Just provided the information requested. No intention to go beyond the moderator's decision or anything as such. Thanking you, Lissy Verghese
On 1/6/12, Surendra Salgaonkar? <[email protected]> wrote: > > Dear one,thanks for your wonderful articul.it is highly appreciable. > Surendra Salgaonkar. > mobile > 09867645933 > skype > salgaonkarskype > email > [email protected] > [email protected] > -----Original message----- > From: lv1906 > Sent: 06.01.2012, 3:39 am > To: Mujtaba Merchant; [email protected] > Subject: Re: [AI] Discussion on hypnotism. > > > Hi friends! > Pasting below some facts about hypnotism. > > Facts you should know about hypnosis and hypnotherapy > > > The information that follows was provided by Dr. Robert G. Dean who > has a Ph.D. in clinical hypnotherapy and is certified by the American > Board of Hypnotherapy as a Hypnotherapist, and certified by the > Hypnotists Union, Local 472 (OPEIU, AFL/CIO) Board of Examiners as a > Master Hypnotist and Certified Union Hypnotherapist. Now for the > facts: > > There are many misconceptions and superstitious beliefs regarding > hypnosis. Whenever hypnosis is used in a clinical application or for > entertainment, it attracts attention. The result is a commentary from > two different groups of people. The first group of people are > professionally knowledgeable about human behavior (psychologists, > hypnotherapists, counseling therapists, and mental health care > providers). The second group of people are those who are ignorant and > mislead by the belief system of unknowing, misguided and superstitious > people. > > There are several schools of thought by clinicians as to what hypnosis > is and its appropriate application for therapy purposes > (hypnotherapy). However, most all clinicians trained in behavior > modification science and/or the study of human behavior (psychology) > have agreed that the phenomenon of hypnosis is one or more of the > following descriptions: > > Hypnosis is an altered state of mind. When I say an altered state of > mind, the mind set is altered similar to how a day dream or nocturnal > dream alters the state of ones mind when they are day dreaming or > dreaming while asleep. To prove this, consider the time when you > watched a scene in a movie which was very sad. You felt the emotion of > sadness. Tears came to your eyes. Why did you feel so sad that it > caused tears to form in your eyes? Let's examine that. You simply were > watching a movie. The scene in the movie was not real. It was acted > out by an actor. Nevertheless, you felt sad and wept while watching > the scene. What happened is the implied suggestions of sadness in the > movie scene bypassed your conscious mind and entered your subconscious > mind which created an altered state of consciousness. While in this > altered state of consciousness, which we call hypnosis, the suggestion > of sadness (portrayed and implied by the actor) was accepted by your > subconscious mind, which in turn caused you to feel sad and tears to > form in your eyes. What really happened is you entered a light state > of hypnosis, or put in different words, an altered state of mind. > From the foregoing example we can see that you have two minds. You > have a conscious mind and a subconscious mind (sometimes called the > unconscious mind). The conscious mind functions with the use of logic. > It concludes that 2+2 = 4. Your subconscious mind does not always > think logically. It sees 2+2 equals whatever it desires to create, > believe, is self-suggested, or suggested by the therapist. When you > were watching the movie, you entered an altered state of mind which is > called hypnosis. The scene in the movie caused a temporary shut down > of the conscious mind's logical analysis. As you progressed more > deeply into the movie's plot, it slowly caused your conscious mind to > become oblivious of the fact you were watching an artificially > produced image (a movie). At that point, all the information you were > taking in from the movie (including the sad scene) bypassed your > conscious mind (which does critical analysis) and went directly to > your subconscious mind. In turn, your subconscious mind illogically > responded to the sad scene and reacted to it as if it were real. > Therefore, you felt sad, and tears came to your eyes. > > It's obvious that the subconscious mind is capable of responding to > direct and implied suggestions (like those in a movie scene or that > are given by a hypnotist). It doesn't matter if the suggestions are > true or false. The subconscious mind responds to acceptable > suggestions as if they are real. This is how a woman can be hypnotized > to deliver her baby without feeling pain, a hypnotized man can have a > root canal without feeling pain, or a well-made movie can hypnotically > evoke emotions of sadness, excitement, anger or laughter from its > viewer. Fortunately, one's free agency cannot be overruled merely by > suggestion or hypnosis. For instance, when you experience a sad movie > which makes you sad and weep, you are watching the movie with your > permission. You had a mind set (an expectation) that you were going to > watch the movie and be entertained which included the experience of > the emotions generated by the story, through the actors. Therefore, if > the movie is a comedy, you fully expected it to amuse you, and make > you laugh. If the movie is a horror story, you expected it to frighten > you. If the movie was sad, you expected it to evoke feelings of > sadness within you. Therefore, one's mind set or level of expectation > is a mandatory prelude to achieving an altered state of mind (which is > hypnosis). Because of this fact, nobody can be hypnotized nor can > their mind be placed into an altered state without their permission. > Therefore, a human being cannot be hypnotized against his or her will. > > Other facts about hypnosis you should know: > > Hypnosis causes neural activity to be excited within certain parts of > your brain. This can be observed on devices that measure brain wave > activity. Brain wave activity changes when the mind enters an altered > state (hypnosis). This is just as natural as entering a dream state or > being in a state of deep meditation. > > > > > Hypnosis is amplification of one's imagination. > > > Hypnosis is a state in which the conscious mind is experiencing an > excess of information (overload) through one or more of the primary > senses (hearing, sight, smell, touch, and taste). This overload is > caused by the narrowing of one's focus on one's own thoughts or an > outside source such as the suggestive statements of another person. > Example: When you are driving down the highway in deep thought on a > given subject (your mind is being overloaded with your thoughts) and > you miss a turnoff. You were, at the time you passed your turnoff, in > a light state of hypnosis. You were so deeply and narrowly focused on > what you were thinking about, you became oblivious to the turnoff, and > drove past it. > > > Hypnosis is a process which the client or a hypnotist guides the > client past the client's conscious thinking which in turn causes > direct accesses to the client's subconscious mind. Once access to the > subconscious mind is achieved (when one enters the hypnotic state), > the subconscious mind can be given directions and suggestions by one's > self or by a hypnotherapist. The suggestions presented may or may not > be accepted. If they are accepted, they are acted upon by the > hypnotized subject, and sometimes without conscious awareness. > Generally speaking, the subconscious mind will not cause any change in > one's behavior which it knows is a detriment to itself (meaning you), > other people, things or property. > > > Accessing the subconscious mind (the act of inducing a person into a > hypnotic state) can be done using a variety of induction methods such > as progressive relaxation, imaging, visualization, overloading the > conscious mind, implied and indirect suggestion, fervent prayer, > chanting, cult dancing and music. > > Hypnosis, when used in hypnotherapy, is not a belief system. It > doesn't matter whether you believe in it or not. It works for the vast > majority of the human race. The use of clinical hypnosis to modify > behavior is a science. It is a clearly understood phenomenon which is > primarily used in clinical applications to modify behavior in order to > eliminate specific disorders and undesirable habits. It is also used > for entertainment such as hypnotist's stage shows. Hypnotic therapy is > taught in most every major university which has a department of > psychology. Hypnoanesthesia is used by many medical doctors (pain-free > surgery without use of anesthesia). Dentists use hypnosis to eliminate > fear of dentistry, to relax their patient and to eliminate pain caused > by tooth filling, tooth extraction, and root canal procedures. They > also use it to eliminate bruxism (grinding of teeth). > > > Many psychologists and other health care providers use hypnosis to > help their client's achieve goals and to promote better mental health. > Hypnosis, and its use in clinical therapy (hypnotic therapy), is > endorsed by the American Medical Association and the American > Psychological Association. > > > Almost everyone enters an altered state of mind (hypnosis) daily (even > those who believe they cannot be hypnotized or that hypnosis is > unnatural, weird, demonic or in some way anti-Christ). Whenever you > are in deep thought, meditating, engaged in solemn prayer, spellbound > by a movie, entranced in a television show or engrossed in a good > book, you are in a light state of hypnosis. Anytime you respond to a > suggestion, either directly, or indirectly, you are experiencing a > light state of hypnosis. An example is when a comedian acts out > bizarre behavior which makes you laugh. The comedian's suggestive > comical behavior, and comments are exaggerated or simply not true, but > they are funny, and you laugh. If you seriously and critically > analyzed the comedian's bizarre antics, and comments, they would not > be funny to you. Try this experiment: Watch a comedian or sitcom that > normally makes you laugh. Remain serious and critically analyze > everything the comedian is saying and doing (which keeps you > functioning at your conscious mind's level and blocks access to your > subconscious mind). You will not find the comedian or sitcom funny. > Why? Your logical conscious mind is in a state of analysis. Whenever > the conscious mind is in a state of analysis, it is impossible to > access your subconscious mind and enter an altered state of mind. In > other words, it's impossible to achieve the state of hypnosis while > critically analyzing the process of being hypnotized. > > > The conscious mind has to be moved out of the way or in some manner > diverted to allow access to the subconscious mind. Many methods have > been devised to accomplish this. Any method which effectively bypasses > the conscious mind and obtains access to the subconscious mind can > broadly be defined as hypnosis. The most common methods used to bypass > the conscious mind to allow access to the subconscious mind are: > > > > Progressive relaxation > Confusion > Overload > Guided imagery (visualization) > Biofeedback > Prayer > Meditation > > Hypnosis is not brain washing. The term brain washing is a colloquial > term used by the military and intelligence agencies for the forceful > extraction of secrets and intelligence data from individuals utilizing > psychological and physiological methods. It is also used by > intelligence agencies and cults to modify belief systems to accomplish > a predefined behavior. Brain washing incorporates the use of > prolonged, repetition of psychologically driven cult dogma and > rituals, or the application of physical and psychological torture > methods which produce prolonged, agonizing, controlled pain or > discomfort to force behavior to change or a confession of information. > Brain washing can also be accomplished with the use of drugs which > inhibit the brain's ability to use logic and resistance which > facilitates easier access to the conscious and subconscious minds from > which intelligence data may be extracted. > > > A hypnotized person will not reveal any personal information or > secrets unless he/she wants to. > > > A hypnotized person is capable of confabulation (making up stories, > exaggerations and lies). A hypnotized person cannot be forced to tell > the truth via hypnotic interrogation. This is why testimony derived > from a hypnotized subject is not admissible as evidence in a court of > law in the United States. > > > Professional, clinical hypnotherapy has absolutely nothing to do with > any religion, spiritualism, demons, satanism, witchcraft, Lucifer, or > any other kind of evil icon. Anyone who tells you it does is ignorant > of the science of hypnosis. > > > Do not confuse hypnosis with the trance state which people appear to > be in while performing a religious or cult ritual like voodoo dancing, > screaming and chanting. When observing such phenomena, you are > observing a state of hysteria. > > > Some people, particularly those that are members of certain secular > religious groups, and have no training in modern psychology, believe > that accessing a person's mind using hypnotism exposes the subject's > mind to demonic forces and like evil spirits. They believe one gives > up their free agency and self-will to the control of these imaginary > evil ghosts and beings. Such ignorant people cannot, in any > understandable manner, substantiate their claim of a person being > demonically possessed while in a state of hypnosis. Such people who > claim demonic possession happens or is possible have beliefs which are > based purely on ignorance, fear, and superstition. Anyone who acts out > as if possessed by some evil entity is in a state of self-induced > hysteria. > > > The only main stream religions which forbid the use of clinical > hypnotherapy for their members are Christian Science and Seventh-Day > Adventist. Other religions of which I am aware embrace modern, > clinical hypnotherapy as a modality used for positive behavior > modification, vocational, and avocational improvement. > > > Some religions frown on stage hypnosis for entertainment purposes, but > endorse hypnosis for therapy purposes. > > > The only person who has the authority and power to hypnotize you, is > you! The reason for this is simple. Technically, all hypnosis is > self-hypnosis. When a hypnotherapist is engaged in the process of > hypnotizing you, it is actually you who are hypnotizing yourself with > his guidance. The hypnotherapist is merely guiding you into the > hypnotic state with your permission; however, it is only you who puts > yourself into a state of hypnosis acting on the suggestions given to > you by the hypnotherapist. If you gave yourself the same suggestions > that a hypnotherapist would give to you, and self-acted them out, you > would enter the same state of hypnosis the hypnotherapist would have > guided you into. When you hypnotize yourself, it is called > auto-suggestion or self-hypnosis. > > > Most people do not know the correct techniques to provide themselves > the proper suggestions to cause a self-induced hypnotic trance. It is > a skill which is learned. Therefore, most people who seek hypnotherapy > rely on a clinician who is properly trained and experienced in the > clinical application of hypnosis to guide them into a hypnotic state. > This is called hetero-hypnosis. If you want to learn how to hypnotize > yourself for self-improvement, you should complete the appropriate > courses in self-hypnosis which are available from state certified > schools and accredited universities. If you do not want to take the > time to learn self-hypnosis, then you will need to rely on a > professional hypnotherapist to help you achieve a hypnotic state. > > > The vast majority of the human race is hypnotizable. It is estimated > that more than 90% of the world's population is hypnotizable. > > > In my professional opinion, the only people who cannot be hypnotized > are those that have the following disorders: > > > Mentally retarded, with a clinically diagnosed intelligence score > indicating an intelligence range from moron down to an idiot. > > > Refractory. Consistently resistant due to a belief system, antisocial > behavioral disorder, or paranoia. > > > The complete inability to use imagination. > > > Intellectual, analytical, suggestible personality (without instruction) > > > Certain severe, psychopathological disorders such as schizophrenia, > acute anxiety which cause panic attacks, and certain severe > personality disorders. > > People who are blind can be hypnotized. > > > People who are hearing impaired or completely deaf can be hypnotized > with use of visual signing. > > > The more intelligent a person is, provided