{"id":15015,"date":"2025-09-13T09:12:06","date_gmt":"2025-09-13T13:12:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/valuecare.wpgamma.com\/?p=15015"},"modified":"2025-09-13T09:12:06","modified_gmt":"2025-09-13T13:12:06","slug":"hypnosis-101-the-basics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/valuecare.wpgamma.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/13\/hypnosis-101-the-basics\/","title":{"rendered":"Hypnosis 101 – The Basics"},"content":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0Network upholds the highest professional standards for our products, quality and therapists. We carefully monitor our product list and therapist requirements against the standards of The American Society of Clinical\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0(ASCH), the largest U.S. organization for health and mental health care professionals using clinical\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Founded in 1957, ASCH\u2019s members are psychologists, psychiatrists, clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, mental health counselors, medical doctors, master\u2019s level nurses and dentists. Their efforts to support research and set standards for ethical practices of\u00a0Hypnotherapy<\/a>\u00a0are respected world-wide, and The\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0Network is proud to meet (and in some cases exceed) their standards.<\/p>\n

The following information on\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0is taken from the ASCH\u2019s website.<\/p>\n

Definition of\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0is a state of inner absorption, concentration and focused attention. It is like using a magnifying glass to\u00a0Focus<\/a>\u00a0the rays of the sun and make them more powerful. Similarly, when our minds are concentrated and focused, we are able to use our minds more powerfully. Because\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0allows people to use more of their potential, learning self-Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0is the ultimate act of self-control.<\/p>\n

Everyone has experienced a trance many times, but we don\u2019t usually call it\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>. All of us have been so absorbed in thought \u2013 while reading a book, or riding the bus to work \u2013 that we fail to notice what is happening around us. While we were zoned out, another level of consciousness which we refer to as our unconscious mind, took over. These are very focused states of attention similar to\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ruth Dart, assistant to Dr. Eric Greenleaf who founded the Milton H. Erickson Insitute of the Bay Area, has this to say about what\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0feels like:<\/p>\n

At the end of my first\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0session, my\u00a0Hypnotherapist<\/a>\u00a0said, \u201cWhen we\u2019re through here you\u2019ll be . . . you\u2019ll be yourself!\u201d This was prophetic. I would describe all of my subsequent experiences with\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0as remembering or discovering parts of myself that were characteristic, and following their lead.<\/p>\n

Therapeutic\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0has not involved suppressing or discarding any part of me. It has not meant using will power to force behavior changes. Rather, it is a way to allow change to arise inevitably, even joyfully, out of the unique person who has always been present. It is a tool for utilizing what is already there.<\/p>\n

Clinical hypnotists do essentially three things with\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>. They encourage the use of imagination. Mental imagery is very powerful, especially in a focused state of attention. The mind seems capable of using imagery, even if it is only symbolic, to assist us in bringing about the things we are imagining. For example, a patient with\u00a0Ulcerative Colitis<\/a>\u00a0may be asked to imagine what her distressed colon looks like. If she imagines it as being like a tunnel, with very red, inflamed walls that are rough in texture, the patient may be encouraged in\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0(and in self-Hypnosis<\/a>) to imagine this image changing to a healthy one.<\/p>\n

Another basic\u00a0Hypnotic<\/a>\u00a0method is to present ideas or suggestions to the patient. In a state of concentrated attention, ideas and suggestions that are compatible with what the patient wants seem to have a more powerful impact on the mind.<\/p>\n

Finally,\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0may be used for unconscious exploration, to better understand underlying motivations or identify whether past events or experiences are associated with causing a problem.\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0avoids the critical censor of the conscious mind, which often defeats what we know to be in our best interests.<\/p>\n

Myths About\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

People often fear that being hypnotized will make them lose control, surrender their will, and result in their being dominated, but a\u00a0Hypnotic<\/a>\u00a0State 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\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>. Stage acts help create a myth about\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0which discourages people from seeking legitimate\u00a0Hypnotherapy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Another myth about\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0is 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\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>. This is beneficial, because most of what we want to accomplish in\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0may be done in a medium-depth trance, where people tend to remember everything.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>, the patient is not under the control of the hypnotist.\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0is not something imposed on people, but something they do for themselves. A hypnotist simply serves as a facilitator to guide them.<\/p>\n

When Will\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0Be Beneficial?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We believe that\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0will be optimally effective when the patient is highly motivated to overcome a problem and when the\u00a0Hypnotherapist<\/a>\u00a0is well trained in both\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0and in general considerations relating to the treatment of the particular problem. Some individuals seem to have higher native\u00a0Hypnotic<\/a>\u00a0talent and capacity that may allow them to benefit more readily from\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It is important to keep in mind that\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0is like any other therapeutic modality: It can offer major benefits 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 \u201chypnotists,\u201d but health- care professionals who use\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0along with other tools of our professions.<\/p>\n

Uses of\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

LEGITIMATE USES OF\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Below is a list of legitimate uses of\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0as defined by the American Society of Clinical\u00a0Hypnosis<\/a>\u00a0(ASCH)<\/p>\n