Thursday, January 21, 2010

Hypnosis - What It Is And What It Is Not

By Adam Cox

Myths have always chased hypnosis and its therapeutic arm, hypnotherapy. Some regard them to be black magic whereas others reject them as pseudo science. Some of the common misconceptions linked with hypnosis and the truth behind them are given below.

Hypnosis has nothing to do with magic spells of any kind. It hinges more on the science of the human mind and is very easy to practice for anyone who is prepared to learn it. The authenticity of hypnosis is doubted even by individuals who have watched it working on subjects. They say that hypnotised people allow practitioners to be successful in their art by not exhibiting enough will power to withstand the influence of their words. But this again is a complete fallacy. Even people with strong will power can fall under the charms of a specialist hypnosis practitioner.

That hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness is another myth that has been circulating for quite some time now. A hypnotized individual is fully awake to what is going on around him. During the hypnotic state, the subject calms down entirely and is therefore able to concentrate fully on the suggestions provided by the practitioner.

Another misconception, which has been propagated by some researchers, claims that hypnosis can be applied on merely 5% of humans. The scientists are somewhat true in their own way, because they attempted hypnotising their subjects by the same hypnosis technique without acknowledging individual differences in nature and temperament. People differ in their natures and personalities, and therefore there have to be different hypnosis methods to fit the temperaments of different individuals.

People also tend to connect hypnosis to meditation. However, communication between the subject and the practitioner is indispensable in hypnosis, while meditation is like an engagement with the self without any communication involved. The state of trance is not a hypnotic state either. The person doesn't interact to achieve a state of trance, whereas hypnosis is not possible without communication.

A majority of people believe that it is impossible to bring about alterations in one's appearance and behaviour through hypnosis training or hypnotherapy. Hypnosis definitely cannot alter the body in abnormal ways. But it can bring about an improvement in physical health by altering behavioural patterns like overeating and constant smoking by raising inspiration levels in an individual.

Experiencing hypnotherapy is a good way to lead a happy and fulfilling life, and hence one should not pay attention to the myths, and go for hypnotic sessions with an open mind.

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