What comes to mind when you hear the word hypnosis? You’re not alone if it’s something along the lines of acting like a chicken, swinging pendulums, ticking clocks and creepy voices whispering, “you are getting sleeeeeeeepy”. Would you be surprised if I told you hypnosis is none of those things and is actually a completely normal and natural state that you go into and out of multiple times each and every day of your life and have done since the day you were born and will continue to do so until the day you leave this world?
Many people are surprised when they hear this having believed hypnosis is a mystical or magical phenomenon which requires some kind of special person with mystical or magical powers to “do” hypnosis “to” them. Are you surprised? Are you interested to learn what hypnosis actually is? Then keep reading because by the end of this post you will understand what hypnosis is (and is not) as well as common uses for hypnosis and how hypnosis may be able to help you.
What Is Hypnosis?
The process of hypnosis and what happens at a physical level is not too hard to describe- a hypnotherapist induces a hypnotic state (a natural state of focused attention)1 which leads to altered brain activity and structure involved in consciousness2-7. fMRIs and EEGs show this as increased theta brainwave activity (the brainwaves associated with focus, concentration, learning and memorisation) which indicates hypnosis changes how our brains pay attention to things.
This change in brain function allows us to give focused attention and become more open to suggestion and change and it’s not too hard to see the value of this if you consider how many times you’ve held yourself back from exploring new avenues because you’ve had a thought along the lines of “well, that’s just the way it is”, “I don’t know anything else”, “it’s too hard” or you simply don’t know how to change or what to do.
What Does This Mean?
Hypnosis allows you to experience an unmatched openness to change to a degree and in such a way that would not be possible from a fully conscious state of awareness. Which means that even if you are receiving much the same information you’ve received in a fully conscious state of awareness you can now under hypnosis take it on board and use it as you’ve never before been capable (think of all those ‘good ideas’ you heard and things you want to do and yet still can’t – now you have a means of making them a reality).
More importantly these new changes in capability go forward into your life from that moment on. That is if the change is as good as or better than (I always go for the latter!) what you were doing in the first instance your body will keep it and you will think it, feel it or do it naturally, effortlessly and easily almost as if it has always been so. You always have a choice to do the old way because hypnosis never takes away choices it only expands them but when you have better ways of doing things you simply won’t choose those old ways any longer.
Clearly what this means in terms of health and the quality of your life is difficult to capture in words and this is where the true value of hypnosis is realised.
What Hypnosis Is Not
Hypnosis is not meditation, it is not relaxation or stress relief and it certainty is not sleep. It is not mind control or making you do or say things you don’t want to do or say. It is also not something you have to ‘believe’ in, in order to get results because it is not based on belief (as a side note if someone tells you all you have to do is believe – run). Hypnosis is firmly grounded in science and utilising principals of human physiology and neurobiology to alter the way your brain (as the brain of a human) functions in order to get the outcomes you want.
Hypnosis is not “acting like” a chicken. It is, as one of my hypnosis mentors said, “becoming” the chicken and there is a profound difference (I will let you analyse that one). Anyway, yes you can use hypnosis in this way to become the chicken, and it is interesting, amusing and fun (ok hilarious and there is nothing wrong with adding fun in life!) but that is far from the only or the most useful application of hypnosis.
Beyond The Chicken: Clinical Hypnotherapy
In short hypnosis is a normal and natural brain state of focused attention that appears to impart an unmatched openness and ability to learn and change. What is wonderful is that clever people over the years have found ways to intentionally induce this hyper leaning state otherwise known as hypnosis (if you’re interested have a google of Milton Erickson a famous American psychiatrist who moved hypnotherapy into mainstream use as a legitimate form of therapy and achieved incredible and quick results where traditional therapy could not).
Intentionally inducing hypnosis in order to achieve a therapeutic purpose, change or desired outcome is called clinical hypnotherapy and this is my area of passion because this tool allows people to bring about change more rapidly and more easily (even with enjoyment) than any other known means. It is a shame that hypnotherapy is still cloaked in a fair bit of stigma and perhaps one of the biggest barriers to people learning or utilising it is that they don’t understand what it is.
A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.
~ William Shakespeare.
Hypnosis by any other name would work as well.
~ Bonnie Killip.
