Hypnosis Myths and Facts

Hypnosis is often misunderstood and remains a mystery to most. Luckily there is a growing body of research from Harvard, Ohio State, and many others that can put your fears to rest and reveal how effective it can be. While I'm not suggesting it's a quick fix, there is compelling evidence that it can be a much quicker route than talk therapy.

Hypnosis Myths

Hypnotized individuals slip into an involuntary trance.

You are always in control. I am guiding you into a brain state that takes you out of the chatty judging monkey-mind into a surrendered state where the subconscious is accessible and brings together the conflicting messages you have. From that place, you can negotiate and make decisions. My job is helping you work through how to take next steps, and let go to uncover more layers while instilling the belief in yourself that you have the ability to change.

The hypnotist can make you do things against your will.

If a suggestion is unacceptible to you, it will simply not be followed. I can't make you cluck like a chicken (or do the chicken dance!) unless you want to. You maintain your values, beliefs, and opinions while under hypnosis and are an active problem solver. Hypnosis quiets the frontal cortex in the brain and helps you become more open to information, more suggestible, and capable of creating more intense sensations in your mind. (Thomson, 2019).

Hypnosis is a form of therapy.

Hypnosis is not a form of therapy. It is an altered state of consciousness in which therapy can be conducted. Science has confirmed that hypnotherapy can change our perception and behavior. Read more than 10 findings about the efficacy of hypnosis from PositvePsychology.com.

Hypnosis is no different from the placebo effect.

In 1961 psychiatrist Ralph August published a study of 850 women who gave birth under hypnosis. Only 4 percent—34 women—required painkillers. We now have the ability to see changes in the brain in response to hypnosis.

Read this fascinating article.

Hypnosis Studies

While there are plenty of examples in the scientific literature attesting to the usefulness of clinical hypnosis, a study published in the journal Gut is noteworthy. The study involved 204 people suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Treatment consisted of 12 weekly sessions of hypnosis (lasting about one hour each). Fifty-eight percent of the men and 75 percent of the women reported significant symptom relief immediately after finishing treatment. More than 80 percent of those who reported initial relief were still improved up to six years later. Fewer than 10 percent of the participants tried other treatments after hypnotherapy. (Gut, November 2003).

Talk Therapy Vs. Hypnosis

Consider this study:

In a recent data analysis of over 2000 studies, Aldred A. Barrios, PhD, found that the average client success rate for hypnotherapy after just 6 sessions or less was 93% while psychoanalysis had only a 38% success rate after an average of 600 sessions!

Hypnosis Benefits and Facts

Improve Behaviors

Eliminate self-sabotaging behaviors that hold you back
Overcome emotional eating
Understand and deal with sexual issues in a positive way
Learn tools that help you stay on track and excel in life
Navigate stressful changes like divorce, loss, or career with grace

Feel Your Best

Learn to fall asleep easily and get more rest
Quiet your monkey mind and circular thinking
Understand and deal with difficult emotions in a healthy way
Boost your motivation and energy
Find relief from chronic pain, migraines and other health issues

Enhance Performance

Improve your focus and energy
Banish your negative self-talk
Feel calm under pressure and overcome test anxiety
Assist fast injury recovery
Find new ways to work through stumbling blocks