🎙How Hypnotherapy Can Help You - An Interview with Maria Chumas-Baker of Darkness 2 Light Hypnotherapy
Live Show with Hypnotherapist Maria Chumas-Baker
Meet our Guest
Sian and Adelle welcome Hypnotherapist Maria Chumas-Baker into the studio. Maria is Hynotherapist and founder of Darkness2Light Solution-Focussed Hypnotherapy.
Our take on the show is how determined Maria is to get the best outcome for her client - this really shone through.


Maria’s Personal Bio
“I was born in Kent but went to live in Brussels, Belgium when I was 13 years old in 1973 and so started school having to speak French. I learnt it quickly and spent 5 years at school taking my European Baccalaureat when I was 18. I started work in Brussels but then decided to come back to the UK and found job in London. I had to learn to type on an English keyboard though and so I had to hire an English typewriter for this purpose. This was a strange period for me.
I worked in London for a couple of years and then found a P.A. job in Kent and stayed with this company for many years becoming their import/export manager for frozen and fresh seafood. I loved this job but it was very pressurised.
My parents moved to France after the death of my sister in 1989 and they lived there until the death of my father in 2001. At this stage I had to leave my current job to go to France to sort out my father's business and personal affairs. After 2 further years, I helped my mother sell the family home in France and move back to the UK. My mother now has Alzheimers and, in my role as her Power of Attorney, I have helped to in many ways, eventually finding her a very good care home near me where she currently lives.
In 2002, I started my own business as a Virtual Assistant and ran this until 2018 when I decided that I wanted to study Solution-Focussed Hypnotherapy. I gained my Diploma at the end of 2018 after many many months of very hard work, completing case studies and writing many many essays. I started my hypnotherapy business in October 2019 after finding a replacement for my VA clients.
I love my business and helping my clients to become better versions of themselves.
I also love my married life, my family and my grandchildren and I love to travel to discover new places.
In my spare time, which I do not have a lot of, I love to see my grandchildren, read non-fiction and fiction books, listen to my favourite music, walk, dance and I love my dog.”
Maria’s Business Bio
“Maria is a Level 4 Diploma Solution-Focussed Hypnotherapist and mindset coach. She mentions mindset as being a Solution-Focussed Hynotherapist allows her to help her clients start to change their mindsets to look into how they want their future to be and how to focus on their goals to be the people that they really want to be
Maria uses Solution-Focussed techniques, plus an explanation of the functions of the Intellectual Brain and the Primitive Brain to help her clients to understand what is happening when they are experiencing anxiety, depression, phobias, OCD, low self-confidence, low self-esteem, weight issues, menopause etc. She also explains how sleep is determined by our daily stress buckets, what happens during REM sleep and how practising Positive Action, Positive Interaction and Positive thinking on a daily basis increases the clients’ levels of Serotonin and allows better sleep patterns.
The Hypnotherapy part of Maria’s sessions last approx. 25 mins and the focussed attention or trance during this period, whilst listening to Maria’s voice, allow the clients’ subconscious to change to more positive and focussed thought patterns.
Maria has worked with many different clients with issues such as anxiety, depression, domestic abuse issues, weight management, body dysmorphic disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, fear of going out, Seasonal Affective Disorder, relationship issues, Confidence, Self-Esteem, IBS etc etc. There are sometimes issues that are raised by the client in the 2nd or 3rd session and it usually takes a couple of sessions for the client to be confident enough to share. This is when I usually get the true picture of what is going on with my client.
I have also worked with young and vulnerable people who have found it difficult to cope since the start of the Pandemic and have found home schooling, not being able to go out and meet their friends and a fear of the unknown very challenging. With these clients, I have to work very carefully alongside their parents if they are under age and to fill out assessment forms and create safety plans for them if they are feeling very vulnerable. I often have to contact their GP as well to let them know that I am helping them. The help that I have given them has allowed them to progress forward to have new ways of thinking and to focus on plans for their futures. These clients are hard work but I love working with young people who I know will benefit from the teaching and learning aspect of what I do. Once they understand why they are t thinking the way they do and that their human health & safety department in their brain is wanting to keep them safe but that their Intellectual Brain, when used properly, can keep them safe without needing extra help or extra negative hormones to make them feel unwell.
I love my work and it is my passion.”
🎧 Listen To The Show
Link through to download the show from Spreaker, which is where we host the live show after we’ve turned it into a podcast.
Or you can go direct to Spotify to listen in below
Book Recommendations From The Live Show
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?
Filled with secrets from a therapist's toolkit, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before teaches you how to fortify and maintain your mental health, even in the most trying of times. Dr Julie Smith’s expert advice and powerful coping techniques will help you stay resilient, whether you want to manage anxiety, deal with criticism, cope with depression, build self-confidence, find motivation, or learn to forgive yourself. Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before tackles everyday issues and offers practical solutions in bite-sized, easy-to-digest entries which make it easy to quickly find specific information and guidance.
Your mental well-being is just as important as your physical well-being. Packed with proven strategies, Dr. Julie’s empathetic guide offers a deeper understanding of how your mind works and gives you the insights and help you need to nurture your mental health every day. Wise and practical, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before might just change your life.
Check our other posts for expert tips, ideas and book recommendations from our guests in separate posts
See you for the next show and please do like and comment because we would love to hear from you.