It is unfortunate that a word (hypnosis) can be the very thing which gets in the way of people considering it as a genuine therapy, a tool for the change they wish to make or a facilitator of reaching goals and creating authentic internal fulfillment because hypnosis by any other name would work just as well.
I’ll quickly disclose here that before I had an experience with hypnotherapy I was firmly in this boat. It wasn’t that I had particularly negative feelings towards hypnosis, it was simply after a lifetime of science I didn’t believe in it and if it was possible I just thought it was something that wouldn’t “work” on me because I thought you probably had to be weak minded and easily controlled to be a good hypnotic subject (based on nothing because looking back I didn’t actually know anything about it and all of which I now know is absolute bogus. The moral of the story – you don’t know what you don’t know until you give it a go.
How is Clinical Hypnotherapy Used in Everyday Life?
The variety of applications clinical hypnotherapy is currently used for is immense and includes (but is not limited to):
- Pain management and analgesia (allowing people to undergo surgical operations without with use of anaesthetic)
- Enhance athletic performance (many elite athletes including Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan and David Beckham work with hypnotherapists)
- Overcoming fear of public speaking
- Curing “chronic” mental health problems (including eating disorders, anxiety, OCD and depression)
- Stopping unwanted habits
- Relief from physical illness and symptoms including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), migraines and back pain
- Overcoming grief and loss
- Dentistry
- Creating motivation
- Overcoming PTSD and abuse
- Curing allergies, illnesses and infection
- Overcoming phobias and irrational fears (including spider phobias and fear of flying)
- Childbirth
- Quitting smoking and other addictions
- Enhancing confidence and self-esteem
- Insomnia and stress relief
- Self-healing
- Forgiveness
- Weight loss
- Improving communication and relationships
- Many top businesspeople and celebrities (including Bruce Willis, Ben Affleck, Ashton Kutcher, Adele, Lily Allen, Matt Damon and Orlando Bloom)
Here’s a few pretty well-known people from history you may have heard of that also once worked with hypnotherapists; Mozart, Thomas Edison and Albert Einstein.
What Can Hypnosis Do for You?
In and of itself hypnosis can do nothing for you. Hypnosis is simply a tool and it is what happens during hypnosis that matters and to go into this is beyond the scope of this post because it is individual and unique to each person and tailored to them and their goals.
In short, clinical hypnotherapy is a tool which helps people control unwanted behaviour, emotions or biological processes8. Can you perhaps think of a behaviour, emotion or biological process you wish you had more control over?… That’s right. Perhaps you are beginning to fully appreciate now the value of clinical hypnotherapy?
If you have questions or would like clarification on any of the information in this post, please leave a comment below or contact me directly. I am always more than happy to help people understand (and experience) what is one of the best tool out there for facilitating massive change and growth.
With my whole heart I trust you found this information useful and inspiring
Become Great. Live Great.
Bonnie.
Reference
- Gonsalkorale WM, Whorwell PJ. Hypnotherapy in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2005;17:15-20.
- Palsson OS, Turner MJ, Johnson DA, Burnett CK, Whitehead WE. Hypnosis treatment for severe irritable bowel syndrome: investigation of mechanism and effects on symptoms. Dig Dis Sci. 2002;47 (11):2605–14.
- Rainville P et al. Hypnosis modulates activity in brain structures involved in the regulation of consciousness. J Cogn Neurosci. 2002;14:887-901
- Vlieger AM, Rutten JM, Govers AM, Frankenhuis C, Benninga MA. Long-term follow-up of gut-directed hypnotherapy vs. standard care in children with functional abdominal pain or irritable bowel syndrome. Am J Gastroenterol. 2012;107(4):627–31.
- Gonsalkorale WM, Toner BB, Whorwell PJ. Cognitive change in patients undergoing hypnotherapy for irritable bowel syndrome. J Psychosom Res. 2004; 56(3):271–8.
- Lowe´n MB, Mayer EA, Sjo¨berg M, Tillisch K, Naliboff B, Labus J, et al. Effect of hypnotherapy and educational intervention on brain response to visceral stimulus in the irritable bowel syndrome. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2013; 37(12):1184–97.
- Miller V. et al. Hypnotherapy for irritable bowel syndrome: an audit of 1000 patients. Gastroenterology. 142 (Suppl. 1), S-296 (2012).
- Barnett H. The Which? Guide to Complementary Therapies. London: Which? Ltd, 2002.
