Foundation

In
Hypnosis
Thinking Outside the Box.
Author

Rosemary Owen
CHYP.SQHP.GHR.NGH

Foundation in Hypnosis Manual.

Index
1. Introduction.
2. Foundation in Hypnosis.
3. Aims and objectives.
4. Brief history of hypnosis.
5. The human brain.

Basic understanding of how the brain works.

Conscious mind.
Sub-conscious mind.
Discipline of the mind (including the 8 rules of the
mind).
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Every thought causes a physical reaction.

What is expected is usually realised.
Imagination is more powerful than reason.
Opposing ideas cannot be held at the same time.
Emotionally induced symptoms cause physical change.
Once an idea has been accepted by the sub-conscious.
Every suggestion acted upon creates less opposition.
The sub-conscious mind and its functions.

Dominant effect.
Reverse effort.
Health choices.
How do you view yourself?

5. The human brain (continued).

Visualisation.
How to use creative visualisation.
Messaging the sub-conscious.
The law of attraction.
Using colours.
What is focused awareness?

6. The Hypnotic state.

How does hypnosis work?

How is it achieved?
What does it feel like?
How do I know hypnosis is present?
Feelings associated with hypnotic state.
The hypnotic state.
Overview of what hypnosis is.
Hypnotic suggestion.

7. Exemplar induction/Observations for

exemplar induction.

8. The hypnosis session.

The voice.
Preparation for hypnosis.
Preparing your client.
Consultation.
Deepening.
Signs to observe.
Induction methods.(followed by 3 prepared inductions)
Resurfacing your client and aftercare.
Clients' observations.

9. Self hypnosis.
10. Stage hypnosis.
11. Stress.
12. Recap.
13. How to obtain your certificate.

1. Introduction

Hello, my name is Rosemary Owen I am based in the

United Kingdom. I am a senior member of the GHR
(General Hypnotherapy Register) and also a member of
the American National Guild of Hypnotists.
I have been involved in the fields of stress management
and holistic therapies for over 3 decades. As well as my
senior qualification in Hypnosis I am also a Reiki
Master. E.F.T. practitioner and have many other
Holistic qualifications.
My ethos is in dedicating my working life to helping
clients achieve a balanced and stress free life along with
the successful achievement of their individual goals.

I completed an in depth and structured 4 year training

course in the Leeds clinic of the eminent Dr. J. Dylan
Morgan (deceased) a senior hypnotherapist and prolific
author of hypnotherapy related books.
My training along with academic studies involved
practical experience in treating clients. For the last two
years of the training programme I worked throughout
the North of England with my own clients while being
mentored and monitored by Dr. Morgan. After
qualifying I worked for a further three years in Dr
Morgans clinic before successfully opening my own
Hypnotherapy and stress counselling clinic providing
services to clients not only in West Yorkshire but
Worldwide.
In the U.K. my official title is Clinical Hypnotherapist
however in the U.S.A. this title can only be used by
those with a medical qualification. The correct title in
the U.S.A. is Practising Hypnotist, with this in mind I
have written this course in line with the American
terminology.
I have always been committed to ongoing learning and
have successfully taken many advanced master classes
at venues including the world famous Harley Street.

I became involved in teaching holistic skills many years

since when I was regularly invited to go into college
and give talks and demonstrations on various holistic
therapies.
I began writing modules on courses for various people
and made the decision to produce my own e.learning
courses.
My on line Reiki course has now gone into 94 countries
around the world, enabling people who would not
otherwise have the opportunity, to learn and practise
this wonderful therapy. It is my hope that my
Foundation in Hypnosis course will extend this same
opportunity to those interested in the phenomenal
power of the mind.

2. Foundation in Hypnosis
"Hypnosis is a state of human consciousness involving focused
attention and reduced peripheral awareness and an enhanced capacity
for response to suggestion.
Theories' explaining what occurs during hypnosis fall into two groups.
Altered state theories see hypnosis as an altered state of mind or trance,
marked by a level of awareness different from the ordinary conscious
state.
In contrast, Non-state theories see hypnosis as a form of imaginative
role-enactment.
During hypnosis, a person is said to have heightened focus and
concentration. The person can concentrate intensely on a specific
thought or memory, while blocking out sources of distraction.
Hypnotised subjects are said to show an increased response to
suggestions Hypnosis is usually induced by a procedure known as
a hypnotic induction involving a series of preliminary instructions
and suggestions.
The use of hypnotism for therapeutic purposes is referred to as
"hypnotherapy", while its use as a form of entertainment for an
audience is known as "stage hypnosis"".
Wikipedia, the free Encyclopaedia.

3. Aims and objectives

The goal of this foundation course is to give all students
a firm grounding in their subject.
Just as a building requires strong foundations to give it
strength so every student, no matter what they are
studying, needs to build strong foundations of basic
knowledge in their chosen field.
During this course we will be covering such topics as,
the human brain, the hypnotic state, the hypnosis
session, inductions, self hypnosis, stage hypnosis and
stress.
This course is designed to enable you to learn these
skills at your own speed and in your own home.
On the successful completion of this course you should
be able to competently hypnotise yourself and others.
You will have learnt how hypnosis works and how it
can help in almost all areas of life.
The foundation course is designed to teach you how to
perform a successful induction, also giving you an
understanding of less commonly used induction
techniques.

You will learn how to conduct a therapy session and resurface your client.
Understand the nature of stress and the negative effects
it has on us.
You will learn how to use your voice as a tool to help
others.
These foundation subjects will give you the necessary
information to help you on your way to becoming a
hypnosis practioner.

4. Brief history of hypnosis

Modern hypnosis has survived controversies, mistrust
and open hostility to reach its present position amongst
the healing sciences.
Hypnosis has survived because enough determined
people have fought on, and because enough people have
benefited from it.
In the 1990s a trend toward complimentary medicines
began, since then it has gathered momentum and today
many doctors and other health professionals
recommend Hypnosis, it has become accepted as a
powerful healing tool, taking its place beside
mainstream medicine.
This is largely due to the efforts of the people I have
already mentioned and many others who have practiced
this most effective of therapies dating back over five
millennia.
Today consulting hypnosis is becoming more and more
accepted by orthodox medicine as a natural holistic
approach.
Hypnosis is often considered as a last resort. Many
people who wish to give up smoking will typically try

all other methods first, only to find Hypnosis so

effective they regret not having turned to it as their first
option.
Consulting Hypnosis is used daily to effectively treat
many problems and aversions, such as fear of spiders,
snakes and many other things, fear of confined spaces
or fear of going outdoors, dental fears, fear of flying the
list goes on and on.
Hypnosis can help with all of these and much more, not
because it has magical mystical powers, but because by
working with your all powerful sub-conscious mind the
healing comes from within.
A more comprehensive history of Hypnosis can be
found at www.rosemary-owenhypnotherapy.com/library-links/the-history-ofhypnosis/

5. The human brain.

Basic understanding of how the brain works.
Before we can understand Hypnosis we need a basic
knowledge of how the brain operates.
The human brain is made up of three parts.
It has been described as a triangle with the conscious
mind at the tip and occupying only 10% of the brains
capacity.
The middle of the triangle is the part we know as the
sub-conscious this area is much larger accounting for
around 60% of the brains capability.
Below this at the deepest possible level is the
unconscious mind which makes up the final 30% of the
entire brain.
The sub-conscious and the unconscious areas are
closely linked and for our purposes we do not need to
differentiate between these sections as they work
together communicating easily with each other. For
Hypnotic practise we generally refer to this entire area
as the sub-conscious and throughout this course we will
only refer to the conscious and sub-conscious mind.

These areas together control our entire being.

The brain is the computer that quite literally programs
every thought, action and re-action we ever experience.
Without brain activity we cannot exist, our heart beats
because our brain instructs it to do so.
Our lungs draw in oxygen, every organ, tissue, every
sinew of our bodies work only because our brain sends
out the messages which activate them.
However the conscious and sub-conscious minds have
very different duties to perform.
An understanding of how each area works is crucial to
understanding Hypnosis.

 Conscious mind.
The conscious mind is the part of our brain that has the
ability to reason.
It recognises that situations change and that there is
often a need to re-evaluate habits or events in our lives
due to changing circumstances.
It has the ability to analyse and question, to accept or
reject information.
One of the tasks of the conscious mind is to edit
everything before allowing information to filter through
to the sub-conscious mind. Anything which our
conscious mind deems to be irrelevant is edited out.
It is the gatekeeper of the sub-conscious mind and
having analysed the information makes the decision of
whether or not to allow it through the gate.
This is essential to our wellbeing, imagine if your subconscious mind was entirely open all the time, every
tiny detail would go through and be lodged there.
Silly, niggling, negative words and deeds would be
stored, clogging up and overloading this vitally
important area.

