Frequently Asked Questions About Hypnosis
Learn more about hypnosis to give you peace of mind
If you’re reading this page, you do obviously have questions about hypnosis. Well, read on and I will give you some answers that will dispel any myths around hypnosis and hypnotherapy that you may have and give you better peace of mind before you take the next step in using hypnosis and hypnotherapy to change and improve your life.
I will keep my answers as short as I can, because who wants to read an in-depth long article on every question, however if you do need more clarification, it is better that you contact me. I will be happy to help.
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Here’s a list of frequently asked questions regarding hypnosis and hypnotherapy and the treatment process. If you can’t find the answer you’re looking for, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Tony via the contacts page for assistance.
WHAT IS HYPNOSIS?
Simply speaking, I explain that hypnosis is a state of magnified focussed concentration that allows an enhanced ability to respond to suggestion
Believe it or not, every day you have most probably been in hypnosis at some time without realising it. It is a very natural and pleasant state of mind to be in and you have already experienced it many thousands of times.
When you have focussed concentration on anything that you are fully involved in, your attention to anything else is suspended temporarily. Just like daydreaming. Some examples of when you may have been in a low state of hypnosis in everyday living are; when you are driving from A to B on a familiar road and when you get to B you don’t remember driving through some of the trip, or watching a movie or a football game that you like and you become totally involved in it, or when you are daydreaming whilst being absorbed reading a book. I bet one of these has happened to you many times.
It’s not mind control, it’s not manipulation or magic, however it is a very effective tool that allows you to access the power of your subconscious mind and take control of your future life.
The focussed concentration that you receive in full hypnosis is magnified and you can then focus on a positive suggestion to improve your life. It is extremely useful in a multitude of areas to help people succeed better in whatever is important to them.
You will have heightened receptivity that will enable you to refocus your mind to rewire your emotions, beliefs, feelings, habits and behaviours.
WHAT IS HYPNOTHERAPY?
Hypnotherapy is both physical relaxation and magnified focussed concentration. It’s an amazingly effective and proven tool that is safe to directly access the power of your subconscious mind and insert positive suggestions.
In simple terms I like to explain it like this. We basically have two brains, a conscious brain which does about 5% of our brain functions per day. It can do about seven of so things at a time. It’s the one that moves your body parts when you want them moved, like lifting your arm, turning a page, scratching an itch etc. It does what you need to do at the time by request. And then we have our subconscious brain which does the other 95% of our brain functions per day. It can do about 37 trillion things a second. It’s the powerful one that basically runs our lives. It controls every cell in our bodies, it makes our lungs breath, it makes our heart pump etc without even asking it to do so. It’s the one in control.
Inside the subconscious brain is where all our history lies (it knows just about everything that has happened in our life), our memories (good and bad), our habits (good or bad), our beliefs (good or bad) our emotions (good or bad). These deeply held memories, habits, patterns and beliefs are what shapes our decisions and our lives automatically.
This is also where our imagination comes from. In fact, our imagination is the culprit that we need to work with in hypnotherapy because it is the main driver that shapes our lives. The subconscious brain is quite simple and childlike, in that it does not know the difference between real or false, positive or negative, so whatever it focuses on it will give us. If we focus on negative thoughts, that’s what we are going to get. If we focus on positive thoughts, then that is what we are going to get.
So, to put it simply if we want change or improvement in our life, we have to change the subconscious negative beliefs to positive beliefs. Simple as that.
WILL YOU MAKE ME QUACK LIKE A DUCK OR SQUEAL LIKE A PIG?
No, (not unless you ask me to) haha
Those things are funny in a stage hypnosis show or street hypnosis, but not in a proper hypnotherapy session. Besides, no one can make you do what you don’t want to do, especially if a suggestion is outside of your moral compass or strongly held moral beliefs.
