Common Misconceptions about Hypnosis

People often fear that being hypnotized will make them lose control, surrender their will, and result in their being dominated, but a hypnotic state is not the same thing as gullibility or weakness. Many people base their assumptions about hypnotism on stage acts but fail to take into account that stage hypnotists screen their volunteers to select those who are cooperative, with possible exhibitionist tendencies, as well as responsive to hypnosis. Stage acts help create a myth about hypnosis which discourages people from seeking legitimate hypnotherapy.

Amnesia and Loss of Consciousness

Another misconception about hypnosis is that people lose consciousness and have amnesia. A small percentage of subjects, who go into very deep levels of trance will fit this stereotype and have spontaneous amnesia. The majority of people remember everything that occurs in hypnosis. This is beneficial, because the most of what we want to accomplish in hypnosis may be done in a medium depth trance, where people tend to remember everything.

Revelation of Secrets

Frequently the question is asked, "Will I tell any secrets while I am in hypnosis?" The answer is no. Hypnosis is wrongly presumed to be a "truth serum" that renders the hypnotized person incapable of lying, and robs the subject of the ability to keep embarrassing secrets confidential. While hypnotized a person will not spontaneously begin talking , or reveal any intimate secrets they would not tell while in a waking state.

Weak Mindedness

It is not correct that only weak-willed or feeble-minded persons can be hypnotized. Being hypnotized is not an indication of lesser intelligence. Contrary to popular belief there is a relationship between intelligence and hypnotizability. It is difficult - and often impossible - to hypnotize morons, imbeciles, psychotics or severely detached persons.

Fear of Getting "Stuck" in Hypnosis

Often the prospective subject will ask, "What happens if you can't get me out of this?" There is no danger of the subject not being "brought out" of hypnosis. Since the subject holds the control, there is no difficulty in terminating the hypnotic state.

In hypnosis, the patient is not under the control of the hypnotist. Hypnosis is not something imposed on people, but something they do for themselves. A hypnotist simply serves as a facilitator to guide them so it would be impossible to commit harmful acts as a result of a therapist.

When Will Hypnosis Be Beneficial?

We believe that hypnosis will be optimally effective when the patient is highly motivated to overcome a problem and when the hypnotherapist is well trained in both hypnosis and in general considerations relating to the treatment of the particular problem. Some individuals seem to have higher native hypnotic talent and capacity that may allow them to benefit more readily from hypnosis.

It is important to keep in mind that hypnosis is like any other therapeutic modality: it is of major benefit to some patients with some problems, and it is helpful with many other patients, but it can fail, just like any other clinical method. For this reason, we emphasize that we are not "hypnotists", but health care professionals who use hypnosis along with other tools of our professions.

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