Misconceptions Surrounding Hypnosis Dispelled
Although hypnosis has made headway in America and Britain, many people in Singapore are still ignorant about the true nature of hypnosis, its benefits and how almost everyone can benefit from knowing more about it, especially self hypnosis.
By the way, all hypnosis is self hypnosis anyway because no one can be hypnotised against his or her will. Hypnosis can be likened to a dance where the most important factor is the co-operation of the therapist and the client. Without the client's consent, no hypnosis can take place because willingness to co-operate and follow instructions is a pre-requisite for hypnosis to occur. This is the reason why most children below the age of 4, people with an IQ below 70 and psychotic people are contraindicated for hypnosis.
Many people who undergo hypnosis for the first time, especially in the lighter stages, usually report that they don't think they were in hypnosis. The main reason for this is that hypnosis is a naturally occurring state of the mind that almost everyone experiences everyday without realizing it. Examples of naturally occurring states of hypnosis in the lighter stages can occur in daydreaming, reverie, highway hypnosis and television viewing. Deeper states of hypnosis, like negative hallucination, can also occur naturally. This is when we don't see something that is right in front of us. This happens because of naturally occurring mental blocks that we create for ourselves.
Many of the clients I have seen in the past and am currently seeing now are those who have previously seen psychiatrists, psychologists and/ or counselors. When their symtoms disappear or when they get better, they sometimes say it's magic, mainly because of the relatively short period of time it takes for hypnotherapy, in contrast to the talk therapies of other health care professionals( with no offence to them). This is when I have to remind them that the results may seem magical but no magic was involved; everything can be scientifically and logically explained.
I am glad to note that more and more people are now becoming enlightened and are now more receptive to accepting hypnosis, which was not the case even five years ago. As a trainer, I am also particular about the students I train to become hypnotherapists. This is the reason why I interview prospective students before I accept them into my course. I am happy to say that some of my students are school teachers, naturopaths, counselors, doctors, homeopaths, massage therapists, administrators, psychologists, NLP Master Practitioners, Reiki Masters, enterprising home makers, university students and other professionals.
Although hypnosis comes from the Greek word 'hypnos' which means 'sleep' or the Greek God of Sleep, the state of hypnosis is not akin to sleeping. In fact, studies have shown that the EEG patterns of sleep and hypnosis differ. Hypnosis is the state of the mind that is in between the conscious state and the sleep state. This means that all of us naturally go into hypnosis as we drift towards the deep, dreamless sleep state or the Delta state and also go through it one more time as we awaken and become more conscious. In hypnosis, we call this the 'hypnogogic' and 'hypnopompic' states.
When I was in primary school, I also had my fair share of misconception about hypnosis. Those days, they used to show Sherlock Holmes movies on TV and in one particular episode, Sherlock Holmes and his assistant, Dr Watson, were on a case and had visited a hypnotist who was trying to hypnotise Sherlock Holmes. However, it was the hypnotist who finally got hypnotised and I saw him fall forwards onto the table while Sherlock Holmes walked away with a smug smile on his face. Watching that episode as a child, I thought that one needs to be strong willed like Sherlock Holmes to be able to avoid being hypnotised and I thought that only weak willed people could be hypnotised. How wrong I was! Now I know that what we see on the tv screen and in movies do not truly portray the true nature of hypnosis. If only I knew then what I know now! Now I know that hypnosis is not a battle of wills. It has more to do with the willingness of someone to do hypnosis as no one can be hypnotised against his or her will. People in hypnosis have total control of their minds at all times. In fact I have created a Testing Control script which my students can use to prove to clients that they have total control of their minds; they will only accept suggestions that they like or find acceptable and reject unacceptable suggestions.
Some people also have the misconception that people in hypnosis can be made to tell the truth and that we can extract hidden information from them. However I have to disappoint these people as hypnosis is not a truth serum and people can even lie in hypnosis; they can decide not to divulge any deep, dark secret to the hypnotherapist. This may be the reason why testimonies taken from people in hypnosis are not admissible in a court of law unless they ae verified by other evidences.
