Straight answers
Questions people actually ask
Grouped by what people tend to worry about, in roughly the order they worry about it. If your question is not here, call 780-938-8373 and ask.
Part one
About hypnosis itself
What is hypnosis, actually?
A focused state of attention. Your awareness narrows onto one thing and the usual background chatter quietens down. You have been in it many times without naming it: absorbed in a film, driving a familiar route and arriving without recalling the turns, or the few minutes before sleep. Hypnotherapy uses that state on purpose, because in it the mind is unusually receptive to updating an automatic response.
Will I lose control?
No. You stay aware and in charge the entire time. You can talk, move, open your eyes, ask a question, or end the session whenever you want. Hypnosis is not unconsciousness and it is not sleep, despite what the word suggests.
Can I be made to do something embarrassing?
No. You cannot be made to act against your own values or say something you would rather keep private. Stage hypnosis is a performance involving volunteers who walked up on stage precisely because they wanted to take part. Clinical work in a quiet room, aimed at a goal you brought in yourself, has nothing in common with it.
What if I cannot be hypnotised?
Hypnosis is a normal state of focused attention rather than a special talent, and most people can experience it to some degree. It has nothing to do with being gullible or weak-willed. If anything, people who concentrate well tend to take to it easily. If you can get lost in a book, you have the capacity for it.
What does it feel like?
Most people describe it as pleasantly relaxed and surprisingly ordinary. Some feel heavy, some feel light, and some notice nothing unusual at all and are mildly disappointed that it was not more dramatic. There is no particular sensation you are supposed to have, and looking for one tends to get in the way.
Will I remember it afterwards?
Almost always. Most people recall a session the way they recall any conversation — clearly in parts, more loosely in others, particularly if they were deeply relaxed. Nothing is hidden from you.
Is hypnosis safe?
For most healthy adults, hypnosis is a normal state of focused attention and is widely regarded as safe when used appropriately by a trained practitioner. It is not medical or psychological treatment and is not a substitute for care from your doctor.
If you have a diagnosed medical or mental-health condition, speak with your physician first and tell Al about it before booking so he can advise whether this is appropriate for you.
Part two
About quitting smoking
I have tried everything. Why would this be different?
Because the things you have tried were aimed at the nicotine or at your willpower. Nicotine leaves the body within days, but the habit is not stored in your bloodstream. It sits in the subconscious as a link between a cue and an automatic response, built over tens of thousands of repetitions.
Hypnotherapy works on that link, which is the part that survived every previous attempt and started the next cigarette. Having tried repeatedly is not a mark against you here. It usually means you are clear about what you want and have been handed the wrong tool.
Do I have to quit before my first session?
No, and please do not try to. Come as you normally are. Arriving already exhausted from several days of white-knuckling makes the work harder rather than easier.
Will I put on weight?
It is a fair worry, and it is worth naming rather than hoping about. For a lot of smokers a cigarette has been doing a job — a break, a punctuation mark, a way to take the edge off — and if nothing else is put in its place, food is a common substitute.
If that concerns you, say so on the free session. It can be built into the work from the beginning rather than dealt with afterwards. See also weight control.
What about cravings afterwards?
The aim is to reduce how often a trigger produces a craving in the first place, rather than to give you a better way to fight them. How much anyone notices varies from person to person. If cravings do turn up, you will have self-hypnosis and a specific plan for those moments instead of improvising.
What if I slip and have one?
You tell Al. A slip is information about a trigger that was missed, not proof that the work failed and not a reason to disappear. It gets worked on in the next session. Vanishing out of embarrassment is the only genuinely unproductive response.
Does this work for vaping as well?
Vaping runs on the same cues and the same hand-to-mouth ritual, so the approach is the same. Mention it on the free session so the work is aimed at the right pattern from the start.
Part three
Sessions and logistics
How many sessions will I need?
Sessions are booked one at a time. Most people start with one 45-minute session after the free consult. Some book a follow-up. Al tells you on that call what he thinks you need, before any money changes hands.
How long is each session?
45 minutes. The free consultation beforehand is shorter and is a conversation rather than a hypnosis session.
Does it work over video?
Yes. Zoom is the default. You need a quiet place where you will not be interrupted, a comfortable chair, and a stable connection. There is no office. If you are in the Edmonton area, Al can come to you.
Do you offer house calls?
Yes. Al offers house-call sessions in the Edmonton area for clients who would rather do this at home. Mention it when you book so travel time can be arranged.
Where are you located?
Edmonton, Alberta. There is no office. Sessions are on Zoom worldwide, or Al comes to you in the Edmonton area.
How should I prepare?
Very little is needed. Come rested if you can and try not to arrive in a rush. If the session is online, be somewhere you will not be interrupted.
The one genuinely useful thing you can bring is an honest picture of when you smoke — the times, the places, and what tends to happen just before. That is the raw material for the whole process.
What if I need to reschedule?
Call 780-938-8373 or email Al@Albravocoach.com as early as you can. Al will confirm the written cancellation rule when you book.
Part four
Cost and payment
How much does it cost?
- 45-minute session: $97, booked after the free consult if it is a fit
- Group workshop (The Last Cigarette): $297
- Free consultation: no charge
Is it covered by insurance or benefits?
Some Canadian benefit plans include hypnotherapy under paramedical or wellness coverage and many do not. It depends entirely on your specific plan, so check with your provider before assuming either way, and ask on the free session what documentation Al can provide.
Do you guarantee it will work?
No, and be cautious of anyone who does. No honest practitioner can guarantee an outcome that depends on another person’s participation.
What you get instead is a free strategy session before you spend anything, a clear explanation of the method, and Al telling you plainly if he does not think it is a fit.
What is your refund policy?
Al states the refund terms on the free consult, before you pay. Ask if it is not clear.
Why does this cost more than a box of patches?
Because it is a different thing. Patches are a product on a shelf. This is a practitioner’s time and a method applied to your specific pattern.
It is also worth setting against what the habit costs over ten years, which is usually a larger number than people expect. That arithmetic is on the program page.
Part five
Medical questions and suitability
Is this medical treatment?
No. Hypnotherapy offered here is non-medical. It does not diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or condition, and Al is a certified hypnotherapist rather than a physician, psychologist, or licensed mental-health professional. It works alongside your medical care, never in place of it.
I take medication or have a diagnosed condition. Can I still do this?
Speak with your physician first, then tell Al on the free session. He needs to know so he can advise whether hypnotherapy is appropriate for you and adjust how he works if it is.
Never stop or change a prescribed medication or treatment because of anything said in a hypnotherapy session. That decision belongs to you and the professional who prescribed it.
Are there age limits?
The quit-smoking program and the group workshop are for adults aged 18 and over.
I am pregnant. Can I do this?
Speak with your physician or midwife first. If they are content for you to go ahead, tell Al at the free session so he knows.
Can hypnotherapy replace my doctor or therapist?
No. It works alongside medical and psychological care rather than instead of it. Never stop or change a prescribed treatment without speaking to the professional who prescribed it.
Still have a question
Ask it on the free session
The strategy session exists partly so you can ask everything that is not on this page. It costs nothing and there is no obligation at the end of it.