Welcome to Focal Point Hypnosis

Hi everyone and welcome to my "about me" page.  I'm Michael Peters, a certified hypnotist based in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. I received my B.S. in Psychology from the University of Central Florida and my hypnosis training from the Hypnotherapy Academy of America in Albuquerque, New Mexico --one of the most comprehensive training programs in the country.

During this time, I received 500 hours of hypnosis training. I also continued my training in other modalities including NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming).  I'm also trained in the Virtual Gastric Band protocol for weight loss and the Trauma Collapse Technique for overcoming traumatic events.

Every hypnotist is trained in a variety of different ways by a variety of different instructors.  I believe that there is more than one way to help a client reach their goal and having a variety of techniques at your disposal is critical in helping them achieve that goal. 

So, who am I?  I've spent my entire life trying to figure that out.  As a child, I was the shy kid.  A quiet momma's boy with social anxiety.  That is until the 4th grade.

My elementary school teacher broke everyone into pairs in order to do a project.  I was fortunate enough to team up with the prettiest girl in the class.  I was socially awkward and extremely shy.  For whatever reason I cracked a joke that made the girl laugh hysterically.  "You're funny," she said.  For the first time in my life I had an identity, the funny guy.  It was at that very moment I discovered my purpose.  To help bring joy to others.

Humor was my new gift and I used it to help make friends and deal with my anxiety.  It helped me overcome sadness and bond with family members.  Discovering an identity is something we all go through.  As young children our parents, teachers and friends tell us who we are by the things they say and the way they treat us.  Sometimes we are blessed to have people in our lives who tell us we're smart, attractive, talented, etc.  Other times we are told lies.  We are told (or shown), that we're not good enough or unworthy of love.  These lies were implanted into our subconscious at a young age (usually from the time you were in the womb up until about 7 years of age).  At that young age a majority of the time was spent in the brainwave state known as theta which is ideal for learning but also ideal for believing lies from people of authority.  Our minds are computers running on outdated software.  Hypnosis is ideal for removing the negative programming we received and replacing it with more empowering thoughts.

Whether I help you lose weight, overcome a traumatic event or cope with daily stress, I would be honored to bring even a small amount of joy to your life.  As an eternal optimist, I believe that obstacles aren't roadblocks but life lessons that empower us.  Pessimism is expecting misery and allowing it to happen.  Optimism is expecting good fortune and making it happen.  Everyone has a purpose in life and mine is to help you fulfill yours.  I look forward to working with you.