Does hypnosis really work?

I am often asked ‘does hypnosis really work?. Many peoples perception of hypnosis is swinging pendulums or Derren Brown! But the truth is you go into a hypnotic trance many times throughout the day.

There are different types of trance state and they all involve a focus of attention, either internally or externally.

When you are captivated by something you are watching externally such as a band or a film, you slip into a trance – or rather an altered brain wave state.

When you are skiing down a mountain, you slip into a trance. When you are making love with another person, you slip into an internal trance.

When you are watching or experiencing something unpleasant, or you feel threatened, you also slip into a trance.

The power of your imagination can also take you into a trance. Through day dreaming for example, you can take yourself into a trance. The common theme with all the trance states, is that you are focused on a single stimulus. 

When you are in a trance state you enter into the brain wave state known as the REM state (rapid eye movement). In this brain wave state you lay down new patterns for interpreting the world. Hypnosis engages this brain wave state, to create new helpful patterns in your mind to achieve your goals.

If you have for example, been using your imagination to think the worst is going to happen, then you have slipped into a hypnotic trance and hypnotised yourself into believing that. Done often enough, this then creates a pattern in the mind from which you operate.

While it is easy to slip into a trance when you are doing something nice, it’s also very easy to slip into a negative trance state when you are worrying about something for feeling anxious. When you are locked into these negative trance states, it’s hard to think or feel more positively. 

So does hypnosis really work? Yes, because you do it all day every day without even realising it!

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