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"What
is hypnosis used for?"
Hypnosis can be used for just about anything that depends on your
own efforts. "Your own efforts," incidentally, is a much broader
category than most people think. Here is a list of just some of the
applications for hypnosis.
Academic Applications
• Class Participation Fears
• Communication Apprehension
• Concentration
• Focus, Attention Span
• Learning
• Memory (see Memory, below)
• Presentation Skills
• Sleep Assisted Learning
• Stage Fright
• Study Skills
• Subject Mental Block Removal
Addictions
(chemical or substance)
Attitude
• Career
• Family
• Interpersonal
• School
• Work
Cancer
(definite but limited or sporadic success)
Career
Enhancement
• Behavioral Control
• Concentration
• Decision Making
• Focus
• Motivation
• Tenacity
Concentration (see Academic Applications, above)
Fears,
Phobias
Fitness
• Motivation
• Performance
Habit
Control
• Food and Eating
• Nail Chewing
• Procrastination
• Smoking
• Substance Abuse
Health
Image
Projection (how others perceive you)
Learning
(removing blocks, concentration, comprehension) (see Academic
Applications, above)
Medical
• Analgesia
• Anesthesia
• Bodily Functions (under autonomic control)
• Dermatology (warts, rashes, skin conditions,
etc.)
• Healing Facilitation
• Obstetrics (birth, related procedures)
• Pain
• Skin Conditions (Dermatology)
• Tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
• Treatment Motivation
Memory
• Academic Studies
• Buried or Repressed Memories (this particular
category has been seriously abused in recent years)
• Dream Memories
• Names and Faces
Motivation
• Academic
• Career, Job Performance
• Fitness, Health
• Personal Achievement, Development
• Sports
Pain
Control (see Medical, above)
Performance
(music, sports, business, personal, speaking, academic, etc.)
Personal
Relationships
Problem
Solving
Reading
(blocks, speed, comprehension, motivation)
Sales
• Attitude
• Memory for Names, Faces, Facts
• Motivation
• People Smarts
• Personality, Likeability
• Persuasive Qualities
• Subliminal Communication
• Tenacity, Drive
Self
Confidence
Sex
(dysfunctions, inhibitions and mental blocks, pleasure)
Shyness
Sleep
(more, less, better)
Smoking,
Quitting
Speech,
Speaking in Public
• Audience Rapport
• Concentration
• Memory
• Presence of Mind on Stage
• Stage Fright, Communication Apprehension
Sports
Performance
• Competitiveness, Sportsmanship
• Concentration
• Drive
• Image Rehearsal
• Peak Performance
• Practice Effects
Stress,
Tension
• Anxiety Attacks
• Hypertension
• Panic Attacks
• Relaxation
• Stress Management
Subliminal
Communication
Timing
(time awareness, internal clock, etc.)
Weight
Loss, Control (dieting, eating disorders, metabolic influence)
"How many things can I work on at one
time with with hypnosis?"
There is no answer to this question that is correct for everyone in
every circumstance. It depends upon the "things" involved, how
strongly the subconscious mind is attached to them, what is going on
in your life at the time, and how you respond to hypnotic suggestion
in general. The safest strategy for beginners is to start with just
one project – perhaps an easier one – then, with some success and
experience under your belt, progress to other, more difficult
objectives.
"How can hypnosis help me quit
smoking?"
The cessation of any habit, while complicated in its dynamics, is
essentially a matter of getting rid of the desire, or drive, to
commit the habit. The drive to smoke stems from subconscious drives,
but the behavior itself is under your conscious control and you can
change it with the help of self hypnosis. It is the subconscious
motivation to smoke that must be changed in order to quit smoking.
Fortunately, hypnosis is an effective and relatively easy way to
change subconscious motivations. It does not work the same for
everyone: Many people have found quitting smoking with hypnosis to
be easy and painless; for others, quitting smoking is difficult no
matter what method is used. Regardless of how difficult it is,
hypnosis always makes it easier than it would otherwise be. Hypnosis
often means the difference between success and failure. Some have
tried and failed to quit lots of times and were not successful until
they enlisted the aid of hypnosis. Whether or not it is less easy
than we would like, anyone can quit smoking with the help of
hypnosis.
"Does it work for weight control?"
