Part 1 Hypnosis

Hello In Lesson 1: What is hypnosis? Exercise handout download Audio download Hello! And a big welcome to this, the web's first online hypnosis course with audio sessions. Seeing as you have signed up, I guess you already know how amazing hypnosis can be, so I won't waste your time going on about that. And this is the way this course is going to be - no extra fluff, no filler - there is plenty you need to learn about hypnosis without extra waffle. A quick introduction, then we'll get started. I'm Roger Elliott ofUncommon Knowledge. We train hypnotherapists in the latest applications of hypnosis - you won't be getting any out-of-date or second-rate information here! Uncommon Knowledge also publishes a range of websites and products, you can see them listed in the right-hand column of this email. As you will see from our sites, as well as knowing hypnosis inside-out,we have a deep understanding of psychology, which is essential if you are going to make the most of hypnosis. Like a cart without horses, hypnosis is useless if you don't know what to do with it! “It’s the optimum psychological and physical state in which to update responses to life so we can overcome difficulties and excel. For example we can use hypnosis to help update the anxious public speaker’s response of fear to that of calm when they are presenting.” Listen to an interview with Mark Tyrrell about how hypnotherapy can be used to overcome social anxiety, what hypnosis really is and how it is intimately connected with the REM state, the nature of the unconscious mind and how you can actually learn to use hypnosis on yourself. So let's get started right away... Before you start to learn how to use hypnosis to help yourself and others, we need to get rid of any myths you may have heard about hypnosis - mind-control, wizards, zombies - that sort of thing. Read this article before you go any further. OK, so now you know what hypnosis is not! What is hypnosis? Since you are going to be using hypnosis, you need a working description of what hypnosis is. A clear, understandable one, so here it is: Hypnosis is simply the deliberate use of the imagination, paralleled with strong focus and relaxation. Done well, it can work in the same way as when you are dreaming - the mind's 'Reality Simulator'. Developing Focus So when you go into hypnosis, you simply get very involved with an inner reality, and we create this involvement, this focus, by drawing attention to detail in an interesting way. It's just like when you read a good book; a great author will make the words impossible to ignore - he or she will paint pictures in your mind. A good hypnotist will do the same. But it's not just about colorful imagination, it's about controlling your attention - getting it focused on one or a few things. You can do this by deliberately noticing sensations within your own body. As an aside, when you can reliably control your own attention, you have a great skill - imagine being able to choose what you think about at any time - or to be able to choose to think about nothing (really handy for falling asleep!). Creating Relaxation You can create relaxation in hypnosis in 2 ways: by recalling relaxing times (recalling a memory is a hypnotic process as you have to re-construct it) by talking in a relaxing, soothing way - slowly, with pauses, in a soft, low voice. This sends an unconscious message to relax. How to 'Rebuild Experience' - Practical Exercise Aim: To develop the most important hypnotic skill - the ability to recreate experiences within the mind. Method: From a pleasant memory, such as a holiday, or something you enjoy doing, make a note of all the different elements that made up that experience. Process: Download this worksheet and fill it in. Creating Relaxation On the worksheet, you will see examples of 'nominalizations'. These words are hypnotic because they have no real meaning by themselves. You have to 'go inward' to assess what they mean for you - so they create an experience, which is what we are looking for with hypnosis. (More on this later in the course). When completing the worksheet, use as many of these types of words as you can, and get used to spotting them in everyday life. (Politicians, salespeople and 'gurus' use them a lot) Audio Lesson Now go to back the course support page and listen to the audio session. In it, I show you how to convert what you have just done into a hypnotic script. I want you to listen out for: My use of nominalizations The way I use all the senses How I use my voice OK, that's today's lesson finished! To get good at this, you should practise describing as many experiences as possible (you can print the handout out as many times as you like), and then convert them into a hypnotic script like I did. Don't worry about being good at this stage, just practise> - that's how you get good at hypnosis.