Fiona suggested I start a thread about hypnosis. After some thought as where to begin, I guess at the beginning would be a good place to start. It is my intention to help you understand what hypnosis is and how it can be used. I plan to update this thread on a regular basis until I run out of knowledge on the subject. So here goes.
If you have any questions, please feel free to ask or PM me. The only silly question is the one not asked. Please relax and open your mind.

Hypnosis is not a magical power that comes out of your eyes. It is not magical at all. It is a psychological process. That means if you go through the right steps, if the mind goes through the right set of experiences, then every single human being will go into hypnosis. Some people will be easier to hypnotize than others. It has nothing to do with willpower. It has only to do with their ability to go through the process, the steps and recreate the conditions for hypnosis.

Hypnosis is actually a very natural phenomenon. People go into trance every day and do not even know it. In fact, it is a very healthy thing to do. That is because in these mini-trances, you allow your mind to absorb information or process stuff that has been going through your mind.

Maybe you have had the experience of staring off into space, thinking of nothing in particular. When someone ask you what you are thinking about? You literally have to say Nothing. You have no recollection of what you were thinking about. This is a kind of mini-trance experience.

At other times you can be so deeply aware of, or adsorbed in, your thoughts. Perhaps you are thinking of a future project or working on a problem. Maybe you are just engaged in daydreaming. You are so fixated on ideas that are running through your mind that you completely neglect the environment around you. Someone walks into the room and starts talking to you. You simply don’t notice because you are so absorbed in your own thoughts. This is another example of a hypnotic event.

Maybe you have read a book and been so absorbed by a character that time, maybe hours fly by and it feels like minutes. The same is true of movies. Surely you have had the experience of watching a movie and you begin to have an emotional experience.

Think about this, how can you have an emotional experience reading text in a book or watching flickering light on a screen? Your mind has had to suspend normal reality, enter the reality of the story then have an emotional reaction to it as if it were real on some level. Otherwise it would be meaningless to you. These are all examples of hypnosis happening every single day.

Stay tuned more to come.

GregD

Hypnosis has the power to change people from the inside out. This makes changes really easy. All learning, all behavior, and all change happen on the inside first, on the unconscious level.

Hypnosis is renowned for strange phenomenon. For example, the ability to control pain. There is a hypnotic technique called Glove Anesthesia, which you can completely numb and arm, a part of the body, any part of yourself. Thousands of people have used this technique or something very similar very successfully. For example, they have had an accident and could not get immediate medical attention. It has been used for countless births without drugs or any other usual paraphernalia, and no or very little pain.

It has been used for full blown surgery in combat when it is impossible to have the drugs available to put a soldier to sleep. Hypnosis can be used to completely numb the body to the point where they have actually done open heart surgery and carried on a conversation with the doctor during the operation.

These are just some of the strange and bizarre things that hypnosis is capable of. Of course we do not intend to get too crazy here. Some of the every day uses are to quit smoking, lose weight, stop biting fingernails, remove fear of speaking in front of people, and the list can go on and on. In short, hypnosis can be a very valuable tool to the every day person.

GregD

i tried being hypnotized, but after about 15 minutes of hearing "stuff" come from the hypnotist that i knew she was saying to try to hypnotize me, i blurted out.. "its not working. sorry." after a few moments she stated i was the first person she was unable to hypnotize. i dunno why, maybe the fear of losing control of my own thought process. maybe i cannot relax enough in someone else's presence. i know i can meditate when i am alone. who knows?

Harley-
My wife has a similar reaction at times. Try reading a script aloud and recording it. Being in your own voice is one way to both "let go" and "retain control" simultaneously. Also, give it a week or two of trying. As you listen to your tape repeatedly familiarity will become reassuring.

Hi Harley,

Yes, I agree with what Rick said, repeated familiarity will become reassuring.
If you are being tranced by someone, becoming familar with thier voice and style is a must.Also, something that I will get into later on is trust between the subject and the hypnotist.

Many people have this fear of hypnosis because it has been so mysterious over years. The first image a person gets in thier mind when the word "hypnosis" is mentioned is one of a creepy guy with a gotee and top hat swing a pocket watch back and forth saying you are getting sleepy.

Therefore, they put up thier defenses right away. That makes hypnosis very difficult. Also, the person that tried to hypnotize you before may have chose the wrong technique for you. Usually a simple relaxation induction is done. The hypnotist will check you to see where you are at in trance. If it is not working they should immediately switch to another technique. I would at that point switch to a confusion technique, Not to confuse you but to confuse your mind.

Think of it as a bank robber took people hostage. The police want to get the hostages out safely and as quick as possible. The police create a distraction at the front door that demands the robbers full attention while the SWAT unit sneaks in the back door.

There are many many reasons for your not being able to go into trance. How well did you know the person trancing you? Did you just meet that day? Did you trust this person? Did you feel safe? Were your meds working that day and time or were you headed for an off period? Keep in mind, you never lose control of your own thought process. You are in control every moment.

Normally, I do not trance a person at the first meeting unless I can read they are easily suggestible. I spend the time getting to know them and them getting to know me. Building trust and a rapport with them is most important. All the while I am making mental notes about them to be recorded and used later.

GregD

Thanks, Greg, or starting this. I think the whole phenomenon really sounds pretty strong. I have been using prerecorded sessions on a number of serious and entertaining topics - I get these at www.hypnosisdownloads.com . I ike the guys' voices because they have English/Scots accents, which remind me of my dad, so yes, I think details and particulars make a difference.

I listen to them every day. Sometimes I fall asleep, but as I understand it, your brain is still hearing and taking in the words...am I correct on that one?

Other times I find it really regenerating and super important to just be consciously practicing relaxing the muscles and organs, to consciously work against the body's habits of tightening and contracting muscles and creating tone....

And then other times I start the tape and want to throw it against the wall. "waddya mean RELAX?????????" But I do find that the sessions I have listened to most have changed and strengthened or aligned something in me.

I am having first session with professional hypnotist later this week....will report back....

Greg-
Given that most of the folks following this thread are going to have limited access to a professional, what are your thoughts on self induced vs standard hypnosis. The former is all that I have experienced. -Rick

I will be getting to that soon Rick. I want to try to get the basics of what hypnosis is or is not out of the way first. In short, all hypnosis is self hypnosis. A hypnotist is mearly a tour guide or a policeman directing traffic if you will. Myself, I found trying to hypnotize myself very difficult. It is much like PD medication in that respect, some can do self hypnosis some can't. What works for one doesn't work for another.

GregD

Fiona,
The jury is still out on this one. Some do believe that you get benifits of hypnosis while sleeping. Others say you get no benifit. Personaly, I feel that you should recieve some of the benifits.

Listening to recordings of peoples voices that remind you of someone you know or have been quite close to is always a plus. It goes back to the trust and familiarity issues I mentioned earlier.

GregD

Greg-
You're the Man and I'll be patient. :-)
-Rick