Self Hypnosis

If you yourself are competent in inducing hypnosis and you have some bad habits or even some negative social or behavioral problems you would like to change and are serious about it, then Self Hypnosis may be for you. For all those who say that Self Hypnosis is a hoax or psuedo-science I strongly recommend you read up on the subject. I know the power of self hypnosis first hand but I often have a different opinion on the subject from most of my colleagues. I’m not entirely against it, its mainly the fact that if something goes wrong during trance suggestions or the frames you create then it is harder IMHO to change the mistakes you made.

Nevertheless there are a few basics to Self Hypnosis you will need to have mastered before I recommend anyone trying to self induce themselves with hypnosis.

Basics Of Self Hypnosis

The first skill you will need mastered is to induce yourself into hypnotic trance with relaxation techniques. I posted earlier on one technique Hypnotizing How To Tip Relaxation States. But for self hypnosis there are other techniques which are better suited.

One technique is actually used by remote viewers, those who can see things outside of their particular destination or even time. This technique was actually explained in detail by maybe the most famous remote viewer of all time, Edgar Cayce, who used to heal with hypnotherapy and use remote viewing to help those who came to him. What he liked to do is lay down in a bed or sofa and keep his feet about shoulder width apart and have his hands gently placed on his chest. Then he would induce himself by visualizing water all around him. During Self Hypnosis he would gradually relax until he could feel the water all around him in his mind and then proceed to walk down steps going deeper into the water, with each step numbered. Note that Cayce’s self hypnosis induction process was very calming to him, you should not feel the urge to take in air or go up for air while trying to subconsciously induce yourself, one of the basics here is mastering relaxation in trance. He would then go deeper down the stairs towards a glowing hole.

Framing in Self Hypnosis

That relaxation frame is used by Cayce to go into remote viewing but a similar suggestive frame that focuses on relaxation to induce trance will work given practice. Self Hypnosis begins with the induction trance, so mastering relaxation frames is very important, getting your body to relax and keeping your mind calm and focused is a necessity for self hypnosis.

How To Hypnotize Tip #2

Hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapy Trance Suggestions

Before I go into hypnotherapy suggestions, it is highly recommended that you first complete a course for hypnotherapy, as hypnotherapy is meant for healing. This is not something you should be winging on first go at hypnosis as serious damage can be made to a person’s personality.

Again this is not for amatuers here, but there are three golden rules I like to stick to when I am inducing a patient with hypnosis. It’s quite simple but very profound. One always keep your suggestions positive. Two try to keep your suggestions in the present tense, meaning occuring now in the present or the very near future. Three test your suggestions by future pacing before making any serious hypnotherapy changes.

The reason I give you these rules is to prevent any malpractice on your part while performing hypnotherapy.

A good example I like to use to explain this is imagine your are using hypnotherapy to treat a patient who smokes. So you would use or set up the first rule and second rule while he is hypnotized as stating something along the lines of “In two weeks, you are a non-smoker”. While the part of the sentence is in the future, you are making a statement to the patient while under hypnosis that he IS a non smoker. Keeping a positive outlook or preface as well with the statement will greatly increase your success as a hypnotist and utilizing effective hypnotherapy while hypnotizing your patient.

How To Hypnotize Tip #1
Relaxation states cause hypnotic induction for hypnosis trances

Now there are many states that can induce hypnosis including shock, focused attention, repetition even confusion but in my honest opinion the best way to hypnotize a patient is through relaxtion. There are many reasons for this; one relaxtion is powerful because it helps calm the mind so there can be more focus on what you are trying to display to the patients subconsious. It is also the easiest way to induce hypnosis without upsetting your patient and it helps with lessening the chance of abreactions during hypnotic induction. The reality of life is most people don’t know effectively how to relax, as most people are often tense just due to everyday chores, deadlines and work.

What I like my patients to do before I go into my hypnotic induction script is to have them do a few physical relaxation techniques to get the patients body to release most of their tension that they have built up throughout the day. From my experience this really helps by putting the patient into a much more responsive state when attempting hypnotic induction.

One physical therapy technique I like to use with my patients is to have them to relax and then tense up their muscles, start with the patient tensing and relaxing the face, then shoulders, biceps, waist and torso, legs and finally feet. Afterwards have the patient tense the entire body all at once and then relax. From my experience having the patient relax in such a manner helps set up the induction to hypnotize the patient.

When it comes to practicing how to hypnotize, you must tread carefully as hypnoztizing can have adverse effects to the patient. That is why I strongly recommend that you gain as much information as you can on this site before you actually start practicing hypnotism and hypnotherapy.

One adverse effect that can happen is abreaction. Which is simply a negative or displeasurable response by the patient while under a trance. It can happen at anytime during the during hypnotic induction because the subject is accessing parts of their subconsious that is usually hidden when in a conscious state. But abreaction can have positive uses by the hypnotist, much like Freud did to bring out abreaction to help patients to release painful memories and negative emotional energy. Whether or not you, as a hypnotist want to use abreaction is up to you, but every effective hypnotist should know how to deal with an occurence of abreaction in a patient.

So what do you do when your patient is under hypnotic induction and starts to have these abreactions?

The simple truth here is that these reactions are to a response to a particular experience, normally what I like to do is gain some rapport and steer the patient into a more comfortable state.