It would be like leaving the door to your home

permanently open allowing all the dirt and debris to
blow in.
However in performing this vital job the conscious
mind does not always get it right, it often edits out
many things which would be beneficial to go through.
Remember it is the sub-conscious mind which holds the
power to make changes in your life it is therefore
important to implant the positive ideas and suggestions
deeply within this area.
It is for this reason that we use Hypnosis to access the
inner brain, whilst bypassing the censorship of the
conscious mind in this way the hypnotic suggestions
which the practitioner makes in order to help promote
the life changes the client is seeking enter directly into
the sub-conscious in their entirety.

 Sub-conscious mind.
The sub-conscious part of our brain is extremely
powerful. It is from here that all our automatic
responses originate.
It is in this area of the brain that all the responses which
are vital for our bodies to function as living entities are
stored.
We do not have to consciously remember to breathe our
sub-conscious mind automatically does this for us, it
knows the exact rhythm of heartbeat needed to maintain
a healthy life. It keeps our normal body temperature at
around 37c/98.4f degrees. It sends messages to every
cell and organ in our body. It is the job of the subconscious mind to repair and maintain these amazing
machines that we call our bodies.
All our past memories going back to the time of our
conception in the womb are carefully stored here.
Indeed those who believe in reincarnation believe that
our past life memories are also filed away in this area.
One of the few things our sub-conscious mind cannot
do is to reason. Because of this it acts only on the
information held in these stored memories. This is why
breaking an old habit can be so difficult, if it was right
for you then it must still be right now, is the way our

sub-conscious mind sees it. Taking no account of

changed circumstances or new information. It remains
consistent with our past words and deeds.
It keeps us in our comfort zones making us reluctant to
change our behaviour patterns, even when they are no
longer working for us.
It is those among us who learn to master the subconscious mind and step out of the restrictions it
imposes on us that become the movers and groovers of
our times.
These people such as Edison, Newton, Da Vinci and
many other household names all had to first learn to
free themselves stepping out of the comfortable rut their
sub-conscious mind had created, and embrace the
potential of the unknown.
The entire world owes them a debt of thanks for this
and we can all follow their wonderful example by
mastering and harnessing the vast power of our own
sub-conscious mind we can reach for the stars and
achieve our dreams.

 Discipline of the mind.

In the late eighteen hundreds many of the psychologists
of the day were taking an interest in Hypnosis, the work
they did laid the foundation for "The Eight Rules of the
Mind" a concept that we still use today and is taught in
almost all Hypnosis courses. We will now explore the
"Eight rules" and give more depth as to what they
outline and the effect they can have on an individual.
These eight rules cover:

Every Thought Causes a Physical Reaction.

What is expected is usually realized.
Imagination is more powerful than reason.
Opposing ideas cannot be held at the same time.
Emotionally induced symptoms cause physical
change.
Once an idea has been accepted by the subconscious.
Every suggestion acted upon creates less
opposition.
The sub-conscious mind and its functions.
Lets start off by looking into the Rule of Every
thought causes a physical reaction.

 Rule 1. Every Thought Causes a Physical Reaction.

Stressful, worried thoughts often have a detrimental
effect on our health.
Every thought we have has an effect on our entire being.
Irritable bowel syndrome, stomach ulcers, heart problems
are just some of the health problems which can be the
result of stressful thinking.
When we become angry we produce more adrenalin
which then surges through our blood stream increasing
the heart rate and causing high blood pressure.
Fear and distress can increase the pulse rate.
Any thought that has strong emotion attached to it lodges
deeply within the sub-conscious mind, once integrated
into this part of the brain it will continue to trigger the
same negative reaction until the sub-conscious is directly
reached and the thought released and replaced with a
positive one.
This can be accomplished with the help of Hypnosis.
In the same way positive, happy thoughts produce good
reactions in the body.

 Rule 2. What is expected is usually realized.

The mind reacts to images and words, if we constantly
carry around a negative image of our lives the subconscious mind will go all out to fulfil what it sees as our
desire. Negative words work in the same way when we
tell ourselves we cannot do something, it is too hard, the
sub-conscious will find reasons why it cannot be done, it
is after all carrying out our orders.
Next time you are struggling to do a job and getting
frustrated try re-phrasing your words instead of "I can't
do this" try saying "HOW CAN I DO THIS", it's only a
subtle change to the sentence but the end result will
surprise you.
Our health is also affected by our thoughts. If we
constantly talk of ill health and expect to be unwell then
our sub-conscious will produce that result for us. People
who expect to enjoy good health tend to be healthier and
fitter.
We often attract weight gain in the same way, we all
know someone who tells you they eat whatever they like
and never gain weight, then there are those who say I
dare not eat that, I put weight on so easily.
They are both examples of this law "what is expected is
usually realized".

By changing the way we think it is possible to change

our lives.
Hypnosis can be a powerful aid to achieving this.

 Rule 3. Imagination is more powerful than reason.

When dealing with the mind the imagination is always
more powerful than reason.
The brain accepts imagined events as reality and
overrules any reasoning which argues against the
imagined situation.
For this reason sports colleges and coaches throughout
the world use positive visualisation in training the top
athletes.
If they have lost a big event they will be trained to
imagine that event over and over with them not only
winning but giving a perfect performance. These images
record themselves into the athletes neurology and
physiology and the body and mind comes to believe it
has already achieved this and can do it again.
Emotional responses are often caused by this rule.
A perfect example of this is jealousy, this destructive
emotion can lead us to imagine our partner is unfaithful
and even though all the evidence proves them to be
faithful, relationships are often destroyed because reason
is disregarded and imagination wins the day.

 Rule 4. Opposing ideas cannot be held at the same

time.
When we indulge in behaviour which is contrary to a
core belief our mind, body and emotions are subjected to
tremendous levels of stress which affect us deeply,
frequently causing illness.
For example a person who fundamentally believes in
honesty yet becomes involved in even a mildly dishonest
business practise will try to find justification telling
themselves everybody's doing it, it's an accepted part of
business, what harm can it do?
They cannot however escape the tension and stress
which this opposition of thoughts creates within them.

 Rule 5. Emotionally induced symptoms cause

physical change.
The medical profession has long been in agreement that a
large percentage of physical illness is psychosomatic in
origin.
This happens when a negative emotion triggers a
physical reaction within the body.
Constant talk of ill health, or expecting to be ill, does in
time create ill health.
Changing the way we think can indeed change our
physical being.

 Rule 6. Once an idea has been accepted by the subconscious.

Once an idea has been accepted by the sub-conscious it
will remain there until replaced by another.
This is where habits both good and bad originate.
An idea once imbedded in the sub-conscious mind is
very powerful and not easily removed. The longer the
idea has been held the more deep rooted it becomes and
the harder it is to let go of it.
Hypnotic intervention is invaluable in this area as during
Hypnosis we can communicate directly with the subconscious implanting suggestions to remove the outdated
ideas and thinking, leaving in their place positive
thoughts and suggestions concerning the life style change
the client is working toward.

 Rule 7. Every suggestion acted upon creates less

opposition.
Once a suggestion has been accepted it becomes easier
for follow up suggestions to be accepted.
Every suggestion acted upon creates less opposition to
successive suggestions.
This rule has been widely used in POW camps to brain
wash prisoners.
The captors would spend a great deal of time talking with
the prisoner about their home country.
Eventually they would find a small point which seemed
insignificant to the prisoner and get them to agree that it
was wrong.
The prisoner seeing no significance to such a small point
would agree.
The next day another point would be raised and having
agreed to the previous one it was much easier to agree to
this one.
The captors would build the suggestions in this way and
eventually the prisoner would be brain washed accepting
the beliefs of the captor and rejecting their own country.

 Rule 8. The sub-conscious mind and its functions.

If you have ever tried to break a bad habit you will know
that the more conscious effort you put into it the harder it
becomes
When dealing with the sub-conscious mind and its
functions, the greater the conscious effort the less the
sub-conscious response.
This is because your sub-conscious has not accepted the
changes and is holding on to the habit.
People who find it difficult to relax or suffer from
insomnia have learnt these traits and they have become
deeply rooted in the sub-conscious mind.
They cannot force themselves to relax this only makes
them more tense, and to tell yourself "you will sleep"
makes sleep even more elusive.
A more effective way would be to give you positive
messages such as "I always sleep well" and "relaxation
comes easily".
Remember speaking and thinking positively will
ultimately bring positive results.