Yes. Most cases of overweight are the result of over-eating combined
with insufficient activity. Both, in normal cases, are under your
control, technically speaking. So hypnosis is perfectly valid and
uniquely appropriate for getting your eating under control and for
increasing your motivation to get more exercise.
"Can I use hypnosis for things like
interpersonal relationships?"
Your own behavior, through both supraliminal (overtly observable)
and subliminal behaviors, is of paramount importance to the nature
of every relationship. This includes romantic as well as career and
professional relationships. And, while there is no universally
accepted evidence that our minds can directly control the thoughts
and behavior of others, hypnosis can help you control your own
thinking and behaving, as well as the subliminal cues you transmit
to others. In other words, yes, you can use hypnosis to influence
the behavior of others just as if you had direct access to their
thoughts.
"Speaking in public terrifies me.
Will hypnosis help me get over that?"
Hypnosis is one of the most effective ways to control stage fright.
Being somewhat nervous before giving a speech is natural and
actually desirable. But the kind of fear that makes giving a good
speech difficult or impossible is not necessary because it can be
controlled with hypnosis.
"Can I improve sports performance
with hypnosis?"
It goes without saying that there is a strong link between thinking
and sports performance. Even Little Leaguers are acquainted with
concepts like their "mental game." Hypnosis has been shown to be
influential in all forms of sports-related thinking. Many athletes
use image rehearsal, a specific form of hypnosis, to practice in
their minds. This has been shown to significantly improve
performance, sometimes more than actual practice.
"How about pain control?"
Hypnotic pain control – hypnoanalgesia (controlled feeling) and
hypnoanesthesia (no feeling) – is well represented in the
literature. Commonly reported are uses in dental procedures,
surgical operations, and giving birth without any anesthesia other
than hypnosis. Many people have gained control over chronic pain
that did not respond to any other method.
"Can it help me get along on less
sleep?"
Some have claimed that sleep requirements were diminished through
the use of hypnotic suggestion, but those claims have never been
satisfactorily verified. Some early experiments in promoting more
REM sleep in shorter periods did show promise in reducing the amount
of sleep required by the research participants, but this needs
further research.
Most
regular sleep research has shown that people suffer long-term
deficits in health and mental functioning when they are deprived of
the amount of sleep they naturally need. This is especially
troubling in light of recent polls indicating that most people do
not get enough sleep.
A
much better use of hypnosis is to improve the quality and
performance of waking time so additional sleep time is not needed.
"Can I cure my insomnia with
hypnosis?"
Many people have found hypnosis to be the perfect cure for insomnia.
But it should be noted that sleep disturbances come in many forms,
and not all of them have been shown to respond to hypnotic
suggestion, most notably those caused by physical anomalies in one's
air passage. But most cases of insomnia do respond well, and some
types of sleep problems are surprisingly easy to control with
hypnosis. This may be true even for sleep problems that have gone on
for years.
"Can I use it to make better grades
in school?"
Yes. Hypnosis is great for improving concentration and memory,
reducing test jitters and the fear of participating in classroom
discussions, and enhancing the motivation to study and learn. In the
same vein, it is also helpful in uncovering and dealing with hidden
blocks to learning and academic success.
"Is hypnosis a New Age thing?"
No, not really. Something does not have to be new to fall
under the rubric of "New Age," and it is true that many New Age
practitioners advocate the use of self hypnosis. However, the
earliest known descriptions of hypnosis date back 6,000 years to
rites performed in Egyptian sleep temples. European physicians such
as Charcot and Bachofen were using it in the 17th and 18th
centuries. Benjamin Franklin, who was the United States ambassador
to France at the time, investigated the so-called animal magnetism
of Anton Mesmer and substantiated the successes animal magnetism was
producing (Franklin attributed it to suggestion). (We still use
Mesmer's name today when we say someone was "mesmerized," meaning
raptly attentive, or that they were somehow temporarily deprived of
their normal conscious qualities.) The term "hypnosis" was coined by
one of the most respected scientists of his day, James Braid, in
1843. Today there are many legitimate university-based studies of
the various phenomena of hypnosis and it is not uncommon for
dentists and physicians to use it in their practices.
"Is it safe?"
Yes. Although it is not a good idea to use hypnosis when driving a
car or operating heavy machinery.
"Will the regular practice of
hypnosis make me more suggestible?"
Yes, but only in the good sense. That is, with practice, you get
better at responding to your own suggestions. This is a Good Thing
because it gives you more control over yourself. At the same time,
you become more resistant to the manipulative attempts of others.
