ASCH Level 1 and Level 2 Virtual Clinical Workshops
ASCH Level 1 and Level 2 Virtual Clinical Workshops – May 7-10th, 2026
Level 1 Information
Our Clinical Hypnosis training program offers a progressive series of workshops designed to equip licensed health professionals with skills to incorporate clinical hypnosis into their practices. In the Level 1 workshop, participants learn the foundational principles and techniques of hypnosis, including inductions, suggestions, and therapeutic strategies, guided by experienced faculty from various health disciplines. This course blends presentations, demonstrations, and hands-on practice to provide basic skills for immediate application.
Important Notes
- Participants are expected to attend and be engaged all days. These sessions are not recorded.
- Detailed workshop schedules, faculty and other materials will be available to participants, online, one – two weeks before the start date. Workshop materials will be available in electronic form only.
- Approximately one week before the workshop, registered participants will receive a link to a private webpage that will include links to handouts and resource materials.
Clinical Workshop Level 1
The Level 1 workshop, the first part of a series of workshops in the certification program for clinical hypnosis, is intended for licensed health professionals including physicians, nurses, psychologists, dentists, counselors, social workers, and those in related fields. A diverse faculty from a range of health disciplines will teach the principles and process of hypnotic inductions, suggestions, and treatment. The workshop is a mix of didactic presentations, demonstrations, experiential exercises, and faculty-led small group practice tailored to the specific needs and learning styles of each participant. At the conclusion of the workshop participants will have been taught the basic skills required to utilize clinical hypnosis and begin to apply it to their practice.
Advantages:
- Rapidly establish rapport and the hypnotic relationship across developmental ages.
- Facilitate change, ego-strengthen, and reduce impediments to change.
- Cost-effective, collaborative, person-centered treatment.
- Empower clients and patients to build skills for better health.
- Learn a highly creative, broad-ranging technique for use in integrative medicine.
Location: Zoom / Virtual
Level 1 Schedule – May 7th – May 10th, 2026 (see details below)
(Times are subject to minor changes)
| Thursday, May 7th, 2026 | 6PM ET-9:30 PM ET |
| Friday, May 8th, 2026 | 8:15 AM ET- 6PM ET |
| Saturday, May 9th, 2026 | 8:15 AM ET- 6PM ET |
| Sunday, May 10th, 2026 | 8:15 AM ET- 12PM ET |
An agenda with faculty assignments and other resources will be sent to registrants approximately 1-2 weeks prior to the live course date.
Mary Wells, PhD – Faculty Chair – Dr. Mary Wells is a licensed clinical psychologist who has been in practice for over 30 years in the areas of rehabilitation and pain management. She completed her graduate work at George Washington University and started her career at the Washington Pain and Rehabilitation Center in Washington, DC. She went from there to VCU Health System in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation as a rehab psychologist, providing services to a full range of rehabilitation patients on both the inpatient and outpatient service. She left VCU to work in an interdisciplinary pain clinic in the community and later went into private practice. In 2000, she joined the medical psychology department at Sheltering Arms Hospital, first as a staff psychologist and later as director of the department, a post she held for 10 years. She has recently returned to the VCU Dept. of PMR and is currently working as part of an interdisciplinary team of medical professionals at Virginia Commonwealth University Health System to provide services to patients with chronic pain due to a variety of medical conditions. She provides evaluations and psychological treatment for the management of chronic pain.
Other faculty include:
Linda Thompson, PhD, APRN, ABMH, ABHN, FASCH – Linda Thomson is a nurse practitioner and past president of ASCH. She is an Approved Consultant and senior faculty member for ASCH. Thomson is a Diplomate of both the American Board of Medical Hypnosis and the American Board of Hypnosis in Nursing, and a Fellow of both ASCH and the Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Association. She is president of the Northeastern Mountain Society of Clinical Hypnosis. Thomson serves on the Council of Representatives for the International Society of Hypnosis. She is the recipient of ASCH Lifetime Achievement Award. She is the founder of Hypnosis for Health and Healing and co-founder of Hypnovations: Clinical Hypnosis Education and Training. Harry Hypnopotamus – Metaphorical Tales for Children, Volumes 1 & 2 were written by Thomson. She also created Harry Hypnopotamus Imagination Cards, Learning the Lingo of Language Cards, and Stress-Free Surgery – a program to help patients prepare for and recover from surgery.
Eric Willmarth, PhD – Dr. Willmarth is a past-president of the American Society for Clinical Hypnosis as well as the past-president of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis and the Society for Psychological Hypnosis (APA Div. 30). He is a full professor at Saybrook University where he serves as the Chair of the Department of Applied Psychophysiology and the Coordinator of the Integrative Mental Health Specialization. His video interviews with some of the world’s luminaris in hypnosis can be found at www.hypnosiscentral.com . More faculty and small group information will be provided closer to the course’s start.
