Looking for an easy way to beat procrastination? Writer Belle finds out whether Hypnotherapy is the way to do it.
Caption of a blog article on procrastination from Lee McKing Hypnotherapy Pte Ltd.
When I read the ad above, I was an 18 year old freshman just one month into my first semester at SMU Law. At the time, I was struggling with assignment deadlines and 300 pages of weekly reading.
It was 2am, and I was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion. But there was no rest for this weary body as I had a memorandum to complete. Feeling helpless and frustrated, I typed "how do I stop procrastinating????" into a new search tab.
Needless to say, the prospect of hypnotherapy captivated me – this seemed like a quick and easy solution to good grades and steadfast motivation.
But first, a crash course on what Hypnotherapy is
Hypnotherapy involves getting into a trance-like state, whereby a hypnotist guides you like an omniscient narrator to explore your unconscious mind to weed out the root of your problem.
The hypnotist will ask their client to visualise certain places and objects and ask specific questions. For example: “What do you represent?”, “What message do you have for me?”
The hypnotherapist I met on that fateful Friday afternoon in September 2021 was Lee McKing, a friendly, knowledgeable and well-mannered man who has given lectures at universities and holds a track record of satisfied clients.
Lee McKing the hypnotherapist, image credit to Lee McKing Hypnotherapy Pte Ltd.
Using these responses and prompts, the hypnotised person will be led deeper and deeper into their unconscious mind, eventually delving into the core issue.
The unconscious mind forms during childhood, gradually synthesising knowledge leading to habits, personality and instinct. Have you ever wondered why you respond a certain way ‘without thinking’? Or why you ‘can’t help’ feeling this way?
Well, that is a product of your unconscious mind translating knowledge learnt from your childhood into integral parts of your personality.
Is Hypnotherapy the lazy way out of laziness?
For me… the answer is a resounding ‘no’.
I do not doubt that Lee McKing has positively transformed the lives of many people struggling with both mental and physical conditions (he told me he cured a patient with eczema through hypnotherapy).
But for me, the hardest thing was being honest with this person that I had just met. When he guided me through my unconscious mind, asking me to share the things I visualised, I found myself declining to answer and forcing my mind to visualise something less personal instead.
Lee McKing was a good sport about it though, he understood my reservations and treated me with compassion despite the session being pretty much a bust.
But I remembered a few images in my mind clearly – chains weighing me down and pulling me into the belly of dark waters; doors slamming shut in my face; and soaring through a beautiful night sky as if I were in a scene of Peter Pan. I didn’t understand what all of these imagery meant back then, but now I do.
Maybe the chains were a metaphor for all the conventional struggles faced as a freshie transitioning into university. I felt isolated as I was an international student at the time and didn’t know anyone at SMU. I was also overwhelmed by the rigour and difficulty of my course.
I remembered feeling so helpless and bleak about my future given how much I struggled with law at first, which is probably what the slamming doors represented.
Finally, the Peter Pan-esque night sky was perhaps a fear of ‘growing up’. Talks about internships, training contracts and career choices floated through the air like a heavy fog, and I too felt pressured to quickly decide what I wanted to specialise in. Even though at 18 years old, that decision was almost impossible to make.
The scene I envisioned was this one, from one of my favourite anime movies ‘Children Who Chase Lost Voices’.
Conclusion
Unfortunately, hypnotherapy did not cure my procrastination. But I suppose it wasn’t something to be ‘cured’ in the first place.
It’s normal to struggle in a new environment, and I wish I’d known that with time, I will have adapted to my surroundings and everything will be okay.
So to all the freshmen feeling apprehensive about this new chapter in their lives… you don’t have to be like me and panic search "why can’t I study?????" at 2am in the morning.
Instead, this is an especially important time to take care of your mental and physical health – confide in your family, keep your friends close by and befriend your seniors. We’ll all tell you the same thing:
“Everything will be fine. You’ll get used to it”.
DISCLAIMER: Our writer attended a Hypnotherapy demo session offered by Lee McKing Hypnotherapy Pte Ltd. The opinions expressed above are solely based on our writer's experience attending that particular session.
The products or services offered by Lee McKing Hypnotherapy Pte Ltd have not been endorsed by The Blue and Gold, SMUSA. We also do not promote or deny the effectiveness of Hypnotherapy treatment.