Definition
When hypnotized, people become deeply relaxed. There are techniques you can perform on yourself to enter this state, where you can influence yourself with repetitive suggestions.
How to Do It
Hypnosis typically consists of 3 phases induction, suggestion, termination.
Induction - Your objective is to put yourself into a relaxed state.
Sit comfortably and close your eyes.
Breath in and out, focussing on how your diaphragm and chest feel.
To enter a deeper relaxation, countdown from 5.
Tell yourself that on each count you will fall deeper and deeper into relaxation.
While doing this, feel the relaxation sensation travel down your arms, legs and all over your body.
Suggestion - Objective is to put beneficial suggestions into your head.
Once you are as deeply relaxed as you think you can be, recite suggestive mantras like, ‘I am becoming more confident’, or ‘Quitting smoking is going well’.
Termination - Objective is to end the hypnosis session smoothly.
When you are ready to leave hypnosis, simply count back up to 5, and open your eyes. You will not become ‘trapped’ in this state. You are always in control.
Benefits
Time Commitment
5-20 minutes
Why it works
No one knows for sure why self-hypnosis works. One theory is that it has similar effects as mindfulness meditation [1].
Suggested Frequency
1-4 times a week, but can also be done daily
Side Effects
Self-hypnosis has been known to be ineffective in some cases. If you have the resources, hypnosis by a therapist can be more reliably effective [5].
Gurus/Celebrities/Doing it
Matt Damon
Ellen DeGeneres
Tiger Woods
David Beckham
Category Health/Productivity/Focus:
- Health
- Productivity
- Mood
Suggested Time of Day
Any
Notes
You may struggle to relax in during this exercise. Practising should help you learn to relax.
There are many online resources that can help you fine tune your self-hypnosis, such as article 6 in this breakdown.
You can also find or purchase good hypnotic induction audio files. Some are available on Youtube.
Supporting Studies and Articles
Expand Collapse- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00029157.2018.1456896
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00207144.2017.1276363
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/oby.22262
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00207144.2017.1276363
- https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/59110213/cer2019_proceedings0120190502-42579-etg5s4.pdf?response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DKEY_ISSUES_IN_CURRICULUM_OF_CZECH_INSTIT.pdf&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Credential=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A%2F20190708%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20190708T134325Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Signature=a23aedeb7ead96f0acbcc6ecfee1dd629f3b6c7d4de799cb66e04feb7a3f839c#page=86
- https://www.hypnosisandhealing.co.uk/self-help-centre/how-to-use-self-hypnosis-to-achieve-your-goals/
