No. Washington prohibits diagnosis and psychotherapy by hypnotherapists. As a hypnotherapist, I am NOT credentialed to diagnose mental disorders or to conduct psychotherapy as defined in [WAC 246-810-010](http://apps.leg.wa.gov/WAC/default.aspx?cite=246-810-010). "Psychotherapy" means the practice of counseling using diagnosis of mental disorders according to the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), and the development of treatment plans for counseling based on diagnosis of mental disorders in accordance with established practice standards." I can refer you out if needed, but these things are not particularly useful in the practice of Subconscious Behaviorism or Hypnotherapy anyway.

No. Washington prohibits diagnosis and psychotherapy by hypnotherapists. As a hypnotherapist, I am NOT credentialed to diagnose mental disorders or to conduct psychotherapy as defined in [WAC 246-810-010](http://apps.leg.wa.gov/WAC/default.aspx?cite=246-810-010). "Psychotherapy" means the practice of counseling using diagnosis of mental disorders according to the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), and the development of treatment plans for counseling based on diagnosis of mental disorders in accordance with established practice standards." I can refer you out if needed, but these things are not particularly useful in the practice of Subconscious Behaviorism or Hypnotherapy anyway.

Too smart, focused, intelligent, imaginative, in control, skeptical, and so on... We ALL think that. Trust me, it wasn't true for me, it hasn't been true in any of the hundreds of times I've heard it and it's not true for you either.

Too smart, focused, intelligent, imaginative, in control, skeptical, and so on... We ALL think that. Trust me, it wasn't true for me, it hasn't been true in any of the hundreds of times I've heard it and it's not true for you either.

**Somnambulism** > A deep state of hypnosis, where the client may respond with amnesia, anesthesia, negative and positive hallucinations, and complete control of the senses. It is characterized by the eyes rolling up underneath the eyelids. **Somnambulist** > A person capable of reaching a profound state of hypnotic trance or somnambulism. > **Natural Somnambulist** > A somnambulist who is capable of reaching that level of hypnotic trance known and somnambulism without training or practice, generally during their first experience with hypnosis. In Kappasinian terms, this is most likely with a person who responds equally well to all suggestions, both direct and indirect, affecting both the body and emotions. This person would have a near 50/50 Suggestibility (50% Physical Suggestible and 50% Emotional Suggestible). Want to know if you are a somnambulist? Take the test here: [Kappasinian E&P Suggestibility Assessment](https://hypnotechs.com/resources/kappasinian-suggestibility/)

**Somnambulism** > A deep state of hypnosis, where the client may respond with amnesia, anesthesia, negative and positive hallucinations, and complete control of the senses. It is characterized by the eyes rolling up underneath the eyelids. **Somnambulist** > A person capable of reaching a profound state of hypnotic trance or somnambulism. > **Natural Somnambulist** > A somnambulist who is capable of reaching that level of hypnotic trance known and somnambulism without training or practice, generally during their first experience with hypnosis. In Kappasinian terms, this is most likely with a person who responds equally well to all suggestions, both direct and indirect, affecting both the body and emotions. This person would have a near 50/50 Suggestibility (50% Physical Suggestible and 50% Emotional Suggestible). Want to know if you are a somnambulist? Take the test here: [Kappasinian E&P Suggestibility Assessment](https://hypnotechs.com/resources/kappasinian-suggestibility/)

Ah... you have seen those shows too? No, not unless you want to. In general, acting like an animal is not part of a hypnotherapy session, unless you have specifically asked for that as part of your goals. It's funny to see imagination run amok on stage, but most hypnotherapy clients would not find it the least bit amusing.

Ah... you have seen those shows too? No, not unless you want to. In general, acting like an animal is not part of a hypnotherapy session, unless you have specifically asked for that as part of your goals. It's funny to see imagination run amok on stage, but most hypnotherapy clients would not find it the least bit amusing.

Most certainly. There is a natural ability inherent in hypnosis, but willingness goes a long way toward overriding that. I would rather work with a willing participant who is low on the hypnotizability scale than someone with a ton of natural ability who won't do the work. There are people who are naturally gifted at hypnosis. They are known as "somnambulists" or "sleepwalkers". While somnambulists have a natural ability to experience hypnotic trance, it is a skill that can be learned and improved by anyone who is so inclined. Practice, practice, practice.

Most certainly. There is a natural ability inherent in hypnosis, but willingness goes a long way toward overriding that. I would rather work with a willing participant who is low on the hypnotizability scale than someone with a ton of natural ability who won't do the work. There are people who are naturally gifted at hypnosis. They are known as "somnambulists" or "sleepwalkers". While somnambulists have a natural ability to experience hypnotic trance, it is a skill that can be learned and improved by anyone who is so inclined. Practice, practice, practice.

