With DVD’s, books, and Boot Camps addressing poker strategy, the final frontier for the hungry player is the mind game.

Whether you consider poker a sport or a game, you have to agree the mental aspect is as important as skill and luck. The interesting thing is that it gets the least amount of attention. Until now.

Golfers, tennis players, even weight lifters use psychology to improve their game. It’s a perfect fit for the poker world. Using a combination of NLP, relaxation, and hypnosis you can control your physical responses in demanding situations.

You can lower your heart rate, slow your breathing, decrease stress, increase concentration, and build confidence through the power of your mind. It just takes training and practice. The power of the mind is one of the most powerful tools available.

The principles of poker hypnotherapy are simple. Your brain is a mega computer that controls your automatic body functions. If it didn’t, you would need to consciously command your body to breath, blink, talk, etc. all day long and wouldn’t have time to do anything else. Through your past experience your body has learned to manifest emotion in a physical way. For example, it becomes automatic for your heart to race when you’re excited. In addition to your heart racing, adrenaline rushes through your veins. The rush alone can make it harder to focus.

Hypnotherapy addresses the mind/body connection. It provides the training to eliminate those subconscious body movements called tells, improve your concentration and focus, keep you calm in stressful situations and build your confidence. All using the power of the mind. By using visualization, specific language patterns, and relaxation techniques you can retrain your brain to respond differently and gain control over the one aspect of your game no one sees; your emotional state.

Poker Hypnotherapy is a modern application for this time tested methodology. It is a natural way to master your mind game with added benefits. When you use Poker Hypnotherapy you will probably sleep better, have more patience in your day-to-day life and feel better overall.

With prize pools soaring into the millions and playing fields reaching the thousands, having an edge over the competition can help you win your place at the final table.

Michele Burghardt
Michele Burghardt is a Certified Sports Hypnotherapist and avid Poker Player. With 1,000's of hours of clinical hypnotherapy experience, Burghardt works with poker players to help them master the psychological aspect of Texas Hold'em.

Burghardt works with players one-on-one, offers group presentations, and has developed the only four CD 'NoTilt' Audio Series specifically designed for poker players by a poker player.

She and her husband, Eric, are the founders of CatchTheRiver.com. Eric's success using hypnotherapy was the catalyst for starting the company. Married for 26 years they reside in St.Louis, MO and have 21 year old twins, Renee and Keith. You will find them at Harrah's or Ameristar on a regular basis.

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