Once the client has reached the required level of trance you will begin to deliver the specific therapeutic intervention; that which is going to help the client improve and change.

• The work that you do with the client at this stage will depend on the information that you gathered, the nature of the problem and the goal for treatment.

There are a variety of ways in which symptoms can be altered for the client’s benefit.

• When it is not advisable to remove the symptom altogether – for example, when there is a physical cause that the client needs to know about, you can use symptom substitution. Substitute the symptom for something that the client finds more acceptable.

• Removal by symptom transformation is a gradual approach to removing the symptom. First transform the symptom into something that is more acceptable to the client. Once the client has been able to do this and accepts that they have some control over the symptom, it can be removed.

• Symptom Utilisation encourages the client to accept and redefine the symptom in order to control it. The symptom is retained but is made to work in a positive way for them.

• With symptom intensification, the symptom’s expression is intensified in order to exhaust it. Once the symptom has been exhausted, it is no longer expressed.

• Symptom amelioration can be used to show the client that they have control over their symptom, their perception of the symptom is increased and then decreased. Once the client has accepted that they have an element of control over their symptom, the symptom will be easier to remove.

Be Aware of Contra-indications

All practitioners should be aware of the following:

• There are dangers associated with removing symptoms.

• If a symptom is simply removed, the space it leaves may be filled with something worse.

• Whenever you remove a symptom, replace it with something positive.

• Look out for whether the symptom is doing anything that helps the client (a secondary gain), and make sure your replacement does the same thing.