You are always in control during any hypnotherapy session and you are aware of everything that is going on and you continue to retain your values and morals. During hypnosis, your subconscious brain will however consent to positive suggestions that are in line with your desires and expectations relative to the reason for your hypnotherapy session. By the way, a person cannot be hypnotised if they don’t want to be, because they have to be willing to give permission.
CAN ANYONE BE HYPNOTISED?
Yes, if they want to be, some easier than others because hypnosis is a completely natural state of the mind. All that’s required is a willingness for change and a decision to cooperate and give permission to the hypnotherapist to help them go into hypnosis to get the changes that they require. If a person resists, it is difficult to make positive changes, whereas if a person is open to the experience, they will get great results. Then it is very easy to safely return back to a normal awakened state.
An interesting thing is that some people think that they would be too strong-willed to be hypnotised, whereas the reality is that the stronger a person has an ability to concentrate and focus, the easier and faster they will go into hypnosis.
CAN HYPNOTHERAPY SESSIONS BE DONE ON-LINE OVER THE INTERNET?
Absolutely, that’s the main reason that I work from my home therapy rooms is because I do a lot of hypnotherapy sessions on-line via Zoom, Skype etc and working from home allows me to schedule in session times outside of the normal 9 to 5 working day.
Although I do prefer to have face to face hypnosis sessions to help build rapport with my clients, in the year 2020, it is difficult to always be able to have face to face hypnotherapy sessions, so Zoom on-line is the next best thing, and yes those sessions are just as effective because I have altered my hypnotic process to suit. Some clients like to do on-line sessions just because they live too far away, infact I currently do a lot of on-line sessions to overseas clients.
WILL HYPNOSIS WORK FOR ME?
It depends on your willingness for change and the skills of your hypnotherapist. You may have heard of friends that say it didn’t work for them, well they are a minority as the vast majority have a great result and experience. Well anyway, they do with me.
If a person doesn’t really have a real desire for change, then the results will not be as good as they could have been. An example is like a person who smokes, comes to a hypnotherapy session to give up smoking, only because their partner made them and told them to. Because they personally don’t really want to give up smoking, it will be difficult for them to take on positive suggestions relating to being a non-smoker, however if that person really wanted to give up smoking, they will easily take on board those positive suggestions into their subconscious mind and they will be a non-smoker, simple as that.
A hypnotherapy session will also be more successful if it is custom designed for each person.
WILL I LOSE CONTROL WHEN HYPNOTISED?
Absolutely not, because hypnosis is a state of mind that requires you to give your consent. You do not go to sleep and you will be always be aware in the hypnosis session of what is said, and you can’t be made to do anything that goes against your own personal morals and beliefs or tell any of your secrets if you have any.
WILL I BE ASLEEP IN HYPNOSIS?
Absolutely not, because hypnosis in reality is a heightened state of awareness whereby you will always be aware of what is happening in the session. Even within your surroundings at the session, you may even hear outside noises like cars/trucks going past, dogs barking or even voices from the therapy room next door.
WHAT DOES HYPNOSIS FEEL LIKE?
It’s very hard to explain because everyone is different, however the majority of people say that they experience a feeling of being very relaxed and lethargic. You may even be surprised on how normal you will feel. Some hypnotists call it a trance, but it is not, you will not be in a trance of any description. It’s also not actually a so called a state of relaxation, however I use a process of relaxation in my sessions to allow you to be more relaxed and receptive to the positive suggestions that you require to make positive permanent change in your life.
HOW MANY HYPNOTHERAPY SESSIONS WILL IT TAKE?
That depends on several things. Your state of mind, the specific issue that you want change in, your willingness and acceptance of change and the ability of the hypnotherapist.
Hypnosis allows for rapid change to occur and a lot of issues can be sorted out in only one session, however sometimes it will take two to three sessions and for some maybe up to five. The majority of people start to experience the benefits of change from the very first session although it’s important to remember that hypnosis is a process that continues in your subconscious mind, long after the sessions finish.
Once we have a quick phone hook up to briefly discuss the process and give you peace of mind, the first session is usually 1½ hours and any further sessions are approximately 1-hour duration, usually at weekly intervals.
