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Many people have misconceptions about hypnosis and just what it is. The following will hopefully dispel any misconceptions that you may have.
Hypnosis was used as a tool to help the process of healing by the ancient Egyptians as far back as 2900 BC. The earliest known physician in history, Imhotep, who was the Physician Vizier to the Pharoah Zoser, regularly used the process of hypnosis in his work. A little later but still in the years BC, there are written references to Temples of Sleep being used to heal the sick, it is now known that in these temples the gentle sound of running water was used to induce a relaxed state of hypnosis which helped in the healing process.
Some of the myths about hypnosis are that it is sleep, a trance, that one will not remember anything, that one will not hear what is being said to them, that it is possible to get stuck in hypnosis, that one can slip back into hypnosis later, that people can be made to do things against their will. Myths are exactly what they are! the most succinct description of hypnosis is as follows.
"A sense of deep relaxation coupled with a state of heightened awareness"
In a state of hypnosis with Angie you will be relaxed in a comfortable chair in a warm and safe environment, there will be soft background music and she will talk very soothingly and gently to you. As you relax into hypnosis the following four things will happen.
Hence as you are in a state of heightened awareness with sharper hearing you are not going to do or say anything that you dont want to or that goes against your beliefs or ethics!
The use of hypnosis in therapy is nothing new. It was being used in the times of the Pharos and it’s just that the word hypnosis was not coined until many centuries later. Hypnosis itself is nothing mystical, there is no trance, there is no sleep, it is simply a process of getting the conscious mind to relax therefore enabling the sub-conscious mind to receive positive suggestions and to be able to remember things that have perhaps been buried in the past.
Many people think that hypnotherapy is just about being able to help people to stop smoking, lose weight, slimming etc. Obviously in this day and age it is a good thing to stop smoking and if one is over weight it’s a good idea to consider slimming and to lose weight.
Hypnosis however, has a much wider value especially when dealing with such things as emotional issues, phobias, relationship problems and stress. Clearly relationship problems, as with such things as upcoming exams, tests etc, can and often do cause stress. This in turn often leads to increased smoking, overeating, nail biting and other habit type activities. Also when somebody is suffering with stress, a phobia or an eating disorder can often become worse. Another area where the use of hypnosis has been proven to be of considerable value is the treatment of IBS (irritable bowel syndrome)
A Hypnotherapist & a psychotherapist using hypnosis can in very many cases help people overcome such things as to stop smoking. When we fail to stop smoking even though we know it is damaging our health, when we over eat even though we really want to lose weight. When we continue a habit such as nail biting, hair pulling, finger picking etc even though we dislike the visual effect it has, we are following a function of the subconscious mind programme (habit) that has been stored there. Any amount of telling ourselves to stop will be to no avail until we can influence the programme in our mind.
The same is true of people with a phobia, something has happened earlier in life that has triggered the mind to have a fear (often irrational) of something or some situation. The phobia is the effect; we need to find the cause so that it can be eradicated.
Traditionally a hypnotherapist & a psychotherapist will use two forms of hypnotherapy to assist people in ways to stop smoking, los weight and other everyday afflictions we all suffer..
Suggestion therapy: - this is where the process of hypnosis is used to relax the person so that life improving positive suggestions can be placed in the sub-conscious mind to deal with the prevailing problem. Typical situations that this would be used for would be to control or lose weight, stop smoking, control habits like nail biting, hair pulling, finger or skin picking, to help with exam and test nerves such as driving tests, to build confidence and self esteem, also to teach stress management techniques and enhancing sports capability.
Analysis therapy: - this is where hypnosis is used to help delve into the past looking for repressed memories and their associated emotions that are the cause of the troubling effect. The effect or symptom can be such things as IBS, extreme weight problems, eating disorders, phobias, alcoholism, self harm, panic attacks, sexual problems, very low self esteem and bereavement as well as many others.
E. mail: angie@hypnohelp.org.uk or bob@hypnohelp.org.uk
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