Hypnosis - Healing Science

What is your reaction when someone mentions hypnosis to you?

More of us will automatically think of those old black and white movies where a bearded professor sits his patient down. He swings his pocket watch back and forth. He counts to ten in a deep slow voice. His patient stares empty eyed in a trance. He or she is hypnotised. They are ready to unveil the hidden truth!

Perhaps, alternatively, you think of the more modern hypnotist you have seen at work on the stage. Having hypnotised his chosen participants, he suggests they do all manner of strange antics, such as scratching themselves or running around the stage clucking like hens. Rumours and stories abound about victims performing all manner of strange feats and embarrassing antics. There are stories of those who never snap out if it. Although these rumors have no basis in truth, the fact is Hypnosis is a very real phenomenon.

Hypnosis or Transpersonal Hypnotherapy has been recognised by the American Medical Association since 1958 as a valid method of treatment. It has helped many thousands of people come to terms with very real phobias. It has helped many more quit smoking and other dangerous addictions. It has helped those who have been lacking in confidence and will power. It has aided student's study and improved memory. It has even helped with the fighting of illness and disease. Hypnosis has helped witnesses recall vital details in cases of serious crime. In fact there are over 300 different ways in which hypnosis can help people.

You may be surprised to learn that hypnosis is a very real and naturally occurring state of mind. It occurs in everyone from time to time. You have probably experienced a form of hypnosis. Have you ever been travelling in a car and realised that for some part of the journey you have not been aware of the distance or landmarks? This even happens to drivers! Have you ever been lost in a book, or TV programme to the extent that the world around you has ceased to exist? If you have, you have been in a state of hypnosis.

Describing hypnosis as a natural state of mind is a way of allaying some people's fears of this state. Hypnosis has been in use for as long as 6000 years. Yet many people are unaware how it works and worry that it is somehow unnatural or dangerous. Used professionally and properly it is a very real and safe process. Although someone who is hypnotised is in a very deep state of relaxation, they are always very safe. You are always aware of what is going on around you. It is not like being asleep, rather more like daydreaming and feeling very relaxed. Under hypnosis you would not do anything that you would not do normally. Neither is it possible to get stuck under hypnosis. You can pull yourself out of this state any time you want you. People who have been hypnotised report that they feel relaxed and pleasant. They are in total control. In fact hypnosis does you nothing but good. Some people have volunteered to be hypnotised more than 400 times. There has never been one single complaint of side effects.

Strangely, with all we know about hypnosis no one can actually say exactly how it works. What we can be sure of though is that hypnosis is a very real and valuable tool. Hypnosis, it is thought, works by connecting to and talking with the subconscious mind. It has long been recognised that we have two parts to our minds. The first and the part that we use when we are awake, is the called the conscious mind. Our conscious mind is estimated to contain only 10% of the faculties we use. In our conscious minds are our logic, reason and will power. Most people rely solely on their conscious mind to achieve their goals.

Hidden away behind that is our subconscious mind. Here lies our real reserves and power. If you like, here is the engine that drives us. This is where our habits, memories and even our limitations reside. It is our subconscious that tells us how and when to breathe. After all, you don't concentrate on breathing for the most part. You just do it. Through our lives we build up our subconscious mind. The process of driving once it is a habit becomes a subconscious activity. Walking might be the same. The habits of our lives, good and bad, build up in our subconscious. They make us the people we are. When we have a problem; for example a fear of heights, a phobia, or an addiction, the conscious mind tells us this is wrong. Yet the conscious mind is really unable to deal with the problem. The subconscious is generating all the doubts, fears and anxieties of letting go. In short, the subconscious is in control.

Hypnosis, by encouraging the conscious side of our minds to relax and unwind is able to speak directly to the subconscious. By making and planting suggestions, the hypnotist bypasses our conscious reason and logic and goes directly to the heart of the problem. Here some would say lies every image, every memory and experience we have ever had. Here in our subconscious lies the very truth of who we are and how we operate. A smoker will long ago have placed the desire to smoke in the subconscious part of their mind. It is here that the hypnotist must make the suggestions that smoking is bad, unhealthy or plain unsociable. He frees the patient from the desires and subconscious behaviour that controls the habit. While that is just an example, there are many other areas in which positive suggestions can be made to the subconscious mind. By removing the blocks that we have formed in our subconscious we are able to adjust and change our behaviour.
Although we do not exactly how hypnosis works, the fact remains that is a proven and safe form of therapy. 42% of those who have used hypnosis have done so to deal with issues dealing with lack of confidence and even fear of public speaking! 30% of those who have benefited from hypnosis have used it to reduce their level of stress and 28% for reasons of motivation.

For hypnosis to be successful as a treatment for a problem or issue, the patient must accept and want to make the change. That is, he or she must be motivated to do so. To accept a suggestion from a hypnotist, the mind must first accept that suggestion as a real possibility. It will most probably take more than one or two sessions for these suggestions to become implanted in the mind properly. The mind and subconscious is a powerful place and our habits, feeling and emotions are deeply embedded there.

Hypnosis is, by and large, a very safe activity. Problems arise in the uses of hypnosis to regress the patient and withdraw hidden memories. There is always the chance that so called false memories can be planted there. For this reason those that train and specialise in the use of hypnotherapy have to adhere to very strict ethical guidelines. Hypnotherapy when used by the police or law enforcement agencies has to be used with extreme care.

Hypnosis is a direct path to the subconscious mind. This is where our memories, habits and limitations reside. During hypnosis the blocks that cause certain patterns of behaviour are removed. In effect a person is able to gain greater control over his or her life. The fact is despite some people's reservations, hypnosis is a proven and safe way of helping people. It is also a naturally occurring state of mind and a fascinating area of discovery. The next time you return from being lost in your own world or that of a book or film, take some time to think about the very real power of your mind.

Sources related information:

Howstuffworks. "How Hypnosis Works"
http://www.howstuffworks.com/hypnosis.htm
Facts About Hypnosis
http://www.hypnosisupdate.com/facts_about1.htm

http://www.triadlifebalance.com

http://www.speech-writers.com 
Hypnosis.
http://www.geocities.com/recutter/hypn2a.html

Comments

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