What exactly is hypnosis?

Despite the number of TV shows with people on them being hypnotised, and the press often talking about it more and more favorably, people still wonder, and perhaps feel slightly in awe of the thought of being hypnotised. They more or less know that a hypnotherapist will not make you do daft things, although I do tell my clients that if I get bored I may get them to do daft things!

It is one of those things that is obviously not a conscious thing, so we can be wary of what may happen when in hypnosis. The idea of being 'under' hypnosis can make people think they should be unconscious when in hypnosis and despite what you see when stage hypnotists get people into trance and they look as thought they are asleep or unconscious, it is not true, you are neither asleep or unconscious. The hypnotist may put the head down on the subject to make them look asleep, or the subject themselves may feel more comfortable putting their head in a sleep kind of position. I experienced stage hypnosis many many moons ago and I did think that I had to be asleep so went along with the suggestion.

Thing is, you just really feel relaxed but daydreamy like, or for some people they just listening to what is being said.

Is it that some people would like to feel unconscious, that they find life difficult and don't know how to make changes, so would like someone else to do it for them whilst they are unconscious?

Slimmers would often like to be put into an unconscious state for a few weeks and wake up again slim. And all because they don't really want to work at getting slim, same as working at solving your own problems is difficult.

I came into hypnosis purely by chance. Sometimes we have an illness that cannot be identified or diagnosed conventionally. That happened to me and I was getting a little more than fed up with n ot knowing what was wrong with me. Sure I had stress in my life, who doesn't, but i had coped before and could not understand why my body appeared to be letting me down, and without any obvious reason or cause. If there had been a reason, I could have taken medication and got well, and let the doctors sort me out. Now with no diagnosis, I had to start to think about what i could do to help myself.

I do like to face up to things in life, always have. I will never run away from conflict, although like most would rather have a easy life with less worry. So, I faced up to the fact that although I did not have some dreadful disease or terminal illness, I was still ill and needed some help.

Rather than just go to one person, I thought more holistically about my life and what I thought I needed the most first. If my body was not behaving well, then i must take responsibility and find out how it could work better. I went to a herbalist and that was the beginning of the change in my life. Little did I know that after detoxing and getting rid of anything in my body that may be causing problems, I would be embarking on a new career in my life, one that would prove to be the most fulfilling, rewarding and exciting.

It so happened that a leaflet from a book club came through the door and one of the books was about self-hypnosis. I ordered it straight away and when it arrived could not put it down. I wanted to know what it felt like to go into trance, how I could learn to relax, and that is what I did. I did see a hypnotherapist and sorted out all the baggage from the past, which then freed my mind. Hard to explain that one unless you have experienced it, but that is how I felt. A sense of freedom, calmness took over. During this time it just seemed the right thing to do to study hypnosis. it appeared to me that everything I had done in my life had led me to this point, and you know what it feels like when it just feels right.

That first day of my training felt like I was walking on air. I had actually found something I truly loved and wanted more. I had studied in the past but usually under duress, and never really being that interested in the subjects. This time was for real, I was going to make something of my life that I could be proud of.