What is Hypnosis? And are you Hypnotized?
I get interesting responses when I ask people if they’d like to try hypnosis. The funniest is when they are afraid of being hypnotized. In my head I’m rolling on the floor laughing, thinking wow, you have no idea how hypnotized you already are.
Hypnosis is merely the process of bypassing the conscious mind and getting through directly to the subconscious mind. ONE way of doing this is the dramatic ‘hypnosis’ effect the way hypnotists do it. But there are so many other ways – repetition being one of the common ones, numbing the brain with violence or sexual scenes is another one. There are many, many ways of bypassing the conscious mind.
If you watch TV and read articles/ watch videos on the internet, you are already very hypnotized. And the funny thing is, the more intelligent you are, the easier you are to hypnotize. Dumb people are really difficult to hypnotize, it is a therapist’s nightmare – they cannot focus long enough to slip into a trance. The more hypnotizable you are, the more self-hypnosis you unconsciously use to get yourself to do things that make you successful. Will power is nothing but a great capacity for self-hypnosis – a person with a strong will power has learned to bypass the protests of the conscious mind successfully.
Popular people inadvertently use a lot of hypnotic language, which is why they are so likeable, and can sway people’s opinions very easily.
Also, unlike what people think, you do not experience a lack of consciousness or control in the state of hypnosis. You are fully aware what is going on the whole time, it is merely that your constantly chattering mind shuts up for that time and merely becomes a witness to what is going on. Unless you are given an instruction which violates your inner values, (eg. Give me your PIN code) you don’t mind following the instructions. So you cannot be programmed into anything against your will (except if it is continuously repeated, which is why the media is so dangerous, and a hypnotist almost never is).
Every time you crave something that give you a powerful emotional response, you are essentially craving hypnosis. Like when you love horror movies – you’re craving to have the terror numb your mind and send you into hypnosis. Same for when you like movies (or books) with violence, anger or sex. Problem is, those who create these movies or books know this too, and often, either deliberately or unconsciously, there is negative hypnotic programming that follows immediately after this ‘mind-numbing’ hypnotic induction.
Most people are really afraid of losing control, and it is this fear that puts control in the hands of others. A hypnotist works with consent – you are asked if you can let the other person take control. When was the last time you let someone else take control? It was when you were in infant. So when hypnotised, the experience is comparable to being an infant – completely free and trusting, completely in surrender. It is a remarkable, uplifting feeling.
The most blissful states I have experienced are during hypnosis. As my hypnosis teacher said “Once you get hypnotized, every time you meet a hypnotist you will say, hypnotize me!” And I wholeheartedly agree.
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Author of ‘Healing Through Reiki’, Ashwita learned Reiki in 1997, and started teaching it in 2006. She now incorporates other forms of energy healing, as well as hypnotherapy and past life therapy in her work. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, crafts, reading and painting.
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What does one achieve post hypnosis?
One may or may not achieve much through hypnosis. When people hypnotize you over TV, they get you to buy their products and actually think that ‘you’ are choosing those products. When people hypnotize you in day to day life (many people with no knowledge of hypnosis use it anyway as a subconscious, natural habit) get you to do what they want you to do, all the while thinking that it is what you wanted all along. If you try to hypnotize yourself, you can try to release old and limiting subconscious beliefs so that you are more free and happy in life.