Level 2 Information
Register Here !
The second step in certification training is to strengthen skills, strategies, and applications of clinical hypnosis. Part one taught “how to” do clinical hypnosis, and part two builds on this skill set and refines and furthers development to add the when, why, and where to the “how-to”.
Advantages:
- Introduction to a wider range of topics on the utility of clinical hypnosis (e.g., Pain Management; Anxiety and Sleep Disorders; Habit Disorders).
- Learn more techniques for the creative use of the language of suggestion to facilitate change.
- Learn specific tools (complex inductions and intensification techniques) for specific populations (children).
- More practice with the feedback of expert faculty.
The Level 2 workshop increases skills and builds confidence in the use of hypnosis. It prepares the workshop participant to move on to the Advanced Workshop level and Individual Consultation with a strong basis of skills and understanding of the principles and practice of clinical hypnosis.
Level 2 Schedule
| Thursday, May 7th, 2026 | 6PM ET-9:30 PM ET |
| Friday, May 8th, 2026 | 8:15 AM ET- 6PM ET |
| Saturday, May 9th, 2026 | 8:15 AM ET- 6PM ET |
| Sunday, May 10th, 2026 | 8:15 AM ET- 12PM ET |
This course is chaired by Louis Damis, PhD. Dr. Damis is a Diplomate with the American Board of Professional Psychology, a Fellow of the American Academy of Clinical Health Psychology, the Biofeedback Certification International Alliance, and the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis. He is an Assistant Professor at the UCF College of Medicine, and an ESTI-accredited Ego State Therapist. Dr. Damis is a licensed psychologist with ASCH Consultant Status and Certification in Clinical Hypnosis. He is a Past President of the Florida and Washington DC Societies of Clinical Hypnosis and is currently the President of the ASCH. He has taught hypnosis for over 25 years for the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, the Florida Society of Clinical Hypnosis, and the Society of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. Dr. Damis maintains a private practice and works as an instructor, author, and consultant.
For Level 2 Registration – https://portal.asch.net/integratedEvents/home/MAY-LEVEL-2-CLINICAL-WORKSHOP
Details and Fees for Level 1 and Level 2 Workshops
| Course | Member | Non-Member | Resident/Intern/Fellow | Graduate Student |
| Level 1 | $540 | $730 | $430 | $430 |
| Level 2 | $540 | $730 | $430 | $430 |
Clinical Workshop Eligibility
Registrants must be healthcare professionals licensed in their jurisdiction functioning within the scope of their practice.
Students must have completed a minimum of one full semester of the program and must submit proof of full-time enrollment at an ACE-approved institution of higher education on school letterhead that clearly identifies the individual’s program of study, area of concentration (if applicable), level of degree pursued and date of intended graduation.
Full-time residents or interns participating in a recognized residency or internship program may also register to attend at a reduced rate. Residents/interns need to submit correspondence from their supervisor on official letterhead explaining the nature of the residency/internship and the date of intended completion of the program.
Registration Instructions
Online registration will take you to the ASCH site and require a new account set-up (non-members) or Member login. If you are an ASCH member enter the email address associated with your ASCH Membership as our UserID; click Forgot Password to set a new password.
Payments can now be made in a secure online environment. The system DOES NOT save credit card information once the transaction has been completed and registration submitted.
Continuing Education Hours
Online attendance, full engagement and completion of a pre-test, post-test and daily program evaluations are required for a certificate of completion. Level 1 and Level 2 will be approved for 20-22 hours.
Changing Dates
ASCH will honor one registration transfer. Transfer requests must be made in writing to info@asch.net by April 21, 2026. Change requests after that date will be treated as a cancellation.
Cancellations
Cancellations must be made in writing to info@asch.net. No cancellations will be taken by phone. Cancellations must be made by April 22nd, 2026 minus a $50 administrative fee. No refunds will be made for cancellations made after that date.
Workshop CME & ASCH Continuing Education (CE) Credits
This program has been approved by the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis Standards of Training Committee to be used toward Membership and Certification requirements.
The American Society of Clinical Hypnosis-Education and Research Foundation (ASCH-ERF) is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The American Society of Clinical Hypnosis-Education and Research Foundation (ASCH-ERF) designates this live activity for a maximum of 22.50 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
This program is Approved by the National Association of Social Workers (886386995-7390) for 22.50 continuing education contact hours.
This course is approved by the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis and as such is an approved continuing education course per Florida’s AC-Rule 64B-4-6002 American Society of Clinical Hypnosis-ERF is designated as an Approved PACE Program Provider.
The American Society of Clinical Hypnosis Education & Research Foundation Nationally Approved PACE Program Provider for FAGD/MAGD credit. Approval does not imply acceptance by any regulatory authority or AGD endorsement. 10/1/2021 to 9/30/2027. Provider ID#217022
American Group Psychotherapy Association (AGPA) is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists.