H is for Hypnosis

I did this and it was (high-pitched voice) awesome.

Hypnosis is really a deep state of meditation. If you meditate, you are practicing a kind of self-hypnosis. The only difference between self-hypnosis and being put into a trance by a hypnotist is the guided imagery of the latter. A good hypnotist will lead you on your journey, giving you just enough suggestion to keep you moving.

I did a past life regression and my hypnotist was careful not to ask me any leading questions. Instead of saying “what kind of shoes are you wearing” which would suggest that I was, in fact, wearing shoes, she asked me to look down at myself and describe what I saw.

Can you be hypnotized so deeply that you won’t remember it when you wake up? Maybe—but my experience seems to indicate that would be very hard to do. I was conscious all the time and could stop anytime I wanted to. But I was an observer rather than an actor in a drama another person was describing. I remember it now like a very vivid dream with colors, smells—the whole shebang.

Is it possible to find scary things lurking in your subconscious? Yep, as a matter of fact, that may be just what you need to do in order to accomplish your goal for the session. A good hypnotist will have given you tools to use to deal with this, should it happen. I asked my gal about it since it happens in Just Like Gravity. Anna explores her past life and finds terrible things there, which lead her on a quest to prevent those things from ruling her current life.

If you decide to do this in a clinical setting:

• Check out the hypnotist first. Find someone with degrees and an established practice.
• Ask for recommendations and check them out, too. I have a guardian angel who watches over me and keeps me from doing terminally stupid things (at least so far), but you might not be so lucky.
• Make an effort to find out a bit about the hypnotist. Talk about religion, philosophy, experiences so that you get a good feel for where he/she is coming from.
• Ask about the process and theories he/she employs.
• Then go home and Google all of that. Learn all you can about what to expect and how to prepare.

My experience was good and I’ve since done it on my own with equally good results. But what do you think? Ever been hypnotized? Want to? Leave a comment with your ideas on the subject.

For more info on my very own past life regression–keep an eye on current posts starting HERE with a Primer for Past Life Regressions.

Want to find out what terrified Anna? Just Like Gravity is available  HERE.