1. What is hypnosis? Hypnosis is a natural state of mind. You experience lighter hypnosis when you daydream, watch a movie, or forget where you are while driving your car. Hypnotherapy is a gentle, loving process, and hypnotherapists are trained not to judge. You heal and change in your timing.*
2. What happens during a hypnosis session? The hypnosis session begins with a slow, gradual transition so that you get relaxed while taking you into a deeper and deeper state of relaxation. As your breathing and heart rate slow down, the brainwaves also slow down. Your body is relaxed, and your mind is relaxed. Expect to feel rested and relaxed after a hypnotherapy session.*
3. How will I feel? Some people experience warmth, heaviness of the legs and arms, and reluctance to move or speak. Often, people think they have not been hypnotized because they really didn’t feel that different, could still hear everything said to them, and were aware of the room, etc.*
4. Will I lose consciousness? No. You generally remain aware of all around you.*
5. Will I fall asleep? When you are in hypnosis, you are not actually asleep. You remember everything during a session that you want to, even if you drift off or experience daydreams.*
6. Can the hypnotherapist make me do things I don’t want to do? No. That’s a myth. The fake examples of hypnosis in scary movies and novels inaccurately suggest the hypnotist does something to you, puts you ‘under’, and makes suggestions to you that you then have to carry out. That’s impossible. No one can make you do or say anything you don’t want to do in or out of hypnosis. Stage hypnotists look for “class clowns” who will act silly for a laugh because only such people will consider “clucking like a chicken” or performing other foolishness. People who intentionally act a little goofy at a party are prime candidates for stage hypnotists. The average person won’t go along. Hypnotherapy contains none of this silliness.*
7. Can I get stuck in hypnosis? NO. Because the hypnotic trance is so relaxing, people often wish that they could stay there a bit longer. Even when you drift off into daydreams, you readily return when the hypnotist begins instructions for returning to everyday waking awareness. In over two hundred years of recorded hypnosis history, there is no documented case of anyone being hurt by hypnosis. If anyone tries to give you suggestions against your morals, religious beliefs, or anything you feel strongly about, you instantly emerge from the state of relaxation on your own.*
8. What can hypnosis do for me? Hypnosis all by itself is not a quick fix for any problem. It isn’t a matter of taking something out or putting something in. However, as a tool for facilitating problem-solving and experiencing positive change. Hypnotherapy promotes stress reduction, tapping into inner resources, making changes in your life, and locking in self-chosen intentions for changed behavior.*
9. What happens in a hypnotic trance state? You accept only the suggestions that are right for you. Hypnotherapy promotes tapping into subconscious resources and insights you didn’t know you had. It allows for resolve to be strengthened and blocks to accomplishing what you want to be weakened.*
10. How does it feel to be hypnotized? Hypnosis is a natural state that feels similar to that feeling you get right before you fall asleep at night. Upon awakening, most feel fresh and rested. You’re mindful the entire time, aware of everything around you. Hypnotherapy allows for a calm and clear mind and a body that is refreshed and relaxed.*
11. How much will I remember? Most people remember everything soon after coming out of being hypnotized. Others may take up to 24 hours for full recall. The only exceptions are thoughts, memories, and beliefs where hypnotherapy was intentionally used to promote the lessening of their mental presence.*
12. Who can be hypnotized? Most everyone. Part of the hypnotherapist’s job is identifying the best approach for each subject. Research has shown that intelligent people become hypnotized faster because they have greater access to their imagination. In fact, those with extremely low intelligence frequently cannot be hypnotized. The biggest prerequisite to someone being able to be hypnotized is their willingness.*
* Results may not be typical for all people.