A KEIGHLEY lorry driver has seen his life transformed after turning to hypnotherapy to shed weight.

Six days a week behind the wheel of his HGV took their toll on Ken Wild's health.

He ballooned to over 20 stones and suffered from low self-esteem.

"My weight spiralled out of control," he said. "It was so hard to keep it off.

"It really got me down.

"Stopping smoking ten years before also did not help, as I was eating to combat the cravings.

"My lifestyle was affected due to breathlessness on any exertion – I lacked energy."

But after just one session with hypnotherapist Patricia Jackson, he already felt different.

"I was cynical about whether I could be hypnotised – however to my amazement I sensed a feeling of tranquillity, a feeling that I have never experienced before," said the 65-year-old, who has four children and six grandchildren with his wife Anne.

"I was informed that I was not on a diet and it was more about controlled eating – choosing healthier alternatives and taking time eating food to aid digestion."

Patricia's Bingley-based Hypnotherapy Helps business addresses a range of issues including stopping smoking, phobias and weight loss.

She uses methods including past life regression and long-distance phone therapy.

"Ken's sedentary job was part of the problem – you can imagine the huge transport cafe breakfasts," she said.

"The first thing I did was to associate some of the foods he had been eating with something he found distasteful.

"Using that technique, whenever that person sees food which in the past they could not resist, the subconscious mind associates it with food they find disgusting. My clients report that since coming they have not touched biscuits, cakes, chocolate and crisps, or foods they once found hard to resist.

"I instruct people as to how to eat mindfully. They eat one biscuit instead of munching through the packet. A lot of people are programmed to eat everything on their plate – the subconscious mind is acting upon what they were told as children."

In 14 weeks, Mr Wild lost two-and-a-half stones and has not needed to return for further sessions.

"I am so pleased with myself, as are my family," he said.

"It is usual to return for another session, however I continued to lose weight successfully."

He has encouraged his son Carl, also a lorry driver, to see Patricia and so far he has lost a stone.