The Facts

There are many prevailing myths about hypnosis, thanks to the movies, TV and stage shows. It is important to know the truth from the fantasy regarding hypnosis.

First of all, hypnosis is NOT mind control! Far from it. If it was, it would be 100% effective in reversing habits etc. (such as smoking) which it isn’t (it is about 80% effective after 6 sessions however). Even someone in deep trance is still entirely aware and in control at all times. The hypnotic trance is very pleasurable and causes profound relaxation, and so it may often seem like someone in trance is unconscious, but they are not. In trance you can hear everything (often more clearly in fact!) and you can even open your eyes and talk and still be in trance. In fact, you can enter trance standing up.

Trance is not some special magical state. It is very ordinary, and everyone enters this state at various times (usually entering and leaving sleep state). It involves a shift of brainwave states very much like the process of entering sleep, shifting from predominantly beta wave patterns into alpha, delta and/or theta. Though these shifts are always sequential in sleep, in hypnosis they can jump from one to another.

Hypnosis is NOT TRUTH SERUM! You are more than capable of lying in trance, though it usually will not support your therapeutic goals!

It is not possible to become STUCK in hypnosis. It has never happened. Though some people can be made to achieve very deep levels of trance (often referred to as the Eisdale State, or even “catatonic state”) in which they become almost entirely non-responsive, they are still perfectly able to return to normal awareness as soon as they wish. It is just that such states are so pleasant, those experiencing them are reticent to leave it! But they always can be convinced to do so by very simple and immediate methods.

Hypnosis is not a panacea. It will not cure all your ills. It is best to think of it as an adjunctive self-help method which empowers people to use the full potential of the mind for the sake of their own well-being and to reach their goals.

Everyone can be hypnotized! The only exceptions are people with serious mental or physical ailments that make the process not physically possible. Many people think that only the “weak willed” can be hypnotized, but in fact the opposite is closer to the truth. The more powerful the intellect, the imagination and the ability to focus, the easier and more profound the hypnosis process will be. It has been said that “all hypnosis is self-hypnosis” and this is largely true, though the experience is different with the assistance of a well-trained hypnotic guide.