When you look upon all the different issues Hypnotherapy claims to support people in overcoming, one may ask just how Hypnotherapy can help so many diverse ailments.
I will answer this by breaking down the components of Hypnosis to give you a greater understanding of what it is and how it works.
The Element of Trance
Hypnosis is a word that describes being induced by another into a trance. Despite people’s common belief that a trance is something a Hypnotist does by ‘waving a watch’ and having people ‘in their control’, the truth is that trance is an everyday phenomena. It happens when you watch T.V., when you daydream, and no doubt it will happen as you read this article.
Whenever you focus your attention, soon enough you’ll drift into a trance.
Hypnosis is so good with many issues because so many issues have an element of trance that perpetuates them, and it just makes sense to use a trance to transform negative trance like behaviours.
Take anger for example.
The focus of attention is all around the emotion, and whatever it is that one might be angry about. When in this single minded anger focus people may feel less pain, have a sense of dissociation, may experience negative hallucinations, ideomotor activity often occurs, and people act instinctively with an altered focus, which are all signs of trance.
Addictions are another example.
Commonly with an addiction, people have the desire to stop whatever behaviour that is causing them problems. Despite wanting to give up or reduce the addictive behaviour they might naturally, without having consciously thought about it find themselves having raided the fridge, walked down a dealers road and scored or sat on the internet for five hours before ‘waking’ out of their trance addiction to feel perhaps ashamed and disheartened.
Strong emotions are trance inducing and negative feelings lead to negative trance states which in turn lead to negative behaviour patterns. We use trance to simply reverse the process so that we can focus upon positive trance inducing emotions, which can create positive natural behaviours.
Accessing the Unconscious for a Change
The unconscious mind is a metaphorical pattern matching instrument of creation that can be accessed through relaxation, story telling and guided visualisation.
There are so many factors that we simply don’t know that we don’t know, and given that your conscious mind can hold a maximum of nine bits of information at any given time whereas your unconscious is processing roughly two million, it simply makes sense to access your mammoth warehouse of skills, resources and problem solving abilities.
It really pays to use your unconscious mind, because that’s where changes happen anyway.
So when you find that you are feeling and acting in new ways in certain situations without even having to consciously think about it, you’re using your unconscious mind for a change.
Process vs Content
Many counsellors focus purely on the content of a problem, perhaps endlessly listening to how the problem is presenting in your life with the hope that this will simply create change. Of course, sometimes it does, and being heard is an important aspect of any therapy, yet it is only part of a solution.
Hypnotherapists commonly know that a problem is held up by a series of different internal processes i.e. I think this, I hear myself say that, I see myself doing something, that provokes an emotional response, then I engage in an unwanted behaviour.
As you start to change some of these processes, you start to find that altered things begin to happen.
To put it another way, if on the way home you took just one road that headed in a completely different direction you would not end up in the same place.
Due to the fact that all and any problems have a process, you can use a simple set of techniques to make a profound difference with any issue from Eating Disorders to Sports Performance.
Safe and Secure
Unlike traditional therapy, where people have to rehash old memories, bringing them painfully to the surface, you can use Hypnosis to put the past in the past, and deal with uncomfortable emotions by using comfortable techniques.
It seems absurd that people think that the way to get over trauma is to constantly talk about it rather than exploring what life is like without it.
Hypnosis is a very relaxing and soothing way to find yourself able to deal with even the most traumatic memories and events in a way that you comfortably reprocess and dissociate the most emotional provoking experiences.
This makes Hypnosis excellent for overcoming issues related to previous Sexual Abuse, Phobia’s, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Anxiety Disorder, and Panic Attacks.
If you would like help to overcome these, or any other issues then feel free to email me for information on info@possie.co.uk or call me on 07949 989986 to book a free 30 minute consultation.
Tags: Addiction, Anger, Anxiety, Hypnosis, Hypnotherapy, Panic Attacks, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD
