Cancer Support – Hypno-Oncology (supporting you with the effects of cancer)
“You don’t have to go through this alone.”
Whether you are navigating a diagnosis, undergoing treatment, or supporting someone you love — this can feel overwhelming, uncertain and emotionally heavy.
This is a safe, calm and supportive space where you can begin to feel more in control again… at your own pace.
Understanding the Journey...
Unfortunately, nowadays 1 in 2 people will experience cancer in their lifetime, and many will undergo treatments such as chemotherapy.
Around 40% of cancer patients now seek holistic, complementary therapies alongside their medical care. Whatever your choice, hypnotherapy has supported many patients both physically and psychologically — helping to ease symptoms in powerful and positive ways.
Chemotherapy can be very harsh on the body. Many people experience side effects such as:
- Hair loss
- Sickness and nausea
- Fatigue
- Pain
- Weight changes
12th April 2024
12th April 2024
So… How Can Hypnotherapy Help?
By accessing the subconscious mind during hypnosis, symptoms can often be reduced while you are experiencing cancer or undergoing treatment.
Hypnotherapy can gently support you to:
- Feel calmer and more in control
- Develop new ways of coping with diagnosis and treatment
- Process emotions in a safe and relaxed way
- Reduce anxiety, fear and overwhelm
- Create a more positive and supportive mindset
This also links to an area known as Psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) — the connection between the mind, the nervous system and the immune system.
When we are in a heightened state of stress or fear, it can impact how the body responds. By helping the mind and body move into a calmer, more balanced state, hypnotherapy can support your overall wellbeing during treatment.
Every person’s experience is different… and that’s exactly why hypnotherapy works so well.
Your sessions are completely tailored to you, your needs, and your journey.
Supporting you with More Than Just the Diagnosis...
It’s not just about cancer itself. There are many emotional and physical challenges that come alongside it.
Hypnotherapy can also support with:
- Anxiety and panic
- Fear (including fear of needles or treatment)
- Emotional overwhelm
- Anger and depression
- Nausea and vomiting
- Digestive issues
- Pain management
- Breathing difficulties
- Hair loss-related emotions
- Specific areas of physical discomfort
Preparing the body and mind for chemotherapy can help you manage side effects in a much more positive and supported way.
What to Expect...
Sessions are designed to be gentle, calming and completely tailored to you.
- A safe, supportive and confidential space
- Time to talk about how you are feeling
- Deep relaxation using guided hypnotherapy
- Techniques to help you feel more in control
- Tools you can use between sessions
Sessions can take place:
- Before treatment (to prepare the mind and body)
- During treatment (to support side effects and emotions)
- After treatment (to rebuild confidence and wellbeing)
There is no pressure, no expectations — just support, at your pace.
Why I Do This Work...
This work is deeply personal to me.
From my own experience, I understand how overwhelming a cancer diagnosis and treatment can feel. The thoughts, the emotions, the uncertainty… it can take over.
Hypnotherapy supported me in changing the way I experienced it — not by ignoring what was happening, but by helping me feel calmer, more in control, and better able to cope.
This is where my “From Fear to Freedom” approach comes from.
It’s about gently guiding you:
- From fear and overwhelm
- Towards calm, clarity and emotional strength
- Helping you reconnect with yourself beyond the diagnosis
Because even in the most difficult moments… there is still a way through.
That’s why I do what I do — to offer others that same sense of support, understanding and inner strength.
If you feel it would help to understand more about my personal journey and how I moved through it, you can explore this further in my book ‘From Fear to Freedom’, where I share my experiences and the tools that supported me.
“Because when you change the way you experience what you’re going through… everything can begin to shift.”
From My Perspective...
When someone is diagnosed with cancer, it doesn’t just affect the person going through it — it deeply impacts the people around them too.
Partners, family members and close friends often carry a huge emotional weight. There can be fear, worry, and uncertainty… especially the fear of losing someone they love. Yet so often, these feelings are pushed aside.
Many feel they need to stay strong. That they shouldn’t struggle… because they are not the one who is physically unwell.
Because of this, emotions can become suppressed — held in, rather than expressed. On the outside, they may appear to be coping, but internally they are trying to process everything that is happening around them.
Hypnotherapy offers a safe and supportive space for those individuals too.
A space where they can:
- Release what they’ve been holding in
- Make sense of their thoughts and emotions
- Feel heard, supported and understood
Because their experience matters just as much.
No one should feel they have to carry that emotional weight alone.
Support for Family and Friends...