There are yet other people who are scared to do hypnosis because they worry that they might get stuck in hypnosis and never 'come back'. This is indeed ridiculous mainly because hypnosis is a safe and naturally occurring state of the mind. Even if a hypnotist were to hypnotise someone and just walk away and never come back, the hypnotised person will be able to come out of hypnosis on his or her own, just the way we awaken from our sleep. In fact the worst thing that can happen in hypnosis is that the client may fall asleep and if they fall asleep, they can always wake up. But ofcourse no hypnotherapist in her right mind would allow a client to fall asleep, because if they do, it's going to be expensive 'therapy' as nothing can be achieved in this state. Clients have to be receptive and follow instructions to benefit fully from a hypnosis session. We use techniques such as ideo-motor signalling, getting the client to nod the head or even speak. This way, the therapy session becomes an interative session with both the therapist and the client working hand in hand.
In the past, many people thoght that only a fraction of the population could be hypnotised. Now w know that most people, up to about 90% of the population can be hypnotised. Although the degree of hypnotizability vary with different people, most people can be conditioned to do better each time they do hypnosis with us. And when people do self hypnosis, they are also able to go deeper each time they go into hypnosis. The principle is if they want it, they can have it. This is the main reason why we hypnotherapists usually give our clients the post-hypnotic suggestion that each time they do hypnosis with us or with anyone else they trust, they will be able to do better and they will find it easier to go into hypnosis and go deeper relaxed.
I regularly conduct free hypnosis previews mainly to educate the public about hypnosis. During this preview session, I usually talk about hypnosis, hypnotherapy, the brief origin of hypnosis, the myths surrounding hypnosis, and the health benefits of doing hypnotherapy. I also do some demonstrations to keep the mood alive, especially because I know that the conscious mind is limited and can hold only 8 to 10 bits of information at any one time. And if someone volunteers, I would hypnotise the person so that everyone can see how it's done. This is usually a very interesting experience, especially when they question the person after being emerged from hypnosis. And finally, I conduct a group hypnosis session and allow them to ask questions at the end. So if anyone is interested to attend any of my free preview sessions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Also if you have any questions about hypnosis, please free to address it in this blog and I shall be more than happy to answer them. I should be able to answer all your questions because I am a Board Certified Hypnotherapist with NGH, which attests to my high level of expertise and knowledge about hypnosis. So all of you are welcome to voice your opinions here. However I request that you do it in a very constructive way. Thank you. Fauziah Shah
By the way, all hypnosis is self hypnosis anyway because no one can be hypnotised against his or her will. Hypnosis can be likened to a dance where the most important factor is the co-operation of the therapist and the client. Without the client's consent, no hypnosis can take place because willingness to co-operate and follow instructions is a pre-requisite for hypnosis to occur. This is the reason why most children below the age of 4, people with an IQ below 70 and psychotic people are contraindicated for hypnosis.
Many people who undergo hypnosis for the first time, especially in the lighter stages, usually report that they don't think they were in hypnosis. The main reason for this is that hypnosis is a naturally occurring state of the mind that almost everyone experiences everyday without realizing it. Examples of naturally occurring states of hypnosis in the lighter stages can occur in daydreaming, reverie, highway hypnosis and television viewing. Deeper states of hypnosis, like negative hallucination, can also occur naturally. This is when we don't see something that is right in front of us. This happens because of naturally occurring mental blocks that we create for ourselves.
Many of the clients I have seen in the past and am currently seeing now are those who have previously seen psychiatrists, psychologists and/ or counselors. When their symtoms disappear or when they get better, they sometimes say it's magic, mainly because of the relatively short period of time it takes for hypnotherapy, in contrast to the talk therapies of other health care professionals( with no offence to them). This is when I have to remind them that the results may seem magical but no magic was involved; everything can be scientifically and logically explained.
I am glad to note that more and more people are now becoming enlightened and are now more receptive to accepting hypnosis, which was not the case even five years ago. As a trainer, I am also particular about the students I train to become hypnotherapists. This is the reason why I interview prospective students before I accept them into my course. I am happy to say that some of my students are school teachers, naturopaths, counselors, doctors, homeopaths, massage therapists, administrators, psychologists, NLP Master Practitioners, Reiki Masters, enterprising home makers, university students and other professionals.
