Hypnosis is a natural state of mind that most of us experience on a daily basis. This phenomenon is something that most of us utilize naturally without even realizing it. You may be skeptical of the use of hypnosis, or that you experience a form of it on most days. It is what happens when we stop intentionally analyzing things and just let go. Hypnosis is a way to allow our conscious, subconscious, and unconscious minds to work together as one, and allows us to become the person we want to be.
It is likely that each of you encounter experiences similar to hypnosis almost daily. You may experience this while driving or reading a magazine. Maybe you have found yourself getting lost in a movie, a good book, or another life experience. For example, many of us have had driving experiences in which we spaced out for a few miles without recalling the scenery we’ve passed. Others may have experienced reading a book or magazine in which they realize that they are at the bottom of a page, but did not recall reading the previous lines or paragraphs before.
Many people are skeptical about hypnosis and are afraid that they will do things that would be embarrassing or even illegal. Listed below are several myths, facts, and common questions about hypnosis.
1. Many people think they will become a mindless drone. This is not true. You cannot be made to do anything that you would not normally do outside of hypnosis. Many entertainers that utilize hypnosis as part of their act are great at reading personality characteristics. The same people that those entertainers are able to make cluck like a chicken while on stage are the same people you are likely to see dancing on a table at a party.
2. Can hypnosis really improve athletic performance? Yes! Most athletes have experienced “the zone” or the level of optimal performance. This is when they are playing to the best of their ability and feel as if they are doing everything right. Hypnosis can help give you that mental edge over the competition to be in “the zone” more consistently.
3. Can I get stuck in hypnosis? No. Some individuals will feel like they fall asleep or may in fact fall asleep. If your provider left the room while you where in your state of deep relaxation (we promise not to do this), you would eventually awaken on your own.
4. Can I recover memories in hypnosis? Although hypnosis has been used to recover memories through techniques such as age regression, we at the Aberdeen group will not do this. Hypnosis does not improve your ability to recover memories, but has been found to increase your confidence in the memories you do recover. This can lead to false memories and it is the view of this organization that the risks of this procedure outweigh the benefits.
5. Hypnosis is for those that are gullible or not very intelligent. This is not true. In fact, hypnotic ability tends to favor bright individuals. Hypnosis has nothing to do with gullibility, low intelligence, hysteria, or schizophrenia.
6. Hypnosis is great to help me quit smoking or lose weight. This is true. Compared to other smoking cessation programs, individuals that utilize hypnosis are five times more likely to quit and not to start smoking again at a later time.
Hypnosis should never be used as a substitute for medical treatment. With that being said, here just a few of the things hypnosis can be used to treat: