't hesitate to ask me anything about my experiences so far in the comments below. I'd love to be able to help you decide if gut-directed hypnotherapy might be a good fit for you and your symptoms.

Speak soon, Michelle xoxo

Nerva Audio Clip

Listen to a short clip from session 3 to get a feel for the Nerva IBS program.

Please note: You will not be hypnotised by listening to this brief clip. This audio has been abridged to give you a general feel for the narrator, tone and pace of what to expect from the Nerva app.

Visual Inspiration Gallery

To help get you in the mood and stimulate your creativity I've gathered together some images that might be helpful for you for this session. These are just a starting point and are an expression of what comes to my mind as I listen to comforting hands. You are encouraged throughout the sessions to explore and visualise whatever you like, in your own unique way.

Photo source via Unsplash

Credits: 1: Leio McLaren, 2: Roi Dimer, 3: Ashley Whitlatch, 4: Thomas Kinto, 5: Ines Álvarez Fdez, 6: Fabrice Nerfin, 7: Mourad Saadi, 8: Joshua Earle, 9: Abdol Azim Mollaie, 10: Toa Heftiba, 11: I.am_nah, 12: Josh Withers 13: Sam Burriss, 14: Wolf Zimmermann, 15: Zoe Holling.

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