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What is Hypnotism
The word "hypnotism" was coined in 1953 by James Braid, a 19th-century Scottish surgeon. It is
derived from the Greek word 'hypnos' meaning, "to sleep." The idea behind modern hypnosis is
the supposition that a direct line of communication can be made between the operator and subject
by talking directly to the subconscious mind of person placed in an hypnotic state. In our modern-day 20th and 21st century, hypnotism and hypnosis are tools used by professional hypnotists and
for a wide variety of medical reasons. Clinical or Medical Hypnosis is used to help people with a
wide range of supposed psychological problems ranging from obesity, overeating, smoking, etc. It
is believed that subtle yet positive suggestions can be made by the operator and that over a time,
the subject will carry out the positive suggestion.
The Father of Modern Day Hypnotism
Hypnotism can be traced back to Friedrich Anton Mesmer (May 23, 1734 - March 5, 1815), and
to Mesmerism a system of healing based upon his theories about 'animal magnetism'. Mesmer
was a German doctor who received his degree in Vienna in the year 1766. At his inaugural
address he presented his thesis entitled, 'De Planetarum Influxu' which taught that 'animal
magnetism' was an invisible universal fluid that was present in the body and that this fluid were
governed by the laws of magnetism. Mesmer claimed harmony and balance to the body could be
restored to certain physical, emotional and mental illnesses by inducing a trance state. Although largely
discredited in the medical community as a fraud or quack his ability to induce a trance state in his
patients has made him the forerunner of modern day hypnotism. Mesmer was trying to describe
the electromagnetic force field emanating from an individual. This was not new but his theories
and the way he presented them to the medical community were. Others in the esoteric and
spiritual communities have called this same force 'odic' force; while still others claimed it to be a
vital energy or Vital Force; something we can tackle at another time because it is a topic in and of
itself.
What is Hypnosis
Hypnosis is a technique used by hypnotists to place someone in a hypnotic state or in an altered
state very much akin to a deep theta or alpha state of consciousness normally reached during a
deep REM sleep state. This altered state of consciousness is very similar to a meditative or trance
state but with subtle differences. Usually the person being hypnotized is a person other than the
hypnotist, yet it is possible to place oneself in a self-hypnotic state. In order to achieve auto-hypnosis one might use techniques familiar to yogis who practice the art of meditation or even to
that of mediums who might place themselves in a trance state. The body is relaxed, the breathing
and heartbeat is slowed, and through a willful act of deep concentration the mind and its electrical
wave patterns and brain chemistry is altered. The individual, if capable of becoming so entranced
can enter the various levels of awareness ranging from the higher super-conscious mind to the
lower subconscious mind. In other words, through meditative practice it is possible to have a
transcendental experience of unity with one's higher self; but should one fall short of that higher
idealistic goal it is just as easy to experience the lower levels of awareness.
The Goal of Hypnotist
In hypnosis, the goal of the hypnotist is to narrow the field of the conscious mind to such a degree
that it relinquishes its ability to control thought by having it take on a more passive role. This
sense of focus allows the subconscious mind to achieve a prominent role, albeit a temporary one.
The slave is now the master and heightened responses stemming from mental and audible
suggestions or images made to it by the operator or hypnotist can now be achieved. In other
words, in hypnotism the idea is to communicate directly with the subconscious mind while the
conscious mind is pushed aside temporarily by taking a back seat.
