Hypnosis has long been associated with the strange and mysterious, with sideshows and faith healers. But the truth is that hypnosis isn’t the least bit mysterious or supernatural. In fact, you have been in a hypnotic state literally thousands of times. You didn’t notice it because it seemed such a natural state of mind. And the hypnotic state is natural for all humans and many animals.
Levels of Consciousness
The levels of consciousness range from a state of alertness to a sleep state. There are no rigid boundaries setting off one level from the next. Instead, the levels blend into each other, the levels are alert, daydreaming, light trance, moderate trance, deep trance, sleep.
The three middle levels are the ones in which behavior modification will occur and the ones in which you will be most susceptible to posthypnotic suggestion. But it is important to understand that no two individuals will have identical experiences as they progress from the state of alertness to the deep trance. You may be far more suggestible in a moderate trance than your friend is in a deep trance. It is even possible for someone in a light trance to accept a major suggestion, such as numbness in a body part.
But generally speaking, when you are in a trance state in which you are receptive to hypnotic suggestion you will be likely to experience relaxation, sleepiness, softened in muscles of your arms and legs, skin warmth or coldness, sensations of tingling or feeling electricity and narrowness of attention.
Making Hypnosis Work for You
What can hypnosis do for you, other than provide a fascinating new experience? What can you gain from it?
The answer is that hypnosis can be used to improve your general functioning -to make you feel better mentally or physically.
You may also be concerned about what hypnosis can do to you.
Hypnosis is not in any way harmful but it id completely understandable for a beginning hypnotic subject to have some reservations. You may want to ask a few questions to assuage your curiosity and allay your fears.
What these questions argue is this: Can a hypnotherapist make you do something that is embarrassing, shocking, or irreversible? No, you will not do anything you do not think is acceptable. That is, you cannot be “made” to violate your own values or accepted patterns of behavior.
It is important for you to remember that a trance state can be terminated by you at any time. It is your choice to enter the trance state, and you can always choose to leave it. If your were left in a trance state by your hypnotherapist or by you hypnotic tape, you would either return to full consciousness on you own or enter a natural sleep and awaken after a pleasant nap. No one has ever disappeared for long.
Now that you know the trance state is safe territory, you can examine the ways in which it can be used. Listed below are some of the basic beneficial functions most commonly associated with hypnotherapy. Of course, individuals’ needs vary. Because of this, there are as many applications as there are hypnotic subjects. Included here are only a few of the specific applications that hypnotherapist regularly employ.
As you can see, all of the functions listed have to do with your own thinking and actions. In all of the applications – whether it be numbing your gums or driving over a bridge – you are the controlling factor. It is always through your own effort they change occurs. This change can affect your life minimally, or it can make a dramatic difference in your lifestyle, success, and feeling of well-being.
Because you know in which areas of your life you need direction, assistance, or motivation, you can assess your personal needs and select a corresponding self-hypnosis treatment. Following is a summary of the specialized hypnosis treatments.
Weight loss. Motivates weight loss, reprograms eating habits, and establishes a procedure for weight maintenance.
Smoking. Eliminates the smoking habit and provides procedures for permanent behavior modification.
Stress. Employs techniques to reduce or eliminate stress, promotes relaxation, and reprograms specific behavior patterns.
Phobias. Eliminates a fear of something, such as riding in an elevator, air travel, crowds, or disease.
Natural childbirth. Supports and reinforces Bradley Lamaze methods, programs pain control, establishes communication with the child, and promotes a positive post birth phase.
Major health problems. Eases the symptoms and reduces the effects of such chronic problems as colitis, muscle spasms, and ulcers.
Pain. Controls pain in chronic conditions such as arthritis or back pain; introduces techniques for reducing pain of surgery, injury, or disease.
Self-esteem and motivation. Improves self-projection, reprograms past negative behavior, increases confidence and self-acceptance; programs for specific goals, instills feelings of comfort in regard to success.
Learning. Improves study habits, enhances memory, instills positive attitude toward learning, and incorporates reward.
Sports. Refines athletic performance by allowing strong focus on areas that need improvement; creates a sense of success in the execution of skills, increases stamina and coordination, puts the competitive spirit in perspective, and enhances overall attitude.
Creativity. Releases blocked potential in areas of writing, painting, and the performing arts; motivates productions and promotes the use of the trance state as an aid to insight.
In addition to these areas, you will also learn how to design an induction that meets other exclusive or unique needs. No matter how special your problem is, it can be successfully reduced or eliminated by the thoughtful application of hypnosis.