 Dominant effect.
A suggestion linked to an emotion is very powerful
and will have strong influence on the mind,
overriding other ideas and suggestions which may
have been there.
In order for us to be successful we have to believe in
ourselves.
The idea or suggestion that is linked to the strongest
emotion will win.
If for example we are afraid to try something we
would like to do because of the chance of failure then
that fear which is a negative emotion is stronger than
our desire to do it.
The fear will then win the day because it is the
stronger emotion.
Successful people in our world such as Richard
Branson succeed because they have learnt to control
their thinking, ensuring that the positive emotion is
always stronger than the negative emotion.
Put simply if our fear is stronger than our will to be
successful, then the fear will win keeping us from
reaching our true potential.

However the reverse is also true so if we build on our

desire to succeed, feel good about it, allow the
positive, good and happy feelings about our success
to grow and build within us then this will be the
strongest emotion, opening the door for your success.
This is not to say that everything you do will be a
resounding triumph however it opens our potential
for success.
Success is not final, failure is not fatal, it is the
courage to continue that counts. 'Winston Churchill'.
Remember Edison with that light bulb he tried so
many different combinations to make it work yet he
continued to believe in himself and his idea, when
asked if he would now give up on this seemingly
doomed project he replied, I have not failed, I have
found 10,000 ways that dont work.
As we all know he continued to believe in his dream
and thanks to him and his tenacity everyone of us can
light our homes and work places.

 Reverse effort.
The law of reverse effect or effort means that
frequently the more we try to do something the harder
it becomes.
It was brought to our attention by Aldous Huxley
who observed that often in life the harder we try to do
something the less likely we are to succeed.
This is because to try is sending a negative message
to our sub-conscious brain.
Our inner mind perceives that if we have to try then
the task must be a difficult one and creates a sort of
mental block where we cannot find a way of
achieving this hard task.
This is also true of the way we think, if we tell our
self we cannot do something, its going to be hard
then that is exactly what happens.
It is however very easy to change things, instead of
telling yourself how difficult this is, tell yourself how
simple it is, how good you are at this, how much you
enjoy it.
At first this will seem like a lie and that little voice
inside your head will be contradicting these positive

affirmations, simply overrule that negative voice and

re-affirm your positive statements.
You will be surprised how quickly that negative voice
begins to agree with you, telling you that yes, it is
easy.
Once your sub-conscious mind receives positive
messages it will begin to work with them in making
things happen as quickly and easily as possible.
This is how positive thinking works, the brain re-acts
to and works with the messages we put in, once we
learn to control our thinking we can un-leash the
power of the sub-conscious mind.

 Health choices.
In much the same way we can generally speaking
choose to be fit and healthy or constantly ailing.
The person who frequently speaks of ill health, aches
and pains, general ailments is in effect instructing
their sub-conscious mind that this is their chosen
path. The sub-conscious will reward them by giving
them the outcome they have chosen.
The medical profession recognises that illness is
frequently caused by negative thoughts. Some
medical estimates suggest that as much as 70% of
illness originates in this way.
The patient however should not be disregarded their
symptoms and suffering are very real, more and more
doctors are in agreement that the treatment should be
to teach the patient to alter their thought patterns.
Those of us who consider ourselves to be healthy
people tend to be just that.
The person who tells us "I never catch a cold" rarely
does.
They are instructing their sub-conscious mind that
their body is not susceptible to this illness, the sub-

conscious responds by increasing the immunity to the

cold virus.
By far the most effective and easiest way to change
the negative thought process is Hypnosis.

 How do you view yourself?

The way in which we perceive ourselves shapes the
person we become.
We should always be on good terms with ourselves,
after all if we do not like ourselves how can we
expect others to like us?
As you have learnt earlier in this course our subconscious mind is easily programmed. It is our job to
see that this is done correctly.
We will often have clients whose minds have been
programmed with negative views of themselves.
This frequently stems from childhood.
Childrens minds are very pliable, so when an adult
puts them down, telling them they are worthless or
stupid the child accepts this and their sub-conscious
mind registers and acts upon what it sees as fact, this
internal negative view of themselves will stay with
them throughout their life causing detrimental effects.
It is a form of abuse which is very damaging to the
child and the adult they will become.
A competent Hypnotist is able to neutralize these
images and replace them with positive feelings of self

worth and value enabling the client to realize their

true potential in life.

 Visualisation.
Many people will tell you they cannot visualise and
yet if you were to ask them to tell you the colour of
their front door they would be able to answer without
hesitation. Take it a step further and ask what their
kitchen is like and you will again get an immediate
response.
We all have the ability to visualise things which are
familiar to us but from childhood we are taught to
suppress this valuable ability.
When we learn to harness our imagination we can
make a positive difference not only in our own life
but in the world around us.
Day dreaming and creative visualisation is essentially
the same thing you are centring your attention on the
visualization and excluding the outside world. Once
the conscious mind interrupts the day dream is over.
It is totally a sub-conscious frame of mind which
makes it a state of natural hypnosis it is a time when
the power of the sub-conscious is unleashed and new
ideas and situations can be conceived.
So often we hear children rebuked for day dreaming
and yet the idea for many of the world's great

inventions came about whilst their creator was in this

trance like state.
Today we all know about steam energy and how
powerfully it changed the world heralding the onset
of the Industrial Revolution.
Have you ever wondered how the concept of using
steam to drive machinery came about?
You may be surprised to learn it did not happen in a
university or any other kind of learning institution.
The idea came to a twelve year old boy in his aunts
kitchen.
In the year 1748 young James Watt was sitting with
his aunt when his attention was drawn to the kettle
bubbling away on the hearth. He was mesmerised by
the way the lid of the kettle was jumping up and
down as it boiled. Despite his aunt rebuking him,
telling him to stop daydreaming, James continued to
stare at the kettle and as he remained fixated in this
trance like state the idea of the steam engine was
born.
The power of his sub-conscious mind had latched
onto an event that happened unnoticed many times
every day in every household and had released the

amazing potential of this seemingly mundane event

into his imagination.
Hypnosis works in this way bringing to our conscious
attention possibilities and ideas for change which we
can then consciously work on to bring about change
and improvement in our lives.

 How to use creative visualisation.

The first step is to decide what you would most like
to change in your life.
It may be that you are looking for a new relationship
or wish to improve the one you have, or it could be
related to your career or home, maybe you want to
get fitter and exercise more or it could just be you
want to be more confident, the list is endless, it is
advisable to start with something fairly easy and as
you become more adept with the process move on to
the more difficult issues.
Once you have decided on the subject of your
visualization begin to weave a story around it of how
things will be once you have achieved your desired
outcome. Create an image of how you will look, how
you will feel, who is with you, make these images as
clear and vibrant as you possibly can, (you will find
that the more you visualize the clearer and more
vibrant the images will become). Imagine it all as if
it is happening now, not at some time in the future.
Creating your own vision board is an excellent
addition, I would not use it instead of the
visualization process but as well as.

All you need is to get a large piece of card and put

images and pictures of your desired outcome onto it.
You can cut pictures from magazines and if you want
them to represent a new look you, glue a picture of
your face onto their body.
If it's a new house you want put an image of your
perfect house on the board, whatever it is you are
aiming for put something on the board to represent it.
Then place the board where you will see it daily.
These images will then encode themselves deeply
into your sub-conscious mind.
The more you think of the positive outcome as if it is
already reality the sooner you achieve your desired
outcome.
Use positive affirmations e.g. "I love my new job",
this again implants the positive outcome within your
sub-conscious, that part of you that works to fulfil
your wishes, but be careful this works with negative
thoughts too!!!

 Messaging the sub-conscious mind.

In Hypnosis we recognise the power of the subconscious mind. We realize the importance of
sending positive messages to this area.
It is a natural state of deep relaxation where the
conscious mind can drift freely allowing the subconscious mind to come to the fore.
In order to get the un-edited message through we
have to bypass the conscious and speak directly to the
sub-conscious mind.
This is achieved by lulling the conscious mind to a
sleep like state thereby allowing the sub-conscious to
come to the fore.
Whilst in this deeply relaxed state positive ideas and
affirmations can be introduced directly into this
extremely powerful area.
Old and outdated habits can be released and replaced
with positive new ones.
New life patterns can be introduced and re-enforced
making it much easier to steer your life in a new and
beneficial direction.