The Role of the Conscious Mind
The idea of a vehicle whether it be a plane, boat or car along with driver and passenger is a good
one to help us understand what takes place in the process of hypnosis, but for our purposes we
will use the analogy of a car and a student wishing to learn how to drive. That student desirous to
learn more is the conscious mind. Were we to imagine the subconscious mind at the helm or in the
driver's seat of that car while the conscious mind were sitting in the back as passenger, we would
not be totally accurate in our description. We would not have an accurate picture, because in
hypnosis we must also account for the hypnotist. And so our first step is to hire one. More
accurately, while fully awake and in control, the conscious mind must hire one to act as its
instructor or guide while in this teachership phase. An agreement and contract is made between
conscious mind and hypnotist. Basically, the conscious mind is saying to the hypnotist, I would
like to learn how to operate this vehicle but am afraid to drive solo. The hypnotist responds, I will
guide you each and every step of the way and will give you techniques you can use to master the
vehicle yourself. It's as if he or she is saying, just follow my hands and do what I do. But then he
or she might add, but you must listen very carefully to the sound of my voice and follow my
instructions carefully. Still functioning from your conscious mind you nod your head in
agreement, relinquish your control, take your place in the back seat and tap your companion
(subconscious mind) on the shoulder giving it a green light to proceed under the tutelage of its
now outside master. With that in mind, let's place the hypnotist up front in what is normally the
front passenger seat. To complete the picture, let's give the hypnotist a dual set of controls;
controls designed to take over the vehicle should the need arise. In other words, the new
passenger is now master of the vehicle and responsible for it. He or she is a seasoned driver, is in
complete control of the vehicle, whilst the student is merely mimicing his or her movements in
order to get a feel for the car. In other words, it may appear as if you are in the driver's seat but
you are not yet driving solo. In our little analogy it would be wise to remember that the conscious
mind is not oblivious to what is going on. It can see and hear and is aware of both driver,
instructor and vehicle. The primary difference is this: In our ordinary wakeful lives it is the
conscious mind that controls our rational thoughts while the subconscious mind lays dormant and
is acting behind the scenes and does not normally surface until we fall asleep. In the case of
hypnosis we are giving over permission to the hypnotist to act as our conscious mind making
controlled decisions for us by introducing thoughts, ideas or images that might not ordinarily be
there were we left to our own devises. In a step by step process we are instructed to close our
eyes, to relax, when to inhale, when to exhale, for example. The hypnotist may even be able to
induce an agreed upon sleep state as well as making suggestion as to when to wake up or return to a normal state of consciousness. So, in effect we are saying, my conscious mind needs a rest, so
I am going to sleep for a few minutes while you talk to my subconscious mind instead of me. In
order for this type of symbiotic relationship to work there has to be a bond of complete trust.
Suggestiblity
Many sources will tell us that if a person is capable of being hypnotized usually they are said to be
easily suggestible individuals; yet I personally have my doubts as to the accuracy of that
statement. I say this, because I truly feel as though the person going to the hypnotist already has
foreknowledge of what to expect; and in that expectation their own conscious as well as
subconscious mind may very well have implemented the mental attention needed to make
hypnotic suggestion easier to accept. For example, the person who goes to a clinical hypnotist to
stop smoking already knows why they are there. The same might apply to someone who goes to a
spiritual hypnotist in order to uncover their reincarnational identities through a past life
regression.
The Dangers of Hypnosis
Edgar Cayce the well known American Sleeping Prophet (born March 18, 1877 - died January 3,
1945 at age 67) has told us that in sleep subconscious minds are linked. From this we may also
infer that in a meditative, trance or hypnotic state, sub-conscious minds may be linked also. He
even warned us of some of the dangers we might encounter by minds more powerful than ours
who might seek to control us or to do us harm. The phrase that comes to mind is, know your
bedfellows. It is just as important to know your hypnotist. In our modern day society, that usually
means paying attention to one's credentials. Yet ironically, hypnosis although becoming
increasingly popular is not yet accepted by the American Medical Association. There are however,
many schools and universities that will hand out certificates. Still, when I say, know your
hypnotist I am not speaking in terms of any earthly degrees but rather to the emotional, mental,
and spiritual status of the person to whom you are entrusting yourself. And ironic as this may
sound, I am suggesting that you know the inner workings of that mind more than your own. Not
such an easy thing to achieve when we are going to a hypnotist because we may inwardly believe
that they know more than we about the inner workings of the human mind and all its potential.
This simply is not so, in my opinion.