No. In fact, you have probably seen someone during a stage show who simply didn't react to some skit, so the hypnotist moved on to others. That person might not have felt like doing what was suggested, might have objected to the content or might simply have been feeling really good at the moment and chose to ignore the hypnotist. What you see during a stage show is a group of people playing "make-believe" with an intensity that you would not understand unless you had experienced it. If you have seen children playing and seen the intensity with which they can visualize the environment and components of what they are doing, you might realize it's been a while since you have imagined something that vividly. As adults, we forget how much fun it was to imagine that the ground beneath the monkey bars is "lava" and to do so with such focus that there's no way we are going to be the first to drop. The people on stage have rediscovered how much imagination and play can be.

No. In fact, you have probably seen someone during a stage show who simply didn't react to some skit, so the hypnotist moved on to others. That person might not have felt like doing what was suggested, might have objected to the content or might simply have been feeling really good at the moment and chose to ignore the hypnotist. What you see during a stage show is a group of people playing "make-believe" with an intensity that you would not understand unless you had experienced it. If you have seen children playing and seen the intensity with which they can visualize the environment and components of what they are doing, you might realize it's been a while since you have imagined something that vividly. As adults, we forget how much fun it was to imagine that the ground beneath the monkey bars is "lava" and to do so with such focus that there's no way we are going to be the first to drop. The people on stage have rediscovered how much imagination and play can be.

Medical doctors and mental health professionals *may* indicate that hypnosis is contraindicated for a number of conditions, including: Schizophrenia and other mental health disorders. Developmental disabilities. Use of certain drugs. Ongoing psychiatric treatment. Although hypnosis has seen some amazing results over a wide spectrum of conditions, hypnotherapy is generally an adjunct therapy and is not a substitute for medical or psychiatric care.

Medical doctors and mental health professionals *may* indicate that hypnosis is contraindicated for a number of conditions, including: Schizophrenia and other mental health disorders. Developmental disabilities. Use of certain drugs. Ongoing psychiatric treatment. Although hypnosis has seen some amazing results over a wide spectrum of conditions, hypnotherapy is generally an adjunct therapy and is not a substitute for medical or psychiatric care.

Memories are funny things. Sometimes they stick around forever, and other times they are gossamer and fade away quickly, seemingly without reason as to why one or the other happens. It's further complicated by the fact that every time you open a memory and examine it, then put it away, you get your "fingerprints" all over it, changing it slightly. Studies have shown that the more you revisit a memory, the more it drifts from the original. Hypnosis can help you remember the password for your Bitcoin wallet or find your lost car keys if the conditions are right and it often works great! But if the memory has been corrupted, it's possible that it's gone forever. If the information is still there and it's just buried, hypnosis is often your best bet for retrieving it.

Memories are funny things. Sometimes they stick around forever, and other times they are gossamer and fade away quickly, seemingly without reason as to why one or the other happens. It's further complicated by the fact that every time you open a memory and examine it, then put it away, you get your "fingerprints" all over it, changing it slightly. Studies have shown that the more you revisit a memory, the more it drifts from the original. Hypnosis can help you remember the password for your Bitcoin wallet or find your lost car keys if the conditions are right and it often works great! But if the memory has been corrupted, it's possible that it's gone forever. If the information is still there and it's just buried, hypnosis is often your best bet for retrieving it.

In general, no. Hypnosis requires your participation and consent to work. There are "shock" inductions that can be performed that startle the subject into hypnosis, but without participation and consent, the subject will pop right back out again in less than a second. A very skilled hypnotist can make involuntary hypnosis last longer, but you would NEVER find that in a therapy environment where trust means everything.

In general, no. Hypnosis requires your participation and consent to work. There are "shock" inductions that can be performed that startle the subject into hypnosis, but without participation and consent, the subject will pop right back out again in less than a second. A very skilled hypnotist can make involuntary hypnosis last longer, but you would NEVER find that in a therapy environment where trust means everything.

Nope. You cannot get stuck. In 4000 years of recorded hypnosis history, the only one who has ever gotten stuck is that guy in the movie "[Office Space](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dp7EUUVdrt0)" and to be fair, he kind of needed it. In that movie, the hypnotist dies of a heart-attack while his client is hypnotized and for the rest of the movie, the client is still in trance and ultra-relaxed. In reality, what would happen is that the client would come out of trance and try to help the dying hypnotist or he would fall into a deep, relaxing sleep and awake naturally, *then* try to help the already dead hypnotist. There is no 'stuck'. I'll let you in on a secret. If people could get stuck, we hypnotists would create armies of "hypnozombies" to do our bidding for us, while we lived lives of luxury and pleasure. Muahhahahahahha! Just kidding. (Or am I?). Nope, No stuck. Instead, we try to help people.

