HYPNOSIS: AM I DOING IT RIGHT?

Are You A Perfectionist?

So many of the wonderful women I know are perfectionists in some form or another (including me). This need to get things “just right” causes us to drive ourselves, and often those around us, crazy, and sometimes keeps us from attempting things we want to do for fear of getting it wrong.

Did you know perfectionism is a form of the fear of failure? And the fear of failure is the subconscious’ way of protecting us from the potential for pain.

I don’t think I Can Be Hypnotized

I’ve heard, “I don’t think I can be hypnotized” more times than I can count. The truth is, we all have the potential to enter a trance state. For example, you drive the same route to work or school every day; have you ever realized you left point A and arrived at point B and didn’t remember the details of the journey? That’s a trance state. So the potential is there. However, entering trance is always voluntary, so if someone actively resists trance, they “can’t” be hypnotized.  After all, trance is simply a different brain wave.  For more on that, see my blog/vlog “What Is Hypnosis?”.

There Is No Right Way

So now that we’ve established it’s possible for anyone to be hypnotized, as long as they are willing, how do you know if you’re “doing it right?” Well, here’s another truth bomb: There’s no “right” way to do hypnosis. Just like every brain is different, every person experiences hypnosis slightly differently, and however you experience it, is exactly right for you. Just like some people learn by reading or seeing something (visual learners), some learn by hearing it explained (auditory learners), others need to physically experience doing an activity or feel it to grasp the information (kinesthetic learners), and still others need a combination of the above, each individual experiences hypnosis similar to how they learn best.

For example, I, as the hypnotherapist, may suggest during hypnosis that you “see” a staircase before you. Someone who’s visual may actually “see” that staircase in their mind’s eye immediately. Someone who’s auditory may need a much more detailed description of the staircase to get an idea of what it might be like, and someone who’s kinesthetic, might need words that describe the texture or feel of the staircase to get a sense of it being there, and may never actually “see” it at all. The good news is, all of these are perfect and correct ways to experience hypnosis.

Knowing this ahead of time can alleviate any concerns about whether you can actually be hypnotized, fears you will do it wrong, or frustrations that it’s not happening the way you thought it should. Going into each hypnotherapy session with an attitude of curiosity and the knowledge there’s no way to get it “wrong” will enable you get the most benefit from that session.