Q: Those people on stage are faking it or are friends with the hypnotist, right?

" Occam's Razor " states that the simplest explanation is the most likely. Which is most likely? Yeah, it is. Try it some time. Those folks are playing the most vivid and real game of ""make believe"" of their entire adult lives. Not since being children on the playground has imagination been so real. It's fun, refreshing and it feels really good. Why isn't everybody doing this?

Question 1

What is "Kappasinian" hypnotherapy?

Accepted Answer

John Kappas attained his orientation to hypnosis from stage practice whose exponents assumed that only half the population could be hypnotized. Through practical experience, Kappas realized that direct suggestion was resisted by the half of the population that is left-brain dominant (analytical). This led Kappas into a lifetime of study of suggestibility, drawing upon personal experience treating tens of thousands of clients. Those cases covered both behavioral and psychological disorders. In recorded training seminars from the seventies, Kappas frequently stated that psychosis was due to hypersuggestibility - a chronic state of hypnosis - that makes the client unable to distinguish real and imaginary experiences.

The dominant factor in suggestibility is brain bilaterality (left/right dominance, generating respectively the "Emotional" and "Physical" patterns of behavior). Kappas saw hemispheric dominance as arising from nurturance, with natural complementarity arising between mother and infant. Preferential laterality carries through to our mature relationships, where we seek similar friends but complementary partnerships. Unfortunately, dysfunctional partnerships tend to exacerbate laterality, leading to alienation. Extending these insights to sexual behavior, Kappas was a successful marital therapist.

Kappas characterized hypnosis as a state of mind - our ideal learning state. Kappasinian therapy is built upon theories of personality development, most respectably the Ericksons' Stages of Development. The stages are extended with accessible theories of the subconscious and mind-body syndromes. These elements are introduced in dialog to increase client receptivity to suggestion.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypnotherapy

Question 2

Where can I find the the "Disclosure" form and other Hypnotechs forms?

Accepted Answer

Everything you might need to work with Hypnotechs is available in the Client Portal on the Hypnotechs site.

Question 3

Can you really be hypnotized?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Hypnosis is a natural state of mind that occurs in most people on a regular basis.

Many people associate hypnosis with a state of deep relaxation, but the process of hypnosis does not have to involve relaxation at all! In fact, one way to induce hypnotic trance is by using a "shock induction", which uses the startle reflex to make the mind open the suggestion.

If you have ever watched a stage hypnosis show and seen the hypnotist shout "SLEEP!" while yanking the arm of a subject, who then collapses in a heap, you have witnessed a shock induction.

Most people can be hypnotized. In general, if you have at least normal intelligence and even a bit of imagination, then you can too.

The process may vary between stage hypnosis and clinical hypnosis, but the end result is the same, a state of heightened suggestibility where hypnotic suggestions bypass the critical faculty and subconscious mind / unconscious mind act upon them.

For most people, the experience of hypnosis is profound. Your heart rate drops and smooths out and your brain activity settles into something closer to an active sleep state than full wakefulness. For many of us, the closest state we have to compare to in daily life is that of "lucid dreaming'. Of course, the hypnotized subject remains in complete control and has an awareness of what is going on around them at all times.

If you'd like to experience hypnosis, reach out to your local hypnotist! We LOVE what we do. You don't need to be seeking some type of behavioral therapy, or need to change something in everyday life. Most of us are always looking for a new hypnotic subject and would be more than happy to gve you a demonstration of the power of your subconscious mind / unconscious mind.

Question 4

What is "Ericksonian" hypnotherapy?

