Hypnosis
Hypnosis is simply a communication process designed to guide you into a trance for the purpose of achieving a specific goal.
To expand a little on that simple definition: hypnosis involves the hypnotist directing and absorbing your attention, guiding your thinking, and presenting you with suggestions, to enable you to easily and effortlessly access and make use of your personal resources (beliefs, values, skills, knowledge etc) so you can achieve the changes in thinking, feeling or behaviour you desire.
Trance – the ideal state for learning
Trance is a natural state of mind (alpha brainwave state (8-13Hz]) that we are in about 50-80% of our waking day. This alpha brain wave frequency is slower than the frequency when awake (13+Hz), but faster than when we’re asleep (<4 Hz).
When you deliberately evoke a trance by focusing attention on a single concept you have the ideal state for heightened and/or concentrated learning.
Hypnotic trance
A hypnotist is an expert at evoking a goal directed trance –aka a ‘hypnotic trance’.
When experiencing hypnotic trance, you experience a natural state of heightened awareness, in which you hear everything the hypnotist is saying. In this state you are more receptive to considering and taking on board new ideas, or different interpretations of ideas, than you would be if you were just consciously considering those ideas.
Hypnotic suggestions
What is communicated to you during hypnosis are expertly crafted suggestions. You have total control over whether you accept or reject any if those suggestions.
A professional hypnotist will only give you suggestions that are consistent with, and targeted at helping you achieve, the solution you desire. If the hypnotist were to throw in a random suggestion for example – ‘cluck like a chicken’, then because you are alert and in control you would (unless you did indeed want to cluck like a chicken!) reject that suggestion.
The fact is people on stage during a hypnosis show know that they may be asked to cluck like a chicken and are happy to do so if, and when, it’s suggested to them. If they didn’t want to cluck like a chicken, they wouldn’t be on stage. Remember, no one forced them to be on stage. They chose to be there.
You don’t have to be relaxed to experience hypnosis
You do not have to be relaxed to experience hypnotic trance but when you’re relaxed your ‘thinking brain’ is in the driving seat (as opposed to your ‘emotional brain’) making it easier for you to process what’s being communicated to you.
Everyone can experience hypnotic trance
Because trance is a natural state we shift in and out of naturally during the day, everyone can experience hypnotic trance. The only barrier to experiencing hypnotic trance is whether you allow yourself to be guided into the experience.
Fear is the number one obstacle to experiencing hypnotic trance
For many people fear is the number one obstacle: fear of the unknown, or fear of handing control of their mind over to a stranger. If you have one of these fears remember, (1) trance is a safe, natural every day activity our mind automatically engages in and (2) throughout a hypnosis session you are always in control of the experience because you are conscious and alert.
What happens when a hypnotist doesn’t explain hypnosis
When I hear someone say, “I went to a hypnotist but he/she couldn’t hypnotise me’ then I know the hypnotist didn’t explain to that person what hypnosis is, and that to experience hypnotic trance you have to want to experience it. If consciously or non-consciously you don’t want to, you wont.
Another comment I often hear is “I went to a hypnotist and it didn’t work.” Again, this tells me that the hypnotist didn’t explain to that person that hypnosis is a process that requires the hypnotee to be proactive and fully engage in the process.
You, the hypnotee, rather being a passive observer of events, are in fact the main player in the process. You are the one who has to actively engage and pay attention, listen to the suggestions, choose whether or not to accept a suggestion, imagine what is being suggested to you, and (to the best of your ability) make what is being suggested your reality. If you adopt a ‘do it to me – wave that magic wand’ or ‘wait and see’ attitude you are going to be disappointed with the results.
In a hypnosis session you perform 80% of the work
To use a rally car analogy. You are in the driver’s seat. The hypnotist is your co-driver. He or she has the map and tells you what direction to go, but you have to start the car, put it in gear, press the accelerator, turn the wheel etc or else you’re going nowhere. In a hypnosis session you perform 80% of the work. If you don’t ‘drive the car’, then you won’t get the results you want.
The hypnotist, contrary to popular myth, doesn’t haven’t a magic wand.
Want to know more about hypnosis?
If you’d like to learn more about hypnosis and hypnotherapy click here.
HypnoCoaching
And if you’d like to explore how HypnoCoaching (a powerful combination of coaching and hypnosis) can help you easily and rapidly achieve the change you want to make – simply schedule a free, no obligation Zoom Discovery Consultation by clicking here – https://bit.ly/2Z2lmmy
A small investment of your time could yield amazing returns. And if ZOOM isn’t your thing, then let’s have that consult over the phone. You can call/text me on 021 056 8389.
Enjoy your everyday trances ~ Tony
I’m on a mission to help as many people as possible enjoy lives free of unnecessary stress and anxiety. If you’d like my help, or you know someone who would benefit, call/text me today on 021 056 8389 or email tony@tycoaching.nz