From my own experience, hypnotherapy worked extremely well for me.
Facing chemotherapy is not an easy thought — the idea of toxic chemicals being pumped into your body can feel overwhelming. But what I discovered is that when you begin to change the way you think about what’s happening, it can create a much more supportive and empowering space to work from.
The mind really can influence how we experience things (Psychoneuroimmunology (PNI)).
Preparing the body and mind to receive chemotherapy is something I feel is incredibly important when working with cancer clients. Many people find that having a hypnotherapy session before treatment helps them feel calmer, more prepared and more in control. Of course, everyone is different, and it’s about finding what feels right for each individual.
When the mind and body feel prepared, there is often a noticeable shift — a sense of knowing what’s coming, rather than fearing it.
This preparation can help you to:
- Feel calmer and more emotionally balanced
- Approach treatment with a more positive mindset
- Reduce feelings of fear or overwhelm
- Feel more in control of the experience
It can also help create a more supportive frame of mind for the day ahead and may influence how the body responds to treatment.
Another important part of my work is gently guiding clients to shift their focus away from the cancer itself.
What we focus on matters…
“You get what you think about” and “thoughts create reality.”
During sessions, I support clients in reconnecting with everyday life — the simple moments of enjoyment that can so easily be forgotten during difficult times. Whether that’s a sense of calm, a memory, or something to look forward to, these small shifts can make a big difference — and together, we bring those back into focus.
I always begin by asking each client what they would like from their session — what they feel they need support with. From there, we work together using relaxation, reframing and gentle mindset shifts to help them feel more balanced, more supported, and more at ease.
Even something as simple as beginning to view chemotherapy as something that is helping the body, rather than something to fear, can create a powerful shift in how the whole experience feels.
Another important part of my work is gently helping clients reconnect with life beyond the illness.
A Safe and Supportive Approach...
Hypnotherapy is used alongside your medical care — not as a replacement.
It is a gentle, complementary approach designed to support your emotional and psychological wellbeing throughout your journey.
Client Experience – Gratitude
“Working with Michelle I am learning how to live with the grief and sadness of losing my partner to cancer. I am very very grateful for her inspiration, expertise and patience. She is showing me skills that work for me. Also that life will be less painful and happiness is possible again.”
— PH, Dudley
Client Experience – Encouragement
“I joined one of Michelle’s relaxation groups about a year ago prior to undergoing some major surgery. I had already begun to address my fitness and diet but wanted to ensure that I was also maximizing my capacity and resilience to deal with stress and stressful situations. I wanted to ensure that I was well prepared for surgery and recovery.
I find Michelle’s open, warm approach alongside her deep commitment and professionalism easy to engage with. I have certainly valued her assistance in helping me to find a time to dedicate to myself. She has also offered practical advice, solutions and ideas as to how to manage stress and anxiety.
I find the group sessions helpful and rewarding as it is apparent that Michelle has helped others in the group as well as me and this is evidenced in some of the group’s discussions.
Michelle’s assistance has helped me to take full advantage of the expertise and hard work of the medical team supporting me in achieving a good recovery from my surgery. Many thanks Michelle.”
— LB, Dudley
Client Experience – Positive Place of Life
I remember January 2016, the beginning of an exciting year where I had planned so many wonderful things to do. Then everything came to stop as I heard the shattering news that I had breast cancer aged 49 years old. My life was changed forever and my world came crashing down around my feet. Over the next 12 months I had to endure a mastectomy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment.
However, it is now May 2018 and I am in a very good place and yes my life has changed but now I see it in a very positive light. I’m very happy, I enjoy life and I try to live in the moment seeing and feeling the wonderful things in life it has to offer. My way of thinking has gone from thinking and worrying about my negative thoughts and I have now replaced them with positivity and a healthy outlook in life.
Michelle has very much helped me to get to this very positive place of life and her knowledge, expertise and fantastic relaxation sessions have enabled this to happen. Michelle has taught me how powerful the mind is and how you can alter your way of thinking to bring calm, positivity and wellbeing back into your life.
Words can’t thank you enough Michelle.
— DM, From Whitehouse Cancer Support Group
Ready to Take the Next Step?
Understanding the Journey
If you feel this could support you, or someone close to you, I’m here for you.
There is no pressure — just a conversation to see what feels right for you.
Michelle Townsend – Harmony Life Balance
Certified Hypno-Oncology Practitioner
C.Hyp, D.Hyp, C.I.H, UKHR, I.H.A, CNHC Registered