Accepted Answer

In the 1950s, Milton H. Erickson developed a radically different approach to hypnotism, which has subsequently become known as "Ericksonian hypnotherapy" or "Neo-Ericksonian hypnotherapy." Given that dysfunctional behaviors are defined by social tension, Erickson coopted the subject's behavior to establish rapport, a strategy he termed "utilization." Once rapport was established, he made use of an informal conversational approach to direct awareness. His methods included complex language patterns and client-specific therapeutic strategies (reflecting the nature of utilization). This divergence from tradition led some, including Andre Weitzenhoffer, to dispute whether Erickson was right to label his approach "hypnosis" at all. Erickson's foundational paper, however, considers hypnosis as a mental state in which specific types of "work" may be done, rather than a technique of induction.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypnotherapy

Question 5

What do you mean by "Stage Hypnosis"?

Accepted Answer

Stage hypnosis can encompass several types of performances.

The most obvious is probably the stage shows you see at the fair, in a club, at a corporate event or even at a graduation party. The hypnotist tests the suggestibility of the audience members then brings those who most likely to put on a good show up onto the stage. From there the comedy begins, with routines that demonstrate hypnotic phenomenon in a humorous way. At it's best it's hilarious, fresh and a fun experience for all. At it's worst, it's demeaning, predictable, not funny and even dangerous.

Another type of stage hypnosis is the hypnosis demonstration. In this type of performance, the purpose is to educate, rather than to entertain. Hypnotic phenomenon takes front stage and the comedy takes a back seat. In this type of show, the purpose is for you to walk out with a better understanding of what hypnosis is and more importantly, what it is not.

The final category is the seminar presentation. The purpose of this type of performance is once again educational, but in this case, hypnosis is only used to prove a point about some other topic. A classic example is a performance given before a group of salespeople, where hypnosis is used to show illustrate how a mindset can have a large impact on the success or failure of a sale.

In stage hypnosis, the hypnosis is real, or at least it should be. It's highly unethical to plant "shills" in the audience, but it does happen.

Question 6

Those people on stage are faking it or are friends with the hypnotist, right?

Accepted Answer

"Occam's Razor" states that the simplest explanation is the most likely.

Which is most likely?

Yeah, it is. Try it some time. Those folks are playing the most vivid and real game of ""make believe"" of their entire adult lives. Not since being children on the playground has imagination been so real.

It's fun, refreshing and it feels really good. Why isn't everybody doing this?

Question 7

How much do sessions cost?

Accepted Answer

The cost per session may vary with the length of the session, the number of sessions needed and the nature of the material to be covered.

Current pricing is provided on my booking page.

All ongoing costs will be discussed with you on an individual basis, up front, in your first session.

Payment is due at the time of each session unless other arrangements have been made in advance.

Question 8

In your Kappasinian Suggestibility and Sexuality assessments, why do you ask me to predict where I am on the scale?

Accepted Answer

For both the Kappasinian Suggestibility Assessment and the Sexuality Assessment, I ask users to take a guess about where they fall on the scale before taking the quiz.

Your answer for that question has no effect on the assessment results.

I ask that question out of curiosity alone. It's interesting to see how well people understand the scale and then how well they apply the descriptions to themselves. In general, the responses are roughly correct, though they are often off in the level chosen. (A person predicts they are a Strong Analytical, and they are on the analytical scale, but not as strong as they thought)

When the results are way off, opposite ends of the scale even, I am always curious whether the person didn't understand the exercise or whether their self-image is that different from what the test indicates. For Hypnotechs clients with that sort of incongruence, I always explore that in our first session.

Question 9

Is hypnosis like sleep or being unconscious?

Accepted Answer

Hypnotists commonly use the word "sleep" to induce hypnosis and during hypnosis to deepen the state, but hypnosis is not like sleep or unconsciousness.

In hypnosis, you are aware of what is going on around you, you are responsive to outside stimuli and you can control how things proceed. If you have ever looked into "lucid dreaming", some people describe it and hypnosis as being a similar state.

Question 10

Why do you record sessions?

Accepted Answer

I record sessions so that I can review the recordings as session notes.

All recordings are completely confidential and subject to the same confidentiality laws, rules, and regulations as all other client materials.