Nope. You cannot get stuck. In 4000 years of recorded hypnosis history, the only one who has ever gotten stuck is that guy in the movie "[Office Space](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dp7EUUVdrt0)" and to be fair, he kind of needed it. In that movie, the hypnotist dies of a heart-attack while his client is hypnotized and for the rest of the movie, the client is still in trance and ultra-relaxed. In reality, what would happen is that the client would come out of trance and try to help the dying hypnotist or he would fall into a deep, relaxing sleep and awake naturally, *then* try to help the already dead hypnotist. There is no 'stuck'. I'll let you in on a secret. If people could get stuck, we hypnotists would create armies of "hypnozombies" to do our bidding for us, while we lived lives of luxury and pleasure. Muahhahahahahha! Just kidding. (Or am I?). Nope, No stuck. Instead, we try to help people.

Anyone with even average intelligence and a bit of imagination can be hypnotized to one degree or another. Once hypnotized, if the therapist knows what they are doing, therapy can be conducted in a way that works best for the client. There is a range of susceptibility to both hypnosis and hypnotherapy, but in general, "yes", virtually everyone will respond. In some cases, a person may be only capable of only light levels of hypnotic trance, but the good news is that most therapies can be conducted at even Stage 1 on [Arons Scale of Hypnotic Depth](https://hypnotechs.com/resources/arons-scale/). Hypnosis almost always requires a willing participant. If you actively resist or work to prevent trance, then you would be the exception to this. You can actively resist being hypnotized and there is virtually nothing I could do about it.

Anyone with even average intelligence and a bit of imagination can be hypnotized to one degree or another. Once hypnotized, if the therapist knows what they are doing, therapy can be conducted in a way that works best for the client. There is a range of susceptibility to both hypnosis and hypnotherapy, but in general, "yes", virtually everyone will respond. In some cases, a person may be only capable of only light levels of hypnotic trance, but the good news is that most therapies can be conducted at even Stage 1 on [Arons Scale of Hypnotic Depth](https://hypnotechs.com/resources/arons-scale/). Hypnosis almost always requires a willing participant. If you actively resist or work to prevent trance, then you would be the exception to this. You can actively resist being hypnotized and there is virtually nothing I could do about it.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. The more intelligent and imaginative you are, the better subject you are likely to make.

Subtitled: "I won't have an accident, will I?" Okay, don't laugh. It's a common question and face it, when you gotta go, you gotta go. Most importantly, no, you will NOT have an "accident". Unless you are prone to accidents already either while you are awake or when you are sleeping, in which case PLEASE mention that to your hypnotist in advance, all the normal warning systems remain in effect. You will feel all the normal symptoms and you won't ignore them to the point of an accident. If you feel it coming and it's to the point or even beyond the point where it's distracting or is interfering with your ability to stay focused, simply tell your hypnotist you need a break, using whatever words you are most comfortable using. Your hypnotist will bring you up so that you can take care of the problem. When you return, you will go back under quickly and in all likelihood, even deeper than you were. Relax, it happens and it's not a big deal.

Subtitled: "I won't have an accident, will I?" Okay, don't laugh. It's a common question and face it, when you gotta go, you gotta go. Most importantly, no, you will NOT have an "accident". Unless you are prone to accidents already either while you are awake or when you are sleeping, in which case PLEASE mention that to your hypnotist in advance, all the normal warning systems remain in effect. You will feel all the normal symptoms and you won't ignore them to the point of an accident. If you feel it coming and it's to the point or even beyond the point where it's distracting or is interfering with your ability to stay focused, simply tell your hypnotist you need a break, using whatever words you are most comfortable using. Your hypnotist will bring you up so that you can take care of the problem. When you return, you will go back under quickly and in all likelihood, even deeper than you were. Relax, it happens and it's not a big deal.