Although hypnosis comes from the Greek word 'hypnos' which means 'sleep' or the Greek God of Sleep, the state of hypnosis is not akin to sleeping. In fact, studies have shown that the EEG patterns of sleep and hypnosis differ. Hypnosis is the state of the mind that is in between the conscious state and the sleep state. This means that all of us naturally go into hypnosis as we drift towards the deep, dreamless sleep state or the Delta state and also go through it one more time as we awaken and become more conscious. In hypnosis, we call this the 'hypnogogic' and 'hypnopompic' states.
When I was in primary school, I also had my fair share of misconception about hypnosis. Those days, they used to show Sherlock Holmes movies on TV and in one particular episode, Sherlock Holmes and his assistant, Dr Watson, were on a case and had visited a hypnotist who was trying to hypnotise Sherlock Holmes. However, it was the hypnotist who finally got hypnotised and I saw him fall forwards onto the table while Sherlock Holmes walked away with a smug smile on his face. Watching that episode as a child, I thought that one needs to be strong willed like Sherlock Holmes to be able to avoid being hypnotised and I thought that only weak willed people could be hypnotised. How wrong I was! Now I know that what we see on the tv screen and in movies do not truly portray the true nature of hypnosis. If only I knew then what I know now! Now I know that hypnosis is not a battle of wills. It has more to do with the willingness of someone to do hypnosis as no one can be hypnotised against his or her will. People in hypnosis have total control of their minds at all times. In fact I have created a Testing Control script which my students can use to prove to clients that they have total control of their minds; they will only accept suggestions that they like or find acceptable and reject unacceptable suggestions.
Some people also have the misconception that people in hypnosis can be made to tell the truth and that we can extract hidden information from them. However I have to disappoint these people as hypnosis is not a truth serum and people can even lie in hypnosis; they can decide not to divulge any deep, dark secret to the hypnotherapist. This may be the reason why testimonies taken from people in hypnosis are not admissible in a court of law unless they ae verified by other evidences.
There are yet other people who are scared to do hypnosis because they worry that they might get stuck in hypnosis and never 'come back'. This is indeed ridiculous mainly because hypnosis is a safe and naturally occurring state of the mind. Even if a hypnotist were to hypnotise someone and just walk away and never come back, the hypnotised person will be able to come out of hypnosis on his or her own, just the way we awaken from our sleep. In fact the worst thing that can happen in hypnosis is that the client may fall asleep and if they fall asleep, they can always wake up. But ofcourse no hypnotherapist in her right mind would allow a client to fall asleep, because if they do, it's going to be expensive 'therapy' as nothing can be achieved in this state. Clients have to be receptive and follow instructions to benefit fully from a hypnosis session. We use techniques such as ideo-motor signalling, getting the client to nod the head or even speak. This way, the therapy session becomes an interative session with both the therapist and the client working hand in hand.
In the past, many people thoght that only a fraction of the population could be hypnotised. Now w know that most people, up to about 90% of the population can be hypnotised. Although the degree of hypnotizability vary with different people, most people can be conditioned to do better each time they do hypnosis with us. And when people do self hypnosis, they are also able to go deeper each time they go into hypnosis. The principle is if they want it, they can have it. This is the main reason why we hypnotherapists usually give our clients the post-hypnotic suggestion that each time they do hypnosis with us or with anyone else they trust, they will be able to do better and they will find it easier to go into hypnosis and go deeper relaxed.
I regularly conduct free hypnosis previews mainly to educate the public about hypnosis. During this preview session, I usually talk about hypnosis, hypnotherapy, the brief origin of hypnosis, the myths surrounding hypnosis, and the health benefits of doing hypnotherapy. I also do some demonstrations to keep the mood alive, especially because I know that the conscious mind is limited and can hold only 8 to 10 bits of information at any one time. And if someone volunteers, I would hypnotise the person so that everyone can see how it's done. This is usually a very interesting experience, especially when they question the person after being emerged from hypnosis. And finally, I conduct a group hypnosis session and allow them to ask questions at the end. So if anyone is interested to attend any of my free preview sessions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Also if you have any questions about hypnosis, please free to address it in this blog and I shall be more than happy to answer them. I should be able to answer all your questions because I am a Board Certified Hypnotherapist with NGH, which attests to my high level of expertise and knowledge about hypnosis. So all of you are welcome to voice your opinions here. However I request that you do it in a very constructive way. Thank you. Fauziah Shah
