All Hypnosis is Self-Hypnosis
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The Basics
Hypnosis is a common everyday occurrence. Have you ever driven home and not remembered driving to your destination? Have you ever been so absorbed in a book or movie that you either felt the emotions of a character or forgot about your life for a period of time? These are examples of light states of hypnosis. No one’s clucking like a chicken, you are just in a focused state. Hypnosis is a focused state of awareness in which you naturally become more open and receptive. Hypnotists call this ‘suggestible.’
Hypnosis is similar to meditation but is more goal oriented. Your brain waves slow down from the Beta state into Alpha and Theta. If your brain waves were to continue to slow down, they would cycle in Delta, which is the sleep state. Hypnosis is a method of speaking to the innermost part of your mind, your subconscious, to eliminate old habits and behaviors and to generate new, beneficial thoughts and behaviors. Research demonstrates that at least 95% of our behaviors are subconscious.
In other words, our behaviors are a result of beliefs and emotions stored in our subconscious mind. We may not even be consciously aware of these beliefs and emotions that drive our behaviors. Even more so, when your subconscious mind and conscious mind are in conflict, your subconscious mind overrides your conscious attempts at making changes. Since hypnosis acts as a doorway or a bridge to the subconscious, we can access these patterns and limiting beliefs and change them. Hypnosis makes it easier and faster to release and let go of subconscious beliefs systems, programs and patterns of behavior.
The Power of Suggestion
‘A Suggestion given in a hypnotic state, even one time, can have the same affect as long term conditioning and practice.’
Institute of Cognitive and Neuroscience
When you are in hypnosis you are more suggestible. In other words, positive suggestions are able to sink deeply into your subconscious mind much more quickly and strongly than when you are in an “awake” state. And rest assured, only positive suggestions will work. All research has demonstrated that while in the hypnotic state, you cannot be made to do anything against your moral values. You are more open and receptive in the Alpha and Theta brain wave states
Hypnotists, also called hypnotherapists, do much more than provide positive suggestions. Many hypnotists have been trained in regression work. In other words, we can regress you back in time to an experience that is the root cause or “source” of a physical problem or an emotional imprint. For instance, I was working with a client, who we shall call, Sarah. Sarah would grind her teeth at night. She wore a special brace to protect her teeth, yet the stress in her jaws muscles from trying to grind, lead to pain and headaches. To help relieve her, I guided her back in time to the root cause of her nighttime grinding. Sarah went back to an event in her life when she was a little girl and very scared. She was 7 years old and in the kitchen where she grew up. Her father was angry and yelling. He actually broke the cabinet door and this scared her so much she ran to her bedroom to get away. Once at the source of the problem, I do a variety of techniques including hypnotic reframing and inner child work to help the little ‘7-year-old self’ feel better and release the fear. That very night after the session, she decided she wasn’t going to wear her brace. When she awoke in the morning, she knew she hadn’t been grinding her teeth because her jaw muscles had no tension and no pain. Regression is only one of many unique tools in the hypnotist’s toolbox.
The Benefits of Hypnosis
Hypnosis has been successfully used by millions of adults and children to improve athletic performance, sleep better, change limiting beliefs, stop worries, fears and other negative feelings, feel more confident in any situation, take off weight, stop smoking, improve memory, become more successful and so much more. Hypnosis has also been used as a complete anesthesia, in both childbirth and surgery. This means no chemicals and no side effects! For some people, just being able to reduce the amount of chemical anesthesia is extremely beneficial to their healing process. The American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Dental Association approved hypnotherapy, the clinical use of hypnosis, in 1958. The American Psychological Association approved it shortly thereafter-in 1960. It has been used in clinical settings for well over 150 years, around the world. In fact, the AMA believed hypnosis should be a part of every physician’s training. It is believed that we have over 60,000 thoughts per day! As we concentrate, our brain waves slow down. When you are present, or in the “now,” you are focused and concentrating on what you are doing. These are examples of being in “The Zone,” which is actually a light state of hypnosis. You are concentrating on hitting the golf ball, creating something unique or throwing the basketball into the net. When you enter “The Zone” you are definitely not talking to yourself. Instead, you are intent on what you are doing which leads to much better results. Your brain waves are flowing in the Alpha state when you are in The Zone. It’s where all athletes do their very best.
