Hypnosis and RTT.
I promise it’s nothing like you’ve seen on TV!
When most people think of hypnosis they think of someone clucking like a chicken alongside a stage hypnotist while a room full of audience members laugh at them. That could not be further from the truth!
-Frank
Hypnosis is a state of focused awareness and concentration. Whenever you get lost in thought, miss an exit on the highway, or get into the zone while working out, you are in a state of trance similar to the one you experience under hypnosis.
For some people, hypnosis feels like daydreaming. By helping you access this trance-like state, hypnosis helps you move beyond your conscious “thinking” mind into the subconscious, which is where the magic happens.
The conscious mind is like the gatekeeper. Its job is to keep you safe. For that reason, the “thinking” mind prefers to keep things under control, making decisions in favor of maintaining the status quo and resisting changes.
The subconscious mind runs on autopilot, based on your current patterns of thinking and reasoning. The subconscious mind simply plays and records, it does not make judgments or reason like the conscious mind does.
How does hypnosis work?
Your subconscious mind does not know the difference between reality and imagination. This is a highly suggestible part of the mind that takes things very literally.
Giving the subconscious positive suggestions that reflect the condition you are trying to achieve is the best way to utilize a process like hypnosis. It is the easiest and fastest way to make grand shifts in your personality.
When you are under hypnosis, your mind can focus on and become aware of certain experiences beyond your immediate surroundings. For example, when you relax into a hypnotic trance, you might see yourself making important changes, overcoming an obstacle or stepping into a new level of health and wellness.
Using hypnosis to reprogram your beliefs and attitudes can create profound changes.
Is hypnosis real?
The big question everyone seems to have is whether or not hypnosis is real science. A study done at Stanford University School of Medicine, which studied 57 people during guided hypnosis, provided positive proof that hypnosis is real.
What they found was quite amazing. The study showed that certain brain areas were altered during the hypnotic trance.
According to Dr. David Spiegel, a hypnosis expert, and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine, research has shown that hypnosis can act on multiple brain regions, including some linked to pain perception and regulation.
Brain scans of those who underwent hypnosis showed similarities to the brain scans of those being clinically treated for anxiety, pain or trauma.
Knowing which exact brain regions are involved with hypnosis makes it possible for scientists to alter someone’s capacity to be hypnotized. This can help improve the effectiveness of hypnosis for problems such as pain control.
Spiegel’s research revealed three unique features of the brain during hypnosis.
A decrease in activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate.
An increase in connections between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the insula, the brain-body connection.
Reduced connections between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the default mode network.
So what does all of this really mean? During the process of hypnosis, there is a kind of disassociation between action and reflection. This allows you to engage in activities that might be suggested by a hypnotist without having to devote mental resources and being self-conscious of the activity.
During hypnosis, you are highly engaged and highly focused. As a result, you can engage in activities in your imagination without having to really think about how you are doing it - you just do it.
In other words, whatever you picture in your mind is perceived as real while you are in trance. This is exactly why you are able to resolve issues and adopt more desirable beliefs and behaviors while under hypnosis.
Spiegel suggests that hypnosis is a very powerful means of changing the way we use our minds to control the perception of our bodies. In Spiegel’s words:
“Hypnosis is the oldest Western form of psychotherapy, but it has been tarred with the brush of dangling watches and purple capes.”
Peer, Marisa. Is Hypnosis Real? What Does the Science Say? RTT. https://rtt.com/is-hypnosis-real/. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.