Professional Hypnotherapy Diploma Course - Assignment 1

PROFESSIONAL HYPNOTHERAPY DIPLOMA COURSE - ASSIG...
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Stonebridge Associated Colleges Stonebridge House, Ocean View Road, Bude, Cornwall, EX23 8ST, United Kingdom Tel: 01288 356300 Fax: 01288 355799 Email: info@stonebridge.uk.com http://www.stonebridge.uk.com
PROFESSIONAL HYPNOTHERAPY DIPLOMA COURSE ASSIGNMENT ONE
HISTORIAL BACKGROUND TUTOR TALK: The Learning Outcomes for this assignment are: Explain the basic brain functions associated with hypnosis and introduce the hypnotic trance.
TUTOR TALK: Hypnosis is often associated with the strange, weird and mysterious - it is the domain of witches, faith healers and stage shows! The truth is that hypnosis is not the least bit mysterious or supernatural. Humans have often been in a hypnotic state, but unaware of it because it is such a natural state of mind. The hypnotic state can be experienced by many animals, as well as people. Highway hypnosis - have you had the experience of driving in your car, conscious of driving, but not remembering any details of the road you drove on, the cars that passed by etc, even driving past the turn-off to your home? The chances are you were in a light hypnotic trance. In essence, your mind was miles away, deep in thought, though on a sub-conscious level you were still fully in control of the vehicle. If a child ran across the road whilst in this state, your conscious mind would automatically take over and react to the situation in an instant, bringing you fully back to the present.
USES FOR HYPNOSIS Hypnosis is a powerful tool for implementing change within a persons life. Many practitioners frown upon the stage show/programmes use of hypnosis when exercised in a less serious light. The viewer witnesses individuals indulging their sense of humour by believing he/she has x-ray vision and can see all persons underwear or he/she believes they are deeply in love with a broom. Although this use of hypnosis creates humour, the viewer usually fails to realise the true power of hypnosis; a contestant truly believes they have x-ray vision, a physical impossibility. Paul McKenna, one of the recent pioneers of hypnosis, no longer carries out stage shows, but prefers the subject matter to be seen in its more serious form in order to give it the credibility it deserves. Hypnosis can be used for: Changing a behaviour Instilling new behaviour, e.g. increased confidence Overcoming fears and phobias
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Conquering stress and anxiety Breaking bad or damaging habits, e.g. stopping smoking Losing weight Procedures in the medical profession, e.g. anaesthetic, dentistry Personal development, e.g. goal setting Beating depression.*
TUTOR TALK: *This course is not designed to deal with the client suffering from depression. Any individual who has seen their doctor within the last two years and been diagnosed as depressed or has been prescribed associated medication should be referred to a counsellor or psychiatrist.
DESCRIBING THE HYPNOSIS TRANCE Hypnosis is a particular state of mind. It is known to exist, but at present this state of consciousness is not fully defined. In coming to an understanding of hypnosis, it is useful to consider two other states of mind, i.e. being awake and being asleep. Our experience tells us that our consciousness or awareness varies continuously. Even our sleep varies in depth - we know that we have moments of being half awake and half asleep. This is also recorded by means of an electroencephalograph (EEG). Therefore, a continuum exists between being completely awake (fully conscious) and being deeply asleep (non-awareness). Hypnosis, in being a state of mind, exists along part of this continuum. A hypnotised person is fully awake, as shown by EEG brain wave patterns, yet has the outward appearance of being asleep or, at the very least, deeply relaxed. It needs to be noted that hypnosis and sleep are quite different states to one another. However, it is suggested that a person who is fully asleep can still hear their surroundings on some level. In hospitals it is recommended to talk to patients who are in a coma as if they were awake; it is believed they can still hear, despite being in an unconscious state.
