Colorado Springs Hypnotherapy

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Facts About Hypnotherapy

Brief history of hypnosis

Throughout history, trance states have been used by shamans and ancient peoples in rituals and religious ceremonies. Hypnotherapy gained popularity in the mid-1900s due to Milton H. Erickson (1901 - 1980), a successful psychiatrist who used hypnosis in his practice. In 1958, the American Psychological Association recognized hypnotherapy as a valid procedure. Since 1995, the National Institute of Health (NIH) has recommended hypnotherapy as a treatment for chronic pain.

Effective

Hypnosis was approved as a credible modality by The British Medical Association, The American Medical Association and The American Psychiatric Association in 1958.

According to a recent study, hypnosis is more effective and works more quickly than traditional talk therapy or psychoanalysis. American Health Magazine reported these findings:

It is currently being used, taught and researched at many prestigious medical and teaching institutions in the USA including The Mayo Clinic; the University of Washington, Stanford University School of Medicine; and Beth Israel Medical Center.

Safe
What could be safer than a quiet, calm atmosphere in which you are deeply relaxed mentally and physically, yet completely aware and totally in control? That is what you can expect when you are in hypnosis. With hypnosis, there are no adverse side effects, like some medicines. Hypnosis is very safe. No long term harm from hypnosis has been documented. There have been thousands of research articles written on the benefits of hypnosis and no injuries have been reported.

Natural
The hypnotic trance is a naturally-occurring state of mind with focused attention. We have all experienced a trance-like state. When you daydream, become engrossed in an intriguing movie, zoning out watching a TV show, losing track of time reading a good novel, driving on automatic pilot or drifting off to sleep at night, you are experiencing a natural, yet altered state of mind. We can answer questions without remembering what we were asked or what we answered. Time has no meaning and passes so quickly that we are amazed at how long we have been doing the thing we enjoy. All of these are components of a trance state. In a hypnotic trance we are focused on or within ourselves.

You have the natural ability to go into hypnosis. With our help you can learn to use this ability to make desirable, lasting changes in your life. Think of it as learning to reprogram your subconscious mind - your internal computer processor. You can change negative thought patterns and release bad habits to have a positive, healthier and more productive life.

Proven
The National Institute of Health (NIH) has documented over 11,000 recent credible research studies supporting hypnosis for medical and psychological healing. Recent research suggests that 66% to 90% of illness is stress related. The specific signs and symptoms of stress can vary from person to person‚ but all have potential harmful health effects. Lasting stress lowers the body’s resistance to disease.

Several stress related physical issues include asthma‚ chronic pain, IBS‚ and migraines. Through the self-hypnosis techniques you will learn, calm, relaxation, better self-esteem will take the place of stress and anxiety.

Self-Hypnosis
Self-Hypnosis, like hypnosis in general, is a skill that becomes easier the more we practice. Do you remember when you first learned how to tie your shoe or ride a bike? At first it took all of your concentration but after you became proficient it required very little thought. When learning self-hypnosis the mind may continue to interrupt with background “chatter” making it difficult to focus on quietness but with practice our mind finally cooperates and becomes less noisy.

Hypnotherapists encourage their clients to learn and practice self-hypnosis for a variety of benefits, the most important of which is stress reduction. Self-hypnosis can support and reinforce the work that a hypnotherapist is doing to help you reach your goals.

Who can be hypnotized
Anyone can. All that is required for a person to be hypnotized is a willingness to cooperate with the process.  A person does not even need to believe in hypnosis to be hypnotized, they just need to be willing to relax and open their mind to the possibilities. There are a variety of hypnotic states from light and medium to degrees of deep hypnotic states. Very deep hypnotic states can be used for anesthesia but a light or medium hypnotic state is perfect for most of the goals that clients want to achieve. Clients are often surprised that in a light or medium state they can still hear the sounds in their environment including the voice of the hypnotherapist. They can also participate by verbally relating what they are learning in their subconscious mind to their hypnotherapist

What happens when I am hypnotized
Many clients experience a pleasant sense of floating and a feeling of being free. They often have a distorted sense of time and may think that they have been in hypnosis for only a few minutes even when they have been in a hypnotic state for almost 90 minutes. They awaken feeling refreshed, peaceful, relaxed and calm. They often say that it feels like they just had a whole night’s sleep.

The physical body is profoundly relaxed and the mind is open to enhance the understanding between the conscious and subconscious mind. The subconscious mind is full of resources that are available to us when we go within to access them.

After a hypnosis session, clients often have more clarity about an issue and they have more confidence that they can accomplish a goal or overcome an emotional block. After a session they radiate confidence, their faces and bodies are visibly relaxed and many chronic pain patients awaken pain free.

 

Disclaimer:

Hypnotherapy is an educational and self-improvement process that facilitates access to a person's internal resources to assist him/her in solving problems, increasing motivation, or altering behavior patterns to create positive change.

Hypnotherapy is not a substitute for medical treatment or psychotherapy. Barbara Stafford does not practice medicine or psychotherapy and her services are not a replacement for counseling, psychotherapy, psychiatric or medical treatment. No service or product provided is intended to diagnose or treat any disease or illness, psychological or mental health condition. Medical support hypnotherapy is used only as an adjunct to conventional medical treatment. Consultation with a licensed physician is required before medical support hypnotherapy services are provided.

Hypnotherapy is a proven, adjunctive method to complement such ongoing treatment and care. Because hypnosis and hypnotherapy are a series of self-help skills and their effectiveness depends on the client, no guarantee can be made regarding results of their use.