A Touch of Disney in Healthcare
Anyone who speaks with Maaike de Gans doesn’t have to look far to see her love for Disney. It’s in her office, in her stories, and even in the way she looks at people.
Ever since her first visit to Disneyland Paris in 1995, she has been fascinated by the world that comes to life there. The music, the scents, and the stories had a profound effect on her.
“You basically just step into another world,” she says. Later, she discovered a connection to her other major interest: what happens in our minds when we’re completely absorbed in something?
For Maaike, the magic of Disney also lies in the language. A story can touch a three-year-old just as much as it can touch someone who is 99. She brings that accessibility to her work in healthcare. “It doesn’t have to be that complicated as long as you approach it with the right intention.” It’s precisely by listening attentively and choosing words that suit the person that space is created for a different kind of conversation.
Healthcare came before hypnosis
Maaike has been working in healthcare since 1995 and now manages multiple locations. Her mother, who was a nursing student, suggested she pursue a career in healthcare. Maaike started as a volunteer at an activity center and subsequently advanced in the field.
Among other things, she has worked with young people with acquired brain injuries, addiction issues, and behavioral problems, as well as with people with dementia and misunderstood behavior.
The same curiosity kept coming back: what happens inside a person?
And why is she sometimes able to get employees on board with a change, while another manager fails to reach them?
“I’ve always been incredibly fascinated by what goes on in the brain,” she says. That interest eventually led her to hypnosis. “I’m just going to step into the world of hypnosis, just to see: what actually happens?”
A voice that was given a platform
And that training provided insight into what had happened to her personally and which techniques are used during leadership training or even when trying to overcome stuttering.
As a young woman, Maaike stuttered. Because of this, she often kept her thoughts and opinions to herself. She grew accustomed to the idea that she was simply a quiet person. A team leader recognized her potential and helped her arrange treatment at a stuttering clinic.
There, Maaike worked with techniques such as breathing, mindfulness, and anchors. It wasn’t until later, during her hypnosis training, that she recognized elements of what she had learned back then.
The treatment gave her the space to speak her mind. “The world that has opened up to me is unbelievable,” she says.
That experience also taught her how strong a belief can become when you accept it as true for long enough. “I’ve accepted so many thoughts as true,” she says. That realization now resonates in her attention to the words people use to describe themselves.
A podcast, a seminar, and a little nudge
The journey to the Hypnosis Institute of the Netherlands began at home. Maike’s husband listened to a podcast in which Edwin Selij spoke about the difference between who you are and what you do. The idea that “you are not what you do” really stuck with her.
The manager then attended a live seminar on Easter Monday. There, her curiosity about hypnosis only grew.
Still, she didn’t sign up right away. She was used to having an employer pay for her training. This time, she had to invest in herself.
Her husband saw how enthusiastic she became about it and encouraged her to take the plunge. “My husband got a little upset that it made me so happy, but I didn’t do it,” she says with a laugh.
In 2021, she took the course. In hindsight, it turned out to be more than just a collection of techniques. “It’s also hypnosis for yourself,” says Maaike. She began exploring what role she wanted to play in healthcare and what else she wanted to create for herself.
First, find the right words
Maaike sometimes found the first phase of the training challenging. She was eager to learn how to apply the techniques in her own way, but at first she was still preoccupied with finding the right phrases and their order.
As she practiced, she gradually realized that she could also rely on her own language and experience. “I was still a bit hesitant during the first level, but by level 2, I really let loose,” she says.
She started with topics that were concrete for clients, such as quitting smoking during Stoptober. This allowed her to gain experience before moving on to more challenging topics.
Working More Freely in the 3.0 Era
In version 3.0 (Hypno Pathfinder), Maaike was particularly drawn to the freedom to combine techniques. She didn’t have to stick so strictly to a prescribed path and could better adapt to what a client was showing at that moment.
Edwin’s feedback also helped her listen more closely to her own choice of words. A word like “actually,” for example, can create doubt at a moment when she specifically wants to be clear.
She found working with regression and exploring the difference between pain and pleasure to be particularly meaningful.
She explains how she helps someone connect with a sensation in their body and then creates space for a positive experience. “Then people come out of the session in a completely different way,” she says. At the same time, her confidence in using her own style grew. She’s clear about what the training meant to her personally: “I’ve become so free through hypnosis.”
Obstacles turned into soft pillows
One experience from the training course has particularly stuck with Maaike. She was training for the Rotterdam Marathon , but along the way, she kept focusing on everything that could go wrong. What if she sprained her ankle? Didn’t drink enough? Or hit the wall after 35 kilometers? During a group exercise, she worked through those thoughts.
While running, this allowed her to view her worries differently. “Whenever I saw a bear—even during the marathon—I had to think of a little flower,” she says. She finished the marathon. The exercise helped her realize what can happen when a frightening image loses its threat. “That made it fun to run the marathon.”
Hypnosis Among Employees and Families
Today, Maaike is responsible for two healthcare facilities on Goeree-Overflakkee. In her work, she primarily uses elements of conversational hypnosis: active listening, asking probing questions, and inviting someone to look at a situation from a different perspective.
She does not put employees into a deep trance. For example, if someone sees a problem getting bigger and bigger, she might gently exaggerate it or inject a touch of lightheartedness into the situation in an appropriate way.
That sense of wonder sometimes helps employees see new possibilities for themselves. “Then they come up with so many ideas of their own,” says Maaike.
Even in conversations with residents’ family members, she pays attention to what someone expects, what emotions are at play, and whether everyone is on the same page. Especially when it comes to caring for a loved one, a practical question can often mask a great deal of concern.
That’s why Maaike reaches out first. “Once I’m in touch with them, we can really make progress through a good conversation.”
Space for the healthcare worker themselves
In addition to her work as a healthcare manager, Maaike provides one-on-one coaching to healthcare workers. She knows their work environment from the inside out and understands how easily someone who cares for others can lose sight of themselves.
During the sessions, she works with the client to identify the issues at hand and determine the most appropriate approach. Sometimes it’s about anxiety or a belief that ’s holding someone back; other times, it’s about how someone can better take care of themselves again.
Maaike deliberately keeps this guidance accessible. “Healthcare workers simply can’t afford high prices,” she says.
Her experience in healthcare can help her build trust quickly, though she remains careful not to make too many assumptions about the other person.
What brings her joy is seeing someone regain the freedom to make choices. “Every person is unique, and every person deserves to be seen,” she says. This applies to residents and their families, but just as much to the people who are there for them every day.
The Magical Manager Looks Beyond
During and after her training, Maaike also began to view her own future differently. She started working independently to help various healthcare organizations and their employees.
She wrote the book *The Magical Manager*, in which her love for Disney and her ideas about leadership come together. The question that drives her is how to make room for attention, creativity, and change within the framework of healthcare.
That idea is reflected in a pin she designed as a symbol of connection. She wants it to remind people to pause, listen, and truly see one another.
“I see you as a human being, as a unique person,” she says about the essence of her work with hypnosis.
What once began as curiosity about the brain has grown into a way of working and living. For Maaike, the magic lies in a moment of genuine connection. “I see you”—for her, these three simple words can mean so much in healthcare.
You can find Maaike as “The Magical Manager” on all social media platforms.
Integrating Hypnosis into Your Work
Would you, like Maaike, like to explore how you can use hypnosis to improve your work and, at the same time, help people in your field overcome problems and move forward again? Then knowledge of hypnosis is incredibly useful.
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