There are a lot of misconceptions surrounding hypnotherapy – and if you read that and instantly thought of a swinging pocket watch or Derren Brown, you may need to update your knowledge of hypnosis. The ancient practice has been used to heal for centuries, and practitioners swear by its ability to alleviate physical as well as mental and emotional ailments. Compare Retreats chatted to All About You, a Hong Kong hypnotherapy and wellness centre, to learn about the facts of hypnotherapy.
- There are two types of hypnosis: the Eastern approach, and the Western approach. The Eastern approach is the one used by hypnotists for entertainment, manipulation and control. The Western approach, which is based on willingness and permission, is the practice used by hypnotherapy.
- Hypnotherapy is very similar to a deep meditation. When you are put into a hypnotic state, you are often still aware of what is happening. The deeper the hypnotic state, the more likely you are to forget what has happened, the same way that when you come out of a deep meditation you may not recall what you were thinking about.
- It’s been used for over 4,000 years, with the first instance dating back to the ancient Egyptian ‘Sleep Temples’. The first official ‘hypnotist’ was Franz Anton Mesmer (mesmerise – get it?) although the term was actually coined by surgeon James Braid.
- Modern hypnotherapy is based on the research and theories of John Kappas. His ‘scale of suggestibility’ is the model used to determine how best to approach hypnotherapy with different individuals.
- The conscious mind is only 10-12% of the whole mind – which means up to 90% of your mind is unconscious. Plus, the unconscious mind is more than 6000 times more powerful than the conscious mind, which means your memories and survival instincts have a lot more sway than your conscious mind.
- Hypnotherapy can be used to help clients recover and heal repressed traumatic memories. It’s also often related to past lives studies: whether you believe in past lives or not, the memories or ideas that your mind has suppressed have an impact on your physical body and present life.
- It can also be used to ‘reprogramme’ the brain for healthier habits, like eating the right things, stopping smoking, or motivating someone to go to the gym.
- It takes 21 days to make a new behaviour a habit, and 90 days to make it an unconscious one. That means that one of the most important aspects of hypnotherapy – as with most therapies – is commitment and perseverance.
Want to learn more about hypnotherapy? Consider taking a course at All About You.
