The state of hypnosis is where a person is in a deeply
relaxed state of mind. “You have been in
an hypnotic state literally thousands of times.
You didn’t notice it because it seemed such a natural state of mind.” (Hadley
et al).
Being put into a state of hypnosis is where someone takes you
through the process of relaxation, to the point where your conscious switches
off and your subconscious takes over, where you are in a trance like
state. Being in this hypnotic
trance-like state is like being asleep while being aware, you are deeply
relaxed but will be aware of what the hypnotist is saying.
As a society we are so busy rushing from one task to another, we do not take the time to properly relax. This means our bodies are in a tense state possibly even though we are relaxing. The relaxation process helps the person to focus on individual parts of the body and to gradually work through the parts relaxing as they go. The process of tensing then relaxing can help the person focus and become aware of the muscles.
The process of Hypnotherapy:
Hadley describes 5 levels of
consciousness from alert through to sleep;
The first level is alert. At this point a
person is engaged, focused with full reflex
and motor responses.
The person moves into the hypnotic state, this being second level
(daydreaming/light trance). At this point the person begins to withdraw
into themselves as they relax and think (daydream). In this level they are becoming relaxed –
physically their muscles in their body are becoming less tense and their breathing
begins to slow.
The person moves into the next level which is a moderate trance. The person is becoming more connected with their subconscious, they may feel lots of emotions or begin recalling memories. At this point a person may be more able to picture or imagine things more vividly. It is at this level the subconscious can take over from the conscious mind. This is the stage we can do something but be unaware of doing it at the time.
The person moves into the next level which is a moderate trance. The person is becoming more connected with their subconscious, they may feel lots of emotions or begin recalling memories. At this point a person may be more able to picture or imagine things more vividly. It is at this level the subconscious can take over from the conscious mind. This is the stage we can do something but be unaware of doing it at the time.
The state of
hypnosis deepens further still as the person moves into a deep trance. The person
will be completely relaxed – their limbs will be feeling heavy, limp or stiff
and they may feel unable to move, their movement limited. At this point they are more open to
suggestibility and can be unaware of their surroundings and they can possibly smell
or taste things in their imagination, they may also feel like they are
experiencing an action or memory.
The
final level is sleep.
The middle three
stages are the most beneficial in a hypnosis.