There is an inverse relationship between responsiveness to
hetero-suggestion (suggestion applied by others) and autosuggestion
(self-applied suggestion). The better you get at autosuggestion, and
the more you understand it and how it works, the more you become
resistant to manipulative attempts by others. The regular practice
of hypnosis is great for developing discipline in those who find it
difficult to "just say no."
"Do you lose consciousness when you
practice hypnosis?"
Only if you fall asleep. However, you might have certain areas of
memory lapse later which make it seem like you were unconscious, but
you were not. It is a little like the experience we have all had of
doing something – like driving a familiar route – only to realize
later that we don't remember doing it.
"What if I can't wake up?"
Never happens. Getting out of hypnosis is never a problem. You'll
put all of your efforts into getting into a hypnotic state, not
getting out of it. The worst that can happen is that you drift off
into normal sleep, in which case you will wake up – or oversleep –
just as you would any other time.
"Can everyone learn use self
hypnosis, and how easy is it?"
Yes, seemingly everyone can use self hypnosis. At least, everyone
with anything approaching normal intelligence and who is conscious
at least some of the time. Some people are better or faster at it
than others, as is true with any skill. Regardless of where you fall
on the skill continuum, you will see progress if you use self
hypnosis correctly and regularly.
As
to the part about self hypnosis being easy, the answer is both yes
and no. It is relatively easy. That's because, as with any
skill, it requires know-how and practice to develop. There is no
free lunch, and you should be highly suspicious of any claims that
something worthwhile is going to be easy and effortless. Hypnosis
does require some effort because it is a skill and the more you put
into it the more you get out. But it is still a heck of a lot easier
and faster than trying to do anything with willpower.
"Do I have to believe in hypnosis for
it to work?"
Nope. The degree of hypnotizability seems to be completely unrelated
to the degree of belief in it. Some amazing results from hypnotic
suggestion have been demonstrated by people who adamantly claimed
they were not hypnotized and who were convinced that nothing had
happened.
Willingness, though, is another matter. If you don't want to be
hypnotized (and you are aware that that is what is going on), then
you won't be.
"How long does it take?"
The skill part of self hypnosis requires time to develop, and some
people take longer than others to get good at it. We don't know why.
It is not related to intelligence (within normal bounds) or any
other variable that has been reliably and consistently identified.
Some people see results immediately, while others may take several
days or even weeks to notice a difference. With proper application
and daily practice, though, you should begin to see definite results
within 21 days at the outside.
"Will it help with my golf game?"
Golf is a mental game. That's why you need to think about your game
the right way to play well. You've got to stay calm, stay focused
and get rid of bad habits. You need to get the right mental
equipment to stop choking, get into the zone, improve your
concentration and build your self-confidence. With hypnosis you can
improve every aspect of your game.
Hypnosis 101
Hypnosis is a state of focused awareness. It is something everyone
has experienced countless times; among instances of it are waking up
or getting absorbed in a good book. The characteristics of the state
vary; it cannot be pinpointed on an EEG and the experience is
different for everyone though there are common elements. A person
can be hypnotized and while that state be having a great time at a
party; no zombie eyes no intonations of Yeesss Massterr no wandering
about with arms outstreched. Hypnosis does not have a unique and
unmistakable insignia indicating its presence.
This is generally not the case with the process of hypnosis.
Patterns of hypnosis have been written up and used for decades. You
can find books depicting the process in bookstores and libraries.
The process is intended to create that state of focused awareness.
It is this process I wish to discuss in the remainder of this post.
[Hypnosis and being hypnotized will refer to the proces should there
be any confusion.]
General Considerations
Hypnosis can be thought of as a game that is binding. The rules are
initially defined by the expectations of the subject which
encompasses all their experiences with it everything they've seen on
TV and old movies and what the subject has been told about hypnosis.
These rules dictate what will and will not be effective; which
inductions will and will not work; and the conduct of the subject
while in the state of hypnosis. The rules are mutable. Debunking
misconceptions, demonstrations, and providing more information --
accurate or not -- will affect the rules of the game.
