Hypnosis is so powerful that it can make you actually doubt that what you’re seeing is real.
Often our first exposure to hypnosis is through seeing stage hypnosis shows where people get convinced of truly incredible things – that the hypnotist is invisible, that they can’t remember their own name, or that they are they sexiest person alive.
Other times people experience the power of hypnosis in therapy – uncovering memories they had long forgotten, or rapidly shifting world views to adopt a more optimistic and hopeful view of the world. They might find themselves quickly moving past behaviors or habits they’ve struggled for years to overcome.
Which makes the question, is hypnosis real, a very valid question.
What is Hypnosis?
To understand what’s happening here, it helps to understand what hypnosis really is. Very simply, hypnosis is simply altering the way your mind interacts with the world.
You see, the normal way people go about their day is using their critical, analytical brain. This part of your mind is great for helping your cross the street or file your taxes. It is logical, it puts one foot in front of the other, it knows what the “right” thing to do is at any given point.
However, we have another part of our minds that is actually extremely powerful, if we learn to tap into it. This is the subconscious mind, which is intuitive, creative, and illogical. Things make sense to the subconscious that make no sense to the conscious mind.
And really, at the root of the power of hypnosis, of tapping into the power of the subconscious mind, is the power of creativity. Humans are the only beings in the world, that we know of, that are able to imagine fantastic alternate realities that are different than the ones we live in.
The Power of Imagination
It is this ability that has allowed humanity to create religions, establish currencies and economies, and to land on the moon.
This same ability also allows us to imagine ourselves free of what’s been holding us back, and develop creative solutions to problems that have been vexing us for ages. And it’s what allows the participants on stage at a hypnosis show to suspend their own beliefs and to temporarily adopt the views and behaviors suggested to them by the hypnotist.
How do we access this creative power of our subconscious mind? By simply quieting or conscious, analytical mind. Once we stop constantly analyzing and evaluating as we go through the day, our subconscious is able to surface fantastical ideas and creative solutions to us.
How to Achieve a Trance State
At its root, hypnosis is simply entering a state of trance, and we enter trance a lot more frequently when we realize.
When you’re driving down a long road late at night when it’s nothing but lampposts for mile after mile. When you’re staring at the steam rising from your cup of coffee in the morning while you’re still half asleep.
There’s a reason why we get so many good ideas in the shower, in the presence of relaxing steam and hot water and our own quiet mind.
In many ways, hypnosis is like lucid dreaming, but it’s much easier to access with another person as your guide. Just as your mind makes sense of the world every time you dream during your sleep, you can tap into this same powerful resource with more direction and intention with the help of hypnosis.
You can deliberately dream up new solutions and creatives way to be, and your mind will adopt it as matter-of-factly as 2 + 2 equaling 4. To some people who are deeply stuck, the thought of no longer being addicted, depressed, or anxious can feel just as fantastical as learning to fly.
Yet to your subconscious, both are equally possible.
So, is hypnosis real?
To your subconscious, everything you deeply believe in is real. And you can use that power to create the best possible life for yourself.
