Self-Hypnosis -- The Simple Truths Exposed

THE DEFINITION OF SELF-HYPNOSIS:
Hypnotism is a condition of hyper-suggestibility where the consciousness and the subconscious mind disconnect. It is an altered state of consciousness where the subject is more likely to acknowledge the Hypnotherapist's suggestions.

You have been in self-hypnosis many times in the past without even recognizing the state. Hypnosis is the Alpha state of consciousness that we pass through every night as we fall asleep. And we pass through it again as we awaken in the morning.

WHO CAN BE PLACED INTO HYPNOSIS?
Hypnotists have discovered that all normal people are hypnotizable to a greater or lesser extent. People with the I.Q. of the moron level of intelligence or lower generally can't be hypnotized. People who are actively psychotic normally can't be hypnotized. Senile people are usually impossible to hypnotize.

DO I HAVE TO BE A "DEEP" HYPNOTIC SUBJECT FOR SUCCESS?
For the beneficial applications of hypnotism that are often dealt with in therapy, depth of any kind is not required. One can be the lightest possible subject and still receive all of the benefits from hypnotism that the deepest subjects will obtain. I feel that over the years, far too much importance has been placed on how deep a subject can go. If the hypnotic subject is deep, it can be of benefit. This however, may not necessarily be the case. Actually, with the latest hypnotic methods like Ericksonian hypnotism and state of the art "NLP" (Neuro-Linguistic Programming), depth is one of the least important aspects, which contribute to success.

ARE THERE ANY DANGERS IN SELF-HYPNOSIS?
There are essentially no dangers to the practice of hypnotism. It is not possible to "get stuck" in hypnotism. The most terrible thing that can happen while a client is in self-hypnosis is that she might fall into a natural state of sleep for twenty or thirty minutes. She would awaken rested and no longer in a state of self hypnosis.

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT THE HYPNOTIC STATE:
There are many misconceptions about hypnotism. Most of them are due to stage and TV shows. As luck would have it, it is on account of the fact that the TV can hypnotize you that these misconceptions are so strongly ingrained in people's minds.

IS SELF-HYPNOSIS SLEEP?
The largest misconception about hypnotism is that it is sleep. Not anything could be further from the truth. If you are asleep, you are unconscious. If you are unconscious, you can't hear anything. If you can't hear anything, then the hypnotist can't help you. Hypnosis is a state of keen awareness. The subject is wide-awake and aware of everything around her.

IS THERE A HYPNOTIZED FEELING?
The second largest misconception is that there is a hypnotized feeling. There is no specific hypnotized feeling. Most people feel very relaxed when in self hypnosis, as relaxation seems to be the essence of hypnotherapy. Some people feel heavy. Some people feel light. Some people have other sensations and feelings. Other people have absolutely no feeling that they are in self-hypnosis, and believe they haven't been hypnotized when they most definitely have.

CAN THE HYPNOTHERAPIST TAKE CONTROL OF ME?
NO! The hypnotist can't make you do anything against your will. There is always an observing ego state. Should the hypnotherapist make a suggestion that you find offensive; this observing ego state would reject the suggestion.

CAN THE THERAPIST MAKE ME DIVULGE ANY OF MY SECRETS?
You will not give away any secrets while in the hypnotic state unless you want to. The hypnotherapist does not have any control over the subject. Quite the contrary, the subject has more control over herself since at this time she can directly communicate with her own subconscious mind. The subject can easily decline any suggestion the hypnotherapist makes, no matter how simple or complicated the suggestion might be. The subject can open her eyes, emerge from the state of self-hypnosis, and exit the room at any time she chooses.

MUST PEOPLE TELL THE TRUTH WHEN IN SELF HYPNOSIS?
NO! People can lie when in hypnosis.

DO HYPNOTHERAPISTS HAVE SUPER NATURAL POWERS?
This is a common misconception. The hypnotherapist does not have any special powers, nor does he have any special vibrations with which to propel you into the hypnotic state. Actually, all hypnosis is self-hypnosis. The hypnotherapist leads the subject into a state of hypnotism. In other words, the ability of self-hypnosis is within the subject.

WHY DO PEOPLE FAIL TO REACH THEIR GOALS USING SELF-HYPNOSIS?
Perhaps the biggest reason for the inability to reach one's goals through hypnosis is an insufficient amount of practice where self-hypnosis is concerned.

The largest reason for the return of a symptom or "relapse" is the early discontinuance of hypnotism with the Hypnotherapist or recorded program. While self-hypnosis is important, it is generally the hetero-hypnosis with the hypnotherapist or hypnosis recording which has the greatest impact upon the subconscious mind.

This is because of the training and experience that the hypnotherapist has vs. the lack of training and experience of the client. Some people are penny wise and pound-foolish. They mentally set an amount of money that they are willing to spend for help. And then they prematurely stop their sessions because; "I didn't lose 50 Lbs. in two days, so it isn't working." Self-hypnosis should be an ongoing affair on a daily basis. Ultimately, YOUR SUCCESS IS UP TO YOU!

WILL I BE BETTER OFF HIRING A HYPNOTIST, OR WILL PURCHASING A RECORDED PROGRAM WORK BETTER?
That is an excellent question. Normally I would recommend that you utilize the services of a reputable hypnotherapist. The reason is that by meeting with you, a good hypnotherapist / NLP'er will be able to customize his approach to your personality and your favored representational system -- the way you favor taking in information through your senses to make sense out of it and react to it.

In my opinion, 99% of the recorded self-hypnosis tapes available at this time are based on Traditional Hypnosis, and are made up of only one or maybe two sessions of it at that. Traditional Hypnosis is nothing more than a set of direct suggestions: "If you eat a brownie you will throw up." "You won't have cravings," etc.. This technology has an unbelievably poor track record of success because everyone of our generation has been trained to question everything. That's why you, your friends, and your kids usually do the opposite of what they are told to do. This is called a polarity response.

That being said, having personalized sessions with any hypnotherapist / NLP'er who has enough experience to be able to actually help you can cost a great deal of money. There are some hypnotic programs available on the Internet based on Ericksonian Hypnosis and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) that have overcome those shortcomings. They've done this by utilizing a mix of NLP, Traditional Hypnosis, Ericksonian Hypnosis, and the highly regarded Video Hypnosis technology.

These are all modalities that are designed to get rid of the resistance factor. In fact, Video Hypnosis and the NLP technology that it's based on do not utilize post-hypnotic suggestions at all. These technologies rely on using the thought processes that have created a problem, to eliminate it!

Look for vendors who offer these methodologies in multi-session products. These are programs that generally have six to eight different sessions, so the subject is exposed to a broad range of methodologies. It takes a lot of work to script and record this type of program, but the high success rates achieved are well worth the effort.

I recommend that you stay away from the "one size fits all" -- "do-or-die" hypnotism CDs and downloads. Many are lured in by these programs because they are very cheap, usually under $10.00. But is it cheap if it just wastes your valuable time and doesn't work?

If you purchase a program and it doesn't work, then you get guarded and start to expect the next approach to fail. And you get what you expect. Do you really think that the same exact suggestions will work for everyone? Do you think that they will work for you? Do you generally do exactly as you are told to do? Or do you usually feel the strong desire to do the opposite of what you are told to do?

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Alan B. Densky, CH is certified by the NGH. He's authored four books and dozens of articles on hypnosis and NLP. He is the developer of the Video Self Hypnosis Technology, which is perfected for weight loss & smoking control. Visit his Neuro-VISION Video Hypnosis site for FREE Hypnosis articles, newsletters, & MP3s.

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