FAQ
What Is Medical Hypnoanalysis?
Medical Hypnoanalysis is a form of deep relaxation and focused awareness that was introduced in the late 18th century by Dr. Franz Anton Mesmer. A soothing tone of voice and repetitive stimulus, such as the sound of a metronome (a device that marks time in a steady beat), can induce the hypnotic state in susceptible individuals. This relaxed state can lead to lower blood pressure, a decreased heart rate and slower brain wave activity.
Click here to learn the many definitions of Hypnosis!How does hypnosis work?
In hypnosis the "critical" or analytical" part of the mind becomes relaxed or disengaged. Suggestions are then received more deeply without criticism and thus, have a far greater impact.
Will Medical Hypnoanalysis instantly solve my problems?
While we have personally seen some clients make remarkable and rapid change, Medical Hypnoanalysis is not a magical cure. It does not work for everyone.
Medical Hypnoanalysis can help people change habits, learn to relax, heal old hurts, get in touch with inner strengths, learn to look at things differently, or discover solutions to problems. Persons must then take responsibility and change their behavior. Without that commitment, the benefits of Medical Hypnoanalysis will probably be small and short-lived.
Occasionally, clients express discomfort with hypnotic work on religious grounds. Among the concerns we have heard is the belief that during hypnosis clients surrender their free will and self-control to the therapist. A few people have stated that trance and dream-states are places where God speaks, so we should remain "hands off."
The first concern assumes that hypnosis has far more power than it really does. As has already been said, people will not do anything in or after trance that they would not otherwise do.
The second issue, and other concerns like it, are more complicated. There are many Scripture references to God communicating with people in dreams or in trance. (John's visions, detailed in Revelation, are noteworthy examples.) We respect clients' spiritual convictions and religious traditions and will never attempt hypnotic work with clients who don't think it's appropriate.
We will work on clients' concerns in other ways that they find acceptable, perhaps using biofeedback, relaxation training, or some form of "talk therapy." This likely has to do with religious tradition, views of pastors past and present, and individual upbringing. Our job as therapists, however, is to respect clients' spirituality, not to challenge or try to change it.
While Medical Hypnoanalysis is not as magical as some people believe, it is a powerful tool in helping people grow. It is especially useful in working with problems that seem "automatic" and outside our conscious control. (For example, certain habits or the sleep disturbances, flashbacks, and upsetting memories often caused by abuse or other trauma).
By studying and mastering Medical Hypnoanalysis, we seek to be more and more helpful to the people we are privileged to serve.
What Can Medical Hypnoanalysis Do For Me?
Medical Hypnoanalysis allows subconscious knowledge and inner wisdom to emerge into conscious awareness.
Medical Hypnoanalysis allows you to access the subconscious mind to return to the time an attitude, belief, behavior or action was learned and to change it if you so desire.
Medical Hypnoanalysis allows the healing power of the subconscious mind to emerge and be consciously focused.
Medical Hypnoanalysis gives you access to traumatic memories to examine and transform them to release the pain of the event from the very cells of your body. You can also understand and change fears, phobias, anxieties, sadness, pain, hurt, and negative thoughts and beliefs. You can change your responses and feelings so they no longer control you in any way.
Medical Hypnoanalysis can assist you in uncovering the causes of many physical symptoms and psychological patterns which are hidden in the subconscious mind.
Is hypnosis dangerous?
There has never been a documented case of harm coming to anyone from Medical Hypnoanalysis. The harm is that Medical Hypnoanalysis is not used enough by people to bring about their own self-improvement.
Am I asleep?
No. You are awake and aware of everything going on around you during hypnosis. You are, though, very pleasantly relaxed, peaceful and tranquil.
Hypnosis is not a sleep state. While hypnotic trance is different for everyone, it is more like a daydream in which one's attention is focused on things we often ignore. In trance, one may focus attention on mental images, physical sensations, unspoken ideas, emotions or memories. Typically, time seems to pass quickly.If you have ever been so absorbed in a book or TV show that you lost track of time, you've been in trance. Most of us probably experience some form of trance on a daily basis.
Trance is a normal, natural state of mind. Yet, trance is also a state in which people can influence their own "unconscious mind". This is difficult to do in our usual state of conscious awareness. The unconscious is the part of the mind that does things "automatically", with little conscious intent or control. The unconscious is the stuff of dreams, of habits, and of physical functions and changes.
Won't I remember what happens when I'm in trance?
Not necessarily. You can remember whatever your mind chooses to remember. You probably won't remember everything, but that has more to do with what you were paying attention to than it has to do with trance itself. Even in a state of full waking consciousness, we don't remember every bit of information that comes our way, because we don't pay attention to everything.
Will I remember things with hypnosis that I can't remember otherwise?
Maybe. People may remember new things in trance, but that is not always the case. Generally speaking, people may recall things that would be good to remember and probably won't remember things that are best left alone. The client's subconscious mind will make those decisions, not the therapist.
It is important to realize that "memories" recalled in trance are not always reliable. They may not be true memories. They may really be fantasy images, memories that have been changed by time and experience, or something the person was told by someone else. Much unnecessary heartache has happened when a person acted on hypnotically-recalled memories, believing they were true, only to find out later that they were not.What Is Medical Hypnoanalysis Used For?
