What Is Hypnosis?

The term "hypnosis" (from the Greek "hypnos", meaning "sleep") was coined around 1840 and remains a less than accurate description of the experience as, in most respects, the hypnotic state is entirely dissimilar to sleep. Our current level of knowledge indicates the phenomenon cannot be conclusively defined, but a reasonable interim definition might be:

"Hypnosis is a state of mind, enhanced by (although not exclusively) mental and physical relaxation, in which our subconscious is able to communicate with our conscious mind".

This state of mind may be brought about either by oneself unaided (self-hypnosis) or with the help of another person. If this other person is a trained professional, who utilises the resultant state to encourage beneficial change to occur, the process is referred to as "Hypnotherapy".

(Note: Definition is taken from the General Hypnotherapy Standards Council literature.)

Hypnotherapy is distinctive amongst the many forms of psychological therapies in that it attempts to address the Client's subconscious mind. Hypnotherapy is generally considered to be a fairly short-term approach in which beneficial change, if it is to occur, should become apparent within a relatively few sessions.

Many misconceptions still exist, which have little or no bearing on the Hypnotherapy practiced today by trained Hypnotherapists. These misconceptions may come from films or from watching Stage Hypnosis shows. All participants have agreed to take part in Stage Hypnosis, on a voluntary basis and are aware that they will be used to entertain the audience, they know exactly what they are letting themselves in for.

Hypnotherapy can be extraordinarily effective but it is not magic

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