SOMETIMES even influencers need to be influenced — by a hypnotherapist, that is.
Celebrity hypnotherapist Kim Friedmutter works with A-listers like Sharon Stone and David Hasselhoff, but she also helps social media stars overcome their fears of losing followers.
POST ALL ABOUT IT
Forget posts, these influencers need to follow behavioral patterns.
That’s because getting used to likes on Instagram can cause some very disliked consequences.
The addiction of always churning out new content often leads to some serious anxiety, especially over being canceled.
“The storm of branding and social media has created a tsunami of mental health crises we couldn’t have predicted,” Friedmutter told The U.S. Sun.
“This is occurring more with the fear of cancellation than actual cancellation,” she said.
“Of course it centers around, “What will I do then? Will I be cast out?”” she added.
“Absurdity is becoming more normal and the impulse to push more absurd ideas and commentaries on the internet is on the rise.
“As tempting as shock value is, they’re not really sure if they’re going to be applauded or cast out — push the envelope but don’t open it!”
Unlike being fired privately, becoming “dethroned” on a public platform can be damaging to an influencer’s mind, even more so than just their income.
“The clients I see have their mind set on big money and that’s pretty much the driver,” she said.
“Which is OK, it’s aspirational, it’s a goal, and they happen to be very talented.
“What makes cancellation problematic is the massive forum it occurs on,” she added.
“This taps into our primal fear of ‘shame to the village’ on a massive scale.
“An influencer’s village is online with millions of followers.
“Shame is one of the most difficult feelings because when you’re feeling shame you can’t see an end in sight, it feels like it will never end. It’s a game changer.”
I typically like to do five sessions costing $50,000.
Kim Friedmutter
“I perform “pattern interrupts” throughout the day for this issue,” she added.
“It’s about getting into their mindset and changing their perpetual behaviors to get different results.
Her hypnosis techniques involve diving deep into the subconscious — and fast.
“We go right to the core of the problem, it’s a straight line from point A to point B,” she said.
For Friedmutter, it’s all about replacing undesirable behaviors with the desired behaviors.
PAYING FOR PEACE OF MIND
Trying to come to terms with giving people a glimpse into your real life via social media channels will also cost you real money.
“I typically like to do five sessions costing $50,000,” she said.
Still, those at the top of their TikTok or Instagram game can most likely afford it.
According to Forbes, some of last year’s biggest social stars made tens of millions of dollars.
The top earners included Jimmy Donaldson, known as MrBeast, who has over 300 million followers and raked in $82 million in 2023.
He was followed by Olajide Olatunji, who goes by KSI on YouTube, and went from reacting to sports related video games to becoming a rapper and boxer.
Olatunji also brought in big bucks — $28 million to be exact.
Stars such as Kim Kardashian and Selena Gomez, who each have hundreds of millions of followers, are also the top celebrity earners in the social media sphere.
They are both known to bring upwards of one million dollars or more per Instagram post.
Trying to constantly stay at the social media forefront can also lead to adrenal fatigue.
“My clients always have to be “on,”” she said.
“Imagine being addicted to the churn of content even while you’re sleeping,” she added.
A MIND FIX
To tackle this behavior, Friedmutter implements her “pattern interrupts” all throughout the day.
She even lets us in on a little social media star secret.
“You’ll hear influencers say, “Hey, go touch grass!” to those they see getting in too deep,” she said.
She recalled working with a famous influencer who recently complained about suffering from lack of sleep while traveling to appear on a podcast.
“I mentioned he had all those hours to sleep on the plane but he just couldn’t rest — I’m talking about the deep kind of rest that you need to rejuvenate,” she added.
“The “on switch” just wouldn’t turn off without dedicated mind mastery — a.k.a. my help.”
LET IT BURN
Behind every successful post is most likely a burned-out influencer.
“They have the overwhelming feeling they they constantly need to be creating content and the reality is, they do,” she said.
“Some clients are creating the trend, others are jumping on the content bandwagon, although the end result is the same — burnout.” she added.
The author and former actress also pointed out perhaps the biggest irony of all — that producing content might not always leave you feeling “content.”
When I break down a particular client’s unhappiness issue, it usually tracks back to not seeing life for what it is but rather seeing life for what it’s going to be online, once posted.
Kim Friedmutter
“Some clients look at everything as content, including my work,” she said.
Friedmutter explained one particular instance in which she wasn’t willing to go far enough for one content creator who wanted her to participate in a Guinness World Records physical endurance event.
The athlete requested that she hypnotize her to break all of her “physical barriers” in the name of getting more likes.
“It was basically to override her physical body’s responses and it was not ecological. I deemed it to be too dangerous,” she said.
While this is one post you’re never going to see — at least involving Friedmutter — she does help sports stars to “unblock” whatever is holding them back on and off the field.
Her claim to fame is also making sure movie stars are stopped from falling in love with their co-stars.
GET REAL
Still, when it comes to social media stars, her biggest challenge is helping her influencers see things in a new — or rather more realistic — light.
“When I break down a particular client’s unhappiness issue, it usually tracks back to not seeing life for what it is but rather seeing life for what it’s going to be online, once posted,” she said.
“This typically leaves the creator of the content unfulfilled,” she added.
I love the saying, ‘We don’t see things as they are, we see things as we are.’
Kim Friedmutter
Even an account filled with A-listers won’t save your favorite influencers from feelings of abandonment.
Everyday interactions might also become impacted by a loved one’s new social media status.
“When friends and family members see the shift in their loved one from say ‘regular Joe,’ they see ‘influencer Joe’ become disassociated and disinterested in normal life,” said Friedmutter.
“Family dinners, friendly get togethers and other social connections become lost because every minute has become about content, posting, reacting, etc.,” she added.
“The solitary behavior itself literally takes you out of your real social life, which of course backfires on those closest to you.”
A picture — or post — might be worth a thousand words, but at what cost.
“I love the saying, ‘We don’t see things as they are, we see things as we are,'” she said.
“When clients come to me with devaluation conflicts or loss of value conflicts, I first look to see how they’ve devalued their own life and meaning within it,” she added.
“Most creators are hopping on the latest bandwagon and moving from viral topic to topic, as opposed to the slow development of branding and marketing.
“The marketplace moves so quickly that content becomes cheap and fast — good today, gone tomorrow, quantity versus quality.
“It’s the nature of the delivery system.”
