Hypnosis Q & A
 

“Hypnosis accesses the wisdom of the subconscious in a focused way to achieve healing.”
--Brian Weiss, MD
 

Within each one of us exists a level of wisdom and insight far surpassing that available in our normal state of conscious awareness. Hypnotherapy is the use of hypnosis for accessing this level of wisdom for inner healing and guidance. There are many popular misconceptions about hypnosis, fostered by the media’s focus on stage shows and sensationalism. Hypnosis is an extremely powerful and effective tool for personal growth and change.

Facts about hypnosis:
 

• Hypnosis is a 100% consent state.  No one can keep you in a hypnotic trance against your will.
• The hypnotherapist can not force you to say or do anything against your will or morals.
• Hypnosis is safe.  Everyone has the capacity to enter into hypnosis.
• Hypnosis is a natural state of mind. There is nothing unnatural or supernatural about hypnosis.
• You will see , hear and remember everything from your session.  While in hypnosis, you are awake and aware, you are not asleep.
• Daydreaming, meditation, deep prayer and biofeedback all produce states of mind similar to the hypnotic trance.

1. Q) What is hypnosis?     A) Hypnosis is a natural state of mind, similar to daydreaming. It is a state of focused concentration. In fact, you have been in a hypnotic state of mind thousands of times, without realizing it. Have you ever experienced driving along a familiar route, while thinking about something that occurred earlier in the day, only to find yourself pulling into your destination with no memory of how you got there? When you were on “auto-pilot”, what part of your mind just drove the car? When in a hypnotic trance, the normal chatter of the conscious mind is turned off, but you are not asleep. You may be able to see and hear past events with great clarity. Upon awakening from the Trance State, you will be able to recall the experiences of the trance state. Most people find the Trance State very relaxing, restful and enjoyable. The ancient Egyptians, who referred to it as “temple sleep”, made the earliest recorded use of hypnosis. Egyptian priests performed a variety of surgeries using hypnosis for anesthesia.  During the 1800’s, the Scottish surgeon, James Esdaile, reported that he had used hypnosis successfully for hundreds of pain free operations, including amputations.
2. Q) What is Hypnotherapy?    A) Hypnotherapy uses hypnosis to access the subconscious mind to promote deep inner healing. Negative patterns and behaviors can be seen and understood. “Core issues” that lie buried deep within us can be seen with clarity, unobstructed by the normal chatter and protective layers of the conscious mind. By exploring and releasing the root of an issue, physical, and/or emotional healing occurs naturally and spontaneously.  The hypnotherapist acts as a guide, taking cues from the client’s subconscious mind as to where to go to find the desired healing.
3. Q) What is hypnotherapy used for?     A) Hypnotherapy can be used to improve your general well being. It is effective for insomnia, weight loss/gain, stress reduction, phobias, natural childbirth, chronic illness, self esteem, addictions, sexual dysfunction, trauma, learning disabilities, pain control- the list goes on and on. Regression therapy, a very powerful tool for emotional/spiritual healing, uses hypnosis to go back in time to see and understand where our core issues originated. All memories are stored in the subconscious mind. Hypnosis can access memories long forgotten by the conscious mind, even as far back as prenatal memories and memories of other lifetimes.
4. Q) Can the hypnotist control me, making me bark like a dog or do other crazy things?     A) You are not “under someone’s spell”. Hypnosis is not something that gets “done to you” by someone who is “more powerful than you”. It is a 100% consent state. The hypnotist cannot force you to say or do something against your will or personal moral code. The hypnotist cannot induce a trance without your mind’s permission, so in a sense, all hypnosis is self-hypnosis. The stage hypnotist picks people who want to be hypnotized and who want to make a show of themselves. He can’t make them do crazy things without their consent.
5. Q) Can I come out of trance at will?    A) Absolutely! You always chose to stay in trance. You are fully aware at all times of what is happening. You can “wake up” and snap out of trance at any time you chose. Remember, hypnosis is a 100% consent state.
6. Q) Is hypnosis safe?    A) Yes! There has never been a documented case of hypnosis causing harm to an individual.
7. Q) Who can be hypnotized?    A) If you fell asleep last night, you can be hypnotized. Children make excellent subjects