What is Hypnosis?
Hypnosis is a relaxed, focused state of concentration sometimes known as trance. It is a naturally recurring state that we drift in and out of in our everyday lives. If you have ever driven a familiar route and arrived at your destination without remembering part of your journey, or been absorbed in a a good book or film and lost all track of time, that’s Trance.
During Hypnosis, the body and the conscious mind, are in a profoundly relaxed state, while the subconscious remains very alert and receptive to positive suggestions. Hypnosis bypasses the critical analysis of your mind so that positive and life-enhancing suggestions can be incorporated into your new behaviours, overcoming problems and limitations.
Our minds work on two levels – the conscious and the unconscious.
We make decisions, think and act with the conscious mind while the unconscious mind controls our habits and holds the key to our behaviours, emotions and memories.
During hypnosis, we can communicate directly with the unconscious mind, creating lasting change.
During hypnosis, there is a change in the brainwave activity, similar to that time just before sleep, where the alpha state is entered. Your brain’s waking state, is a beta brainwave. The alpha state is a very dreamy, pleasant state. It is not an unusual state of mind, and may feel like you are not in trance, or in hypnosis. During this time, the mind is very open to visualisations and creating a rich, sensory experience. However, while in hypnosis, you do not go to sleep and you remain aware of everything that is happening around you.
What is Hypnotherapy?
Once you are in the relaxed state of mind that is hypnosis, Hypnotherapy is then the application of various techniques and therapies to provide quick, powerful and lasting change.
It is a form of psychotherapy and is distinctive from other forms of psychological therapy in that it is used to access the unconscious mind. Hypnotherapy focuses the client’s imagination and unconscious to bring about positive changes to their thoughts, feelings or behaviour. Together, we will have discussed and decided the changes on which we will be working on prior to the hypnosis taking place.
How does Hypnotherapy Work?
Hypnotherapy is thought to work by altering our state of consciousness in such a way that the analytical, left-hand side of the brain is quietened down, while the non-analytical, right-hand, creative side of the brain is made more alert.
The conscious control of the mind is relaxed (just like daydreaming) and the unconscious mind awoken. The unconscious mind is a more instinctive force that the conscious mind. It is the part that needs to change for your habits, behaviours and physical state to alter.
Progress can be made by reprogramming the unconscious landscaping of the mind so that deep seated beliefs and instincts are challenged, abolished, dissolved, altered or even re-routed to something more positive.
According to American Health Magazine, who did a comparative study:
Clients attending Psychoanalysis
30% recovery after 600 sessions
Clients attending Cognitive Behaviour Therapy
72% recovery after attending 22 sessions
Clients attending Hypnotherapy
93% recovery after attending 6 sessions