How Does Hynosis Work
We said earlier that the hypnotist might instruct their client to "listen very carefully to the sound
of their voice and follow their instructions carefully. " At this point, many believe and erroneously
so, that this type of thing is the induced suggestion; and may actually fear the hypnotist because of
it. They believe it to be so, because the hypnotist might say: "Listen to the sound of my voice;"
but how else is someone to convey over a message or a series of instructions if it is not by an
audiable voice communication? Now, in a clinical setting, the hypnotist or therapist might also
turn down the lights to eliminate outside mental stimuli (an effect that might help induce a sleep
state), as well as starting up a metronome, an instrument used by musicians and piano players to
help them keep a beat or tempo. This is just another tool to help induce a sleep state, and is in fact
the mechanism by which the subject is put to sleep or placed in a altered state of consciousness.
The reason this works is because we end up patterning our breathing and heartbeat by it. In other
words, the sound of they metronome will help slow down our vital signs to a steady rhymic pace, a
pace most of us achieve naturally while sleeping. But in the case of hypnotism, asking the subject
to concentrate on the sound of the metronome can help faciliate that end result much faster and
under controlled circumstances. Yet this effect can be just as easily achieved were any of us to
concentrate on the sound of a ticking clock. We still do not know why, but the rhymic repetitious
sound helps the mind to focus on that one item alone at the exclusion of all else, thus placing us in
a trance state. That, and the normal amount of time to run through a body relaxation technique is
approximately the same amount of time it takes most of us to fall off into a deep sleep. I do
suppose this is so because most people when awake are constantly in a state of motion and will
only fall asleep when the body is placed in a state of rest, either laying down in a horizontal
position or in a reclining sitting up position. We do not fall asleep while standing, for example.
The Power of the Spoken Word
Whether for good or for nought, it has long been know that there are certain individuals who have
a natural charismatic propensity to influence or captivate their audiences. Jesus was one such man
but so was Hitler. Why were these two men able to influence so many and in such a shorten span
of time? What did these two men have in common and what made them different? Was it their
message or was it their eyes or their voice or something else? We will never know. What we do
know is that there is power in the spoken word.
The Power of Suggestion
We have all encountered times when we might suggest an idea to someone in a subtle or non
intrusive manner; only to find out minutes or hours later that the listener unaware comes up with
what he or she thinks is a totally new idea. In a marriage or in a relationship, for example, more times than not the passive aggressive person can
implant ideas unbeknown their partners in an attempt to control or manipulate the situation. After
preparing a candle lit dinner and playing some soften music, setting the mood, the wife says to the
husband, for example, "Have you heard, my sister and her husband are going to the Carribean
Islands for their vacation this coming Spring." Then, as if by magic, moments later the man
comes up with a brainstorm saying: "Why don't we go with them," he might say. Which is exactly
what the wife was hoping for. That is to say, if she was consciously aware of the inner workings of her subconscious mind and her efftiveness as a seductress.
Some suggestions are more pointed and may even be deceptive and harmful. The one that comes
to mind is how Bush and Cheney convinced a nation that Saddam Hussain was responsible for
911 and the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon by constantly using the same set
of ideas inside of the same speech or address to the nation; so that after awile 70% of the nation believed it. Fortunately, however the truth be told and lies uncovered for what they truly are: a way to manipulate the populace by way of propoganda..
Subliminal Suggestion
We all know that dogs and cats and other animals can hear sounds that are outside of the human
range of hearing. But what many of us do not know is that there may very well be sounds that the
mind can recognize but the ear may not hear audibly well enough to interpret. Modern day science
is experimenting on producing sound frequencies that can place people in a more receptive mode
and they are doing it each and every day in radio, television and yes, even on the internet. In radio
or television advertizing, a subliminal message is a hidden message intended to influence the
listener or viewer by containing a hidden suggestion that the conscious mind cannot pick up; yet
the subconscious mind can. Usually, that message is to buy a product over another; yet if
unguarded this same sort of thing can have disastrous religious, political, economic, or military
uses as well . This is done by introducing sound patterns just above or below the normal range of
hearing; or by inserting images whose frequencies are so fast that the normal blinking eye can see
them but does not recognize them on a conscious level.