Although I design an individual hypnosis plan specific for you, it is usually up to you on how many sessions you need. You will know after your first session. It’s also quite common that once one issue is sorted, a lot of my clients take the opportunity to sort out some other issues in their lives too, since there are literally hundreds of things hypnosis can help with.
WHAT HAPPENS AT THE FIRST HYPNOSIS SESSION?
Most first hypnotherapy sessions will last from 60 to 90 minutes. We usually sit down at my desk in my therapy room for the first half hour discussing how hypnosis works, your current issues and what goals you want to achieve in the future. It is actually a relaxing informative part of the session.
My first task is to make you feel at ease with me and this new thing called hypnosis. From this pre-talk discussion, I will then be able to plan the rest of the session based on what we agreed would be your preferred outcome, which is always to succeed in your goals. I then ask you to sit in the hypno chair where I will put you in hypnosis and your goals will be achieved.
During hypnosis, you will remain in control, you will be pleasantly aware of what I say, and you will feel wonderfully relaxed. It’s actually a very pleasant state to be in.
When the hypnosis session has come to an end, we will have a de-brief to ascertain the success of the session. It’s quite normal for my sessions to be effective immediately and you will instantly notice it and feel terrific.
By the way, a hypnotherapy session is nothing like a stage hypnosis show where the main outcome is entertainment. Clinical hypnotherapy is all about using the power of your mind under hypnosis to help you make permanent positive life changes.
My success is when you achieve your goals.
WHY SHOULD I CONSIDER HAVING A HYPNOTHERAPY SESSION?
The fact that you are hear reading this usually means that you do have some issues that you would like to improve on, however your current remedies are not working as fast or as well as you would like. I suppose the biggest difference with hypnosis is that it’s fast.
Usually only a few sessions do the trick as anything to do with emotions and feelings comes from the mind and that’s what hypnosis works with. Also, because there are normally only a few sessions, the cost is usually much less than a lot of other remedies that take a long time to sort out, if they ever do. Why do it alone? HYPNOSIS WORKS!
HOW WILL I KNOW IF I HAVE BEEN HYPNOTISED?
Don’t worry, with one of my sessions, you will know.
During the session I will give you what I call a convincer, which is a hypnotic suggestion that will prove to you how strong your imagination is and you will have no doubt that you have been hypnotised.
HOW WILL I KNOW IF THE HPYPNOSIS SESSION ACTUALLY WORKED?
Usually because some change is immediate, however you must realise that some change will happen slowly over time to come to reality, such as weight control.
With weight control, even though you mind has accepted and is implementing the mindset change required, it will take some time to lose your weight. Whereas when I do a smoking session, you will be a non-smoker when you leave my therapy room.
In most occasions though, there is normally a strong awareness of the new thoughts or new way of thinking about the issue the person is working on and even some people don’t even accept or think that the session actually worked, although their issues miraculously disappear over the following weeks. Funny that.
WHAT DO I NEED TO BRING TO A HYPNOTHERAPY SESSION?
Not much really, just the following.
An open mind about hypnosis
Knowing what you want to achieve
An expectation that you are going to achieve your goals
A willingness to co-operate with the hypnotherapist
Bring these with you and success will be the outcome.
IS HYPNOSIS DANGEROUS?
Not in a hypnotherapy session, as we all experience natural hypnosis daily anyway, however it is a big no-no and dangerous to listen to self-hypnosis audio tapes if you are operating machinery or driving etc.
CAN I CLAIM THROUGH MEDICARE OR MY PRIVATE HEALTH FUND?
Medicare does not cover clinical hypnotherapy.
Regarding your private health fund, a few of them do offer to refund some of the costs, however you would need to contact your fund for more information.
WHAT IS SELF-HYPNOSIS?
As it reads, self-hypnosis is done to yourself by yourself, without any help from a hypnotist.
