Hypnosis, a good remedy for many of life’s difficulties, is now easily available in Brattleboro. But, what is hypnosis anyway? It is a state of deep relaxation where your subconscious mind is open to positive suggestion. The hypnotic state is a natural state – one that we are all familiar with. It’s the state between being awake and sleeping, feels a lot like dreaming, and is a state of deep relaxation. It’s like the cozy, peaceful feeling you have just before falling asleep. Actually, it’s a very heightened state, in spite of the fact that you feel relaxed. You are much more aware of your surroundings and any noises or distractions, but you will be blissfully unconcerned because you are so relaxed.
The hypnotist gently guides you into deep relaxation through the use of guided imagery, counting backwards and other peaceful hypnotic techniques. A client explains, “It was like I was listening to you speak, and I heard what you were saying, but it felt like my mind was in a far away tranquil place.”
A skilled hypnotist can provide you with enough input to make a change, but it is a collaborative process. Before the hypnosis induction, your hypnotist will talk with you about the reasons you came in and help you create goals to remedy the situation. The hypnotist then uses your goals as suggestions for your hypnosis. Your subconscious mind accepts those goals readily, because this is what you desire.
Hypnosis refers to a range of techniques that allow practitioners to bypass the conscious mind and access the subconscious. The altered state that occurs under hypnosis has been compared to a state of deep meditation or transcendence, in which the innate recuperative abilities of the psyche are allowed to flow freely. The subject can achieve greater clarity regarding their own wants and needs, explore other events or periods of life requiring resolution, or generally develop a more positive attitude.
Hypnosis helps by changing the way you think about weight control, smoking cessation, insomnia, anxieties, stress management, chronic pain, fears, phobias, negative habits, athletic skills and much more. What do all of these things have in common? They are created from negative thinking or belief patterns. “I can’t live without…. or I can’t stop thinking about…. or I can’t be around…or I can’t cope with….” Actually none of those statements are true. You absolutely can live without whatever negative thing you are hooked on by changing how you think about it through hypnosis.
Hypnosis works. Marketing experts use it all the time. Each year, the average American will see more than 10,000 food ads on TV and almost all of those ads are pushing soft drinks, fast foods and sweet treats. They know you are relaxed, and slightly sleepy when watching TV. Makes you wonder how much money big corporations spend to influence Americans subconsciously, to eat foods that are unhealthy.
In 1961, the American Medical Association answered the question “Does hypnotherapy work?” for medical professionals in the United States. In that year, the AMA published a short report it had commissioned, which read:
“Hypnosis has a recognized place in the medical armamentarium and is a useful technique in the treatment of certain illnesses when employed by qualified personnel.” This was a major step for the AMA; by publishing the report, it recognized hypnotherapy as an orthodox medical treatment — rather than one relegated to the realm of alternative or holistic medicine.
Today, the American Psychological Association confidently endorses hypnosis as a valid form of therapy: “Although hypnosis has been controversial, most clinicians now agree it can be a powerful, effective therapeutic technique for a wide range of conditions, including pain, anxiety and mood disorders. Hypnosis can also help people change their habits, such as quitting smoking.”
Recent publications have encouraged clinicians and the public to “look beyond the media portrayal” of hypnotherapy, encouraging therapists to educate and clarify for their patients what hypnotherapy is and isn’t.
So, what is hypnosis? For me it is a focused, beneficial use of your imagination to achieve a desired outcome. Why don’t you try it yourself and see what happens? Maybe you’ll get the results you’re looking for. Why not give your friendly, local hypnotist, Susan Rosano, MA, a call and see if she can nudge you in the right direction. Her website is www.HealthyChangesVT.com.
