Awakening Mind and Body
contraindications. Yet few therapeutic procedures are less
understood, or more plagued by misconceptions and
misunderstandings. Before considering what hypnosis is,
perhaps it would be appropriate to establish what it is not!
Most hypnotherapists, on interviewing a new client/patient,
will ask the client what he or she thinks hypnosis is.
Replies range from sleep, to unconsciousness, to surrender
of mental powers and control, to magic, to voodoo. A are in
error.
Hypnosis cannot be sleep. In most cases the subject is fully
aware of communication and is able to respond on request A
either verbally or by signal. Nor is unconsciousness
involved. A subject asked to make a specific movement will
comply with the request unless it is objectionable, in which
case there will be a refusal.
There is no surrender of mind or control. A person who does
not want to be hypnotized cannot be hypnotized or be induced
to do or say anything which violates of personal standards
of behavior or integrity. There is neither magic nor voodoo
involved. Any hypnotherapist can explain the actions or
behaviors seen in stage, film or television shows, where the
subject seems to follow directions mindlessly.
Actually, hypnosis is better described than defined. It is
often considered an altered state of consciousness featuring
"selective perception," a process in which the subject (who
is in control) chooses to see only what is relevant to his
task, blocking out everything else. Hypnosis involves guided
concentration. The guidance, however, may be provided by a
qualified practitioner or, in the case of self-hypnosis, by
the individual subject. Self-hypnosis, which can be taught
by a properly certified hypnotherapist and learned by
virtually any client, can provide the recipient with a
lifetime of benefit.
WHERE DID HYPNOSIS ORIGINATE?
The
basics of hypnosis go back to ancient times. Those who have
read Jean Auel's memorable book, "Clan Of The Cave Bear,"
will remember accounts of magic, healings, inherited
memories and revelations performed or created by the "Mogurs"
and "medicine women" of prehistoric clans. Hypnosis. In the
early centuries of our own land, the medicine men of Indian
tribes performed seeming miracles. Hypnosis. Wider,
non-secret usage began in the 1700's in several forms under
different names.
There were periods of progress and periods of stagnation in
the development of modern hypnosis. Medical interest and
acceptance expanded following World War II when the use of
hypnotherapy proved especially helpful to surviving
battlefield casualties suffering from shock, injury, battle
fatigue and various psychological disorders. As
understanding increased hypnosis began to be recognized as
an important adjunct to counseling psychology,
psychotherapy, psychiatry, and also medical fields including
neurology, obstetrics, emergency medicine, bum therapy and
others. Hypnosis is finding increasing usage in dentistry
and other areas where pain control is important. All humans
(and possibly several animals) have two distinct minds the
conscious mind and the unconscious mind. The unconscious
mind is vastly larger and more powerful than the conscious
mind, yet it is the least understood and used by mankind.
Actually, the great "unconscious" mind has two functional
elements, the subconscious and the superconscious, the
former the storehouse of memory, the latter dealing with the
spiritual.
DOES IT WORK?
The subconscious mind receives and retains, neither
accepting nor rejecting, all the messages we receive from
our backgrounds, whether genetic, social, religious or
experiential, plus all the conflicts (little or big) that
enter our lives daily. When for whatever reason the
conscious mind (which deals with everyday living, logic,
reason, etc.) becomes overloaded, the subconscious prepares
us for what is considered appropriate action (usually fight
or flight). However the subconscious mind does not analyze,
as does the conscious mind, but accepts all messages in the
literal sense.
In essence, hypnosis is a means of communication between the
conscious mind and the subconscious mind. Many human
problems, habits, stresses, anxieties, attitudes or apparent
deficiencies can be traced to interpretations by the
subconscious mind which, when understood by the conscious
mind, can reduce or resolve specific problems.
The subconscious is also the seat of all memory. Traumatic events can be buried or suppressed in the subconscious. A major benefit of hypnotherapy is its ability to uncover and bring into the light of understanding the buried information or experience which may be the cause of a troublesome disorder.
WHAT YOU WILL EXPERIENCE
Your first visit with your hypnotherapist will, primarily, be exploratory. You will learn about hypnotism and become comfortable with it. Your hypnotherapist will discuss your interests and your desires to determine if hypnotherapy can accomplish what you want to achieve. If you both feel that it will be worthwhile to proceed, your hypnotherapist may give you some small tests to determine your type of suggestibility, your ability to relax, your skills at visualization-procedures which help your therapist adapt to you as an individual so as to design programming personalized for you which will be acceptable to your subconscious, retained and acted upon in a manner leading to full achievement of your goals.
