Skills in Hypnotherapy

Introduction 

Hypnotherapy proves to be rather effective in its treatment and is used for various purposes. For instance, hypnotherapy is known for making people give up smoking or alcohol (Alladin, 2008). In addition, this type of therapy is also useful and rather efficient for people who need to have some sort of emotional discharge. Entering human unconscious, hypnotherapy may influence those aspects of human being that are not visible and available for traditional types of therapy (Bamberg, 1968). However, in order to choose such type of therapy, an individual should be aware of many important issues concerning hypnotherapy (Barrett, 2010). For instance, one should know how to prepare for a hypnotherapy session, what induction is and how it is used, what deepening is and how it is used, the importance of the right ending of the trance, cautions that are used in hypnotherapy, conscious and unconscious sides of human being, and the ethical side of the issue.  

Preparation for a Hypnotherapy Session

Preparation for a hypnotherapy session is a rather important part of the whole session. The reason is that hypnotherapy is a completely new experience for any individual who has never had it before (Chrispin, Brannan, Davies, English, Mussell, Sheather & Sommerville, 2010). The preparation bears more mental character than physical, but still is very significant. First and foremost, it is necessary to wear comfortable clothes because clothing that restrains body or is uncomfortable for some reason will distract an individual from the process of the therapy. Second, it will be very useful to read some articles that explain what hypnotherapy is and how it is conducted (Creed & Rubin, 1994). This will give a person a certain idea of how it all goes. Third, it is a good idea to have a journal or notebook where one can keep track of all sessions that an individual has. Finally, it is necessary to go for a hypnotherapy sessions with positive thoughts (De Vos & Louw, 2009). The reason is that thoughts materialize; thus, one should think about the best possible outcome.

The Usage of Induction

Hypnotic induction is an essential part of hypnotherapy and is used in order to establish the certain conditions or state that are required for hypnosis to occur (Haber, 1994). In other words, this process is necessary in order to get an individual into the state of trance.  This state increases suggestibility greatly and reduces critical faculties (Fry, 1957). As a result, an individual who is under the hypnosis is more opened for suggestions and commands of a hypnotist. Though some people believe that true hypnosis should have strong influence on a conscious person, hypnotists still use induction (Heap, 2012). The reason is that without induction, the process loses such phenomenon as posthypnotic amnesia. Thus, one can see that hypnotic induction is used in order to make the process of hypnosis more complex and interesting. Undoubtedly, hypnosis can be conducted on a conscious individual as well, but most hypnotists still choose to use hypnotic induction (Hunter & Hunter, 2010).

The Usage of Deepening of the Client´s Trance

Deepening of the client´s trance is a so called sign for hypnotists that hypnosis is successfully conducted. Hypnotists use this phenomenon in order to make sure that the client is in hypnotic state. Deepening the trance gives the client an opportunity to relax more allows him or her to attain fuller connection with the unconscious mind. The activity of deepening the trance is extremely important in case the hypnotherapist is going to use suggestion therapy (Hypnotherapy, 1958). Besides, this technique is very useful for exercises that involve imagination, memory, discovering of patterns and information. One can see that deepening of trance state is necessary for making certain that the client is indeed in the state of hypnosis. This issue is very important because if the client is not in a stable state of hypnosis, the hypnotherapy will obviously fail. However, the client may pretend he or she is in hypnosis. 

Ending of the Trance

Every hypnotist must be thorough in the ending of the trance and make sure that the client is alert (Hypnosis in Medicine, 1968). Double check is the key to success for everything a human can make in his or her life. Ending of the trance is not an exception and requires special attention and responsible attitude. The reason is that there are reported some cases when simple and usual techniques for getting the client out of trance state that most hypnotists use did not work (Maher-Loughnan & Zimmerman, 1979). As a result, the clients remained in the state of trance, but the doctor had already left. One should clearly understand that if hypnosis was not conducted by the client himself or herself, he/she cannot get out of hypnotic trance himself/herself (Nixon & Flint, 1979). Thus, the client can stuck in the state of trance if the doctor does not make sure to end the hypnotherapy in a proper way with all his or her responsibility.

Cautions Used in Hypnotherapy

Hypnosis provided by an experienced hypnotherapist does not bring any negative outcome for a patient (Peiffer, 2013). However, it is recommended to take some precaution measures because people with serious mental disorders may experience the process of hypnosis extremely difficult. For instance, some of such patients may have headache, anxiety or distress, drowsiness or dizziness and even the false memories. Hence, the first rule that a hypnotherapist should obey before starting hypnosis is to ensure that a patient’s mental health is satisfactory (Plotnikoff & Weisberg, 2009). Besides the mental disorder, a doctor should also carefully examine a physical state of a patient. Those people who abuse drugs or alcohol may experience hypnosis differently because they require medical treatment first and only after a total recovery, hypnosis may be used (Pomeroy, 2006). According to this fact, it can be said that hypnotherapy is a safe method of treatment only if a patient does not have mentally disorders and physical illnesses which are connected with a mental state. These two factors should be taken into account by a hypnotherapist before starting a procedure.

Impact of Conscious and Unconscious Characteristics with Hypnotherapy

Conscious and unconscious characteristics have a strong link between them in human psychology and mind. Hypnotherapy, as an activity that has influence on human conscious and unconscious, also comprises the above mentioned characteristics. Both conscious and unconscious work together in order to describe the general characteristics of the human mind (Watkins & Barabasz, 2008). The conscious is the fragment where people actually live and perceive it as their Ego. The unconscious mind represents another part of human being. The unconscious takes under its control all of the autonomic processes that an individual does not even think about, including the immune system, the heart rate, tissue growth, the blood pressure, cell regeneration and so on (Winsor, 1993). In other words, unconscious comprises human thoughts, accumulated experience and memories. Moreover, human feelings, habits, responses to the world, worldview and perception, and emotions are under its control. Hypnosis works by the means of renewing the unconscious mind with new and useful information. This process resembles the process of reprogramming a computer. 

Key Issues, Boundaries and Ethics in the Counseling Hypnotherapeutic Relationship

Hypnotherapy as well as any other type of medical services predetermines that a doctor should obey a certain code of conduct and to follow the principles which benefit a patient’s wellbeing. A doctor should provide service to a client solely to those areas which he/she has relevant professional experience and knowledge (Zimmerman, 1968). A doctor should explain to a client all stages of treatment and receive a patient’s agreement to revel the particular memories that may be helpful for a treatment. During hypnosis a patient may reveal some sort of information that he or she would like to keep confidential. Therefore, the ethical point here for the doctor is to be able to keep secrets and confidential information. In fact, unconscious is a very private phenomenon of human being; in other words, it is confidential itself. Thus, working with an individual´s unconscious, the doctor should obey certain norms of ethics.

Conclusion

Taking into consideration all the above mentioned information, one can see how important and responsible the process of hypnotherapy is. In order to have a successful session, a client should prepare for it. For instance, he or she should wear comfortable clothes so that nothing distracts himself/herself. Besides, one can see how significant the usage of induction and the deepening of the trance are. In case a hypnotist makes a mistake, a client can stuck in the state of hypnosis, which is obviously a bad outcome of hypnotherapy. Hypnotherapy is a very effective, but incredibly responsible kind of therapy. Therefore, in order to accomplish the therapy properly without any side effects and undesirable consequences, a hypnotherapist should be experienced and skillful, while a client should be aware of the process and its possible outcomes. Taking all the measures into consideration, one can accomplish a very successful and efficient hypnotherapy.