Have you ever wondered if hypnosis was real? Many people do.

Franz Anton Mesmer was actually one of the first scientists to propose a rational basis behind the effects of hypnosis.

His ideas were based on his assumption that there were physical forces in the world that had a type of influence on the human body. He called this theory animal magnetism, and it was his idea that the planets affected human beings through some kind of invisible mysterious fluid, which may have been derived from magnets.

Mesmer was later ostracized for his crazy theory, but his work set the stage for more research in the future.

Doctor James Braid suggested that hypnosis was a form of sleep and he was the first person to use the phrase “hypnosis”. Braid also suggested that the state of hypnosis could be induced by something as simple as staring at a fixed object. The eye-fixation method is still used today, and it is very effective.

One of the most famous psychiatrists to utilize hypnosis was Milton Erickson, a 20th Century therapist. Erickson changed the way hypnosis was used by his usage of persuasive language patterns.

With advances in brain imaging and neurological science, hypnosis has come a long way in the last few years and it has gained some needed respect.

self hypnosis

In light of all of this, you can safely say hypnosis is indeed real.

There are many different types of hypnosis and you may be familiar with a few of these, or all of these. Different forms of hypnosis include:

  • Conversational Hypnosis.
  • NLP – Neuro Linguistic Programming.
  • Embedded Commands.
  • Ericksonian Hypnosis or Story Telling Using Metaphors.
  • Indirect Suggestions.
  • Direct Suggestions or Autosuggestion.
  • Self-Hypnosis.
  • Subliminal Programming.

Many of these methods are similar since they all work to program the mind. Understanding these methods is the key to success because every hypnotic subject is unique. In other words, what works great on one person, may not work at all on someone else. The more of these methods you are aware of, the easier it will be for you to fine-tune your program to someone’s needs.

Self-Hypnosis

There really isn’t much of a difference, when it comes to hypnosis and self hypnosis. In self-hypnosis, the relaxation portion or the induction is self-induced, whereas, in hypnosis, one permits the hypnotist to bring about a state of relaxation.

The real truth is that no one can be hypnotised against his or her will, no matter what you might think. If someone chooses to relax and drift into hypnosis, they can and will be hypnotised. On the other hand, if someone decides they cannot be hypnotised, for whatever reason, then they will probably not be able to go into hypnosis, no matter how skilled the hypnotist is.

Your subconscious mind is powerful beyond all measure. It can make your life peaceful and joyful and prosperous, or it can make your life miserable.

Your subconscious mind is the miracle to getting everything you want out of life. It not only controls how your life unfolds day in and day out, it also controls your heartbeat and the circulation of blood in your body.

The subconscious mind never sleeps and never rests and it is always on. Many people spend their valuable time focused on their problems, which in turn creates more problems. With hypnosis, people can focus on the good and on those things they want to draw into their life, and working with the subconscious mind can help someone manifest change rather quickly.

Self-hypnosis and other types of healing modalities like meditation or yoga use the power of the mind to make changes.

While many people are familiar with different ways in which they can improve their life, they may not often think of a tool like self hypnosis in which to do so.

Direct Suggestions or Autosuggestion

Direct suggestion, sometimes called autosuggestion is very popular. In this kind of hypnosis, the hypnotist gives the client direct suggestions while they are in a relaxed state of trance. These suggestions could be anything related to the client’s needs or goals.

Direct suggestions are straightforward and simple, but they may not work for everyone. People who are overly critical or analytical may not “believe” direct suggestions, so you may need to be a little sneakier in how you approach them.

learning self hypnosis

Indirect Suggestions.

Indirect suggestions are suggestions that are just that, indirect and hidden inside of a statement or a story. Indirect suggestions are a wonderful way to get past the conscious thinking mind because there is typically no conflict when it comes to believability.

Ericksonian Hypnosis

Ericksonian Hypnosis is hypnosis that stemmed from Milton Erickson. This type of hypnosis uses stories or colorful metaphors to help people make changes. Erickson believed that using stories helped people heal, and he was quite famous for them. Stories are a great way to overcome resistance because they tend to b a much more believable than something like direct suggestion.

Erickson was famous for his client-centered approach, where he utilized everything from the client’s personal experiences when creating healing stories.

Embedded commands

Embedded commands are suggestions that are used within a story and they are used as a kind of a softening language. Embedded commands may be stated as a question using language like “I’m wondering if you will go into trance now or later?” Another example would be a statement like “You probably already know how easy it is to lose weight, don’t you?”

Embedded commands help the hypnotist bypass the conscious mind, and they can very effective.

NLP – Neuro Linguistic Programming

Another type of programming used frequently is something called neuro-linguistic programming or NLP. NLP combines different aspects of behavioral psychology, hypnosis, common sense and even linguistics and modeling. NLP is a method of influencing the behavior of the brain through language and other types of communication. NLP can help someone recode the way their brain responds to stimuli or programming, helping them manifest better and new behaviors.

There are many distinct methods within NLP, including rapport, behavioral modeling, the Meta model, etc.

Conversational Hypnosis

Conversational Hypnosis, also known as Covert hypnosis isn’t used as much as some of the more traditional methods. Covert hypnosis can be very effective when it comes to sales, and it does have a valid reason for its existence.

Subliminal Programming.

Subliminal Programming can be very effective as well. In subliminal programming, the suggestions are hidden and not heard by the conscious mind. The theory behind this type of programming is that the subconscious is aware and can hear the suggestions, even though, the conscious mind cannot.