Hypnotherapy - The word "hypnosis" is derived from the Greek hypnos meaning "sleep." Actually, you're
not asleep when hypnotized, but rather are in a trancelike state of restful alertness. This is accompanied by an extreme openness
and receptivity to suggestion. Hypnotherapy is the use of hypnosis for self-improvement and/or healing. All hynotherapy employs
hypnosis, but not all hypnosis is hypnotherapy.
The origins of hypnosis date back to the ancient Chinese and Egyptians, who used it in religious rituals and
as a medical treatment. The first modern-day medical uses of the therapy weren't recorded until the late 18th century, however,
when the Austrian physician Franz Anton Mesmer, who was working in France, introduced what he called Mesmerism (the origin
of the modern word "mesmerize").
Mesmer believed the body contained "animal magnetism" and that imbalances in "magnetic fluids" through the bodycould
cause a variety of diseases. He claimed he had the ability to cure certain ailments by manipulating these subtle energies
using iron filings and magnets, as well as soothing words and gestures. Not surprisingly, Mesmerism was rapidly discredited
by a panel of physicians and academics, including Benjamin Franklin, who happened to be in France
at the time.
Probably because Mesmer was such a showman, his theory was relegated to the realm of parlor tricks and stage
shows. However, a number of physicians in both France and
England did not totally dismiss his work. To avoid any negative
associations with Mesmerism, however, they introduced instead the terms hypnosis and hypnotherapy. In the 1890's, the British
Medical Association approved hypnotherapy as an appropriate adjunct therapy for several conditions. Research papers documenting
the benefits of hypnotherapy and even a clinical textbook appeared in the 1930's. However, it took until the 1950's before
both the American and British Medical Associations actually recommended hypnotherapy for a variety of both physical and emotional
conditions.
Hypnosis reached a new level of acceptance by the scientific world in 1995, when a National Institutes of Health
(NIH) assessment panel recommended that it be considered an element of the medical protocol for chronic pain. The assessment
panel also recommended that hypnosis patients be reimbursed by insurance companies.
How Does It Work?
How hypnosis actually works is debated, but the commonly accepted theory is that the mind has two parts, the
conscious and the subconscious. During hypnosis, hypnotherapists help subjects to reach their subconscious mind by entering
into a trancelike state.
The hypnotic state is not nearly as mysterious as it sounds. People go into trancelike states all the time.
For example, musicians and artists can become so engrossed in their work that they lose track of time. Readers often become
totally immersed in the pages of a good novel. Drivers pass their exits on the freeway while daydreaming. These day-to-day
experiences are similar to the hypnotic state.
Psychologists and hypnotherapists separate the trancelike state into three distinct stages. The first stage
is a superficial trance. Although your eyes may be closed, you are very much aware of your surroundings, and unless instructed
to the contrary, you'll remember the entire event. During this superficial stage, you can accept suggestions, such as giving
up cigarettes, or eating less. But because the trance is so light, you may not act on the suggestions. For example, people
attending group hypnotherapy sessions for smoking cessation are occasionally seen lighting up a cigarette as they leave the
building.
The second stage known as the alpha state is significantly deeper. Your heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration
slow, and the therapist can control your response to pain or allergies, or even alter your immune system. In the alpha stage,
instructions to stop smoking can really be effective.
The third stage used mainly by psychiatrists, is deeper still. In this stage, you can be mentally directed back
in time, remembering events from your past with extreme clarity. This technique, termed "age regression," can be helpful for
revealing painful memories that may be responsible for emotional or physical problems. Numerous studies document how the emotional
pain of physical or sexual abuse during childhood can be suppressed by the mind yet manifest itself in a variety of chronic
medical conditions.
A few physicians and hypnotherapists believe that the trance depth of the third stage can be so profound that the patient
may actually remember events from previous incarnations.
Because hypnosis deals with the subconscious, a frequently raised concern is that the therapist can somehow
take control. In fact, the hypnotist is really just a facilitator; there can be no hypnosis unless the subject is fully willing
to participate. In fact, the goal of hypnosis is for the subject to gain control--over behavior, emotions, or physiological
processes. In order for hypnotherapy to be truly successful, the subject must learn to master self-hypnosis in order to employ
the technique whenever needed.
After a few training sessions with a hynotherapist you will learn to place yourself in a hypnotic state, implant
positive suggestions, and then leave the hypnotic state. Although some people seem to have a greater ability to focus their
attention using self-hypnosis than others, most people can markedly increase this ability with practice. Audio and video tapes
can also enhance the process.
For more information about hypnotherapy please visit:
The General Hypnotherapy Register at
www.general-hypnotherapy-register.com
Association
for Professional Therapists, Katepwa House, Ashfield Park Avenue, Ross-on-Wye,
Herefordshire HR9 5AX Tel 01989 764905
British
Hypnotherapy Association, 67 Upper Berkeley Street, London W1H
7DH Tel 020-7723 4443
British
Society of Clinical Hypnotherapists, 229A Sussex Gardens,
Lancaster Gate, London W2 2RL Tel
020-7402 9037
British
Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis, for England and Wales contact 17 Keppel View Road, Kimberworth, S Yorks S61 2AR Tel
07000 560309. London & Metropolitan, Flat 23, Broadfields Heights,
53-59 Broadfields Avenue, Edgeware, Middx HA8 8PF Tel 0181-905 4342. Scotland,
PO Box 1007, Glasgow G31 2LE
Tel 0141-556 1606
Central
Register of Advanced Hypnotherapists, 28 Finsbury Park Road, London
N4 2JX Tel 020-7359 6991
The
Irish Association of Hyno-Analysts (IRE), Therapy House, 6 Tuckey Street, Cork
City, Ireland Tel 021 275785
The
National Council for Hypnotherapy, Hazelwood, Broadmead, Sway, Lymington, Hants SO41 6DH Tel 01590 683770