Medical Hypnoanalysis is very good at reducing stress because hypnosis is so profoundly relaxing. Hypnosis is very effective at elevating and strengthening self-confidence and self-esteem. It is highly successful in helping people overcome fears and phobias, (fear of flying, anxiety/panic attacks, public speaking anxiety and claustrophobia). Hypnoanalytically Enhanced Eating Awareness Training (HEAT) is tremendously successful in helping people get control of their eating habits and lose weight. Motivational hypnosis can help people stop procrastinating, begin exercising or increase sales.
Thousands and thousands of people have successfully stopped smoking using Medical Hypnoanalysis. Medical Hypnoanalysis is also particularly good at helping people stay calm and focused when taking stressful exams, (state licensure exams, certification exams, professional exams as well as SAT's and GMAT's). Today, the field of "sports hypnosis" helping athletes enhance their performance through heightened mental focus is growing exponentially!
What does it feel like to be hypnotized? Can I be hypnotized?
The answer to this is extremely important because it may determine whether or not you can benefit from hypnosis. Some people give up on hypnosis after a few sessions because they were disappointed in their reactions, believing they are not suitable subjects. Many people believe they will go through something different, new and spectacular in the hypnotic state. They equate hypnosis with being anesthetized or being asleep or unconscious. DO NOT EXPECT TO GO TO SLEEP OR LOSE TOUCH WITH REALITY. You will be able to hear, remember, and experience everything that is going on around you. Hypnosis is a very pleasant feeling of complete physical and mental relaxation. It is similar to that moment between knowing you are awake and going into the sleep-state. Often, when people are in hypnosis, you find your mind active, you hear every sound in the room, that you can resist the suggestions if you choose to, you realize that you are not asleep, and you are able to remember everything perfectly, all of these factors lead people to believe that they were not hypnotized, when indeed they were.
Is Medical Hypnoanalysis Approved by the Medical Community?
Yes. The American Medical Association (AMA) approved the use of hypnosis in 1958, as did the British Medical Association. The American Psychiatric Association has approved hypnotherapy for use by professionally trained and responsible individuals. Medical Hypnoanalysis gaining more acceptance and respect because of its effectiveness. Recently, the American Journal of Gerontology published an article regarding the effectiveness of hypnotherapy for Irritable Bowel Syndrome. The value of the hypnotherapeutic process receives more and more recognition and acceptance as its effectiveness is discovered.
How Do I Know I Am In Hypnosis? Do I Give Up Control?
In a session, you will feel very relaxed, but also alert and aware. Your subconscious mind remains open and receptive. You retain full conscious awareness and control, while in touch with subconscious memories, emotions and feelings. It is not done "to you", but is a gift you give yourself. And no one can make you do something you don't want to do! You can come out of your relaxed state any time you want to. You will not do anything that is against your moral, ethical or religious values. You will not experience anything you are not ready to do.
Why do some people have doubts about hypnosis?
Hypnosis is such a misunderstood phenomenon. For centuries, it has been affiliated with spiritualism, witchcraft, and various other “unexplainable” events. Based on “B” movies, cheap novels and exaggerated claims made by undisciplined persons.
Does hypnosis weaken the will? Are only weak minded people able to go into hypnotic states?
No. Self-hypnosis strengthens the will. Hypnosis works with the will, not against it. In fact, the more intelligent and strong-willed you are, the more effective hypnosis will be for you.
Will I Always Come Out?
Using Medical Hypnoanalysis, you will be deeply relaxed. You are aware, not asleep. Your mental awareness is increased and you become more focused, such as occurs when you are engrossed in a book or immersed in music, or cruising down the highway and miss your exit.
What Kind of Changes Can I Experience With Medical Hypnoanalysis?
Generally, there is a positive effect from Medical Hypnoanalysis. When pain and trauma is released from the subconscious mind and the physical body's stored stress is also released from your cells. You can experience calmness, peace. and a feeling of joy from resolving an old issue, changing your behaviors and old patterns, leaning new information, connecting with your inner wisdom, changing how you perceive yourself and others. You can actually learn to let go of old hurts and angers, so they no longer affect you physically and emotionally. Your subconscious mind holds your key to health, happiness and self-empowerment!
What Is Self Empowerment? How Can I Learn More About It?
Self-empowerment is the process of tapping into your own inner sources of power and wisdom, becoming more aware and conscious of how creative you are, and incorporating this knowledge into your daily life.
How exactly does hypnosis work?
The human mind is extremely suggestible and is being bombarded daily with suggestive stimuli from external sources, and suggestive thoughts and ideas from the inside. A good deal of suffering is the consequence of “negative thoughts and impulses invading one’s mind from subconscious recesses. Unfortunately, past experience, guilt feelings, and repudiated impulses and desires are constantly pushing themselves into awareness, directly or in disguised forms.