A lot of experts have said that all hypnosis is self-hypnosis, which I suppose that is true to some extent because it’s the person who is being hypnotised that allows it to happen to them.
The hypnotherapist is only helping them and guiding them into the hypnotic state of consciousness with the persons permission.
Hypnosis is a state of magnified focussed concentration, remarkably similar to meditation, which is basically self-hypnosis.
WHAT EXACTLY IS THE SUBCONSCIOUS MIND?
I explain it like this. You have two brains, a conscious brain and a subconscious brain. There is a limit to how much information can be stored in your conscious brain because it would be an overload of information and too much to handle, so we have another brain called a subconscious brain to store all of our memory and knowledge that that has occurred in our life. Your subconscious brain controls your body, your thoughts, your emotions involuntarily.
The subconscious mind stores all this information so that it can be accessed by the conscious mind later when it needs it, for example, sometimes a memory is needed by the conscious mind to defend itself for survival. A good hypnotherapist can also draw out information stored in the subconscious brain to help bring about positive change.
WHAT IS SCIENTIFIC HYPNOSIS?
Scientific Hypnosis is one of the hypnotherapy styles that I have been trained in and use in my practice.
There is actually a fair bit of science in how hypnosis works. This being the case, once one knows how hypnosis works, it is easy to understand how to use it reprogram or some say rewire someone’s mindset using positive suggestions.
This is how I explain it, your brain will always give you what you focus on. Your brain is where your thoughts start and we all have about 60,000 thoughts a day and for each thought your brain will produce a feeling, an emotion a brain chemical (there all the same basically), and based on your current beliefs and mindset, you will then get an action and for each action you will get a result.
So, what you think about most will begin to manifest in your life. If you have a positive thought, your brain will produce a positive chemical and you will normally get a positive action and result, whereas if you have a negative thought, your brain will produce a negative chemical and you will normally get a negative action and negative result. Sounds easy doesn’t it, just to stop having negative thoughts, but if it was that easy, why does a high amount of the population suffer from deep anxiety and prolonged depression. Because its hard to rewire your brain, however hypnosis is an amazingly effective tool to do so.
The first step is to understand that our brains work on four different brainwave frequencies measured in hertz (HZ) (Hertz being a wave frequency equal to one cycle per second which can be measured by an EEG machine) (EEG is an Electroencephalograph device). Each frequency has its own state of consciousness. A brief explanation is below
BETA – (from 14Hz to 30Hz)– is our normal waking state.
At this state of consciousness, our brain activity is at a heightened state of alertness, is continually active and alert, uses logic and critical reasoning and occurs usually during a normal day while we are working, conversing and interacting with others. We need this state to allow us to function properly throughout the day, however as we all have about 60,000 thoughts a day, some of these can manifest into negative outcomes like anxiety or stress.
ALPHA (7Hz to 14Hz) – a state of daydreaming
Our brain waves slow down at this state of consciousness, where our brain activity is in a state of physical relaxation, restfulness and in a form of light hypnosis.
It is evident when you close your eyes, transcending into a lovely daydream or during light meditation. It is a good state to rewire your mindset using your imagination, visualization and focussed concentration, because it is the gateway to your subconscious mind and is an optimal state for hypnotherapy as your mind is more open to suggestion.
THETA (4Hz to 7Hz)– a state of light sleep and meditation
At this state, our brain waves slow down even more. This is when you start to fall into a nice natural sleep at night from Alpha, then drifting in and out of the Delta state as well.
Apart from being present during deep meditation and light sleep, it is also present in the REM dream state. This is the best state for hypnosis where it is easy to visualise and take on board positive suggestions because your brain is in a very relaxed state.
DELTA (0.1Hz to 4Hz)– a state of deep sleep
This is the lowest brain wave state and some hypnotherapists call it somnambulism. The lower the brain waves are, the conscious mind becomes less active and the more receptive your subconscious mind becomes.
