Surely you have seen in a movie or read in a book about hypnosis, that psychological – and even almost mystical – procedure in which an expert manages to bring a person to a state of semi-consciousness and where through suggestion can modify some aspects of their behavior or bring old memories to your mind that seem to have been forgotten.
However, this process has a lot of science and no magic tricks behind its execution, in addition to the fact that it requires the full will and work of both parties for the result to be favorable. When it is achieved, it can bring many benefits to the patient, besides giving him/her that necessary push towards change, which in a more ‘conscious’ way he/she is not able to perceive.
Have you ever been intrigued by being hypnotized? Well in this article you will discover the different types of hypnosis that exist and how each one of them works, as well as their benefits and therapeutic applications.as well as their benefits and therapeutic applications.
What is hypnosis?
As we have just mentioned, hypnosis is a clinical psychological tool that helps a person to achieve changes in their behavior or in some cases, to bring up some memories that have been forgotten and clarify mental gaps (if there is not a disease that causes it). It is carried out through a process of meditation and deep relaxation, so that the person can access his information in a broad way and without resistance.
However, it should be clarified that this procedure is not recommended, it should be clarified that this procedure is not recommended or does not have the same functionality in all people, since there must be the will to do it.It is necessary to have the will to collaborate and the capacity to relax the body. Some patients can relax too much and fall asleep completely, while others have trouble reaching this state and hypnosis simply does not occur.
What is hypnosis for?
This type of approach is implemented when the person has gone through some kind of trauma that prevents him/her from bringing back some kind of information or generating an action, since the unconscious creates a wall to prevent him/her from suffering the negative emotions of that episode again. This helps to overcome them and to solve various problems in an effective and lasting way.
It is ideal for treating fears, phobias, traumatic experiences, addictions to certain substances. (usually alcohol and cigarettes), bring back childhood memories, change some behaviors, among other possible applications.
5 types of hypnosis and how they work
Hypnosis is not necessarily done in only one way, this will depend on the type of client and the objective to be achieved.
1. Traditional or suggestion hypnosis
This is the most common type of hypnosis and also the oldest in history.Its origins date back to the 18th century. It became popular thanks to Franz Mesmer, who used a series of magnets to bring the person to a state of semi-consciousness through animal magnetism, which proposes that by transferring the energy of a healthy person to a sick person, he or she could be cured. Later, this practice would be called ‘mesmerism’ in honor of Mesmer.
Some time later, other professionals tried to give a more scientific and human sense to the practice of hypnosis, starting with James Braid who affirmed that this was a state of the nervous system (contradicting the mesmerist proposal). On the other hand, Pierre Janet attributed to it a sense of psychological dissociation, until finally arriving at the most modern version of classical hypnosis, proposed by Sigmund Freud, in which he stated that this method could be used to unravel repressed memories and help the patient to overcome trauma (the basis that was used for the theories of psychoanalysis).
With this in consideration, we can say that traditional hypnosis (as we know it now) is based on a clinical psychological procedure that leads to the induction of a trance state through the total relaxation of the person’s mind. In this way, being in a state of semi-consciousness, it is possible to suggest the individual through verbal instructions that guide the hypnotist towards his or her behaviors, behaviors or mental content.
2. Ericksonian hypnosis
This type of hypnosis arises from a proposal made by the American psychologist and pioneer of psychotherapy Milton H. Erickson, which is clearly distinguished from the traditional one in terms of the use of verbal content with which the trance state is induced. In this hypnosis, instead of generating direct suggestions towards a specific path (e.g., talking about a specific behavior or thought), a series of metaphors are used. (for example, talking about a specific behavior or thought) a series of metaphors are used with which the person is able to give a more flexible, creative and open discourse.
This is done with the intention that the person is able to lower their defenses completely and they can speak freely about whatever it is that has brought them to therapy. This type of hypnosis is ideal for those who have trouble relaxing completely, can’t let their mind go blank, are difficult to suggestible, are refractory to hypnosis, or have difficulty trusting the process.
It should be noted that many people tend to confuse the author of this procedure (Milton H. Erickson) with the evolutionary psychologist and disciple of Freud, Erik Erikson.
3. Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP)
We can say that this is the newest and most current type of hypnosis that exists, although the procedures of hypnosis are not used directly as such, if they share their methods and objectives, which is to change the thinking of the person and influence a more beneficial behavior for the same. For this reason, models of thought and language are used to promote favorable changes in the person’s way of acting and to improve his or her psychological skills. and improve their psychological skills.
It was developed by Richard Bandler and John Grinder, who gave their own interpretation to the methods used in Ericksonian hypnosis, but adding a little more focus on language, as they claim that it has a close relationship with neurological processes and behavioral patterns. The objective is that the person can change his own mental discourse so that he can have more control over his actions, in order to improve his abilities.
This technique is considered a pseudoscience of communication and personal development, although it is widely used in psychotherapy as an additional tool to improve the confidence of some patients or to guide them to make better decisions and solve problems.
4. Cognitive-behavioral hypnosis
Although at the beginning of its implementation as a proposal for psychological processes, it was not exactly accepted by the behavioral current due to its subjective essence and as a process of the unconscious mind (accepted in this case by psychoanalysis), with the passage of time and more studies now, the cognitive-behavioral current has acquired its own hypnosis procedure. Which is based on a series of methods based on suggestion to make direct changes in the behavior or conduct of the person.
This procedure is performed as a result of different previous methods.The main difference between this type of hypnosis and the rest is that it is used as a complementary part of a larger intervention focused on a specific problem (changing a repetitive thought, breaking obsessions, changing behaviors, changing behaviors, modifying behaviors, changing behaviors).
The great difference that this type of hypnosis has with the rest is that it is used as a complementary part of a major intervention and focused on a specific problem (change a repetitive thought, break obsessions, change behaviors, modify behaviors, as work to overcome addictions and sleep-wakefulness problems).
5. Self-hypnosis
As its name indicates, is a type of hypnosis that a person can implement on himself or herself.The hypnotic state is reduced to a hypnotic state through autosuggestions and other external support tools so that the person maintains his concentration and does not distract his thoughts. Among these support tools are voice recordings (where the instructions for the suggestion are recorded), as well as natural sounds that lead to relaxation or devices that manage to alter the brain waves to blur the state of consciousness and take it to a state of semi-consciousness.
This type of hypnosis is mainly used to control and focus on everyday situations (for example, to clarify the mind to find solutions to a problem or to get away from stress) in order to strengthen personal skills and assertiveness. It is widely used to face a daunting challenge, overcome a fear, relax the body, rest the mind, find a balance for sleep or stimulate yourself to start a new beneficial habit.
If you are interested in doing this practice, you should keep in mind that part of the success of the practice lies in your willingness to make it work, as well as committing to achieving complete relaxation of your mind and body. Talk to your therapist first to evaluate the pros and cons of trying it, if it is to your benefit then why not give it a try? You may be surprised at the results you can achieve, as well as learning a new positive technique.