Hypnosis - What It Is And What It Is Not

By Adam Cox

Hypnosis and its derivative, hypnotherapy, have been the subject of several myths created by layman's imagination. People either believe them to be bordering on occult, or don't consider them to be serious scientific endeavours. Given below are some general beliefs associated with hypnosis, and the real truth behind them.

Hypnosis has nothing to do with black magic of any kind. It is a very simple technique, which can be explained easily with the help of psychology and other scientific methods. The authenticity of hypnosis is suspected even by people who have seen it working on subjects. They say that hypnotised people allow practitioners to be successful in their art by not exhibiting enough mental strength to withstand the influence of their words. But nothing could be more distant from the truth. Hypnosis can in fact be successfully practised on people who are mentally strong and are trying hard to avoid the spell.

Another myth is that hypnosis is an alternate state of consciousness, which again is a big misconception. A hypnotized person is fully awake to what is going on around him. That person is just in a relaxed state where the concentration levels are very high and the person can accept new inputs easily.

Some scientists have concluded that hypnosis works on just 5% of the world's population, and this is another common myth. Researchers have hit upon this low percentage because they have made use of the identical hypnosis technique on all people without focusing on their individual traits. People differ in their natures and personalities, and hence there have to be different hypnosis techniques to suit the temperaments of different individuals.

Many people take hypnosis to be a form of meditation. However, interaction between the subject and the practitioner is paramount in hypnosis, while meditation is like an appointment with the self without any external interaction involved. Trance too is not related to hypnosis at all. The person doesn't interact to achieve a state of trance, on the other hand hypnosis is not possible without communication.

It is often thought that hypnosis training or hypnotherapy cannot bring transformations in appearance or in patterns of conduct of a person. Hypnosis definitely cannot transform the body in abnormal ways. However, it can guide the body to a healthy shape through behavioural changes like eating less, and quitting smoking and other addictive habits by ensuring a good amount of of motivation in a person.

Hypnosis, and particularly hypnotherapy, can have an important role to play in the well-being of a person, and not trying them out just because of some false notions is a missed opportunity. - 20763

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