GOOD/POOR SUBJECTS FOR HYPNOSIS Not all individuals are good subjects for hypnosis. Furthermore, it is a myth to believe any person, whilst in a hypnotic state, will carry out any action that would ordinarily be against their ethics, morals and belief system. A person will not do anything against their will whilst in a hypnotic state. Different traits determine a persons willingness/ability to be hypnotised and are described as follows. Good subjects: Intelligent Not over critical Trusting Focused attention Children Poor subjects: Very analytically minded Over critical -governed by logic not emotion
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Sceptical Short attention span Senile or brain damaged
RESISTANCE TO HYPNOSIS Despite a clients receptiveness to hypnosis being fairly good, there may be other factors affecting the effectiveness of the session at hand and these may include: Fear of hypnosis: The client may require reassurance from the hypnotherapist that the procedure is completely safe and they can come out of the trance at any stage of the process. Information needs to be divulged that the person will not be asked to do anything against their morals or ethics. The individual may have tried everything and hypnosis is their last option. He/she may feel they cannot do hypnosis and, again, the hypnotherapists reassurance is required. Despite the person being present at the session, he/she may feel it is not the right time for them. In this case, the hypnotherapist can assure them their motivation is not a required element to the overall success of the session. The client may find it difficult to hand over their personal control to a stranger. The hypnotherapist will need to reassure them they will not be made to do anything against their wish, though co-operation is needed. The hypnotherapist needs to be fully prepared for the session. Clients will immediately recognise when the therapist is not in control of the session and is unsure of their own technique. Trust will be lost in this instance. Research prior to the session starting needs to be carried out by the hypnotherapist. When dealing with impotency it is not recommended to use the term limp in any part of the induction. If the client has a fear of heights, requesting they climb to the top of a mountain or enter a lift will not be appropriate. Sometimes a client will not mention they are uncomfortable in the chair they are sat in. It is the hypnotherapists responsibility to enquire about the clients comfort level at the start of the session. For various reasons the client may not warm to the therapist and, in this instance, hypnosis is not the issue, but the hypnotherapist. Unless the situation can be remedied, the client should visit another therapist.
Fear of failure:
Defiance:
Control:
Inadequate preparation:
Dislike of technique:
Physical discomfort:
Dislike of hypnotherapist:
TYPES OF HYPNOIDAL STATES In the next three headings the different types of states/trances will be explored to give an indication of just how many instances of hypnosis can occur in everyday life without its existence being realised. 1. Waking Hypnosis A light hypnotic trance occurs in the waking state when the individual is: Listening to music Reading adverts (billboard or TV)
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Watching TV Walking in the countryside In love This type of hypnosis is experienced as being in a light trance state and occurs when the person is in a daze, carrying out an activity automatically and relaxed, e.g. ironing. Highway hypnosis also comes under this category (as explained in the introduction of this assignment). 2. Reverie and Day-Dreaming For information, reverie means the individual is remembering a past event, whereas day-dreaming is fantasy. When a person is in either of the aforementioned states, the EEG shows the brain waves to slow down - the individual is deep in thought. The difference between this and the waking state is a third party could wave their hand in front of the day-dreaming person and they would not necessarily notice the action. However, when in a waking state, the individual would react to the hand action. 3. Hypnogogic and Hypnopompic States Hypnogogic is the state just before going to sleep. The body feels heavy and lethargic, and might also feel disassociated. Hypnopompic is the state just before waking up. The person is aware of what is happening around them, though their mind might be drifting in and out. Their thoughts might be, I know I can open my eyes, but Im not ready to yet.
DEPTH OF TRANCE/STATE Whilst in a hypnotic state there are three main levels of depth to the state that determine the effectiveness of the suggestions being put forward to the individual at each level. The deeper the hypnotic state the more effective the suggestions become. A good depth of trance takes between twenty and thirty minutes to achieve. The physical effects of each depth are discussed in Assignment Two of this course. Light hypnosis Ninety percent of individuals can experience this state. Person will not feel hypnotised. Just closing eyes may be sufficient depth to relieve stress/anxiety. Medium-depth hypnosis Seventy percent of individuals can experience this state. Person is aware of noise, though will not be disturbed. Simple suggestions given by the hypnotherapist may be accepted by the person, e.g. Your body is feeling heavy now. Deep hypnosis (Somnambulism - Latin for sleep walking) Ten percent of individuals can experience this state. Person can open eyes and walk around. Amnesia and disassociation of the body can be experienced.
LEFT/RIGHT SIDE BRAIN It is said the brain is the computer and the mind is the energy that allows the brain to operate. Two hemispheres divide the brain - the left side is termed as being analytical , whilst the right side is creative. Figure 1.1 illustrates the different activities or functions that are carried out in the two hemispheres.
