I’ve been working in the hypnosis niche now for over five years and over this time I’ve found that the biggest obstacle that stops most people from being willing to try hypnosis is a simple lack of understanding about hypnosis and what it really. For the most part hypnosis isn’t talked about much in the mainstream media so I thought I’d put together this little hypnosis guide complete with facts and links to further reading that would help people to better understand this fascinating form of treatment.

No hypnosis guide would be complete without first taking a brief look at its history. Hypnosis was used as far back as Ancient Egypt where it was used predominantly as an anesthetic. To this day hypnosis is still used as an anesthetic for patients who are allergic or adverse to anesthetic. The reason it works is that hypnosis relieves anxiety which is a main cause of heightened pain. Of course, since the days of Ancient Egypt, hypnosis has been developed and fine tuned. Milton Erickson is generally credited with creating the more modern form of hypnosis used today which consists of a more open and conversational style.

Many recent scientific studies have provided solid evidence that hypnosis works. One such study took place in Hull University in 2009. The findings showed that the effects of hypnosis can be visibly seen in brain scans where certain areas of the brain were considerably less active than usual. It was concluded by psychologist Dr. Michael Heap that hypnosis primes the mind to respond agreeably to suggestions of changes. This study showed not only that hypnosis work, but how hypnosis works.

There have also been countless hypnosis success stories, even from the celebrities who have used hypnosis such as Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Ellen DeGeneres and Lily Allen. British pop star Lily Allen used hypnosis to lose weight back in 2007 when she went from a size 12 to a size 8. This was achieved by making Lily desire healthy, organics foods and by associating working out at the gym with feelings of happiness.

The idea of being hypnotized scares some people because they think they will lose control and be made to do things they normally wouldn’t. However this is far from the truth of what really happens during a therapeutic hypnosis session. When a person is hypnotized they are neither asleep or unconscious, in fact they are in an altered state of awareness where they are incredibly focused on what is being said to them whilst feeling completely relaxed. If a hypnotherapist could really “control” people to do their bidding then more nefarious people would surely learn the skill and send out hoards of minions to rob banks and stores for them - and, as we know, this type of thing only happens in wacky B-movies.

Hypnotherapists receive years of thorough training to treat their clients, and the very best hypnotherapists never stop learning. They continue to train and hone their skills like any other health professional. Training to be a hypnotherapist isn’t cheap which is why it is in a hypnotherapists’ best interest to successfully treat their client and encourage positive word of mouth. Indeed hypnosis has one of the highest success rates of any form of treatment for both quitting smoking and IBS.

I hope this short article has give you a better overview of hypnosis and will encourage you to try it for yourself. The best way to do so is with our collection of free hypnosis samples over at HypnoBusters. We also have an impressive selection of premium hypnosis MP3s that are available for just $9.95 per download.