The therapist guides the client into this trance like

state by means of an induction which is usually
achieved through speech, the words chosen and the
inflections and intonations placed on key words leads
the client gently into hypnosis.
Whilst in this state the lifestyle changes, promoting of
healing and general re-programming which will have
been discussed and clarified prior to the induction can
be easily introduced to the sub-conscious and these
seeds can become firmly imbedded and rooted
becoming a valuable positive resource for our future
life patterns.

 The law of attraction.

It is important that we act and think in a positive way.
The law of attraction ensures that what we put out we
get back.
So if we are in the habit of thinking and acting in a
negative way we will attract negatives back into our
lives.
If on the other hand we think and act in a positive
manner we will attract positive, good things into our
lives.
Negative emotions can have a devastating effect on
our lives, making us dissatisfied and unhappy, they
can affect our physical, emotional and mental health.
A fearful, nervous person tends to attract hostile
unfriendly people into their environment whereas an
outgoing, loving person will attract warm friendly
people to them.
If we tell ourselves we cannot do something it
becomes nearly impossible to achieve that thing,
whereas when we tell ourselves it is easy and we can
do it, the task is easily completed.
These universal laws are true of all aspects of life.

When we are expecting the worse we draw it to us

and everything seems to go wrong but it does not
have to be so.
If the day starts out badly do not expect that it will
continue in the same way. You can change your day
by changing your mood. So take a moment to step
back from the negativity, take a deep breath and be
thankful for such a wonderful day. Try it, it really
does work.

 Using colours.
The use of colour in Hypnosis can be beneficial. In
holistic therapy we believe it is a powerful aid to
healing.
Each colour has its own significance and areas in
which it can help.
RED
This is the colour of strength and energy. It can also
represent anger. In therapy we can use it as a means
of releasing anger or to energise and strengthen a
person depending on the suggestions we put with the
image.
Red is not conducive to relaxation.
ORANGE
This represents physical, emotional and mental
wellbeing.
In Hypnosis we ask the client to be aware of being
bathed in an orange light in order to promote healing.

YELLOW
We can use suggestions of yellow to empower a
client.
GREEN
A nervous, anxious client would benefit from
imaging greenness around them as this promotes
peace and calmness bringing relaxation.
BLUE
This represents great healing throughout the clients
being. It induces feelings of safety and wellbeing.
PURPLE
This is a colour of spiritual awareness it opens you to
universal energies.
WHITE
The white light contains all the colours of the
spectrum making it the most powerful to use as it
incorporates the power of all colours.

With all colours we would ask the client to be aware

of that colour. You could suggest a light of the
specific colour you are using entering through the
crown of the clients head, flowing down through the
body, bathing every area in its light. An alternative
way is for the client to imagine bathing in a pool of
the relevant colour or just that colour surrounding
them.
A wonderful addition to any therapy room is a mood
lighting system with which you can shine the relevant
light onto your client so that while you are making
the suggestions the colour is actually encompassing
them.

 What is focused awareness?

In Hypnosis our aim is to guide the client into a state

of focussed awareness.
The dictionary describes awareness as knowledge or
perception of a situation or fact while the definition
of focussed is a point upon which attention, activity
etc. is directed or concentrated.
So when we put the two words together we are
looking at a situation of which we have prior
knowledge and concentrating our complete attention
on that issue.
When used in a consulting session it enables us to
guide the client toward the issue which needs to be
re-dressed, enabling them to view only the core
situation without the negative thoughts and feelings
which surround it.
In this way they can see the situation dispassionately
and without undue stress and anxiety, making it
easier to see things in their true perspective and
become aware of ways in which they can successfully
resolve the situation.

The subject was extensively researched in the early

1950s by Eugene Gendlin at the University of
Chicago.
Focusing is a psychotherapeutic process developed
by psychotherapist Eugene Gendlin. It can be used in
any kind of therapeutic situation, including peer-topeer sessions. It involves holding a kind of open, nonjudging attention to an internal knowing which is
directly experienced but is not yet in words. Focusing
can, among other things, be used to become clear on
what one feels or wants, to obtain new insights about
one's situation, and to stimulate change or healing of
the situation.]Focusing is set apart from other
methods of inner awareness by three qualities:
something called the "felt sense", a quality of
engaged accepting attention, and a researched-based
technique that facilitates change.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia
As an example of focussed awareness think of a bride
or groom planning their wedding day. Typically they
become so immersed in the planning of the day that
they become stressed and anxious, asking themselves
what if this goes wrong, what if I make a mistake in

my speech etc. etc. they become so engrossed in these

worries they forget about the joy of the day.
When guided into a state of focussed awareness they
can focus their attention on the true meaning of the
day and suggestions can be implanted about the joy
and pleasure of their wedding.
By focussing on the happiness of the occasion in this
way the worries become peripheral and they can
realise that it would not matter if there was a mistake
in the speech or somebody sat in the wrong place.
The strongest emotion is that of joy and happiness.

6. The hypnotic state.

How does hypnosis work?
The explanation as to how Hypnosis works falls into
two categories, one theory suggests that Hypnosis
promotes an altered mind state which is open to
suggestion whilst the second theory argues that it is in
fact a non-state of mind in which the imagination
becomes all powerful.
In my experience I have found that both the Altered
State and Non-state theories are correct.
The Altered state is the state of mind we aim to
achieve through Induction, during this altered mind
state the client can easily focus on the issue that the
therapist guides them toward.
Peripheral thoughts and distractions diminish, in
some cases disappearing altogether.
The client is open to suggestions and concepts which,
once accepted by the sub-conscious mind, become a
powerful influence in assisting the individual in
making the life changes they desire.

It is worth mentioning here that the main purpose of

the sub-conscious is to protect you, should any
unscrupulous practitioner try to implant suggestions
which would be detrimental the sub-conscious mind
would be able to reject them.
The non-state theory is also utilised in Hypnosis
sessions.
Imagination is very powerful, and the non-state
theory is for example used in letting go of people who
no longer have a role in your life, such as ex partners
and deceased loved ones.
It can be used to neutralise bad memories and
childhood traumas. It is powerfully used to help
create a state of mind where you can visualise
yourself as a successful person creating a better
future.
These are just some examples of the way in which the
non-state theory can be used. You would be guided
through a visualisation process of being happy
without that person, for public speaking you would be
guided through the presentation. A smoker would be
able to imagine a happy future without cigarettes. The
list goes on and on.

This is effective because the sub-conscious mind

cannot tell the difference between a vividly imagined
event and reality. By imagining something in this
way you are imprinting an image in your mind that
you are successful in this area.
World class athletes train with this technique
visualising winning their events.
Hypnosis is a powerful tool which can help change
lives for the better. It has an amazingly high success
rate for helping to eliminate unwanted habits such as
smoking, it can help you improve yourself image,
eliminate fears and stress, assist in the healing
process, improve your confidence, the list is almost
endless. But notice I say "help", Hypnosis is not a
magic wand that can be waved and everything
changes. The client has to be prepared to work with
the changes.
I always tell my stop smoking clients, Hypnosis can
make this easy, but you do have to be prepared to put
some effort in. However when you stop by will power
alone it requires 100% effort which makes it
extremely difficult.
When you stop smoking using Hypnosis you must be
prepared to put the effort in but it usually only

requires 15 or maybe 25% effort, making it so much

easier to let go of the habit.
Many times you will find that your clients will report
that they just never thought of smoking again and did
not require any effort, you should however always
prepare your client to work with the changes.
Never confuse Consulting Hypnosis with Stage
Hypnosis, they are completely different.
Stage Hypnosis is purely for entertainment the
Hypnotist will take their chosen candidate into a
much deeper level of Hypnosis than that required by
a consulting Hypnotist.
Consulting Hypnotism is used purely as a tool to aid
and assist people in improving their lives.

 How is it achieved?
The first step is to induce complete relaxation
throughout the clients' entire being. Muscles, fibres,
tissues and organs are guided into this state of deep
relaxation and as it impossible to be relaxed and
anxious at the same time the body automatically
releases any stress or tension it has been storing
allowing the client to focus on the feelings of comfort
and peace which are developing.
As the body drifts deeper into relaxation so the brain
becomes quite and a peaceful stillness of mind
develops.
In this condition the conscious mind can drift into a
sleep like state, (not sleep), allowing the subconscious to come to the fore.
It is whilst this state is present that ideas and
suggestions can be implanted to assist the client in
making the life style changes they desire.
Initially the depth of trance may be quite light but I
find that in subsequent sessions the client begins to
go much deeper as they gain a sense of trust in the
process.

