What approach to choose

When it comes to mental health and personal development, choice is both a blessing and a burden. The modern market is flooded with apps, coaches, therapists, retreats, and self-help programmes, each promising transformation. On the surface, this abundance looks empowering. But for many, it creates confusion, paralysis, and doubt.

First we need to navigate two main barriers - What is popular and what is unknown.

Without doubt talking therapies and traditional coaching are what most people have heard of but why?

They’re familiar, socially accepted, and heavily marketed. They fit neatly into healthcare systems and insurance models. For many, they feel like the “safe” or “serious” option.

But here’s the problem: what’s popular isn’t always what’s most effective. Alternative approaches, such as hypnotherapy or evidence-based modalities rooted in neuroscience, often get pushed aside. Not because they don’t work, but because they lack the same visibility, funding, or institutional backing.

The result? People are funnelled into well-trodden paths that may not suit them, while powerful alternatives remain underused.

This isn't to say they don't work but there are limits and this is why.

Freud’s psychoanalysis became the bedrock of modern therapy not because it was the most effective, but because it won institutional backing. Figures like Jung and Adler, who pushed broader, more holistic ideas were sidelined. Over time, the “talking cure” became the default, baked into universities, healthcare systems, and insurance structures.

But modern science has exposed its limits. Talking alone often doesn’t resolve the body’s stored trauma. Researchers like Dr Stephen Porges (Polyvagal Theory) show healing requires working with the nervous system directly. Gabor Maté highlights how unprocessed stress and trauma manifest physically, demanding approaches beyond conversation. Neuroscience-led practices like hypnotherapy and breathwork, target these deeper layers, often achieving results talk alone cannot.

So why aren’t these front and centre? Because a revolving door of weekly sessions is profitable. The mainstream keeps people returning, not necessarily resolving. Methods that set people free quickly aren't good for business if you want to keep your clients coming back for weeks, months and even years on end.

Choice, then, becomes an illusion, a menu dominated by what the market decides you should want, not what might actually help you most.

Choice without clarity often leads to wasted time and money, and worse, it can leave people feeling like they’ve failed when the truth is they simply chose the wrong tool.

Real progress starts with informed choice: understanding what aligns with your goals, values, and circumstances.

Questions to ask when you are looking for help

How quickly should I expect to see measurable change, and what does that look like?
Forces clarity on outcomes and timeframe.

What happens if your method doesn’t work for me, do you adapt, or keep repeating the same process?
Exposes rigidity vs flexibility, how big is the therapist or coaches tool kit

How do you address the body and nervous system, not just the mind?
Separates surface-level support from deeper, science-led work, most counsellors and psychogist have no understanding of neuroscience and how the body and mind are linked.

What’s your priority: my long-term independence, or keeping me coming back?
Uncovers whether the therapist is invested in freedom or dependency.

Do you have anyone I can speak to or any evidence of your success?
It's important to hear from other people about their experience.

Is your experience purely academic or do you have lived experience?
Reveals if the person is purley academic focused or has lived experience.

Do you charge by the hour or by the result?
This will inform you of the competence of the professional, most professionals will ensure best value and charge based on a package rather than ongoing sessions, they are experienced enough to give you the full investment of time and money.

Do you use one modality or multiple?
Again competent professionals will have a suite of tools to ensure all aspects of your mental wellbeing are covered.

Is your primary approach about helping me cope and manage symptoms or to irradicate the problem?
A competent professional is going to want to get you back up and running as quickly as possible giving you all you need to move forward.

Guarantees – If I don’t see measurable progress, will you refund me?
Many market themselves as being the best, offering quick fixes, if someone is charging a premium rate £100 hour plus then ask for a money back guarantee and what that covers.

Once sessions end, what tools or strategies will I have?
This shows whether you are paying to offload or you will actually learn skills to move forward with.

Claims and Marketing Spin

The mental health and coaching market is flooded with bold promises.

“Transform your life in six weeks.” “The fastest route to happiness.” “Guaranteed results.” It sounds reassuring — but often it’s smoke and mirrors.

Many professionals lean on polished websites, powerful words, or academic credentials, while quietly avoiding the harder truth: they can’t deliver what they sell, but their prime motivator is money not your wellbeing.

This is where the right questions cut through the noise. If someone markets themselves as the best but struggles to answer:

• How quickly should I expect measurable change?
• Do you adapt if your method doesn’t work?
• Do you address the body and mind together?
• Do you stand by your work with a guarantee?

Then their marketing is simply spin and you will see it in their body language.