they are mentally stable, > the more susceptible they are to hypnosis. Intelligent people enter > into hypnosis quite easily. > > > People who are in an altered state of mind (hypnosis) are always in > control of themselves. They are aware of what is going on. They remain > conscious. All the primary and secondary autonomic body functions, and > mental processes are fully functional, and in certain instances are > amplified. > > > A person in a state of hypnosis can hear, see, feel, taste and smell > just as well as they do in an unhypnotized state. > > > People in a hypnotic trance have the ability to self-terminate their > trance instantly, and at any time. You cannot be made to remain in a > hypnotic state. > > > An altered state of mind (hypnosis) can be induced via a post hypnotic > suggestion. For instance, a therapist may assist the client to implant > the suggestion into the client's mind that when he (the therapist) > says the word sleep (or any other key word suggested) the client will > immediately return to a hypnotic trance, swiftly, deeply and soundly. > Provided the client discerns there is no detriment to this suggestion, > and agrees to it, thereafter, every time the therapist says to the > client, sleep, the client goes into a hypnotic trance. This is ideal > for repetitious therapy. It shortens the time necessary to induce the > client into the hypnotic state for each therapy session, and allows > more time for the application of therapeutic counseling while the > client is in a state of hypnosis. A post hypnotic suggestion may also > be structured to trigger an act or certain behavior by the client. For > instance, a suggestion may be given to a client that every time he > lifts off the ground while in an airplane, he immediately becomes > deeply relaxed and has no fear of flight. The result is the client's > phobia (fear of flying) is countered and relieved via the post > hypnotic suggestion. > > > Now you have many facts regarding hypnosis which is substantiated with > volumes of clinical data and hard scientific research. Hypnotherapy is > safe when used by professional clinicians to benefit their clients. It > works in a positive manner. It is the first choice of therapy used by > thousands of health care professionals to assist their clients, change > behavior, and to cause improvements in vocation, avocation, life > style, physical and mental health. > > Thanking you, > Lissy Verghese > > > > > > On 1/5/12, Mujtaba Merchant <[email protected]> wrote: >> Hello Surendra and list members, >> >> Indeed an interesting and intriguing topic of discussion. Can the blind be >> hypnotised?? >> >> What is hypnosis? >> >> It has been said that "If waking is white, and sleep is black, then >> hypnosis >> is gray." Hypnosis is an ordinary, natural state of consciousness, that we >> move in and out of, every day. Think of making your way home and not >> noticing the last few blocks? How about losing track of time and place >> while >> caught up in a great novel? And what about, on a day off, that feeling >> when >> you wake at the normal work time, and realizing that you don't have to be >> anywhere, you fall back in the bedclothes and just feel a wonderful, >> dreamy >> feeling....not completely awake, but not asleep either. That state is >> hypnosis. >> >> According to me yes, a blind person can be hypnotized. But the method of >> hypnosis is entirely different from the ones adapted to the sighted. In my >> admittedly limited experience with hypnotism mainly from TV shows and >> comicbooks I think the main trait needed in the hypnosis process is an >> ability, to shut out all outside distractions. One way for the mesmerizer >> to >> do that is to use a visual point in which to have his subject invest all >> his >> or her concentration on. I don't see why a repetitive sound couldn't do >> the >> same thing. Both would be done while the hypnotist is suggesting tiredness >> to the subject. I think that a blind person who wanted it to work and was >> able to trust the hypnotist AND was able to mentally exclude their >> surroundings could be hypnotised. >> >> But in no circumstance can any person be hypnotized against their will >> unless someone can practically prove me wrong here. >> >> people who have certain types or degrees of brain damage, may not be >> hypnotizable, also people who are psychotic, those on heavy drugs or >> alcohol, people with extremely low IQs, and as far as we know, the only >> other people who can not be hypnotized are those who do not want to be >> hypnotized. People who do not fit into those categories are those who can >> normally enter the hypnotic state. >> >> Mujtaba Merchant >> Bangalore, India >> >> Search for old postings at: >> http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ >> >> To unsubscribe send a message to >> [email protected] >> with the subject unsubscribe. >> >> To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, >> please >> visit the list home page at >> http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in >> >> > > > -- > http://www.epubbooks.com/books > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > > To unsubscribe send a message to > [email protected] > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please > visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > > To unsubscribe send a message to > [email protected] > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please > visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > -- http://www.epubbooks.com/books Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. 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