If you’ve never experienced hypnosis before, you might have a picture in your mind of someone being put into a trance, losing control, or becoming completely unaware of what is happening.
That isn’t how I experience hypnosis.
For me, hypnosis is much more like becoming deeply absorbed in something. You are still there. You can hear what is being said and you can notice what is happening around you, but your attention becomes more inward and your body can begin to settle.
You might recognise the feeling from everyday life. Perhaps you’ve been driving a familiar route and suddenly realised you’ve travelled several kilometres without consciously thinking about every turn. Or you’ve become completely absorbed in a good book and lost track of time. You haven’t gone anywhere. Your attention has simply shifted.
Hypnosis uses that natural ability to focus attention and become absorbed in an experience.
So, are you asleep?
No. You may feel very relaxed, and some people experience a wonderful heaviness in their body, but you don’t have to be asleep.
In fact, many people are surprised by how much they can hear during hypnosis. You can listen to my voice, follow the ideas and stories being offered to you, and still remain aware of what is happening.
When I first experienced hypnosis myself, I was expecting to become sleepy because I was exhausted at the time. Instead, I found myself completely captivated by what was happening. I could hear everything, but I was also aware of a deep sense of relaxation moving through my body.
Will I lose control?
No. Hypnosis isn’t about handing control of your mind over to someone else. You remain able to think, listen, make choices and reject anything that doesn’t feel right for you.
The role of the hypnotherapist isn’t to take control of you. It is to guide your attention and create the conditions in which your own mind can explore something differently.
What does hypnosis feel like?
There isn’t one particular way that hypnosis feels.
For one person it might feel like deep physical relaxation. Someone else might become absorbed in an image, memory or story. Another person might notice that their thoughts become less busy or that they become more aware of sensations in their body.
You don’t have to “do hypnosis correctly”. There is no special state you have to achieve.
You are still yourself. You are simply experiencing a different quality of attention.
Can everyone be hypnotised?
Most people can experience some form of hypnotic state because the ability to become absorbed and focused is a normal human capacity.
You don’t have to be unusually suggestible, and you don’t have to believe in hypnosis for it to be interesting or useful.
Being curious and willing to take part is enough.
What happens in a hypnotherapy session?
The hypnosis itself may involve guided attention, imagery, stories, language patterns or other techniques. I don’t use one single method with everyone because people are different.
The aim isn’t to force your mind to change.
It is to create an experience in which your mind has an opportunity to discover something new.
And that is one of the things I find most fascinating about hypnosis.
You don’t necessarily have to know exactly how the change is going to happen before you begin.
Sometimes the mind simply needs a different way of looking at something.
Curious about experiencing hypnosis?
If you’ve never tried hypnosis before and you’re wondering what it is actually like, I have a 10 minute introductory recording that you can try.
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Or, if you’d like to talk about whether hypnotherapy might be appropriate for what you’re experiencing, you can contact me.