FACTS & FALLACIES^*

QUESTIONS:

ANSWERS:

1) What is Hypnosis?

The brain operates in four general states. The four states include Full Conscious Awareness, the Hypnotic State, the Dream State, and the Sleep State.

These four states correspond to electrical activity in the brain and are defined by the frequency ranges on an EEG. Full Conscious Awareness occurs when the majority of the electrical activity in the brain is in the beta range (14-35 Hz). The Hypnotic State occurs when brain activity is in the alpha range (8-13 Hz). The Dream State occurs when brain activity is in the theta range (4-7 Hz), and the Sleep State occurs when brain activity is in the delta range (.5-3 Hz).

Full Conscious Awareness is where we spend most of our waking hours. In this state, our mind is observant and uses logic to reason, judge, and make decisions. Unfortunately, when making life changes, the conscious mind often gets in the way.

In the Hypnotic State, the doorway between the conscious and the subconscious is opened, memories become easily accessible, and new information is stored. In the Hypnotic State, you are not really "thinking" in the traditional sense. You are "experiencing" without questioning, without critical judgment or analysis, like when you watch a movie, and the hypnotherapist can make suggestions that are very likely to "stick" - because your conscious mind is not getting in the way. You are not "judging" or being "critical" of the suggestions.

In bypassing the critical faculty, specific suggestions can be stored in the subconscious mind where they can project the client toward a desired goal or change behavior in a positive, permanent way. Of course, the suggestions must be acceptable to the client, otherwise they would have no effect. The focus on a specific goal or behavior is done with precision and intensity in hypnosis.

Hypnosis is a natural state of mind that is entered into spontaneously every day. Some examples would be states of limited focus, such as you might have when watching television or absorbed in a book. Highway hypnosis happens when you're driving on the highway and you suddenly realize that you have no conscious memory of the past several miles traveled.

2) What can Hypnosis be used for?

Areas where hypnosis can help to make a difference in your life are:

Anxiety
Phobias
Traumas
Insomnia
Regressions
Pain control
Exam anxiety
Weight control
Tobacco addiction
Stress management
Prosperity consciousness
Increase in learning potential
Improvement in sports performance

In addition to many more.

3) Why should I use hypnosis?

People are always trying to make routine changes in their lives with issues like smoking, weight loss, public speaking and athletic performance. The results are inconsistent at best. It's like trying to weed your garden by cutting the weeds off at ground level. It looks good for a while but they always grow back.

Hypnotherapy is the most efficient way to get to the root of the pattern, pull it out and replace it with healthy positive solutions. With hypnotherapy you relax your body and conscious mind while opening your subconscious. Once in the subconscious you can 'rearrange the furniture and put your house back in order'.

A hypnotherapist can create this deep relaxation and offer suggestions and affirmations which support your rational thought.

Hypnosis is not new; The American Medical Association (AMA) has approved its use and recognized its therapeutic value since 1958. It is used in hospitals, clinics, in professional sports and Fortune 500 companies. It has no side effects, it feels good and there are no prescriptions. There is helpful relief regarding your fears, worries and concerns. You have the ability to create order and peace in your life. You can take back control and keep it.

4) Can I function normally and get on with the rest of my day after a session of Hypnosis?

In my experience, clients generally leave a session feeling refreshed and relaxed. If anything, they are better able to cope with the rest of the day and feel more confident.

5) Hypnosis and Phobias

Webster's New World Dictionary defines a phobia as an irrational, excessive and persistent fear of some thing or situation. Regardless of what the conscious mind knows and says, these fears persist in the subconscious mind where they are stored. Since hypnosis is the most direct way into the subconscious, it stands to reason that it can become the instrument of eliminating the irrational fear.

Most phobias can be traced to an initial sensitizing event and an activating event. These can be separate events or parts of the same event. The objective of therapy is to discover the cause(s) and desensitize the client from the fear.

Simple phobias are those isolated single fears such as a fear of cats or dogs, a fear of flying, a fear of being in an enclosed space, fear of water, etc. These simple phobias can usually be effectively treated in very few sessions.

6) When I am Hypnotized, will I lose all sense of my surroundings, and have no memory of the session?

Hypnosis is not an unconscious state of sleep. In fact, most people report having a higher sense of awareness, concentration and focus, and can even hear more acutely during a session.

