Clearing the myth about hypnosis
Most Malaysians associate hypnosis with stage shows and think that it is perhaps mystical or dangerous. In the public imagination, a hypnotist is a man with piercing eyes and a pocket watch.
Hypnosis has long been associated with the strange and mysterious, with sideshows and faith healers. But the truth is that hypnosis isn’t the least bit mysterious or supernatural. In fact, you are in a hypnotic state everyday. You don’t notice it because it seems such a natural state of mind.Everyone experiences a trance many times daily, but we don’t usually call it hypnosis. All of us have been so absorbed in thought – while reading a book or driving the car to work – that we fail to notice what is happening around us. While we were zoned out, another level of consciousness, which we refer to as “our subconscious mind, came forward and took over”.
It has been proven that there is a mind-body link connection. Self-hypnosis is a method that allows you to access this connection for the purpose of helping yourself. All hypnosis is an altered state of relaxed consciousness, between wakefulness and sleep, where ideas are accepted by suggestion rather than by logical evaluation.
I use the term self-hypnosis because it is you who are placing yourself into this hypnotic state. It is important for you to remember that a trance state can be terminated by you at any time. It is your choice to enter the hypnotic state, and you can always choose to leave it. If you were left in this state by a hypnotherapist or by your hypnotic tape, you would either return to full consciousness on your own or enter a natural sleep and awaken after a pleasant nap.
Most Malaysians associate hypnosis with stage shows and think that it is perhaps mystical or dangerous. In the public imagination, a hypnotist is a man with piercing eyes and a pocket watch. He swings his watch, your eyes droop and you fall into a trance. He can then get you to do anything.
Sinister thoughts that he will ask you, your bank PIN number or your deepest secrets or make you do something foolish tends to keeps you cautious and away from hypnosis.
If you buy this myth, it’s not just the movies and television that are to blame. The truth about hypnosis is far more down to earth than the mythmakers would have you believe. Hypnosis is not black magic and has no religious blending and is more of a science.
In fact the opposite is true. It’s a practical skill. Hypnosis is not a mind control method where a person is tricked to give up his or her control. It actually helps you to gain more control of your own life. Some people are skeptical about hypnosis and believe that you need to be gullible or weak-minded to be able to use hypnosis. This theory is also not true. People with above-average intelligence actually are better at using self-hypnosis techniques. Work with hypnosis is successful for people who want to be helped.
Self-hypnosis is one of the most powerful tools that you can use to accomplish your goals. In this new millennium, hypnosis is becoming a promising tool that can help society extensively in coping with daily stress related issues.
Cigarette smokers are able to kick their habit overnight, weight gain could be controlled, to relax and live, freeing from fear and phobias, relieving pain, etc. Hypnosis is now being used in emergency centres and surgeries in western countries. Hypnosis can be used to improve your general functioning because of its effect on the functioning of the mind as well as of the body and is now slowly taking its proper place as a serious part of medical and social science.
Julian Leicester is a London trained subconscious specialist with Hypno-Station. He is Malaysia’s most renowned clinical hypnotherapist, media personality, columnist, event host and book author. He can be contacted at julianleicester@gmail.com.