So what is hypnosis? Are you going to make me quack like a duck? Will you control my mind? Isn’t it just a bunch of hocus-pocus?
Great questions! Unfortunately, hypnosis has gotten a very bad reputation. Take everything that you’ve ever heard about hypnosis and throw it away. This is not your “cruise ship hypnosis.” There are no weird twilight zone spirals, I will not gaze deeply into your eyes. Nor will I make you quack like a duck.
Hypnosis has been practiced in various forms for thousands of years. Ancient cultures, including the Egyptians and Greeks, used trance-like states for healing and spiritual purposes. Modern hypnosis began to take shape in the late 1700s through the work of Franz Mesmer and was later developed into a scientific practice used by physicians and researchers. Before the advent of modern medicine, hypnosis was often used to help manage pain during medical and dental procedures. Today, hypnosis is recognized as a complementary therapeutic technique used to help with pain, stress, anxiety, poor habits, and behavior change.
In a nutshell, Hypnosis is a “conversation” with your subconscious mind while you are in a comfortably relaxed, meditative state. It creates a dual awareness experience where you remain in control, and are able to stop the process at any time. To illustrate this, we go through our day-to-day life in our “conscious mind“ while constantly batting away bad habits, automatic responses or erroneous messages from our “subconscious mind.” This is the reason why your (conscious mind) rationally knows that smoking is dangerous for you, however, your (subconscious mind) whispers, “yes, but it feels good.” We want to focus on the subconscious mind and help it replace automatic reactions, unhelpful habits, or anxious responses with healthier, more productive ones. I incorporate hypnotic techniques into your therapy to help you with anxiety reduction, pain management, or relief from phobias.
Hypnosis versus Hypnotherapy:
Hypnosis is a state of focused attention and deep relaxation in which a person becomes more responsive to and mutually agreed upon suggestions while remaining aware of their surroundings.
Hypnotherapy is a deeper, more involved therapeutic approach that gently explores past experiences to help uncover and resolve the root cause of the presenting issue.
Oh, and as far as quacking like a duck, we can certainly do that too, but it will not be during your hypnosis session. After all, laughter is also medicine.
Feel free to contact me to discuss any questions you may have and to schedule your hypnotherapy session.