Inside A Hypnotherapy Session: Will You Make Me Cluck Like A Chicken?
Everyone has heard of hypnosis, but what is it exactly? And what can it do for you?
Hypnosis is a trance-like state of increased focus and concentration. When you're under hypnosis, you usually feel calm and relaxed, and you’re more open to suggestion.
The practice of hypnotherapy can help you change bad habits, overcome stage fright, and help you cope with anxiety or pain. Although you're more open to suggestion during hypnosis, you don't lose control over your behavior.
What hypnosis is not
Don’t worry! You’re not going to bark like a dog or cluck like a chicken!
Hypnosis is sometimes misunderstood because of the way it’s been used in stage shows and movies, where it’s portrayed falsely as mind control or as a way of making someone do something they don't want to do.
But within the past decade, hypnosis has gained more traction within the medical field, and it’s now being used by celebrities (and others) to free themselves from addictions to cigarettes, drugs, alcohol, and sugar, and to gain control over their habits and their lives.
Thanks to science, we now know that hypnosis allows you to tap into your subconscious mind, which is the strongest part of the mind—about 88% of your total mind power.
Bypassing the critical nature of the conscious mind and gaining access to the subconscious mind allows you to make transformations in behavior patterns. These are changes that you just can’t achieve by trying to force your conscious mind to cooperate!
With my help, you’ll be able to let go of your everyday state of mind and allow the subconscious mind to work for you. You have everything you need inside of you to make the changes you want to make.
What hypnosis is
Hypnosis is a relaxed state where the subconscious mind is very receptive to thoughts and suggestions. Using hypnosis, you can modify your behavior to benefit you. You replace old beliefs or behaviors that you no longer need or want with the new ones you desire.
Everyone naturally enters hypnosis several times every day—while watching a movie or TV, when reading an enthralling book, when overwhelmed by a new romance, or while driving (have you ever driven for a few miles without remembering how you got there?).
Some examples of natural states of hypnosis are:
Driving
Watching TV
Reading a book
Before we fall asleep
After we wake up
Daydreaming
Meditation
At times like this when our critical mind is not as active, we are more open and suggestible to thoughts, feelings, emotions, and ideas.
Hypnotherapy makes use of this state, helping you use that suggestibility to make the positive changes you want in your life.
Hypnotherapy can help you:
Gain confidence
A visual artist came to me because she wanted to feel confident enough to put her art into the world. She was suffering from perfectionism and feelings of not being “good enough.” Through hypnosis, we built her self esteem and confidence, and now she has created her website, listed her art on a site where people can buy prints, and she’s had two successful art exhibits!
Change bad habits
An actor came to me for help to stop smoking. He had been a smoker for 15 years and was sick of feeling under the control of cigarettes and sick of the health issues that came with it. With just one hypnotherapy session and a follow-up, he’s been smoke free for 6 months!
Overcome stage fright
I used hypnosis and deep trance identification to overcome my own lifelong experience of stage fright. As a result, I was able to play a show for the first time without drinking shots of alcohol beforehand. It felt so good to rock the stage completely sober and in control of my performance!
Increase your income
A school teacher came to me, wanting my help to find a better job and increase his income. I worked with him using hypnosis and Mental Bank, a tool that helps you program your subconscious mind before sleep using handwriting. Well, last month he got the job he was hoping for, and yes—his income has increased!
Sleep better
I have a client who has had insomnia for 20 years. She was only managing to sleep 3–4 hours a night. With the help of hypnosis, she has been sleeping longer and longer each night. She’s currently sleeping 6.5 hours per night, and it’s increasing every week!
Overcome anxiety
A film director came to me with anxiety. He was having a hard time getting through the day without having panic attacks and feeling like he couldn’t cope. His doctor and I worked as a team to help him feel in control of his thoughts and feelings. I provided tools that he could use throughout the day for relaxation. He now reports feeling relaxed, in control, and able to face his daily challenges without breaking down.
What happens in a hypnotherapy session?
In a hypnotherapy session we start by talking about your issue and what you would like to have instead. I explain how the mind works and what’s creating the habit/issue, then I test your suggestibility (don’t worry—this is one test you can’t pass or fail; it just shows me how you take in information to form suggestions that your subconscious mind will easily accept).
Then I help you get into the hypnotic trance state, and give you the positive suggestions for change that we talked about earlier in our session. A session last around 60 minutes, with about 15 minutes of that being in hypnosis, or trance.
Sessions are conducted online or by phone, or can be done in-person if you are in Los Angeles.
Is there something in your life that you would like my help with? Schedule a complimentary consultation call below to find out how hypnotherapy can help you!