It is not unusual for clients to ask if they were really

hypnotised as although they enjoyed the feelings of
calmness and relaxation, they were aware of what
was happening and were not in a zombie like state. I
believe these ideas stem from the stage hypnosis
which most of us have seen. However Consulting
Hypnosis is not meant to take control away from the
individual, it is a method of empowering and
enabling the client to assist them in reaching their
true potential.

 What does it feel like?

Hypnosis is a state of deep relaxation of mind, body
and emotions during which you are conscious of your
surroundings and what is happening around you but it
holds no interest for you as you simply let go and
focus on your inner being. It typically invokes
feelings of peace and security, well being and
contentment as stress and tension evaporate leaving
you with a deep sense of calmness and inner peace.

 How do I know hypnosis is present?

When conducting a hypnosis session I always sit
opposite my client this allows me to observe them
closely for signs of hypnosis.
Below you will find some of the signs to watch for;
The muscles begin to sag as the client becomes
more relaxed.
The head will drop as the neck muscles soften and
relax.
The posture may slump as the client drifts deeper.
You may observe rapid eye movement. (Even
though the eyes are closed the movement can be seen
behind the lids). Fluttering of the eye lids is also
common.
The client may make jerking movements, small
spasms similar to those that can be observed in a
sleeping person.

By monitoring your client in this way you can deepen

the hypnotic state should they begin to drift toward
the surface.

There are several effective methods to deepen the

trance;
Counting backwards as we have done in the
inductions.
Ask your client to breathe deeply, long slow
breaths in, hold for a second and then slowly breathe
all the way out.
Give your client suggestions of floating and
drifting on a fluffy white cloud.
Suggest they imagine a leaf/feather slowly drifting
down.

 Feelings associated with hypnotic state.

There are no known negative side affects to
Hypnosis.
Typically the calmness and relaxation which is
induced during the session will remain with the client
once they have been re-surfaced.
Many clients tell me that after a Hypnosis session
they enjoy the best night's sleep they have
experienced for a long time.
Hypnosis can promote feelings of tranquillity and
wellbeing within the client, with mind, body and
emotions peacefully in harmony.
There are signs that Hypnosis is present in a person
and for this reason the practitioner should sit facing
their client in order to observe these signs, if during
the session the client begins to re-surface the
practitioner will become aware of this through their
observation and can then add deepening techniques in
order to send the client into a deeper state of
Hypnosis.

 The hypnotic state.

Most people imagine the Hypnotic state as one of
deep sleep where the subject is completely unaware
of their surroundings or what is happening to them. I
have heard people say they imagine it to be a zombie
like state.
In reality nothing could be further from the truth.
Hypnosis is a state of deep relaxation during which
the subject is aware of their surroundings and what is
going on, they are however so deeply relaxed that
these things hold no significance and their focus takes
them deeply within themselves.
This state enables them to block out peripheral
thoughts and sources of distraction and concentrate
all of their attention on the particular issue they wish
to deal with.
The best description I have ever heard is to liken
Hypnosis to that semi-aware state we experience just
before waking, when we could open our eyes if we
wanted but can we really be bothered to do it.
Whilst in this very pleasant state the practitioner
directs the focus of the client to the issues that are to
be addressed, implanting positive ideas and

suggestions deeply into the client's sub-conscious

mind.
Once the sub-conscious mind accepts a new idea it
becomes very powerful and the sub-conscious will
find ways to implement the desired changes quickly
and easily.
The practitioner is a tool to guide you to the required
state of mind. It is not mind control or giving power
to another person. In fact in Hypnosis you are always
in control, your sub-conscious can accept or reject
any suggestions which are offered.
Our understanding of Hypnosis is that it works by
altering our state of consciousness in such a way that
the analytical left hand side of the brain is turned off,
while the non-analytical right hand side is made more
alert.
The conscious control of the mind is inhibited and the
sub-conscious mind activated.
Dr. Hilary Jones. Author of 'What's the Alternative',
said:
"Since the sub-conscious mind is a deeper seated
more instinctive force than the conscious mind this
is the part which has to change for the patient's
behaviour and physical state to alter.

For example, a patient who consciously wants to

overcome their fear of spiders may try everything
they consciously can to do this, but will still fail as
long as their sub conscious mind retains this terror
and prevents the patient from succeeding.
Progress can only be made by re-programming the
sub-conscious so that deep seated instincts and
beliefs are abolished or altered."
Hypnosis can be used as an intervention in an
amazingly wide variety of complaints.
We use it to change behavioural patterns, release
negative thoughts and beliefs, let go of old habits,
fears and distressing situations.
It is widely used to relax and de-stress clients.
Expectant mothers can benefit throughout their
pregnancy but particularly during labour from these
relaxing techniques.
Hypnosis has been successfully used to help with
physical and psychological problems it is used
universally for performance enhancement in all areas
and improves confidence and self image.
It can help with weight loss and life style changes.

It has been said that if Hypnosis could be bottled it

would be mankinds wonder drug.

 Overview of what hypnosis is.

What is hypnosis?

Hypnosis is a natural state of altered awareness which

can be likened to day dreaming.
The closest description of a Hypnotic state is to
describe it as akin to that relaxed, sleepy feeling we
enter just before falling asleep or just after waking,
when we could open our eyes if we wanted, but can
we really be bothered, almost a dream like state
where mind and body can drift and float in peaceful
relaxation and calmness. Whilst in this state the subconscious mind comes to the fore and ideas and
suggestions for making life changes can be implanted
into this very powerful area making it much easier to
implement the life changes desired.

 Hypnotic suggestion.
Hypnotic suggestion is extremely powerful when
used correctly.
All suggestions given must be positive a negative
suggestion lodged deeply in the sub-conscious mind
could cause the client many problems.
Our sub-conscious mind reacts to the thoughts and
ideas we put in.
If we fill it with negative words it will respond
negatively resulting in failure and disappointment.
However the reverse is also true.
If we use positive self talk our sub-conscious brain
will respond in a positive way allowing our dreams
and desires to come to fruition.
Becoming a positive thinker is easier than you would
imagine.
All we have to do is learn to re-phrase things into a
positive rather than a negative thought.
Let me give you some examples;
WRONG;
I do not struggle to sleep I do not lie awake for hours.

RIGHT;
I sleep easily, deep relaxing sleep.
WRONG;
I am not afraid of public speaking.
RIGHT;
I am calm and relaxed, I deliver a good presentation.
The words flow effortlessly from me.
Words such as TRY and COULD have a negative
impact upon us.
Replacing them with CAN turns the sentence into a
positive statement.
For example I will try to do this implies that
something will be difficult and your inner mind will
respond by making it difficult.
When however you change the wording slightly I
can do this you have made a positive statement and
your sub-conscious reacts in a positive way.
WRONG;
I could help you.
RIGHT;
I can help you.

When making hypnotic suggestions always use the

present tense.
Referring to some unspecified future suggests that
some time in the future these changes will take place.
The problem there is that it is always going to happen
in the future, not the here and now.
If your client wants something for a certain date then
you must specify that time in your suggestions.
WRONG;
I will be confident and calm when I meet new people.
RIGHT;
I am calm and confident as I meet new people.
Using positive affirmations is a powerful motivator.
WRONG;
I am a nervous driver, I lack confidence.
RIGHT;
I enjoy driving, I am calm and relaxed, I am a good
driver.
These positive affirmations can and should be used in
your daily life, not only as hypnotic suggestions.

At first you may hear a contradictory voice in your

head opposing the positive sentence; all you need to
do is overrule it, simply by reaffirming your positive
intention.
You will find that very soon that inner voice is
agreeing with you, re-enforcing your positive words.
Do not try to deal with several issues in one go,
concentrate on successfully dealing with each
problem before moving on to the next.
Make your suggestions personal to your client and
there situation.
Do not try to make one solution fit everybody in a
similar circumstance.
For example one person may choose to lose weight
for the sake of their health with little interest in
looking good in a swimsuit. It would be foolish and
not very productive to spend time making suggestions
of how good they will look in their bikini.
Yet for the client who has no health concerns and just
wants that fantastic beach body these are the very
suggestions needed to achieve their goal.
For this reason it is important to know what your
clients goals and expectations are.

7. Exemplar induction/Observation of
exemplar induction.
Exemplar induction
One of the first things you need to do is to experience
Hypnosis for yourself. This will give you insight into
the subject and knowledge of the feelings associated
with Hypnosis.
I have therefore prepared the following sample
induction for you to experience.
Find a quite place where you are not likely to be
disturbed, once you are in a comfortable position you
can just relax and enjoy the recording.
It is by experiencing things for yourself that you will
gain the ability and insight that you will need to practice
Hypnosis and answer any questions your client may
pose.

