Jeff Berger

On Remembrance day November 11th, 2007, those attending the November CCH General Meeting had the pleasure of hearing from Jeff Berger, Psychologist, Hypnotherapist, and ‘Super-Supervisor’. I had never met Jeff before, but his warmth, humour and humanity were apparent from the start. He was invited to bring to life for us the new CCH Supervision Requirements and to clarify the real and important benefits of Supervision for all of us whether we are newcomers or well established in our career as hypnotherapists.

He brought valuable insight into the benefits of Supervision for both supervisor and supervisee. Here is a summary what he had to say.

Jeff opened by stating that there are radically different forms of Supervision and the form, which will become effective as of July 1st 2008 for all CCH members comes with a high recommendation from him. He explained that Supervision, which may at first seem daunting, should rather be understood as a vital part of our professional (and personal) development. There are two forms that we will need to be aware of as CCH members: firstly, Supervision that forms a necessary part of gaining membership and secondly, ongoing Supervision thereafter.

Jeff, a former Anglican clergyman, considers Supervision to be a ‘sacred covenant’. He reminded us that people are submitting their minds and their hearts into our hands when we practise hypnotherapy and because of this inherent responsibility, if we’re not ‘on top of our game’ by being professionally up to date with best practice then “there’s something wrong”. Supervision, he said, is part of being adequately and professionally equipped.

Further, he urged us not to stop once our requirement of preliminary Supervision has been achieved. Just as someone who closes the books once they have obtained their qualification will be ill placed professionally in years to come, so too would someone who tried to practise without Supervision.

Jeff, a senior therapist, met his own Supervisor thirty years ago and they have worked together in this capacity ever since. “Ours is a dynamic profession”, he reminded us. “We don’t work in a static field so knowledge and skills must be constantly updated. It makes sense that if we don’t stay on top then we’ll fall behind and get left behind. One way to stay on top is through Supervision”.

The sorts of assistance that a supervisee should be looking for are:

• help with practice issues
• greater clarity on the hypnotherapeutic process
• debriefing difficult experiences and problems
• to go further with the work that you are doing
• support when you may feel overwhelmed
• to talk about practice development and 
• to discuss how you would like your practice to be in one, three and five years’ time…how you want it to change and be better for next year, and how is it going to work better for YOU?

…and a chance to do this with someone whom you can trust and who takes an objective standpoint. According to Jeff, Supervision is ‘regenerative’. It should feel good and be empowering for both the supervisee and the supervisor.