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Conscious Mind Logic Reason Mathematics Reading Writing Language Analysis Ego
LEFT
RIGHT
Unconscious Mind Recognition Rhythm Visual Imagery Synthesis Dreams Symbols Id Emotions
Figure 1.1 Conscious That which we are aware of at any time - focused attention. Reasoning aspect of thinking, e.g. questioning and testing. Can think of 7 things plus 2 or as little as 5 at any one time, e.g. body temperature, chair attributes if sitting, hardness/softness of floor/shoe, pictures of magazine, headache, coldness of hands etc. When the conscious is overloaded stress and anxiety occur. When the overload becomes too much the conscious switches to the sub-conscious. Sub-conscious Everything learned and experienced is held here. Solutions to problems/issues originate from this area. Unwanted baggage is housed in the sub-conscious. Feelings and emotions are used as forms of expression. Works in imagery (pictures). We can distinguish between the conscious mind and the sub-conscious mind, but until circa. 1965, it would not have been suggested that these activities are located in specific parts of the brain. There is now growing evidence that the conscious mind is located in the left hemisphere of the brain, and the sub-conscious mind is located in the right hemisphere. It does not mean we have two different brains, but that the brain activities vary within the two hemispheres. The main distinguishing attribute being that the activity of the right brain tends to work as a whole, global in nature and experiences a whole image. The left-brain, however, tends to be linear; part for part or step-by-step. Both these activities are essential in our existence as human beings. From Figure 1.1, it is obvious that words occur in the left-brain, in the conscious mind, along with reasoning. The right brain is the seat of emotions, imagery, rhythm and visual impressions. When we talk of a state of mind, reference is made to the state of the right and left-brain, and the way the two interact. Between the right and left hemispheres of the brain there is a bundle of nerves called the corpus callosum. The corpus callosum acts as both a barrier and bridge between the two hemispheres.
The adult human brain weighs more than 1,360g and it is estimated to contain 12 million neurons or nerve cells.
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Hypnosis, then, is a procedure that creates a state in the left-brain, a state in the right brain and puts the two activities in harmony, so as to create an altered state of consciousness. When a hypnotic procedure is used, we are communing with the right brain (the subconscious mind) by means of words (the use of the conscious mind). The process of a hypnotic induction is a means of achieving a pathway from the left-brain to the right brain. Once this bridge is formed, the hypnotic state can be deepened and utilised. Hypnotic trances can further be described as follows: 1. Hypnosis is a super relaxed state with enhanced susceptibility to suggestion. (Desplace, P, one time Chairman, Hypnotic Foundation of Australia)
In Genesis : 2v21 it states: So Yahweh God made the man fall into a deep sleep. This is hypnosis in action. It is however interesting to note that nowhere in the Bible is reference made to the fact that man woke up.
2. The ability of an individual to direct the whole force of nervous energy into a smaller number of nervous channels reducing the synaptic resistance and facilitating the passage of nervous energy. (Eysenk) 3. An unusual state in which the mind concentrates on immediate thoughts disregarding surrounding stimuli. Hypnosis is a normal physiological altered state similar to, but not the same as, being awake. But also similar, though not the same as, being asleep and is produced by the presence of two conditions: 1. A central focus of attention 2. Surrounding areas of inhibition The state of hypnosis in turn produces three things; an increased; concentration of the body relaxation of the body susceptibility to suggestion. In hypnosis the physical implications are that it allows the left and right brain to harmonise both chemically and electrically. Hypnosis is a technique for causing the brain to cycle down into alpha without going to sleep. In alpha the sub-conscious mind is open to suggestive input. In achieving an altered state of consciousness the brain releases endorphins as it produces alpha waves. Released in sufficient quantities, the endorphins can cause a state similar to anaesthesia of the body and a coma like state of mind that is different to sleep.
TUTOR TALK: Therefore, in this course we will think of hypnosis or the hypnotic trance as being in an altered state of awareness. An altered state of awareness is by definition a state that is different from the normal, waking state.
Hypnosis is biologically similar to the hypnagogic state (the transition from waking to sleeping), the hypnopompic state (the transition from sleeping to waking) and the dream state. There is a considerable body of research indicating strong similarities between hypnosis and dreaming in
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EEG activity, cortical and sub-cortical simulation, and neurotransmitter activity. In fact, the underlying mechanism from dreaming (rapid eye movement sleep) continues to operate through the entire waking state represented as ultradian cycles. Humans are always cycling through biological rhythms that make a trance a naturally occurring state. Recognising hypnosis as an everyday phenomenon makes it far more accessible to the everyday person.