Much has been written about how to stop smoking. The desire to stop has increased due to a greater awareness of its negative effects and the positive effects on both the body and the environment. Studies have shown that nicotine is a very powerful and addictive drug that affects both our mental and physical capacities, often leading to cancer and other medical problems, and even to death. For example, did you know that if you stop smoking, you can reduce your chances of getting lung cancer by 80%1 Did you know that the death rate of persons with chronic bronchitis and emphysema is 500% higher for smokers than non- smokers? In addition, smokers have twice as many automobile accidents and house fires than non-smokers.
Cigarette smoke contains over 4,000 different chemicals, including toxic pesticides and carcinogens, which cause over 4.9 million deaths each year. Each puff you take releases 130,000 Free Radicals that damage cells, cause early aging and lower energy levels.
Stop spending all your money on poisoning yourself and invest in your future. Right now smoking a pack a day costs you over $135.00 per month. That is over $1,620.00 per year. Stopping now can save you over $16,200.00 in the next ten years! That is not including hidden costs For example: each pack carries $7.18 in related medical costs as those mentioned above. Factoring this in, giving up one pack a day could save you an additional $8,616.00 or a total of $24,816.00 over the next ten years Hypnosis is a highly effective method of handling the addiction of nicotine and smoking. By using hypnosis, your subconscious mind becomes programmed to seek pleasure and to avoid pain. Our subconscious mind is very powerful. While under hypnosis, your subconscious mind is reprogrammed to find smoking unpleasant. For example, when you have a cup of coffee, talk to a neighbor, or take a break from work, you may desire a cigarette. These activities are called triggers. If you do not experience such triggers; you may often go for hours without needing a cigarette. In hypnosis, these actions can be identified, enabling us to break the connection between smoking and the actions.
In addition to and in coordination with hypnosis, various tools and techniques are used. This tool box of supports includes: drinking water all day long, drinking fruit juice to avoid sugar cravings, drinking herb tea for relaxation, chewing on or sucking cinnamon sticks, using tooth picks, eating carrot sticks, chewing sugar free mints or gum, physical exercise, vitamins, visual imagery, deep breathing, personal affirmations, and calling a friend as part of your sup- port system. Positive reinforcement is very important and you need to be rewarded for trying to become a non-smoker. One of the best ways one receives that support is when family and friends congratulate you on being a non-smoker.
This positive reinforcement rewards your conscious mind. Finally; we learn that being a non-smoker is a way of life. We learn to balance our lives in the areas of physical, emotional and spiritual support, and in our activities. We learn to express ourselves and live out our lives in healthy ways.
The Clean Break stop smoking program offered by the Hudson Center works. Over 35,000 Americans, across the United States, have stopped smoking as ,a result of using this program. It involves three 2-hour sessions, in which education and hypnosis are used.
Ready, Set, Quit -In Week One, you will learn:
- How to immediately reduce your nicotine dependence
- To recognize your smoking triggers and how to avoid them
- The technique called FOCUS, for achieving instant relaxation
- Effective relaxation/hypnosis techniques that help you in your daily routine, as well as stop you from smoking
- How to deal with your own resistance
- New behaviors, to help change the habits that are poisoning you
- To focus on the positive reasons for quitting
The overall outcome is that you will feel great about yourself for breaking free of the addiction.
Become A Non-Smoker -Week Two is an optional 2-hour session to help you remain a non-smoker, using relaxation/hypnosis and additional techniques to keep you on the right track and to reinforce what was learned in Week One. In Week Two, you will learn:
- A "mental aversion" technique that will make the thought of smoking unpleasant to you
- How to quickly extinguish your cravings ¾ every time
- To make healthy choices when eating, working and exercising
Relapse Prevention -Week Three is an optional 2-hour session to keep you on the right track. This week will be dedicated to helping you remain a non-smoker for good. This is an important class to attend. In Week Three, you will learn:
- To reward yourself with healthy choices
- To continue to apply the new tools and knowledge learned to continue to be a non-smoker
While the Week 2 and 3 sessions are optional, they are high- ly recommended, in order to reinforce the teachings learned in Week One. Take the first step toward a healthier you in
2006.
Written by David Holstein, MA, NCC, and George Toth, LCSW: The Hudson Cente1; 276 Hudson Street, Cornwall- On-Hudson, NY Group and individual sessions are now forming. Appointments can be scheduled by calling:
534-2926
18 It's A Wonderful Town FEBRUARY 2006
276 Hudson Street, Cornwall on Hudson, NY 12520
E-mail us: info@thehudsoncenter.com