Competence isn’t about promises; it’s about proof. The most valuable professionals don’t need to oversell. Their results, lived experience, adaptability, and client feedback speak louder than any slogan.

The truth? Marketing can convince you to invest in the wrong person. But when you compare their answers to these questions with the level of investment they ask for, the right people stand out.

• They charge fairly
• They’re transparent
• They focus on setting you free, not locking you into dependency.

The Reality of Change

Change is possible but it isn’t magic. Many marketing campaigns paint transformation as instant, effortless, or guaranteed simply by showing up. The reality?

Real change happens when the right person can guide you and inspire you to do the work.

Talking alone often keeps people circling the same stories, the majority of low value and free offerings offer a port in the storm, a moment to offload, maybe cry, but once finished you leave and pick the heavy burdens up again.

To truly shift, you need approaches that engage the subconscious, rewire the nervous system, and unlock stored patterns in both body and mind.

That’s where neuroscience-led modalities, hypnotherapy, and trauma-informed practices go deeper than surface-level coping strategies.

The reality of change is this:

• It takes less time than you’ve been led to believe — if the right tools are used.
• It isn’t about endless sessions — it’s about creating independence, not dependency.
• It requires a professional with breadth — someone who can adapt, not just recycle one script.
  
  

True change doesn’t come from promises, it comes from competence and when you work with someone who has the right toolkit, progress can be faster, deeper, and longer-lasting than the mainstream narrative wants you to believe.

Your Options

When it comes to mental health, or as I prefer mental fitness, that has a scale and the market stretches from free offerings to premium services. Each has its place, but also its pitfalls.

• Free options (NHS, charities, apps) can be a great first step. They reduce barriers to entry and offer immediate support. But the downside is waiting lists, generic approaches, and methods designed to manage, not resolve. Nothing is ever truly free, the cost is often time and limited outcomes.
• Low-cost interventions like counselling provide regular space to talk. This suits some, but many find progress painfully slow. Without a broad toolkit, counsellors often circle the same ground. The price looks attractive, but long-term dependency can make it more expensive than it appears.
• Medium to premium offerings promise deeper results, but this is where you need to be vigilant. Marketing spin is rife, and vulnerable people are easy targets. Price alone doesn’t guarantee competence. The real value comes from asking the right questions:
  
  
• How quickly will I see measurable change?
• Do you adapt if your method doesn’t work?
• Do you understand the link between body and mind?
• Do you stand behind your work with evidence or guarantees?
  
  

The elephant in the room is simple: you get what you pay for and with the right questions, you’ll spot the difference between professionals who are truly competent and those who rely on keeping you dependent.

Start Your Journey with Clarity, Confidence & Choice

Make Your Life Count was born from my own experience and that the mainstream offering didn't help me, in fact it cost me alot, my career, relationships and alot of money trying to figure out what works.

I made a commitment to never let anyone go through what I did, I have done the ground work so you don't have to.

This article is about helping you make an informed choice.

If you’ve tried talking and still feel stuck, unsure where to go next, or you haven't started your journey and you don't know where to start.

As a multi-award-winning mind specialist trusted by professionals, celebrities, and elite athletes worldwide, as the Mind Mentor, I blend deep personal experience from the military and police. I have worked alongside some of the worlds foremost transfomational specialists and by combining  Advanced Clinical Training in Hypnotherapy, Psychology, Neuroscience and Somatic practices like Breathwork, my toolkit is vast.

I'm not just certified; I'm proven. From guiding neurodivergent minds to partnering with transformational leaders globally, my approach combines science, spirituality, and lived resilience, but what is best my dream is to bring what the worlds richest and most successful people use to break free to everyone - because your wellbeing shouldn't be at the disadvantage of your pocket.

Why Book Your Free Call?

Informed Choice at the Forefront
I'll answers the tough questions confidently about results, timeframes, neuro-body connection, guarantees, adaptability, and long-term freedom.

Personal + Professional Insight
I've walked the path myself so I understand what it truly takes to heal and thrive .

A Toolkit You Can Trust
Unlike one-size-fits-all therapists and coaches, I brings a rich, adaptable toolkit tailored to you.

Public Credibility
Endorsed by media and peers alike, I have appeared on the BBC, supported celebrities, and am a respected professional in my field working for government backed organisations like National Mentoring Day as their expert in mentoring psychology.

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Book your free, no-obligation consultation today.

Change isn’t just possible, it’s guaranteed when your investment meets competence, clarity, and real care.

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Please share this with a friend or someone who might be struggling to help them make an informed choice so they can make their life count - Marcus