The Induction

And now, as you relax there, you can feel your eyelids,
becoming heavier, heavier, as you continue to relax,
deeper, deeper, more and more relaxed, and you dont
know just when those eyelids will close, all by
themselves, as you continue to drift, drift deeply,
calmly, peacefully into relaxation and calmness, you
can become aware of your breathing, notice the rhythm
of your breathing, notice the breath, cooler as you
breathe in, breathe in calmness, relaxation, peace.
If you have not already done so, slowly, peacefully,
allow your eyelids to flutter and close, as you continue
to breathe in peace and tranquillity.
Notice how calm and relaxed you are beginning to feel,
as your breathing becomes deeper, deeper, more calm
more peaceful and more relaxed, as your breathing
continues slowly, peacefully, deeply, naturally, more
and more relaxed.
Let go, let go of all cares and worries as you drift ever
deeper in this timeless relaxation.
Every breath that you take now, taking you deeper, ever
deeper into calmness, relaxation.

Now, focus all of your attention, upon your breathing,

notice your breath a little bit warmer as you breath out.
Be aware of the different sensations in your body, as
you take deep calming breaths in, hold for a few
seconds and then breathe all the way out. As you
continue to focus on your breathing in this way, every
breath that you take, takes you deeper and deeper into
calmness and relaxation.
So just allow yourself, gently easily to float, to drift and
float, easily, effortlessly, comfortably into a deeper and
deeper level of perfect relaxation.
You feel calm now, you feel peaceful, safe, as you just
float and drift, drift and float, easily, effortlessly, in
time and space, nothing hurried, nothing rushed, just
peaceful, calm relaxation and tranquillity.
Follow the sound of my voice now, let it guide you, let
it lead you.
Every word that I say now is guiding you, leading you,
deeply, ever more deeply into peace and relaxation.
And now as you continue to relax in this very special
way I would like your mind and your imagination to
take a tour throughout every part of your being.

Every fibre and sinew, every muscle, sinew and tendon,

every molecule and atom.
I would like you now to allow peacefulness and
relaxation to flow through every part of your being.
So take a moment now, to become aware of the
peaceful relaxation flowing through and around you.
As you continue to focus on your breathing, feelings of
comfort and relaxation continue to fill your entire
being, from the top of your head, to the tips of your
toes, peace, calm, relaxation.
Breathe out any tension, stress or anxiety which may be
stored anywhere in your being, and breath in calmness,
relaxation and peace.
For a moment now, think of the top of your head, your
forehead, face, eyes, nose, mouth and jaw, running
down now into your neck, calmness, peace, feel a
wonderful sense of relaxation, flowing into these areas.
Filling your head, face and neck with complete
relaxation.
Now allow your mind and your imagination to drift into
your shoulders, running down your back, every
vertebrae of your spine, spreading into all of the
muscles of your back and down now, way on down into

your lower back, that sense of perfect relaxation, of

peace, of complete comfort and ease.
Now, for a moment concentrate on your arms, elbows,
wrists and hands, and now into your chest area, down
into your abdomen, filling flowing with peaceful
relaxation.
And now as you continue in this cocoon of peace and
relaxation your mind and imagination drift into your
legs feel that amazing flow of peaceful relaxation as it
travels down, down through your thighs and into your
knees, swirling around your kneecaps and then
continuing on down, way on down into your lower leg,
down through your shins and calves into your ankles,
running along the soles of your feet now and out, out to
the very tips of your toes.
Your body, mind, emotions, your entire being now, is
bathed and luxuriating, in a peace and calmness such as
you have not felt in a long, long time.
A relaxation which comforts and empowers you.
Refreshing, nurturing, fortifying, your entire being.
Take a little time now to enjoy, really enjoy, this
wonderful feeling.

In a few moments it will be time to return to the here

and now, to today, tomorrow, and all the other good
days, which are just around the corner.
And you can come back feeling peaceful, calm and
serene in your new found peace and tranquillity.
I am going to count now from one all the way up to
five.
When I reach five you can open your eyes, stretch and
return to the here and now.
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
AND ALL THE WAY UP NOW TO FIVE,
WHENEVER YOU FEEL READY, COME BACK TO
THE HERE AND NOW.

 Observation of exemplar induction.

Now that you have experienced Hypnosis for
yourself, I would like you to give some thought to the
contents of the session.
Read through the script and notice the different
aspects of it.
Notice how many times the words peace and
relaxation are used, other calming words to induce
deep relaxation are frequently mentioned.
The sub-conscious mind responds well to things
being repeated. The more often we repeat a
suggestion the more powerfully the sub-conscious
will respond to it.
Suggestions that the eyes are feeling heavier
encourage the client to want to close their eyes. Yet
we have still added that sentence a little later about
the eyes becoming closed. It is possible to be
Hypnotised and the eyes to remain open, but I always
encourage my clients to close them as this takes their
focus deeper within themselves.
Linking relaxation to the clients breathing is highly
effective as the sub-conscious is being asked to
connect breathing with automatic relaxation. As
every one of us breaths continually we are setting up

suggestions of continually being in a more relaxed

state, certainly throughout the Hypnosis session. We
also link breathing with releasing anxiety and
negative emotions, whilst replacing them with
calmness, peace and many other positive emotions.
Notice the suggestions of timelessness, in our busy
lives we have so many demands on our time we often
feel to be in a state of stress trying to fit everything
in. We are through these suggestions easing that
pressure which is often always there and by doing
this we are giving the client a little time just for
themselves.
Asking the client to follow your voice was famously
frequently used by Milton H. Erickson. Many
consider him to be the founder of modern day
Hypnosis. He had a long and distinguished career and
Ericksonian methods are widely used today. You can
read how he overcame tremendous obstacles in his
early life and against all the odds forge a hugely
successful career in helping others in my History of
Hypnosis.
Finally the full body relaxation takes the client even
deeper.

By naming each area of the body and directing

relaxation to it we can typically take the client into a
very deep level of relaxation.
Mentioning each particular area and making
suggestions of comfort, relaxation etc. we are
implanting ideas in the sub-conscious that each of
these areas be filled with the positive feelings and
emotions we are promoting. The sub-conscious can
then respond to these ideas and fill each area with
peace, relaxation etc.
All the aspects we have looked at here go toward
creating a good basic Hypnosis Induction. We have
not addressed any particular issues in this script as
that comes later.
The first thing you need to learn is how to
successfully guide your client into a Hypnotic state.

8. The hypnosis session.

The Voice.
In Hypnosis you are using your voice as a tool to
promote positive change, it is important therefore that
you learn how to use it correctly.
You should speak in a calm and soothing voice.
Speak slowly emphasising key words such as
calmness and relaxation.
All good inductions are spoken in a slow
monotonous voice, with constant mentions of drifting
into relaxation and calmness and other similar
phrases.
Pause frequently during the session, you may like
to add suggestions such as nothing rushed, nothing
hurried.
Do not be afraid to repeat key phrases many times
throughout the session, repetition is a valuable part of
hypnosis.

Listen to the videos that accompany this course and

imitate the way in which I use my voice. As you
become more experienced you will find your own
techniques along similar lines to those I use.

 Preparation for hypnosis.

It is important to be well prepared for any hypnosis
session. The first thing you need is a quite, warm
room where you are not likely to be disturbed.
Turn off your phone and ask your client to do the
same.
Calm, relaxing background music compliments the
therapy, but do make certain the volume is low and
your voice can be clearly heard.
Ensure a comfortable place for your client to sit or lay
down.
Subdued lighting is ideal you should not use bright
lighting as this can hinder relaxation.
If you are carrying out the session in the clients home
ask them to be sure there are no pets in the room, a
dog barking or a cat jumping onto the clients knee
would be very distracting.
A consultation is always necessary at the start of the
session. You need to learn what issue your client
needs help with. Dont be afraid to ask questions
about the situation. The more information you gather
the more you can tailor the session to their needs. Ask

what they would like to achieve from the session. Be

careful not to pre-judge a situation, listen to what
your client tells you, for example if they are
claustrophobic do not use an elevator in your
induction, if they are afraid of water do not use
references to water.

 Preparing your client.

