Common Hypnosis Misconceptions

Hypnosis is not being asleep, instead it is more of a trance, and people can experience natural trances during their day to day life. If you have ever gotten in the car and arrived somewhere not 100% sure how you got there, read a good book or seen a movie and had several hours passed unnoticed, or been involved in a good daydream, you have been in a trance.

Hypnotherapists use hypnotic techniques to induce this state on their patient. When they are in a trance, the therapist can make suggestions towards the goal of the patient. The belief is that when the patient is in a trance, the conscious objections are turned off, and the therapy can be directed at the subconscious. It can be used to control pain, control physiological functions, and solve problems that could not be done consciously.

Many people have misconceptions about hypnosis. Here are some of the common ones.

A hypnotist can not make you do things against your will – you remain in control of yourself. During hypnosis you are in a relaxed state and can choose to follow the therapist's voice and suggestions, but this requires 100% commitment from you since it is carried out in your imagination. The therapist can give you guidance but cannot control what is going on. If the therapist should try to give you a suggestion that you did not agree with, you would come out of your relaxed trance state.

Hypnosis is like being in a deep sleep, however, unlike sleep you will actually be aware of what is going on. Your senses will be switched on, but they will be more focused, which will allow you to concentrate and hone in on what the therapist is saying.

It is possible for everyone to be hypnotized, since most people go into a relaxed trance state during their day to day activities and it is part of our normal experiences. However, if a person is extremely nervous about hypnotherapy, possibly because of misconceptions, they can resist going into a trance if they do not want to do it. A good hypnotherapist will have the experience and skill to help a nervous client relax by going at the client's pace. This may require multiple sessions before a complete trance can be induced.

Hypnosis by itself is not a therapy – it is a technique. This can be seen in the difference between a stage hypnotist that makes audience members cluck like chickens and an experienced hypnotherapist that affects change in a patient's life. Hypnotherapy is therapy that is done while the patient is in a trance. The hypnotherapist has to understand the conditions and disorders in order to be able to treat a patient appropriately, so you will want to know what sort of experience your hypnotherapist has.

You may not realize that you have been successfully hypnotized since the actual affect may not feel that strange to you. It is not like being under anesthesia where you forget everything, but is more like day-dreaming. Therefore, it may feel quite comfortable and not at all unique.

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