I met a believer yesterday. During the introduction by a mutual friend, she told him "Bev practices Hypnotherapy". I love that introduction because you never know how someone will respond. We were standing in a wonderful local shop that sells crystals and other healing things so I expected the owner to be open; I just wondered "how open?". "R" looked me straight in the eye with his piercing blue eyes and told me, "I am a believer! Hypnotherapy saved my life several years ago". Okay, that was a new response, and I was giddy with excitement to hear his story. Rightfully so. Hypnotherapy removed "R's" unbearable, life-changing, disabling pain when he was told his only hope was more surgery. A sixth surgery was not on his bucket list. When he said he would like to refer people to me, I handed him a few business cards and we continued to talk.
R told me he suggests hypnotherapy to people all the time, and is surprised at how many tell him, "Oh, I can't be hypnotized". R told our friend that you need to be smart to be hypnotized, and he just assumes anyone who can't be is not smart enough. Since the Hypnotherapist who successfully treated R lives in another state, it is a hard "sell" to convince people to travel to try it. I told R that in practice, I have actually found that the more convinced someone is that he/she can not be put into a trance, the easier it is. My theory is that those people are seated comfortably in my chair, settled in nicely, without a concern because they "know" this "isn't going to work anyway" so "I may as well get cozy and settle in for the ride". Ie: no distracting thoughts. They settle in; they get cozy; they allow their eyes to drift closed. Boom. They are in a hypnotic trance and we are on our journey to resolve their issue.
I shared a few anecdotes with R and our friend, always protecting my client's privacy. I arrived at Hypnotherapy from the medical industry. I continue to live my HIPAA training, and am delighted to do so. I don't even use client names on their records. But I can create new names for clients in a heartbeat.
Take Barry. He couldn't be hypnotized but he needed to resolved his fear of public speaking. He had seen a "Hypnotist" in another city who shouted at him and hit his arm. He never entered a trance and came to me trying to figure out what had happened. Well for starters, it sounds more like some Neuro Linguistic Programming was attempted, and since Barry couldn't recall what had happened, I believe he was likely in a trance at some point. He drifted into a trance for me beautifully and the next time I heard from him, he was successfully addressing large audiences much to the delight of his employer!
And then came Gerry. No way could he be hypnotized. Gerry was seeking a solution to his inability to focus and stay on task. "Totally ADD", he told me; certainly "couldn't concentrate long enough to listen much less enter a trance". "Okay", I told him. "So we will just relax you". I tried a suggestibility test on him and he passed with flying colors. According to this test, Gerry could easily be hypnotized. Moments later, he was in a deep trance. Four days later, his administrative assistant called to schedule an appointment for herself after witnessing the dramatic change in Barry. Four weeks later, Barry came back for help with inability to sleep through the night. That night he slept 9 hours. Since then, his sleep is only interrupted by his dogs and his alarm clock.
I went on to tell "R" about my client who has called from multiple cities after we worked on her fear of flying and her initial fear of hypnotherapy. I shared with him the story of a client who was so nervous she brought someone with her to just sit in the room and watch; they both went into a trance. And I admitted to him that I was convinced I could not be hypnotized. I fully believed in it as a tool for those who could be, but that wasn't me. My personal Hypnotherapist will tell you otherwise. She planted a suggested years ago that still comes back to me when I need it.
So if you are struggling with a fear, phobia, stressor, anxiety, or habit you would like to be rid of; if you would like to get out of your own way and have been told to try hypnotherapy but you just KNOW you can't be hypnotized, call me. So, like Gerry, we won't hypnotize you, either. We will just relax you and teach you how to relax yourself. And then we will bring you back to full awareness.
Namaste'!
Bev