POST-HYPNOTIC SUGGESTIONS Whilst in a hypnotic state instructions are given to the individual to either change or eliminate a behaviour. The term post-hypnotic means after hypnosis has occurred. Post-hypnotic suggestions are suggestions/directions given by the hypnotherapist to the client for actions/behaviours to be exercised thereon after the session has ended. The two types of suggestions include: 1. Elimination In this instance, behaviours/habits are removed, e.g. smoking, over-eating, nail biting etc. When removing a behaviour, the hole needs to be filled or the habit replaced by an ego strengthening instruction, e.g. take away smoking - replace with suggestion of healthy lungs and taste becoming more intense. If a void is left, the client will refill it with negative beliefs, which will lead on to negative actions. Examples of ego strengthening instructions include: You feel more alert more wide awakeand more alive with energy. During this deep sleep you notice your confidence levels increase. The more you sleep in this deep sleep the more confident you areand nothing can eliminate this incredible confidence. Every day you will feel a great sense of well being a great security within yourself that you have not felt for a long, long time. You love exams each time you think of taking exams your ability to recall information increases. Exams mean you can recall information easily and effectively. 2. Installation New positive habits are installed, e.g. feelings of relaxation, assertiveness and confidence. It is important for the hypnotherapist to install suggestions that are what the client needs rather than what the person believes they want. The instructions also need to be realistic and achievable. It is not a good idea to suggest the client will lose a stone in weight a week, rather it should be suggested between two and four pounds, depending on their current weight. The two or four pound weight loss can act as a goal setting exercise for the client, an exercise in which they can measure whether they are achieving their weekly goal.
BACKGROUND TO HYPNOSIS EXPLAINED Every culture has used hypnosis in one form or another. The earliest evidence of its existence was found among shamans, who were also referred to as witch doctors, medicine men or healers. In Africa the sangoma (witch doctor) plays an important role in the community and tribal healers are recognised by the government as a legitimate healing organisation. The Ancient Civilisations of Egypt, China and Tibet abound with references to the deep sleep. As a result of Western traders explorations in the East, the practice of hypnosis was introduced to the West from the East in the 18th Century. It was Mesmer (1733-1815) who made use of the hypnotic trance in curing medically diagnosed ailments, and brought hypnosis to the attention of the medical fraternity and the general public. Franz Anton Mesmer was a flamboyantly dressed Austrian doctor, who recognised the ancient healing phenomenon of hypnosis and incorporated it into a theory of Animal Magnetism (description provided further in text).
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Mesmers consulting rooms were typically dimly lit and hung with mirrors. Soft music broke the otherwise deep silence. The doctors patients sat in a circle around a vat, which contained elements such as powdered glass or iron filings. The patients held onto iron rods that came out of the vat and were supposed to transmit the curing force. Mesmer believed that an Acosmic fluid could be stored in inanimate objects, such as magnets, and transferred to patients to cure them of illness. A woman of 29 years old, suffering from a convulsive malady (a condition commonly labelled as a nervous disorder) provided Mesmer with his first big success. The womans symptoms consisted of blood rushing to her head and a tremendous pain in both her ears and head. Delirium, rage, vomiting and fainting followed this state. During one of the young woman's attacks, Mesmer applied three magnets to the patient's stomach and legs while she quieted and concentrated on the positive effects of the Acosmic fluid. In just a short time, her symptoms subsided. When her symptoms surfaced again the next day, Mesmer gave her another treatment and achieved similar results. It was believed by Mesmer the Acosmic fluid, stimulated by the magnets, was directed through his patient's body. Her energy flow was restored and, as a result, she regained her health. Eventually Mesmer discarded the magnets. He began to regard himself as a magnet through which a fluid life force could be conducted and then transmitted to others as a healing force. This is what Mesmer called Animal Magnetism. Despite the fact that no evidence supports the existence of Mesmer's Acosmic fluids and Animal Magnetism, he had a tremendous rate of success. Thousands of sick but hopeful people flocked to his treatment centre. The only explanation for his successes is that his patients were literally mesmerised into belief and expectation that they would be cured.
