I Spent Decades Trapped by Anxiety - Until I Discovered the Power of the Subconscious

About Sheila Gallien, Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist

Here's what I know to be true: the patterns running your anxiety live in your subconscious mind—just below your willpower, your logic, your best intentions. That's why you can know what you should do and still find yourself unable to do it. Your conscious mind wants one thing. Your subconscious is running a different program entirely.

One of my heroes, the legendary hypnotherapist Milton Erickson, believed that every resource we could ever need for our most potent lives already exists within the subconscious.

We simply need to tap in and open the door.

Why am I such a believer?

Because I lived it. I smoked for decades. I tried everything - and I mean everything - to quit. Willpower. Nicotine patches. Cold turkey. Therapy. Nothing worked. This anxious behavior had imprisoned me since I was 17 years old.

Then I discovered hypnotherapy. And everything changed.

Freeing myself from smoking didn't just break one habit, it returned me to the deepest part of myself. It opened the door to a focused mind, healthy habits, heightened creativity, and genuine connection. It gave me my life back.

That's when I knew: this is the work I'm meant to do.

My approach is intuitive, body-centered, and multi-layered. I weave together hypnotherapy, functional breathwork, EFT (tapping), channeled guidance, and somatic practices to address anxiety where it actually lives—in your nervous system, your subconscious patterns, and your body's memory. No two sessions are exactly alike, because no two people are.

  • "Sheila is great! She is able to assist with a large range of issues, and brings extensive training, experience and wonderful intuition to her practice. Her kind and gentle manner create a supportive and comfortable environment. I’m very pleased with the progress she has helped me with."

    ~ Sequoya

Are we a fit?

I've worked across industries, with all kinds of people, through all kinds of life experiences. My professional life has been varied. My personal journey has been passionate and eclectic.

What matters most is this: if you're ready to do transformative work—not just talk about your anxiety, but actually release it—we're a fit.

Review my credentials and background below. If something resonates, let's talk.

Some things you should know about me:

  • I started surfing at 36 after a divorce, a career loss, and a death—in frigid, shark-infested waters. It saved me from suicide and changed my life forever. (I still surf. With a helmet, after a big south swell scalped me.)

  • I quit smoking with hypnotherapy after decades of failed attempts. Then I quit drinking with AA. This work saved my life before I ever thought about doing it professionally.

  • I've lost people I love to addiction and mental illness—my brother, my step-sister, my mother to COPD from smoking. I cared for my mother in my home until her death. I know what it means to witness someone trapped in a pattern they can't escape.

  • I've sat at the table with Fortune 500 decision-makers. I've placed products in three of the world's biggest retailers. I helped birth Wilson in Cast Away as an assistant to Oscar-nominated writer William Broyles, Jr. I've run businesses, failed at an MLM, and written stories people threaten to turn into movies.

  • I swam with tiger sharks on purpose, using self-hypnosis to stay calm. (It worked.)

  • I'm fluent in: corporate, hard knocks, entrepreneur, surfer, woo woo, and artist.

  • I've been: married, divorced, single, madly in love, betrayed, and healed.

  • My education is eclectic: UC Berkeley (Conservation & Resource Studies), Berkeley Psychic Institute, Hypnosis Motivation Institute (Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist + Mind Body Psychology), Transformational Coaching with Derek Rydall, plus writing, theater, and a whole lot of lived experience.

Certifications:

  • CCHt. Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist, Member American Hypnosis Association #012417

  • Certified OA® Functional Breathing Instructor

  • Certified Therapeutic Imagery Master

  • The Path to Healing Trauma with Peter A. Levine PhD

Hypnotherapy/Therapeutic Education:

  • Certified Clinicial Hypnotherapist, Hypnosis Motivation Institute

  • Associate of Occupational Studies Degree in Mind-Body Psychology, Hypnosis Motivation Institute

Specialty Professional Certifications, American Hypnosis Association

  • Pain Management; Smoking Cessation; Weight Loss; Sports Performance; Healing the Inner Child; Tinnitus; Past Life Regression Therapy; Therapeutic Imagery Master; Social & Driving Anxiety

Other Trainings

  • Fears and Phobias, Self-Confidence and Self-Image, Repetitive Behaviors (Trichotillomania/Hair Pulling, Dermatillomania/Skin or Lip Picking), Behavior in Relationships, Grief, Creative Blocks

Professional Speaking Engagements

  • American Hypnosis Association, August 8, 2024, Hypnotherapy for Perimenopausal, Menopausal and Post-Menopausal Women

You don't need someone who's only read about anxiety in textbooks.

You need someone who's been in the grip of it, broken free, and knows exactly how to guide you through.

If my story resonates - if you see yourself in any part of it - that's not an accident. You're in the right place.

Let's talk about what's possible for you.

Book a Hypnotherapy Consultation