This state is experienced in deep, dreamless sleep where your subconscious mind is very active sorting out your day’s events and reality into your memory, just like a computer and your conscious mind is relatively unavailable. This being the case, this Delta state is not useful for hypnosis as you would not be able to hear any of the suggestions because you are asleep, however hypnosis usually does occur in the Alpha and Theta states.
The scientific approach - Hypnotherapy is much more effective in these lower brain wave frequencies, where there is more access to the subconscious mind. It gives hypnotherapists a greater advantage in reducing the resistance of the conscious mind and increasing the subconscious minds receptiveness to suggestibility. So the trick is to ensure that the client is hypnotised enough to reach the lower brain frequencies.
The second step is to understand that our brain also produces some brain chemicals in these different brain wave states that can help heal our mind and body. Some of these that I call positive chemicals include serotonin, melatonin, dopamine, endorphins which are produced naturally while a person is relaxing under hypnosis and that’s why so many people feel so refreshed and energised after they awakened from their hypnotherapy session.
Your brain also produces some other brain chemicals which I call negative chemicals such as cortisol and adrenalin. You do need these to protect you and keep you alive, however an abundance of these caused from negative thoughts and beliefs can manifest into negative emotions like stress and anxiety. So, you need to have a good chemical balance to give you the best mindset possible.
HOW MUCH DOES HYPNOTHERAPY COST?
Most hypnotherapists do not show their pricing however, I think its best that you know what your up for even before you make the first call. That way when you do call me, pricing is not a deterrent and your success is greatly enhanced.
Please also note, that when you have a hypnotherapy session, all you see is the time that it takes for the actual session, however what you do not see is the preparation time before the session, the file keeping time after the session and the amount of previous and ongoing training it takes to keep up to date with proper hypnotherapy processes.
Basic hypnotherapy session (does not include smoking session)
1st session (Includes the initial strategy phone conversation.)
Normal price is $200.00
2nd and subsequent sessions (if required – some issues take 3 to 4 sessions)
Normal price is $150.00
Quit smoking forever session (Lifetime session guarantee and includes an audio self-hypnosis MP3)
1st session (It does usually only take one session, and I’m that confident that you will only need one of my sessions to give up smoking, what I guarantee is that if ever you need another smoking session, I will do it for free.)
Regular price is $698.00 with lifetime guarantee.
Payment Option 1 – Save $50
Pay in advance and only pay $648.00.
Payment Option 2 – Regular price with 0% financing
Pay a $100 deposit in advance, then 2 easy payments of $299. (the 1st payment due at your session and the 2nd payment 30 days later) That way you can pay out of the savings you will make from being free of smoking.
If you think about it, it actually costs you nothing because you will actually save many thousands of dollars every year and benefit for the rest of your life.
2nd and subsequent sessions (if required – as mentioned above they are free)
Bookings through the website will be required to be paid in advance of the session via Credit Card, PayPal or direct deposit. All prices in Australian Dollars and include GST.
Click here to book here for your “Free Hypnosis Discovery Phone Call” with me
WHAT DOES HYPNOTHERAPY FEEL LIKE?
It’s very hard to explain because everyone is different, however the majority of people say that they experience a feeling of being very relaxed and lethargic.
You may even be surprised on how normal you will feel.
Some hypnotists call it a trance, but it is not, you will not be in a trance of any description. It’s also not actually a so called a state of relaxation, however I use a process of relaxation in my sessions to allow you to be more relaxed and receptive to the positive suggestions that you require to make positive permanent change in your life.
DISCLAIMER
Results can vary for each person, and even though I do have an exceedingly high success rate, sometimes success cannot be 100% guaranteed. I do however guarantee that I will provide you with the absolute best help using the most appropriate hypnotic technique for your specific situation. Please also be informed that I do not use hypnosis or hypnotherapy to treat or diagnose any disease that you may or may not have, however I do use useful information, effective education and positive motivation to assist you moving forward helping yourself sort out issues in your life that will allow you to live a better life.