MESMERISM BECAME THE FORERUNNER OF HYPNOTIC SUGGESTION During this same period a new twist on Mesmer's theories was introduced by one of his disciples, the Marquis de Puysegur. He believed that the Acosmic fluid was not magnetic, but electrical. This electric fluid was generated in all living things - in plants as well as animals. Puysegur used the natural environment to fill his patients with the healing electric fluid that was expected to end their suffering. His clinic was held outdoors, where the sick were received under an elm tree in the centre of the village green. Puysegur believed that the tree had an innate healing power and that the force would travel through the trunk and branches to cords that he hung from the tree. At the foot of the tree, patients sat in a circle on stone benches with the cords wrapped around the diseased parts of their bodies. Touching their thumbs together connected the patients, which made it possible for the fluid to circulate from person to person and to heal. During this activity, Puysegur noticed a strange phenomenon. Some of the patients entered a somnambulistic state (a deep sleep) as a result of being mesmerised. In this state the patient could still communicate and be lucid and responsive to the suggestions of the mesmerist. The Marquis had discovered the hypnotic trance, but had not identified it as such. In the mid 1800's the hypnotic trance was used to relieve pain. A leading London physician, John Elliotson (1791-1868), reported 1,834 surgical operations performed painlessly. In India, a Scottish surgeon named James Esdaile (1808-1859) performed many major operations, such as the amputation of limbs, using mesmerism (or, as he called it, a magnetic sleep) in place of anaesthetic. One procedure involved conditioning the patient weeks before the surgery was to occur. This was accomplished by inducing a trance state in the patient and offering post hypnotic suggestions to numb the part of the body on which the surgery was to be performed. In a second method, the hypnotist attended to the patient in the operating room, inducing a trance state and suggesting disassociation from any pain. It was possible for the patient to be completely lucid during this state and also be oblivious to pain, as if he had been completely anaesthetized. During the late 1800's, an English physician, James Braid (1795-1860), gave mesmerism a scientific explanation. He believed mesmerism to be a nervous sleep and coined the word hypnosis, derived from the Greek word hypnos, meaning sleep. Braid showed that hypnotised subjects were often abnormally susceptible to impressions on the senses and that much of the subjects behaviour was due to suggestions made verbally.
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Soon other theories began to emerge. Jean Martin Charcot (1825-1893), a neurologist who taught in Paris, explained hypnosis as a state of hysteria and categorised it as an abnormal neurological activity. In France, Auguste Ambroise Leibeault (1823-1904) and Hippolyte Bernheim (1837-1919) were the first to regard hypnosis as a normal phenomenon. They asserted that expectation is a most important factor in the induction of hypnosis, that increased suggestibility is its essential symptom, and that the hypnotist works on the patient by mental influences.
TUTOR TALK: As hypnosis began to receive serious study and could be explained rationally, it began to gain acceptance. It was no longer relegated to the bizarre.
Freud became interested in hypnosis at this same time and visited Leibeault and Bernheim's clinic to learn their induction techniques. As Freud observed patients entering a hypnotic state, he began to recognise the existence of the unconscious. Although he was not the first to make this observation, he was the first to recognise the unconscious as a major source of psychopathology. Early in his research, however, Freud rejected hypnosis as the tool to unlock repressed memories, favouring instead his techniques of free association and dream interpretation. With the outbreak of the World War a new era of hypnosis occurred. It is said to have taken place due to the occurrence of paralytic and amnesia cases with psychogenic origin. After the World War techniques of hypnosis were taken to the United States of America. In 1925 Burgess presented his classification of the stages of hypnosis for use in dentistry. Various medical practitioners in the United States practised hypnosis, especially after Flanders Dunbar introduced the concept of psychosomatic medicine in 1935. In 1962 a brain operation was performed under hypnosis by the neurosurgeon Sam N. Nayer. The hypnotist was Paul Brady. After this there was a period of experimentation in brain surgery, but this was later banned. At about the same time, 1950-1960's, hypnosis experienced a rebirth as research found new and potent uses for hypnosis in therapy. Today the hypnotic trance state or preferably the trance state to remove any negative connotation is being recognised as a highly effective tool for modifying behaviour and for healing.
TUTOR TALK: Now all that remains for you to do is answer the questions and return it to the College for marking. Good luck.
Copyright Reserved "Ill-health of body or of mind, is defeat. Health alone is victory. Let all men, if they can manage it, contrive to be healthy!" Thomas Carlyle
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Professional Hypnotherapy Diploma Course - Assignment 1

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PROFESSIONAL HYPNOTHERAPY DIPLOMA COURSE - ASSIG...

PROFESSIONAL HYPNOTHERAPY DIPLOMA COURSE ASSIGNMENT ONE