Personal Development | Stop Smoking | Weight Loss | Stress Management
Improved Sleep | Career Advancement
What You Will Experience
Your first visit will be primarily exploratory. You will learn about hypnotism and become comfortable with it. We will discuss your interests and your desires to determine if hypnosis can accomplish what you want to achieve.
If we both feel that it will be worth while to proceed, I may give you some small tests to determine your type of suggestibility, your ability to relax, your skills at visualization – procedures which help your hypnotist adapt to you as an individual so as to design programming personalized for you which will be acceptable to your subconscious, retained and acted upon in a manner leading to full achievement of your goals.
What It Is & How It Works
This general information is presented to discuss the applications of hypnosis available in dealing with such matters as habit control, stress, excessive eating, smoking, fears, motivation, self-confidence, concentration, learning enhancement, sleeplessness, goal-setting, relationships and other areas which lead to unhappiness, dysfunction or difficulty in achieving personal goals.
People have been using hypnosis for over 2500 years. It’s fun and has no unpleasant side effects. The hypnoid state is a natural one that we go through at least twice a day on the way to falling asleep and on the way to waking up. Hypnotherapy creates andmaintains this natural pre-sleep state for the purpose of accomplishing your goals.
If you wonder is hypnosis can get you to do something you wouldn’t otherwise do, the answer is NO. Your mind is always your mind, no hypnotist can take it over, whether you’re awake or in the pre-sleep state.
If you wonder is you could get stuck in hypnosis and never come out, the answer is NO. You will return naturally to full waking life, just as we awaken naturally from a nap.
If you wonder if you can be hypnotized, the answer is easy: If you want to, you can. If you don’t want to, you can’t.
Hypnosis ‘changes’ your mind. During hypnosis, when brain wave functioning has been relaxed to the pre-sleep state of about 7.3 Hz, our mental versions of self and world can be changed.
Hypnosis can mobilize the awake part of the mind to change a person’s inner version of “reality,” Before hypnosis, your conscious mind is aware of the urge to smoke, or drink, or overeat, or bite fingernails, but afterward your conscious mind is unaware of these urges.
Understanding Hypnosis Control is important. All humans (and possibly several animals) have two distinct minds – the conscious mind and the unconscious mind. The unconscious mind is vastly larger and more powerful than the conscious mind, yet it is the least understood and used by mankind. Actually, the great “unconscious” mind has two functional elements, the subconscious and the super-conscious, the former the storehouse of memory, the latter dealing with the spiritual.
Hypnosis and its uses in the practice of hypnotism are rapidly emerging as a highly effective science in solving the problems of people. It can be very beneficial in many cases and is also a valuable adjunct in psychotherapy and psychiatry. Yet it is probably the lowest risk procedure available from the standpoint of contraindications.
Hypnosis featuring “selective perception,” a process in which the subject (who is in control) chooses to see only what is relevant to his task, blocking out everything else. Hypnosis involves guided concentration. Guidance can be provided by a qualified practitioner or by the individual subject. Self-hypnosis, which can be taught by a properly certified hypnotist and learned by virtually any client, can provide the recipient with a lifetime of benefit.
Does It Work?
Few complementary procedures are less understood, or more plagued by misconceptions and misunderstandings. Before considering what hypnosis is, perhaps it would be appropriate to establish what it is not!
Where Did Hypnosis Originate?
The subconscious mind receives and retains neither accepting nor rejecting, all the messages we receive from our backgrounds, whether genetic, social, religious or experiential, plus all the conflicts (little or big) that enter our lives daily. When for whatever reason the conscious mind (which deals with everyday living, logic, reason, etc.) becomes overloaded, the subconscious prepares us for what is considered appropriate action (usually fight or flight). However the subconscious mind does not analyze, as does the conscious mind, but accepts all messages in the literal sense.
Most hypnotists, on interviewing a new client/patient, will ask the client what he or she thinks hypnosis is. Replies range from sleep, to unconsciousness, to surrender of mental powers and control, to magic, to voodoo. All are in error.
The basics of hypnotism go back to ancient times. Those who have read Jean Auel’s memorable book, “Clan of the Cave Bear,” will remember accounts of magic, healings, inherited memories and revelations performed or created by the “medicine women” of prehistoric clans. Hypnotism in the early centuries of our own land, the medicine men of Indian tribes performed seeming miracles. Hypnotism and non-secret usage began in the 1700’s in several forms under different names.
Hypnosis cannot be sleep. In most cases, the subject is fully aware of communication and is able to respond on request either verbally or by signal. Nor is unconsciousness involved. A subject asked to make a specific movement will comply with the request unless it is objectionable, in which case there will be a refusal.
There were periods of progress and periods of stagnation in the development of modern hypnotism. Medical interest and acceptance expanded following World War II when the use of hypnotherapy proved especially helpful to surviving battlefield casualties suffering from shock, injury, battle fatigue and various psychological disorders.
As understanding increased, hypnotism began to be recognized as an important adjunct to counseling psychology, psychotherapy, psychiatry and also medical fields including neurology, obstetrics, emergency medicine, burn therapy and others. Hypnosis is finding increasing usage in dentistry and other areas for pain management without anesthesia.
In essence, hypnosis is a means of communication between the conscious mind and the subconscious mind. Many human problems, habits, stresses, anxieties, attitudes or apparent deficiencies can be traced to interpretations by the subconscious mind which, when understood by the conscious mind, can reduce or resolve specific problems.
There is no surrender of mind or control. A person who does not want to be hypnotized cannot be hypnotized or be induced to do or say anything that violates personal standards of behavior or integrity. There is neither magic nor voodoo involved. Any hypnotist can explain the actions or behaviors seen in stage, film or television shows, where the subject seems to follow directions mindlessly.
The subconscious is also the seat of all memory. Traumatic events can be buried or suppressed in the subconscious. A major benefit of hypnosis is its ability to uncover and bring into the light of understanding the buried information or experiences that may be the cause of a troublesome problem.
Actually, hypnosis is better described than defined. It is often considered an altered state of consciousness. In this state of relaxed awareness, the subconscious mind is easily accessed and reprogrammed.
Then there is the hidden counterpart – fear of success. First, it is important to recognize motivations and subsequent successes of the past. Second, a sense of direction is needed. (Where am I going?) Then comes the all-important factor of “goal-setting.” Not the ultimate goal, but a short-term, quickly achievable goal – a first step to provide convincing proof that forward movement is established. Finally, on achievement of this goal, give self-reward. This constitutes self-recognition, a powerful motivating factor. This reward may be a self-treat, or the pride of achievement and self-satisfaction. The lesson learned will be lasting.
Success Breeds Success
The purpose of establishing short-term successive goals is important to understand. A small success generates additional confidence. It creates a sense of completion, readiness and eagerness for the next step. The end result: Motivation!
*The National Guild of Hypnotists was founded in 1951 and is the oldest and largest organization of its kind. Professional membership in the NGH signifies that an individual possesses specific qualifications, agrees to abide by a strict code of ethics, and will pursue continuing-education studies for annual recertification. Medical or psychological referrals may be required for certain conditions.
