Hypnosis -- The Simple Facts Exposed

THE DEFINITION OF HYPNOSIS:
Hypnotism is a condition of hyper-suggestibility where the conscious and the subconscious disconnect. It is a state of consciousness where the hypnotized person is more likely to agree to the Hypnotist's suggestions.

You have been hypnotized many times without even realizing it. Hypnosis is the Alpha state of consciousness that we pass through every night as we fall asleep. And we pass through it again as we awaken in the morning.

WHO CAN BE HYPNOTIZED?
Hypnotists have discovered that all normal people can be hypnotized to a greater or lesser extent. Subjects with less than a 70 I.Q. generally are not hypnotizable. People who are in an active state of psychosis normally are not hypnotizable. Most senile people are difficult or impossible to hypnotize.

DO I HAVE TO BE A "DEEP" SUBJECT TO BE SUCCESSFUL?
For the therapeutic applications of self hypnosis we most often deal with, hypnotic depth of any kind isn't required. A subject can be the lightest possible subject and still receive all of the benefits from self hypnosis that the deepest subjects will obtain. I feel that over the years, far too much importance has been placed on how deep a subject is. If the client is deep, it can be of benefit. This however, may not necessarily be the case. Actually, with the latest hypnotic techniques like Ericksonian self hypnosis and state of the art "NLP" (Neuro-Linguistic Programming), depth is one of the least important aspects, which create a successful outcome.

ARE THERE ANY DANGERS IN HYPNOSIS?
There are on the whole no dangers to the practice of self hypnosis. It is not possible to "get stuck" in self hypnosis. The most horrible thing that can happen while a client is in self-hypnosis is that she might fall into a natural state of sleep for 20 or 30 minutes. She would awaken rested and no longer in the state of self-hypnosis.

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT A HYPNOTIC STATE:
There are many misnomers about self hypnosis. Most of them are due to stage and TV acts. Paradoxically, it's because of the fact that the TV can hypnotize you that these misnomers are so strongly ingrained in people's minds.

IS HYPNOSIS SLEEP?
The largest misconception about self hypnosis is that it's the state of sleep. Not anything could be further from the truth. If you are asleep, you are unconscious. If you are unconscious, you cannot hear anything. If you cannot hear anything, then the hypnotherapist cannot help you. Hypnosis is a state of keen awareness. The subject is wide-awake and aware of everything around her.

IS THERE A HYPNOTIZED FEELING?
The second largest misconception is that there is a hypnotized feeling. There is no hypnotized feeling. Most people feel very relaxed when in self-hypnosis, as relaxation seems to be the essence of hypnotherapy. Some people feel heavy. Some people feel light. Some people have other sensations and feelings. Other people have absolutely no feeling that they are in self hypnosis, and believe they have not been hypnotized when they most definitely have.

CAN THE HYPNOTIST CONTROL ME?
NO! The hypnotherapist cannot force you to do anything against your will. There is always an observing ego state. Should the therapist make an offensive suggestion; this ego state would reject the suggestion.

CAN THE THERAPIST FORCE ME TO DIVULGE ANY OF MY SECRETS?
You won't give up any secrets while in the state of hypnosis unless you want to do so. The hypnotist does not have any control over the subject. Quite the contrary, the subject has more control over herself since at this time she can directly communicate with her own subconscious. The subject can easily refuse any suggestion the hypnotist makes, no matter how simple or complicated the suggestion might be. The subject can open her eyes, exit from the state of hypnosis, and exit the room at any time she chooses.

MUST PEOPLE TELL THE TRUTH WHEN IN SELF-HYPNOSIS?
NO! People can lie when in self-hypnosis.

DO HYPNOTHERAPISTS HAVE SUPER NATURAL VIBRATIONS?
This is a common misnomer. The hypnotist does not have any special powers, nor does he have any special vibrations with which to hypnotize you into the state of hypnosis. Actually, all hypnosis is self-hypnosis. The hypnotist leads the subject into a state of hypnosis. In other words, the ability of hypnosis is within the subject.

WHY DO PEOPLE FAIL TO REACH THEIR GOALS WHEN USING HYPNOSIS?
Perhaps the principal reason for the failure to reach one's goals through hypnosis is an insufficient amount of practice where self-hypnosis is concerned.

The greatest reason for the return of a symptom or "relapse" is the premature discontinuance of self hypnosis with the Hypnotherapist or recorded program. While self-hypnosis is important, it is generally the hetero-hypnosis with the hypnotist or hypnosis recording which has the greatest impact upon the subconscious.

This is because of the training and experience that the hypnotist has vs. the lack of training and experience of the client. Some people are penny wise and pound-foolish. They mentally set an amount of time or money that they are willing to spend for help. And then they prematurely abate their sessions because; "I didn't lose 50 Lbs. in two days, so it isn't working." Self-hypnosis should be an ongoing affair on a daily basis. Ultimately, YOUR SUCCESS IS UP TO YOU!

WILL I BE BETTER OFF HIRING A HYPNOTIST, OR WILL PURCHASING A RECORDED PROGRAM WORK BETTER?
That is a wonderful question. Normally I would recommend that you utilize the services of a reputable hypnotist. The reason is that by meeting with you, a good hypnotist / NLP'er will be able to customize his approach to your personality and your favored representational system -- the way you favor taking in information through your senses to make sense out of it and react to it.

In my opinion, ninety-nine percent of the recorded hypnosis tapes available at this time are strictly Traditional Hypnosis, and consist of only one or maybe two sessions of it at that. Traditional Hypnosis is nothing more than a set of direct post-hypnotic commands: "If you eat a brownie you will throw up." "You will not have urges," and so forth. This technology has an exceptionally poor track record of success because everyone of our generation has been taught to question everything they are told. That's why you, your friends, and your kids usually do the opposite of what they are told to do. This is called a polarity response.

That being said, having personalized sessions with any hypnotist / NLP'er who has enough experience to be able to actually help you can be very expensive. There are some hypnotic programs on the market that are based on Ericksonian Hypnosis and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) that have overcome those shortcomings. They've done this by using a mix of Traditional Hypnosis, Ericksonian Hypnosis, NLP, and the highly regarded Video Hypnosis technology.

These are all modalities that are designed to do away with the resistance factor. In fact, Video Hypnosis and the NLP technology that it's based on do not utilize suggestion at all. These methods rely on using the thought processes that have created a problem, to eliminate it!

Look for vendors who offer these methodologies in multi-session products. These are programs that generally have six to eight different hypnosis sessions, so you are exposed to a broad variety of techniques. It takes a lot of work to script and record this type of program, but the high success rates achieved are well worth the work.

Stay away from the "one size fits all" -- "do-or-die" self hypnosis CDs and downloads. Many people are attracted to these programs because they are very inexpensive, usually under $10.00. But is it cheap if it just wastes your valuable time and doesn't work?

If you purchase something and it doesn't work, then you get suspicious and start to expect the next approach to fail. And you get what you expect. Do you really think that the same exact post-hypnotic commands will work for everyone? Do you think that they will work for you? Do you typically do exactly as you are told to do? Or do you generally feel the strong desire to do the opposite of what you are told to do?

Alan B. Densky, CH has practiced since 1978. He's authored four books on hypnosis and NLP. He is the developer of the Video Self Hypnosis Technology, which is perfected for weight loss & smoking control. Visit his Neuro-VISION Video Hypnosis website for FREE Hypnosis newsletters, articles, & MP3s.