A professor at Stanford illustrated how greatly expectations dictate
results. The gentleman told one of his introductory psychology
classes that an unfailing indication of a hypnotized subject was
that their right arm would float upwards. The professor told another
class the same thing only in this case he specified it was the left
hand that would rise. When he hypnotized members of both classes he
discovered that students responded in accord with their
expectations. The right arm of the members of the first class did
indeed rise while with members of the second class only the left
hand rose.
In hypnosis the subject
calls the shots. Their expectations outline the manner in which the
game is to be played. The hypnotist weilds no mystical power; she
and the subject have an agreement that the process of hypnosis is
conducted in a certain mannerand each player behaves in a particular
way. The level at which the game is played is defined by the rules
and the degree of trust the subject feels for the hypnotist. A
mistrustful subject will be paying far more attention to what you
are doing and what you might be scheming than to what you are
saying.
Hypnosis is useful as a catalyst. As seen above the state itself is
not too exhilarating in and of itself. The process and the
applications are what make it fun and useful. You can call on your
mind's abilities to control pain [useful]; you can play the most
intense imagination game of D&D of your life [fun].
The function of the hypnotist is to provide a focal point and talk
their partner through evoking the intended result. The process
usually begins with a discussion of hypnosis. This is to determine
the purpose of a session, debunk misconceptions, get a sense of the
subject's expectations, and generally make things go easier later.
The induction consists of bringing the subject's awareness to
something and keeping it focused. The hypnotist gives suggestions to
bring about the determined purpose including any post-hypnotic
suggestions. Then she guides the subject back to a normal state of
awareness.
What Hypnosis Is Not
• It is not sleep. The participant is thoroughly
aware of their surroundings. They may choose to ignore them. The
hypnotist may ask the subject to ignore things or to focus all
attention on one idea.
• You can not get stuck in hypnosis. Either you
will awaken on your own or the state will become one of natural
sleep. Sometimes a subject requires a few more moments to return.
Sometimes the subject refuses to return. This is particularly true
of stage hypnosis; if a subject feels pissed off at the hypnotist
it can be mightily gratifying to unnerve said offending hypnotist
by not responding. Even if this is the case the subject will still
either return on their own or fall asleep.
• A hypnotized person will not knowingly violate
their code of ethics. Milton Erickson messed around with this a bit
and found it to be particularly true if he made it clear that the
subject was responsible for the consequences of their actions.
There are three twists here;
1 A person may do something seemingly unethical if
it is o.k. according to their moral standards, especially if they
believe being hypnotized at the time is sufficient excuse.
2 Stage hypnotists evoke some silly behavior which
might ordinarily be contrary to the subject's code of conduct. This
is a result of group pressure, of the forgivability of stage
hypnosis, and of the streak of hamming it up in each of us.
3 A person can be tricked. If I am told I am in a
blazing hot desert sweating buckets, and the only way to get cool
is to take my shirt off I might do that. I will not do that because
I am an exhibitionist. If I am directly told to take off my shirt
first I will snap back to the here and now and next I will
drop-kick the lech out of my house. Furthermore, once such a
maneuver is recognized the hypnotist has utterly destroyed the
subject's trust and will have no further success with them.
What are some specific things that
Hypnosis will help?
• Quit smoking. Willpower won't work here for lots
of people, and self-hypnosis is the best way to do it.
• Improve friendships and your relations with
spouse and others. Get to know people who are more interesting and
exciting than you (and get away with it).
• Sleep better (alone and otherwise, if you know
what I mean). Gain control over dreams, especially alternate reality
dreams.
• Lose weight and keep it off, even if you have
gone way over the edge.
• Develop a better attitude. Control doldrums, snits, and
generally crappy moods.
• Control jealousy.
• Perform better at sports.
• Improve memory and concentration.
•
Improve career success. Self-hypnosis is great for improving
your prospects in life.
• Develop greater sales ability. We are all
selling, in one way or another, so improvement in this skill can't
hurt. Especially if you get your subliminals working for you.
• Raise academic performance and grades.
• Overcome shyness, stage fright and other fears.
• Experiment with age- and past-life regression.
Whether or not such things exist is a matter of controversy, but
what you can do with self-hypnosis can be pretty convincing.
• Be more creative. Like salesmanship, we could all
use more creativity.
As
it is with any skill, the development of self-hypnosis requires
practice. An hour a day would be great, if you could manage it. But
20 minutes a day is more realistic for most people, and there are
days in just about everyone's life when it is impossible to take
even that much time to practice.
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Updated:
06/21/2008
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