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The Green Party’s new leader has insisted he was ‘misrepresented’ over an article which said he could teach women to use their minds to increase their breast size.
Zach Polanski said he ‘never believed’ in the hypnotherapy approach claiming women can grow their cup size by using the mind, and denied running the hypnotherapy sessions.
It comes after the article, which was published in The Sun newspaper in 2013, resurfaced after Polanski won the Green Party leadership contest.
In the story for The Sun, Polanski is quoted as saying: ‘This is an extremely new approach, but I can see it becoming popular very quickly, because it’s so safe and a lot cheaper than a boob job.
‘In theory, it could work on other areas of the body, too. There’s no reason why it can’t help nails grow longer and stronger, for instance.
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”And there is already proof that hypnotherapy has helped a number of alopecia sufferers with hair growth.’
He then appears to guide the journalist through the steps to visualise the change, tapping into the unconscious using hypnotherapy techniques.
The story includes a link to Polanski’s website, which has since become the homepage for his political campaigning.
During media rounds on Good Morning Britain, Polanski, said ‘not believe everything you read in The Sun,’ adding that he has apologised for it.
When pressed on whether he believed that it is possible to change cup size with the mind, he added: ‘Anyone who believed that, that would be problematic, and that was nothing I ever believed.
‘I was approached by The Sun and they asked me “Would you like to do an article about body image” and I said yes.’
Polanski then said he was ‘misrepresented.’
‘I apologised a day later – that was 12 years ago – and long time before I was anywhere near politics.
‘And since then, I have a strong track record of standing up for social justice and standing up for lowering people’s bills, and standing up for marginalised people,’ he said.
He joked that ‘lots of men got in touch asking if they could enlarge other body parts’.
When questioned further if he ever ‘hypnotised or hypnotherapised a women to do that,’ Polanski responded: ‘I’ve never hypnotised and charged a woman,’ before adding that this is ‘such an absurd conversation.’
The 42-year-old was chosen as the new leader of the Green Party in a fractious race marked by debate over the future of the party.
He has called for an ‘eco-populist’ agenda and vowed to defend the rights of trans people and migrant workers.
Polanski has also said he is impressed by Nigel Farage’s social media tactics.
‘We never want to replicate what Nigel Farage is doing, but what Nigel Farage has demonstrated is bold communications,’ he said, adding that ‘Nigel Farage has more TikTok followers than all MPs combined.’
What is hypnotherapy?
Hypnotherapy has been disputed, but it is accepted as a form of treatment by the NHS.
But like meditation, it is being more widely accepted as a useful approach for many people.
Research suggests that hypnotherapy could help people living with pain, anxiety, PTSD, and conditions like IBS.
Hypnotherapy is defined as use of ‘hypnosis to try to treat conditions or change habits.’
There are different ways to hypnothise someone, but the therapist might lead the patient into a relaxed state of mind, and then use agreed methods to help them towards their goals in a trance-like state while the patient remains in control.
However, like many treatments that focus on the mind, hypnotherapy is not recommended for people diagnosed with psychosis or certain types of personality disorder, the NHS cautions.
Hypnotherapy is not usually offered on the NHS.
Technically, anyone in the UK could call themselves a hypnotherapist as the profession is not protected and does not require any training by law.
The NHS says people should choose someone with a healthcare background when looking for a private practioner, and ensure the hypnotherapist is trained to work with their condition if they have an existing condition like cancer or mental ill health.
If the therapist will work with a child, they should be trained to do so, the NHS guidance says.
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