You can use this simple script I like to use

“You are crying, and although I am not sure exactly what you are feeling right now, as the tears run down your face you can understand that your subconscious mind knows that it is safe for you to have this experience. It is not important to make sense of these feelings here and now, just be comfortable that you can trust yourself and feel whatever it is you need to feel and then, with a great sense of relief, be happy that you have been able to do so. A wonderful sense of release and calm can wash over you as you recognize a remarkable step forward in the healing process.”

I use this canned script because it helps bring the patient back to a more comfortable place and lead them into a positive outlook to the experience with the use of NLP techniques shown in this script.

Suggestibility in NLP refers to the amount of time it takes for a patient to undergo the Hypnotic Induction process. Anybody can be hypnotized with the exception of those who have mental illnesses. However for most it takes more time to put the patient into hypnosis than you would see in a typical NLP stage performance. This is why suggestibility tests are important to help you assess your patient more accurately and thus more promptly. One test I do often is the Hand Magnets Test.

Hand Magnet Test

Have your patient place his/her arms out in front of them with their palms facing up. It often helps when you demonstrate this with them by placing your hands in the same position. Then go through this routine with them

“In the next few seconds, when I count to three, I want you to imagine that one of your hands is made of metal and the other hand is a magnet. When I count to three you feel an irresistible force pulling your hands together. Each time you feel this force it will grow stronger and stronger and you should try to resist it, the more you try the stronger the pull becomes…1..2..3! You can feel the force as the power of the magnet begins TO MOVE YOUR HANDS TOGETHER, stronger and stronger, closer and closer. 1….2…3… the force is getting so strong now that the more you try in vain to resist it, the stronger it will become. 1…..2….3!”

Continue with the suggestibility test, those who do feel the force are more inclined to the susceptibility and the power of suggestion of NLP. You can then move onto inducing hypnosis with these types of patients and progress a little faster than those who are consciously resisting the urge to bring the hands together. This is an important step in learning how to hypnotize, the quicker the suggestibility process goes the faster it will take to induce hypnosis and NLP Techniques.

The Handlocking Test

Get the patient to put his/her hands out to with the fingers inter-weaved and palms pressing against each other. If the subject has their eyes open have them focus their attention on their hands but preferably have the patient’s eyes closed. A routine I use with my patients is”

“As you sit/stand there with your hands together, I want you to squeeze them tighter and tighter. You are squeezing them so tightly that they become one. Your hands are stuck tightly together now, tighter and tighter. If you attempt to release your hands you see that the more you try to pull them apart, the stronger and tighter the become. Stronger and stronger, tighter and tighter. You can even feel the glue oozing from your hands as they become stuck together as one. When I count to three I want you to try and release your hands but the more you try the harder it is. As you try to release your hands repeat after me “my hands are tightly glued together” over and over in your head. 1….2….3!”

Allow the patient some time to struggle with the release of their hands and then allow them to release it and let them relax their hands in their lap.

This again will give you a fair assessment of the patients susceptibility to hypnotizing them. The longer it takes the patient to unlock their hands the less powerful suggestibility it will take to produce a hypnotic induction and undergo hypnotherapy with the patient.

The Rotating Arm Test

Have the patient place their arms out in front of them with their hand open and palm facing down to the ground. Then place a coin on the back of the hand and have the patient focus all their attention on it preferably. While doing this suggest to the patient that their arm is starting to rotate.

Say “Your arm is unsteady and will begin to rotate. You will feel this begin in your shoulder and this will cause your arm to rotate. When it does your hand will begin to rotate and the harder you try to resist the more it gyrates.”

Continue on with similar suggestive NLP techniques to influence the patient to move his/her arm. The goal here is to use slight hypnosis to have the coin fall to the floor with a surprised look by the patient.

However there is one test that really delivers and is by far my favorite to use and perform and in my opinion the most impressive and effective and can lead the patient right into hypnotic trance!

The Fall Back Test

Stand behind your patient and get them to close their eyes, then place your hands on their shoulders. Begin to slightly rock the patient back and forth. While doing this tell the patient that they will begin to feel a force acting on their shoulders, pulling them back to you. Next, you must instill confidence in your subject of you. You do this easily by telling them that you are right behind them and you will not let them fall. Then tell the patient that as they begin to fall you will catch them and stand them back up again, then continue with this routine

“The magnetic force is starting to work on your shoulders now. It is now pulling you back to me and the more you resist the stronger the force becomes, back, back, back towards my voice. You cannot resist this force, pulling you back, you are safe as you begin to rock as I am right here and will catch you, pulling you back, back, back, back..” Continue with this suggestive NLP wordplay until the patient falls back into you, catch them and stand them back upright.

These were some of most prevalently used suggestiblity tests, if you are serious about learning how to hypnotize someone, then I suggest you practice some of these tests.

Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) and Hypnosis actually derive from the same concept of the power of the mind over the body. Lately NLP and Hypnosis have been gaining popularity and credibility in the world of science because more proof has been given showing the effectiveness of these techniques. Hypnotherapy is now popular and accepted by the scientific community to help and heal others in a number of psychological problems, and NLP has been shown to greatly increase public speaker’s ratings and performance. Yet not many people know of how to hypnotize or to effectively master NLP techniques properly. There is real benefits to having the knowledge as many people have found through hypnosis to treat their addictions, stop smoking and even lose weight all through hypnotic induction. Thus effictively learning how to hypnotize is very important in the world of psychology and mastering NLP is one of the best ways to manipulate one’s mind to a desired action. This site was designed to give readers the absolute best information available to help people further their passion and practice of hypnotism and NLP.