Psychological Triggers
We are creatures of habit and very often the product of our own conditioning. Some habits are good while others may not be as beneficial to our health, safety and wellbeing. Flossing our teeth after every meal is a good habit. Drinking a glass of milk a day is another good habit. On the emotional side of life, we can even extend this to feelings of happiness and joy as well. It is good for us to say good morning everyday to our co-workers; or when we get home to say to our family, I love you. Yet how many times do we unknowingly say things by habit that are holding us down or keeping us in the same old mindset of being negative. Now here, I am talking about those little negative quarks we have that we never pay much attention to because we do them by habit. We are having ordinary conversation with a friend and within the course of an hour we might use expressions like, "I wish I could;" or "I can't," or " how silly of me" or I don't know," several times. Negative phrases like these become psychological triggers for all our fears, codependencies and failures in life. Yet there is a solution. We replace those negative expressions with positive ones. An "I can" will do wonders for our self-esteem. So will elliminating the expression, 'how silly of me." The trick is to recognize the keywords that are holding us back and then to implement a set of counter commands. In other words our goal becomes that of reprogramming our minds; and the end result improves our chances at positive reconditioning. Easier said than done, I know; and that is why it is often helpful to have a third party assist us.
Reinforced Affirmations
In order for a theraputic session to be effective, the hypnotherapist may also give his or her client a series of exercises to perform in addition to the hypnotic suggestions themselves. For example: Let us suppose that a person were going to a hypnotist in order to lose weight. The reinforced idea can be something as simple as: I am in complete control over my body. Or, I eat healthy nutritious food. In other words positive affirmations are employed to help reinforce the hypnotic suggestion. The client may be instructed to reaffirm positive suggestions 20-50 times a day either mentally or by placing little reminders about in the kitchen and especially on the refrigerator door. The idea of assigning homework, (if we can call it that) is this: If a person were programming their conscious mind with negative subconcious thoughts for many years, it may take a long time to undo it. So the idea of consciously made repetitions is to help speed up that process of reprogramming negative thought patterns with positive ones. In effect, we reverse the process. Instead of the subconscious mind being a dumb slave to a master who has been feeding it misinformation, we are now making both master and slave act in harmony with one another and in a most positive way. After eating a meal, for example, we do not say, I am hungry; but rather, I am full and completely satisfied.
A Natural Hypnotist
On a more personal note, I am a natural hypnotist and I have spent many hours trying to decipher why this should be. Yet time
and time again, especially when I am conducting a spiritual meeting, I find people either falling asleep in my presence or feeling extremely relaxed in my presence as to go off into a trance state. When I began to notice this pattern, at first I thought, and erroneously so that I must be very boring to put people to sleep so; but in time I realised that something mytical were taking place. Then there are those who respond to or cling to my words as if they were gold. They tend to see me as an authoritarian or controlling figure when that has never been my goal. This places an undo burden on me because I am not speaking as any kind of authority, but merely expressing my own personal views. I have
also found that this same sort of thing happens, but in a limited fashion to my written word as
well. There is a style and beat to my words that is unmistakeable. And so, I have come to hypothesis as to some of the extraneous reasons why this should be both in myself and in others.
Now, I am not saying that I am right or wrong in my assessment, but would like the opportunity to express my
views in a very simplistic manner. To do this, I am going to list a random series of qualities I feel make for an effective hypnotist. Most of these qualities are naturally inbred but many can be learned or acquired throughout life:
- A charismatic personality
- An air of confidence
- Leadership qualities
- A soft spoken or monotone voice
- A calming effect on others
- A magnetic auric field
- Engaging in eye contact
- Expressive body language
- Persistence
- Knowledge of the 5 states of consciuosness
- An inability to be swayed or hypnotized by others
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