Is Hypnosis Real?

1The word hypnosis conjures up an image of an odd individual rocking a hypnotic pendulum in front of an innocent victim who is led into a semi-sleep state. The hypnotized is now asked to do something against his will, as if he has no control. This inaccurate and appalling portrayal has been created by movies, cartoons and comic books.

What Hypnosis Is Not And What It Is…

The reality is far from it. Hypnosis is nothing close to brainwashing or magic.

The person in question does not lose free will. In fact, they are in a state of trance and are hyper-attentive. This heightened sense of concentration is also experienced when you are entirely immersed in a book or a movie. You feel all the tension and emotion in the activity, and are not aware of your surroundings. Hypnosis is similar to this state of ‘losing oneself’.

According to proponents of hypnotherapy, this calmed and relaxed state allows the hypnotherapist to make positive suggestions to the patients, which are then incorporated by him in his life ‘with freewill’.

The subconscious mind, being the most powerful source of human behavior has great influence on each of our thoughts and actions. It is a powerhouse that stores everything that has happened to us and drives us without our conscious minds knowing it. So, you may have a particular aversion to a food (due to a bad childhood experience), but you may not know why you avoid it.

Supporting Evidence

Today, hypnosis has become a mainstream treatment methodology. It has attracted scientific research and so far, the results have been encouraging.

2A study carried out by researchers at the Macquarie Center for Cognitive Science showed that highly suggestible participants could have a feeling of limb alienation, a condition associated with injury to right side of the brain in which patients falsely believe that they have lost a limb. The fact that healthy people can have this feeling, after hypnotic suggestion, in spite of contrary visual evidence is quite revealing.

With the advent of latest neuroimaging techniques, scientists have begun to find concrete evidence of the effectiveness of hypnotherapy. Some studies have shown that hypnotic suggestions do, in fact, alter the brain activity and not just behavior.

A research conducted by Amir Raz and colleagues at McGill University found that it was possible to nullify the Stroop effect – a psychological phenomenon that demonstrates that humans are much slower at reading words when there is incongruity; for example, when the color ‘Red’ is written in ‘Blue’ ink.

Researchers hypnotically suggested that the words would be meaningless. This enabled them to focus more on the colors and hence, the response and reaction time increased. The fMRI scans showed that there was far less activity in the anterior cingulate cortex, an area of the brain normally activated when resolving conflicts, and the visual cortex, which is activated when recognizing words. This explains the quick response rate, and more importantly, the changes the brain processes after hypnotic suggestions.

With remarkable training in hypnosis and its treatment methodologies, Rekha Shrivastava has been using this effective method to treat patients across United States and throughout the world. From treatment of ADHD and low self esteem to creation of weight loss programs in Pittsford, New York, she has used the power of hypnotherapy to cure many. Contact her to get a free consultation.

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