How many times have you been hypnotised? You probably think the answer is never, but, according to a leading hypnotherapist, the reality is that we all enter hypnotic states several times a day.
“When you drive a car, go for a run, watch a movie – whenever you focus on one thing to the exclusion of everything else – you enter a naturally occurring state of deep relaxation. That is a hypnotic state,” says hypnotherapist Nicholas Harris who runs the Practical Healing clinic in Chiang Mai and also works online with international clients.
Contrary to what many of us believe, hypnosis does not involve surrendering control. Blame Hollywood for the common misconception that at the click of a hypnotist’s fingers, anyone can become a biddable zombie.
“The first rule of therapy is you must feel safe. Many people approaching their first hypnotherapy session are worried that they will not be in control, but they are always fully aware,” Harris confirms. Fundamentally, hypnosis works within the same states of mind as meditation, however while meditators focus on achieving mental clarity, hypnotherapy uses deep relaxation as a platform to actively work with emotion.
Nicholas Harris
Hypnotherapist
“The first rule of therapy is you must feel safe. Many people approaching their first hypnotherapy session are worried that they will not be in control, but they are always fully aware.”
“If someone is particularly anxious, I use Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) or Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) as a precursor to hypnosis,” he adds, “as these techniques reduce the intensity of negative emotions.” It soon becomes obvious if a person remains resistant, in which case Harris continues with EFT or EMDR. “I adapt the therapy to the client, rather than adapt the client to the therapy,” he explains.
In any case, sessions always begin with a counselling chat before progressing to “active inner work”. For Harris, the power of hypnosis lies in its ability to bring the individual into a suggestive state of consciousness where their perception of a relationship or a habit can be re-evaluated positively through imagery and visualisation.
Once a hypnotherapy client is receptive, the therapist can plant a seed to recode their brain. For example, the therapist might encourage someone who wants to stop smoking to associate a drag of a cigarette with inhaling harmful toxins, which would help them mentally reframe the act of smoking. No longer a pleasurable habit, it becomes an unpleasant pastime.
Harris says hypnotherapy is most effective for anxiety, trauma and relationship issues, and can achieve rapid results. “It is possible to heal a trauma in one 90-minute session,” he says. “Hypnotherapy helps us slow down, think and feel differently.”