For as long as I can remember, hypnosis has been shrouded in mystery. Although much has been written about this ancient tool, it is still misunderstood. Hypnosis is simply an altered state of natural consciousness. To hypnotize is to lead or guide an individual into this altered state. Hypnosis is an effective tool in its ability to shrink the conscious mind and eliminate outside stimuli. It is also used to bypass the critical mind and access the unconscious, where beliefs, traumas, behavior patterns, and attitudes reside. Practitioners in the healing arts use it to achieve or enhance physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. Through the hypnotic state, we can create positive changes in our lives. Today, hypnosis is widely respected for its success with weight control, smoking cessation, and pain management, as well as its ability to enhance productivity and creativity. Many psychotherapists use hypnosis in their counseling practices to help clients modify negative behaviors, habits, and addictions; access buried emotions; heal traumas; and integrate splits in the personality. Integration work is sometimes called parts therapy, soul integration, or shadow work. Today, hypnosis is being used with great success to replace anesthesia during surgery and to control pain during childbirth. While many people have already benefited from hypnosis, too many people still lack a clear understanding of what this altered state of consciousness is, and how it can be used for personal enrichment. Let me begin by saying that all hypnosis is self-hypnosis. The Mosby Medical Encyclopedia (1992 edition) defines hypnosis as "a passive, trance-like state that resembles normal sleep during which perception and memory are changed, resulting in increased responsiveness to suggestion." This is incorrect, and reflects a medieval attitude that generates fear. They're still living in the Dark Ages. Hypnosis is a natural state of mind. We become hypnotized every time we become absorbed in something (a great book, a movie, a sporting event, or intimate conversations), or when we become startled by something (an accident, a crime in progress, a child in trouble, or a deadline). Hypnosis is an art. It is also a very ancient healing tool used by shamans, the psychologists and doctors of the ancient world. Today, many shamanic practices are receiving unprecedented support in the scientific community. This support is the result of the research being conducted in the fields of physics and psychoneuroimmunology. Shamans bring people into this natural state through drumming, dancing, music, and fasting. Clinical hypnotists bring people into this natural state through trance induction. The methods may differ, but the result is the same. Shamans work on the transpersonal level with spirit guides, while clinical hypnotists work on the subconscious level with ego. Most clients reach the hypnotic state (either mild or medium trance level) during massage therapy, Reiki treatments, Healing Touch Therapy, and reflexology, to name just a few. An electroencephalograph (EEG machine) can measure the four states of mind: beta, alpha, theta, and delta. The beta state (awake state) is where reason, logic, and decision-making occur. Our brainwaves measure 13 or more cycles per second. When our brainwaves slow down, we enter the alpha state. It is in this state that the gate between the conscious and the subconscious minds open. It is here that we become relaxed, mellow, and are open to suggestion. (It is in alpha that we become technologically hypnotized and advertisers can plant the seeds of need and want in our minds.) In this state of relaxed consciousness, we are open to learn, to create, to imagine, and to meditate. It is also the REM level of consciousness, where memories of dreams occur. Here, our brainwaves measure between 8 and 13 cycles per second. As we continue to descend the staircase of the mind, we enter theta, or the dream state. This is where yogis and meditators reach spiritual awareness. On this level, our brainwaves measure between 4 and 7 cycles per second. Our final step down is into delta. This is where we reach deep sleep or total unconsciousness. This is the state that people are brought to for surgical procedures. Here, our brainwaves are measured between .05 and 3 cycles per second. Light trance is the first level of the hypnotic state in which you are relaxed, open to ideas, fully aware, and in control. In light trance, you will probably feel like you have not been hypnotized. Medium trance, or alert trance, brings you into deeper relaxation, and bodily perceptions become distorted. Although you will be aware of your surroundings, you won't feel like moving; you'll know that something is definitely going on. To reach this level of trance, one must have trust and confidence in one’s practitioner. Deep trance is the somnambulistic state, in which you are so relaxed that you have no bodily sensation at all. This is where psychotherapy and suggestion work takes place. In this level of trance, you are likely to experience lethargy (unwillingness to move or talk), catalepsy (rigidity of posture), amnesia (inability to recall upon waking), regression (moving into the past), and voice or speech distortion (slurring). The next level is the deepest level of trance, and it is often referred to as the comatose state. People are rarely brought down to this level, and it is used primarily for surgery. In this deep trance level, breathing is reduced to a very slow one or two breaths per minute. This is where complete anesthesia is achieved. There are many ways to bring a person into a trance. It can be achieved through breath work, counting down, eye fixation, using grounding cords or white light, progressive relaxation, visualization, and guided imagery. Just as there are four states of mind and four levels of trance, there are also four components of hypnosis: imagination, belief, expectation, and conviction. When these four components are in place, success is usually achieved. Having the ability to imagine enhances your ability to be hypnotized. Imagination is the language of the subconscious. If you can't see your results with your mind's eye, you're not likely to achieve results. Imagination is the key to success, and it leads to the next component, belief. Belief in hypnosis facilitates success. If you don't believe in hypnosis, or if you believe that you cannot be hypnotized, you won't be. Belief is paramount, and it will lead you to the next component, expectation. Expectation and conviction go hand in hand. Expectation plus conviction equals success. With these four principles in place — imagination, belief, expectation, and conviction — results happen. Despite your ability to enter the hypnotic state, there are no guarantees that you will reach the level of healing you want. Your subconscious mind may not be ready or willing to let go of the emotion, trauma, or habit you seek to eliminate. Using hypnosis regularly can seduce the subconscious mind into an eventual surrender, so don't lose faith. You can use self-hypnosis regularly, even daily — especially at night before you go to sleep — to work out unwanted behaviors, painful emotions, or bad habits, control or relieve pain, and even work through addictions. All you have to do is bring yourself into this level of relaxation and ask your internal guide to bring you the information you need for healing through the dream state. I've been using this method of self-hypnosis for over thirty years, with enormous success. The mind creates and stores every thought, every deed, every event, every pain, and every joy in our memory bank. Everything that happens to us, consciously and unconsciously, gets stored there. Through hypnotic regression and suggestion, we can tap into the enormous warehouse where all our memories reside. Angelica Sky Mayo is a licensed hypnotherapist and Reiki practitioner. She is a full-time student, working toward a degree in transpersonal psychology. Her healing practice is in Olympia, Washington, and she can be reached at (360) 352-3389 or <angelicamayo@earthlink.net>. |