7) I cannot be hypnotized because my mind is too strong and/or disciplined.

This is an archaic belief that has, in recent times, been proven untrue. It was thought, long ago, that only 50% of the population could be hypnotized. In fact most people can be hypnotized.

There are exceptions of course and people who suffer from Hysteria as well as Psychotics, which we will define simply as: Schizophrenics, Paranoiacs, and Catatonics (to name a few) cannot be hypnotized. Psychotics make poor hypnotic subjects for several reasons: they are less likely to seek hypnosis as a solution; they do not trust others; and they can become violent even toward someone trying to help them. It is important to be aware of occasions when a person has stepped over the line from neurosis to psychosis. Under no circumstances, should a hypnotherapist (or anyone) untrained in dealing with severe mental illness attempt to assist, on their own, such a person.

8) Can the Hypnotherapist control my mind and make me do something I don't want to do?

The will located in the conscious mind is always present and is always functioning.. If for some reason you will yourself not to allow the suggestions to be accepted, they won't be. No one can control your mind, unless you let them. Your Hypnotherapist will give you suggestions that you want to be given, based on the Pre-Hypnotic Interview. At no point during your session will you lose control of your mind. If you hear a suggestion that you don't agree with, or don't understand, your subconscious mind will automatically reject it.

9) Hypnosis is Dangerous and if I become Hypnotized, I may not be able to snap out of it.

Hypnosis is very safe, and is in fact, a state of hyper-awareness. Should there be an emergency, a person would be able to very naturally come out of the Hypnotic state by opening their eyes, and stretching or speaking.

10) Hypnosis is a great way to get someone to tell the truth and confess.

Hypnotherapy sessions are kept private and can't be used for court testimony. It is not an alternative to lie detector tests. Hypnosis cannot force anyone to "tell the truth" or to confess. It can't make you do anything you don't want to do.

11) What about those shows where the stage hypnotist makes people look silly?

People worry that they will be made to perform embarrassing acts, such as bark like a dog, or walk like a duck. This assumption is based on Stage Hypnotism and Hollywood fiction. The truth is, these people volunteer to act on stage, and they allow themselves to participate in silly suggestions. Hypnotherapy is a serious process of self-improvement, not entertainment.

Stage hypnosis is a chance for an extrovert to perform, have fun, show off and be a star. Volunteers may seem to be "under the spell" of the stage hypnotist. Some people are under the impression that the participants will do whatever the hypnotist suggests. Actually, some stage hypnotists have been known to appraise the audience and express disappointment if, say, six volunteers are needed and there are only 60 people in the audience. Most people will not respond well to stage hypnosis and those that do, will do so only under the right circumstances.

Volunteers of any stage show know that they will be expected to do silly things in front of an audience, and find that appealing. The ones who are shy or self-conscious are asked early on to go back to the audience. The participants who are receptive to hypnosis will have, to some extent, an extroverted personality. However, the volunteer would not do anything against his or her moral beliefs. For example, if handed an imaginary glass of wine or beer, a non-drinker will refuse to pretend to drink. Also, some otherwise responsive persons will back off to a specific suggestion (e.g., to sing) because of a lack of self-confidence in that area. Even during stage hypnosis, individuals retain control in areas of principle or in which there is major subconscious resistance.

During a hypnotherapy session with a certified hypnotherapist, you know you may be open to suggestion. Rather than losing control, a series of sessions can help a person to gain control.

12) Hypnosis is a "Miracle Cure".

While Hypnosis is a relatively quick method of making permanent improvements, there is no such thing as a one-time "Hypno-Miracle"! While some people have indeed quit smoking or even let go of a phobia in just one session, every individual makes progress at his or her own rate.

13) Hypnosis is "Supernatural" or comes from "Black Magic".

Hypnosis is a natural state that has been studied scientifically. Hypnotherapists do not have "special powers". Hypnotherapy is based on many years of clinical research by famous Psychologists such as Dr. Sigmund Freud and Dr. Carl Jung, and more recently, by Dr. Milton Erikson and Dr. John Kappas.

*Copyright: Riley, G. Edward and C. Newton. Hypnosis, Hypnotherapy, and Hypnotherapists TherapistFinder.net Mental Health Journal. April, 2001.