It is important to establish a good rapport with your
client. Your first priority therefore should be to put
them at ease.
In this section I have laid out a format which is easy
to follow and should re-assure the client.
1. People usually have pre-conceived ideas about
Hypnosis, when asked they will usually say they
imagine it to be a sleep like state during which they
are completely un-aware of what is happening.
This myth should be dispelled at the very outset of
the session.
Assure the client they will be aware of what is going
on around them but it will not distract or detract from
the wonderfully relaxed feeling which is the Hypnotic
state.
Do not use the word sleep instead use words such as
calmness, peace, relaxation, tranquillity.
2. Many people having seen stage Hypnosis are afraid
they will be made to do things against their will.

You need to explain that should you say or do

anything of this nature they would be aware of it and
could bring themselves out of the trance like state.
Emphasize that they are in control at all times and can
accept or reject any suggestion which is made.
3. Talk your client through the entire process (this is
great for putting them at ease).
Explain that Hypnosis is a natural state of mind
which we automatically slip into many times each
day, slipping into a daydream or letting our mind
wander are times of natural hypnosis however the
most noticeable times are just before sleep or just
after waking when we could open our eyes if we
wanted but can we really be bothered.
4. The state of deep relaxation which is induced
during Hypnosis brings calmness and peace to the
client.
The more relaxed your client becomes the better they
feel and the better they feel the more relaxed they
become.
5. As a practising Hypnotist you are there to guide the
client toward the issues they wish to address and offer
positive reinforcement and suggestions for their well
being.

You should be able to give your client a feeling of

trust, they should be aware that you are interested in
helping them and that you are listening to and hearing
what they are saying.
The client should begin to feel that you are a good
friend in whom they can confide.
You should always be sincere and open with them.
Having discussed your client's problem and
discovered their needs you should have the
information needed to begin your session, however
should you feel you need more information do not be
afraid to ask questions until you have a better
understanding of the issues troubling the client.
Do be sure to ask any questions in a gentle and
empathic way, we do not want the client to feel
interrogated rather that you are concerned and
engaged in their well being.
When talking with your client be sure to use words
which they understand.
It is no good blinding them with science they need to
be able to connect with your words.
After this pre-hypnotic talk, your client should be at
ease and feeling relaxed with you.

Once they have gained confidence and trust in you

they can become more receptive to the Hypnotic state
which you are about to induce.
A.

Induction

This is the term used for the process of guiding

someone into a Hypnotic state.
B. Relaxation
Directing the clients attention to their own body
and as they focus they can become aware of
feelings of peace and relaxation which develop.
The entire body from head to toe can then become
deeply relaxed in this way.
C. Deepening
Use creative visualization and imagery to take the
clients focus within themselves.

D. Suggestions
Using suggestions to bring about change which is
advantageous to the client.

E. Future Projections
Instructing the sub-conscious mind to take the
beneficial and positive learning and feelings
created in the Hypnotic session into future
situations thus empowering the client allowing
them to take control of their life.
Remember the sub-conscious mind has the ability
to change negative emotion into positive feelings.

 Consultation.
It is important to carry out an in-depth consultation
prior to the Hypnotherapy session.
Ask your client about the issues which they are
seeking help for.
Allow them to explain in their own words how they
feel and what they hope to gain from Hypnotherapy.
Do not be afraid to ask questions and make notes.
Listen in an empathic, non-judgemental way it is
important that your client is comfortable with you and
that you gain a good rapport.
Many clients will feel a little apprehensive on their
first visit so it is advisable to talk them through what
will happen in the session. This will help to alleviate
any anxiety they may be feeling.
Explain that they will not be asleep and they will be
aware of their surroundings and the sound of your
voice.
Re-assure them that other thoughts and ideas may
well come into their mind during the session, this is
perfectly normal and does not detract from the
Hypnotic state. They should not try to stop these

thoughts or hang onto them. Just allow them to drift

through the conscious mind and drift away.
Assure your client that nothing will be done against
their will; the sub-conscious would in fact reject such
suggestions.
In Hypnosis the client is not giving up control they
are allowing the therapist to guide them throughout
the session.
Explain that Hypnosis is a natural state which we
enter automatically several times each day without
realizing what we are doing. E.g. simple everyday
tasks such as washing the pots do not need a level of
concentration. Our conscious mind therefore drifts of
leaving the sub-conscious to perform the task.
Automatically stopping at a red light and moving
forward on a green one are all examples of natural
Hypnotic states.
Having established this connection with your client
and obtained an authentic overview of their situation
you are now ready to proceed with the induction.

 Deepening techniques.
There are many techniques which can be used to
deepen a trance. They can be incorporated into the
induction to ensure you begin your Hypnosis session
with a deep level of trance, you can also use them
throughout the session should you feel your client is
beginning to re-surface.
They should be spoken in a quite calm and slow
voice.
Ask the client to focus on their breathing, taking
long deep breaths, holding for a moment and then
slowly exhaling. As they focus on their breathing in
this way they will find themselves becoming very
calm and very relaxed.
Ask the client to imagine a feather or a leaf floating
gently down.
Ask the client to imagine they are floating
effortlessly on a white fluffy cloud.
Ask the client to breathe relaxation into every part
of their body. You can suggest they pay particular
attention to any areas in which they may be feeling
discomfort.

 Ask the client to be aware of a beautiful warm light

flowing into them, wrapping around them filling them
with peace and tranquillity.
Begin counting backwards from 10 all the way
down to 1, tell your client that each number you
count will be a step and each step is taking them
deeper and deeper into calmness and relaxation.

 Signs to observe.
You may notice the muscles of the clients face begin
to sag as the muscle tone reduces as Hypnosis
deepens.
The breathing becomes slow and regular.
You may observe rapid eye movement (REM)
behind the closed lids.
The eye lids may begin to flutter and you may see
watering of the eyes.
The client may noticeably experience spasms and
jerks.
The body posture often slumps and the head falls
forward.

 Induction Methods
There are numerous methods which can be used to
induce the hypnotic state. It is important to learn
these from an experienced therapist. The induction is
not hard to perform but must be presented in a
confident, relaxed manner. If the therapist feels
anxious or stressed the client can pick up on this
exasperating their own situation.
Im sure we have all watched an old film where the
hypnotist would swing a watch in a pendulum like
fashion before his clients eyes and all though little
used today this is still an effective method of
induction however lets take a look at just some of the
other methods available to us.
We will start with eye fixation this does not have to
be a watch or any other form of pendulum, just
something for the client to fix their gaze upon.
A hypnodisc is ideal for this purpose. This is typically
a black and white spiral which spins around as we fix
our eyes on this we have the sensation of being drawn
into the disc and hypnosis can easily be achieved
through this method.

Gazing into the flames of a fire can also be an

effective method as the mesmerising effect of the
flames holds our focus we drift effortlessly into the
desired state.
Perhaps the most commonly used eye fixation
induction is the following;
Ensure your client is seated comfortably in a quiet
room where you are not likely to be disturbed.
Ask your client to find a spot on the ceiling on
which to fix their eyes. Instruct them to continue to
focus on that one part of the ceiling and in their mind
begin to count backwards from one hundred. If they
lose count of where they are just start again from a
number in the area they think they had reached.
Tell them that as they continue to look at that one
spot their eyes become very tired, they now find it
hard to keep them open.
The eyes begin to close all by themselves as they
become heavier and heavier.
As they try to keep their eyes open and fixed on
that one spot, their eyes just continue to grow heavier
and heavier until they close all by themselves and the
client feels unable to open them. Now just allow this

to happen as you slide deeper and deeper into

calmness and relaxation.
You should now explain to your client that you are
going to count backwards from ten all the way down
to one, that with each number you count they can
imagine themselves safely and easily floating down a
stairway of peace and tranquillity drifting deeper and
deeper into relaxation and calmness.

At this stage your client should be in a hypnotic state

and you are ready to begin your session however you
can if you consider it necessary continue making
suggestions of calmness and relaxation until you feel
your client is in a deep enough state for the session to
begin.
Physical sensation is another excellent method of
induction.
Once again begin by ensuring your clients comfort in
a quite undisturbed place.
In a calm and comfortable voice ask your client to
gently close their eyes and be aware of sensations in
their body, the gentle rhythm of their breathing. They
breathe a little cooler as they breathe in, a little

warmer as they breathe out, the heaviness of their

arms and legs.
Ask them to follow the sound of your voice as it
guides and leads them.
Suggest feelings of peace and comfort entering
their bodies from the top of their head and drifting
down through the face and into the body,
incorporating every muscle, cell fibre and organ of
their being and going all the way down to their feet.
Suggest feelings of well being and comfort radiating
in every part of their being.
Once you feel you have sufficiently induced these
feelings of well being you can then count backwards
from ten as you did in the previous induction.
In a later tutorial you can find a variety of induction
scripts that you can use to practise with, however I
would advise you to study them and begin to write
your own using my scripts as a guide line for you to
work from. It is advisable to record your own
induction scripts and play them back using them as a
form of self hypnosis. In this way you gain firsthand
knowledge of how effective your scripts are and can
tweak or re-write them as you feel necessary.