These thoughts become feelings which sabotage one’s happiness, health, and efficiency. By the time one has reached adulthood, there has been a build up of “negative” modes of thinking, feeling and acting which persist as bad habits. Like any habit they are hard to break or change. However, using hypnosis, we are able to transform negative attitudes into more positive ones. For some, change does happen quickly if they believe change can happen quickly. Other times, it often takes time to extinguish old behavior patterns, so do not be discouraged if there is no immediate effect. Even when no apparent changes happen on the surface, much is happening on the inside.
An analogy may be useful: imaging if you were to hold a batch of white ink blotters above the level of your eyes so that you only see the bottom blotter. Then, if you were to begin to dribble drops of ink blotters on the top blotter. As you do this, you observe nothing happening to the bottom blotter until sufficient ink has been poured to soak through into the entire thickness. Eventually the ink will come down. During this period while nothing seemingly has happened, changes were always occurring. Hypnotic suggestions are like ink poured on layers of resistance, namely, one’s limiting beliefs about oneself. One must keep repeating the suggestions before the soak in to begin to influence old destructive patterns.
Can a person be hypnotized against their will or made to do anything against their will?
No one is able to be hypnotized against their will. If people were, hypnosis would be the most closely guarded secret on the planet. Entering hypnosis is a consent state. The Medical Hypnoanalyst assists the subject, who then hypnotizes him/herself.
How can I tell who is right for me?
You should inquire as to the person's training and qualifications. Clinical Membership or higher through the American Academy of Medical Hypnoanalysis (AAMH) is best. Next best is Clinical Certification by the American Psychotherapy and Medical Hypnosis Association (APMHA)
What is self-hypnosis?
Techniques exist by which one can attain a state of self-hypnosis and gain complete relaxation under the most stressful conditions. In this state, the sub-conscious mind is open to therapeutic suggestions.
What exactly is the sub-conscious mind?
The conscious mind, the mind that you are conscious of, is your “me.” It is the critical part of your mind. The sub-conscious mind is the one that directs your conduct through the habits and emotional desires acquired from the influences of your environment, before you were old enough to reject harmful ideas and concepts.
How does self-hypnosis differ from hypnosis by a Medical Hypnoanalyst?
In self-hypnosis, YOU choose your own time limits, instead of a scheduled appointment with a Medical Hypnoanalyst. Using a Medical Hypnoanalyst at the beginning of your awareness training is of great benefit. It speeds up your process of self-improvement.
What if I Can't be Hypnotized?
Most people feel or think this very same way. The fear is giving up control. The opposite is actually true. You are exercising a more powerful form of thought-control than at other times by accepting the suggestions given. The only thought to prevent you from going into hypnosis is the thought, “I can’t be hypnotized.”
Do I Need Medical Hypnoanalysis? Will it Work For Me?
Medical Hypnoanalysis is an alternative to other methods of treatment for change. If you have nervous symptoms such as tension, depression, fears, chronic fatigue, or feel irritable, unhappy, and believe you are not getting the most out of life, then Medical Hypnoanalysis nay be for you.
How effective is Medical Hypnoanalysis or hypnotherapy?
A survey of psychotherapy literature by noted psychologist Alfred A. Barrios, Ph.D. revealed the following recovery rates:
- Psychoanalysis: 38% recovery after 600 sessions.
- Behavior Therapy: 72% recovery after 22 sessions.
- Hypnotherapy: 93% recovery after 6 sessions.
Source: American Health Magazine
How Does Medical Hypnoanalysis Work?
Nervous systems and unwarranted unhappiness are the product of inner emotional conflicts. By using Medical Hypnoanalysis, you are assisted in understanding your conflicts. In this way, it is possible for you to do something constructive about solving them.
Does a person become unconscious or lose control during hypnosis?
Actually the opposite is true as you are gaining control over mental functions most other people are scarcely aware of. Contrary to popular myth, you will never tell secrets you want to keep to yourself or accept suggestions that are not in your best interests. Also you will be awake the entire session and will be able to recall all that took place. YOU are ALWAYS in CONTROL!What does being hypnotized feel like?
Most clients report pleasant feelings of mental and physical relaxation, similar to those moments before we fall asleep at night. Relaxed, yet still aware and able to respond if we need to.
Can anyone be hypnotized?
Anyone who can follow simple instructions can work with hypnosis if they want to. The better informed a client is as to the truth and fictions regarding hypnosis, the better the results. It is true that some people find it easier to access a deeper level of hypnosis than others. A light to medium level of hypnosis is more than adequate for most situations. After all, chances are that you were not in deep hypnosis when the problem started!
What about those group hypnosis programs for smoking and weight control that I see advertised in the paper, are they effective?
Clinical research shows that hypnosis is far more effective in the private session or small group format. First, someone running a large program cannot give individualized attention to each person there. Second, many people find it hard to relax in a room with 100-300 strangers, especially if it is your first time working with hypnosis. Third, many problems require follow-up visits, which the traveling programs cannot provide. You are far more likely to reach your goal by working with a Medical Hypnoanalyst privately over a period of several weeks. The added investment is certainly worth it.
How many sessions will be needed?
This depends on the nature of the goals or problems.
What are the costs?
The fee structure is $125 for each visit