This misconception comes from what people see happening during hypnosis stage shows. It looks for all the world like the subjects are doing whatever the hypnotist tells them, no matter how ridiculous. If you look closely, however, you might notice that with almost every skit, there's at least one person who ignores the hypnotist and just sits there. That person has chosen not to participate for some reason. Usually, it's because they can't picture or imagine what the hypnotist is describing, they think it's too silly or it conflicts with something they believeÂ so they just choose to sit that one out. The rest of the people are having a great time using their imaginations in the world the hypnotist is describing for them. They are having a great time playing along because, let's face it, playing is fun and using your imagination feels good, especially as an adult when you have practically forgotten what it's like. In hypnosis, you are hyper-focused. There are no "hypnozombies". If you are given a suggestion you don't like, you will ignore it or even bring yourself fully awake. As hypnotists, we have to tread very lightly to avoid that by keeping our words congruent with what the subject expects otherwise they come right out of trance. That makes "mind control" impossible."

This misconception comes from what people see happening during hypnosis stage shows. It looks for all the world like the subjects are doing whatever the hypnotist tells them, no matter how ridiculous. If you look closely, however, you might notice that with almost every skit, there's at least one person who ignores the hypnotist and just sits there. That person has chosen not to participate for some reason. Usually, it's because they can't picture or imagine what the hypnotist is describing, they think it's too silly or it conflicts with something they believeÂ so they just choose to sit that one out. The rest of the people are having a great time using their imaginations in the world the hypnotist is describing for them. They are having a great time playing along because, let's face it, playing is fun and using your imagination feels good, especially as an adult when you have practically forgotten what it's like. In hypnosis, you are hyper-focused. There are no "hypnozombies". If you are given a suggestion you don't like, you will ignore it or even bring yourself fully awake. As hypnotists, we have to tread very lightly to avoid that by keeping our words congruent with what the subject expects otherwise they come right out of trance. That makes "mind control" impossible."

First, let's define "pseudoscience". According to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudoscience): > Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that are claimed to be scientific and factual, in the absence of evidence gathered and constrained by appropriate scientific methods. > > Pseudoscience is often characterized by the following: contradictory, exaggerated or unfalsifiable claims; reliance on confirmation bias rather than rigorous attempts at refutation; lack of openness to evaluation by other experts; and absence of systematic practices when developing theories. > >The term pseudoscience is often considered pejorative because it suggests something is being presented as science inaccurately or even deceptively. Those >described as practicing or advocating pseudoscience often dispute the characterization. With that in mind, **hypnosis is most certainly NOT pseudoscience**. There is plenty of scientific, non-anecdotal evidence, that points to the legitimacy of hypnosis. We link to some articles of that nature in the [Resources](https://hypnotechs.com/resources/hypnosis-articles/) section of this site, but there are many, many more articles to be found. Wikipedia maintains a [List of topics characterized as pseudoscience](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_topics_characterized_as_pseudoscience). Note that hypnosis is conspicuously not on that list, though there are are a few of the more rediculous claimed uses of hypnosis that made the list. Those aren't things you will find at Hypnotechs.

First, let's define "pseudoscience". According to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudoscience): > Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that are claimed to be scientific and factual, in the absence of evidence gathered and constrained by appropriate scientific methods. > > Pseudoscience is often characterized by the following: contradictory, exaggerated or unfalsifiable claims; reliance on confirmation bias rather than rigorous attempts at refutation; lack of openness to evaluation by other experts; and absence of systematic practices when developing theories. > >The term pseudoscience is often considered pejorative because it suggests something is being presented as science inaccurately or even deceptively. Those >described as practicing or advocating pseudoscience often dispute the characterization. With that in mind, **hypnosis is most certainly NOT pseudoscience**. There is plenty of scientific, non-anecdotal evidence, that points to the legitimacy of hypnosis. We link to some articles of that nature in the [Resources](https://hypnotechs.com/resources/hypnosis-articles/) section of this site, but there are many, many more articles to be found. Wikipedia maintains a [List of topics characterized as pseudoscience](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_topics_characterized_as_pseudoscience). Note that hypnosis is conspicuously not on that list, though there are are a few of the more rediculous claimed uses of hypnosis that made the list. Those aren't things you will find at Hypnotechs.

Hypnosis - Categories - Hypnotechs Hypnotherapy & Hypnosis Frequently Asked Questions

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Can you diagnose my mental health or conduct psychotherapy?

I'm too _______ to be hypnotized. Right?

What is somnambulism/a somnambulist?

Am I going to cluck like a chicken or bark like a dog?

Are some people better at hypnosis than others?

Are the people on stage under the control of the hypnotist?

Are there people who should not be hypnotized?

Can hypnosis help me remember something?

Can I be hypnotized against my will?

Can I get 'stuck' in a hypnotic trance?

Does everyone respond to hypnotherapy?

Does hypnosis work best on someone with a "weak" mind?

hat happens if "nature calls" while I am hypnotized?

Is hypnosis "mind control"?

Is hypnosis "pseudoscience"?

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