The Art of Allowing: Learning to be Hypnotized

By Lori Lines

Hypnosis has been found to ease mental health conditions like anxiety, phobia, and post-traumatic stress, reduce pain associated with childbirth, fibromyalgia, and inflammatory diseases, and curb undesired habits such as smoking and overeating. Hypnotherapy has minimal side effects, if any at all, can be done in a matter of sessions, and is all-natural. Most people could benefit from hypnosis at some point in their lives, including you!

“But I don’t think I can be hypnotized”
What most people mean when they say they can’t be hypnotized is that they don’t think they could fall into a catatonic trance at the snap of fingers, speak Martian gibberish, or cluck like an oversized chicken. Often, those unfamiliar with hypnosis confuse stage hypnosis with the healing practice of hypnotherapy or the soothing exercise of self-hypnosis.
 
Stage hypnosis is just that; it is meant for the theatrical venue of the stage. To achieve the desired effect, highly extroverted people are hand-picked from the audience, and, with a little suggestion and a lot of encouragement, they put on quite the performance.

Therapeutic hypnosis isn’t the process of will-draining zombification you see on tv! Hypnotherapy doesn’t turn you into a hapless observer of your own actions; It requires you to be an active participant in your personal development.

“I’ve never been hypnotized”
Because hypnosis engages the unconscious mind, we are often unconscious of our hypnotic experience, failing to realize we are hypnotized. For instance, people can still engage in conversation and reason during hypnotherapy sessions. If you have ever drifted off into thought while driving a long stretch of highway, lost track of time watching hours of tv, achieved a deep state of relaxation doing yoga, or concentrated on your breath to ease pain or panic, chances are you have been hypnotized!

Hypnosis is a state of increased attention, relaxation, concentration, and at times suggestibility. It is trance-like, not because we zone out but because we have zoned in so intently. Often viewed as a sleep-like state, hypnosis is a very active, high level of consciousness. Moreover, people in a hypnotic state seem so “out of it” because they have bypassed the chatter of their conscious mind and entered the more expansive, tranquil focus of the unconscious mind.
 
“I don’t want a hypnotist controlling my mind”
Suggesting that a hypnotherapist will control your mind is like saying a tour guide has kidnapped you. Yes, the tour guide knows the city and its streets very well, but you must agree to go for the trip and stay for the journey. You can disembark at any time. Meaning being hypnotized is a choice, and to reap the benefits, you need to be willing and motivated every step of the way. Therefore, while the hypnotist facilitates the journey, you are required to actively participate in reaching your destination. In fact, it isn’t enough to be willing. There are two prerequisites that only you can fulfill.
 
#1 – You must harness the intellectual mind
To harness the intellectual or conscious mind, you must first bypass your critical faculties, the processes by which you automatically accept or reject information. Like a computer antivirus, your critical faculties automatically label something as detrimental or already established and safe. The only way to bypass the conscious critical faculty is to focus on something else. This is how the image of the stopwatch became so synonymous with hypnotism. However, anything that fosters hyper-focus can be used, be it breath, sound, sight, or sensation.

#2 – You must open the unconscious mind
To open the unconscious mind, you must be able to engage in selective thinking. Essentially, selective thinking is the ability to have steadfast conviction in an idea or suggestion to the degree that you ignore all unrelated or contrary concepts or arguments. The four fundamental selective thoughts and ideas of being successfully hypnotized are:

Concrete understanding of how hypnotherapy works
Positive expectations based on this understanding
A clear vision of what you want to achieve
A firm belief that you will accomplish this vision

“What if I still can’t be hypnotized?”
The truth is if you still believe you cannot be hypnotized, chances are you are resisting it. It isn’t a harsh criticism or a personal failure; it simply means you must learn the art of allowing. Consider practicing more mindfulness and meditation and reaching out to a certified hypnotherapist like myself to help establish and strengthen the selective thoughts and beliefs you need to guide your desired journey. 
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“The art of allowing is the conscious, gentle guiding of your thoughts in the general direction of the thing you desire.” 
~Abraham Hicks

In love and truth,
Lori Lines