 Prepared inductions
The audio inductions have been prepared using the
correct tonality and voice inflections, (the rise and
fall of your voice, and the stress and emphasis you
place on certain words), you will also notice the
words are spoken slowly and gently, there is nothing
rushed or hurried in the process. Do listen to the
audios and imitate the presentation of them, you will
in time develop your own methods based on these
principles.

Induction 1.
Lie back and relax now
Allow your eyes to close gently in their own time
Notice the gentle motion of your breathing
As you
Slowly inhale
And slowly exhale
For the next little while you dont have to do anything
Except
To breathe
Deeply
Calmly
Peacefully
More and more relaxed
And as you continue to relax in this way
You can become aware
Of a sense of peaceful relaxation creeping over you
Feel a wonderful sense of peace and relaxation
Entering through the top of your head
Be aware of the sensations
Can you feel a tingling on your scalp
Now that amazing feeling of beautiful relaxation

Is moving down
Down your forehead
Down into your face
Relaxing
All of the muscles relaxing
Letting go now
That flow of peaceful relaxation
Softening and easing the muscles of your face
Let go, relax
Now those feelings of calm
Peace
Serenity
Running down your neck
And into your shoulders
Such a feeling of perfect relaxation
And all tension and stress easing out of your
shoulders now
Even as I speak my voice comforts you
Relaxes you
All tension and stress is leaving you
Leaving you with feelings of comfort
Well being
Peace and tranquillity

This slowly moves down your spine

One vertebra at a time
Reaching into all the muscles
Fibres and sinews of your back
Notice these wonderful feelings
Moving down your arms
Your upper arms
Into your elbows
Down through your lower arms
Your wrists
Into your hands
Slowly running along the palms of your hands
And out
Out to the very tips of your fingers
Now these feelings of comfort and peace
Move down through your chest area
Through your diaphragm
Into your stomach
Easing away any tension or stress
That may have been stored there
Leaving in its place
Feelings
Of calmness

Peace
Relaxation
And these wonderful feelings continue on down
Into your legs
Down your thighs
Into your knees
Slowly moving down your lower legs
Into your ankles
Feet
To the very tips of your toes
Only feelings of well being
Calmness, peace
Total relaxation
Every part of your being
Every organ
Every muscle
Relaxed, peaceful
Every tissue and every fibre
More relaxed than you have felt in a long
Long time
Peace
Calm
Tranquillity.

Induction 2.
With your eyes gently closed
Focus only on the sound of my voice
My voice is soothing
Peaceful
And as you listen
You begin to drift
Slowly
Effortlessly
Drifting, deeply, deeply
Ever more deeply into calmness, relaxation
Follow the sound of my voice as it guides you
Leads you
You are drifting now
Drifting along on a fluffy white cloud
Soft, tender
This cloud of peaceful relaxation
Supporting you
Embracing you
As you drift and float
Float and drift
Tranquil

Peaceful
Calm
As you continue drifting, floating
Im going to count
Im going to count from ten
All the way down to one
And with each number that I count
You can imagine yourself
Safely and easily
Drifting down a stairway
Of peace and tranquillity
Each number I count will be a step
Each step
Taking you ever more deeply
Into calmness and relaxation
Ten, your body is relaxed, peaceful, calm
Nine, the more relaxed your body becomes
The more your mind drifts, deeply, deeply into
peaceful relaxation
Eight, floating down now, ever more deeply
Seven, follow the sound of my voice as it guides you,
leads you
Six, outside sounds and noises will not trouble you

Five, you even find that whatever you do hear will

only deepen your level of relaxation
Four, almost all the way down now
Three, every word that I say now, taking you deeper
and deeper into relaxation and calmness
Two, every breath that you draw now increasing
those feelings of peaceful wellbeing
All the way down now to
One, so relaxed
So peaceful and calm
My voice is penetrating to the very depths of your
being
To that place where all change begins
And because you are so relaxed now
Your mind is very receptive to the ideas for change I
am about to suggest.

Induction 3.
As you relax into your chair now
You begin to notice feelings of comfort
Relaxation
Letting go, more and more
And as you continue
To relax there
I would like you to find a spot
On the ceiling
Choose that spot
And
Fix your gaze upon it
All of your attention
All of your focus
Is fixed upon that one spot
As you continue
To gaze at that spot
I would like you to start
Counting backwards
From one hundred
So begin counting now
One hundred

Ninety nine
Ninety eight
Ninety seven
Thats right
Just continue to count backwards
It doesnt matter if you lose your place
You can easily pick up again
Around the number
You think you had reached
And all this while you continue
To focus
On that one tiny spot
As you continue to gaze
Your eyes
Begin to feel very heavy
So heavy they begin to close
All by themselves
As you blink
Trying to hold them open
They once again close, all by themselves
As they become
Heavier, heavier
Briefly you open them once again

To gaze at your spot

But the urge to let them
Close gently, peacefully
Cannot be resisted
Once again they close
All by themselves
This time you allow them to remain closed
And you drift
Deeper and deeper
More and more relaxed
Peace, calm, tranquillity
As you allow my voice to take you deeper
Ever deeper into
Calmness, peace, relaxation
And I am going to count now
From ten
All the way down
To one
And as I count you can simply drift
Easily, deeply, deeply
Ten, drifting down now
Nine, peace, calm, tranquillity
Eight, aware only of the sound of my voice

Seven, as it guides and leads you

Ever deeper
Into peace and tranquillity
Six, drifting, floating
Five, letting go now
Four, at one with the world
Three, at one with the universe
Two, peaceful, calm
And all the way down now
One, you are wonderfully relaxed
Calm and peaceful,
And you inner mind
Is willing to accept the suggestions which I am about
to make
Suggestions which will beneficial
In making the life changes
That you desire.

 Resurfacing your client and aftercare

Once the Hypnotic session is over you need to know
how to re-surface your client.
I have had clients ask if it is possible for them to get
stuck in Hypnosis and the answer is no.
If for any reason the practitioner was unable to
complete the session the worst that would happen is
that the client would drift into a peaceful sleep and
awaken naturally.
Once you reach this point in your session begin to
prepare your client with words such as soon it will
be time to return to the here and now. I always resurface them by counting to five.
Notice when taking them into Hypnosis I count
backward from ten down to one, by only counting to
five in the re-surfacing we are leaving the client more
relaxed than they were initially.
Listen to the audios I have recorded for you which all
have a re-surfacing section for you to learn from.

Aftercare

Hypnosis has no known side effects, typically after a

Hypnotic session the client will be able to continue
with their day but in a more relaxed frame of mind.
I like to give an audio recording to my clients which
they can play daily between our sessions re-enforcing
the positive work we have done.
It is not essential to do this but you may find clients
appreciate this gesture.
Re-assure your client by telling them if they have any
concerns they can contact you.

 Clients observations
Most clients' report that they do not wish to leave the
state as they feel so contented.
They often speak of heaviness in the limbs as they
sink deeper into the chair, bed etc.
Or alternatively they may feel light and floating.
Some lose feeling in the toes and fingers.
They are aware of outside sounds and noises but
are in no way distracted by them.

9. Self hypnosis

Hypnosis is a natural state of consciousness which we

enter many times each day without understanding that
we are in a form of hypnosis.
Getting out of bed when our alarm clock rings,
automatically stopping at a red light these and many
more automatic responses have been encoded into our
sub-conscious brain so that we do not consciously have
to think, our reaction is spontaneous, this is a hypnotic
reaction.
We can also induce a Hypnotic state in ourselves.
Decide what you would like your session to cover then
lie back in a comfortable place and in your own mind
run through an induction as you would for a client.
Once you have completed your induction you can begin
work on your issue using plenty of positive suggestions.
Alternatively, and I believe this to be a more effective
way, set out your session writing down the changes you
would like to make. Next write a script encompassing
all the items you have listed. Choose an induction you
are happy with and record the session. You can then

play it back to yourself whenever you choose and by

using headphones you are cutting out any distractions.

10. Stage hypnosis

Stage Hypnosis should not be confused with Practising
Hypnosis.
A Practising Hypnotist works purely for the benefit of
their client while stage Hypnosis is for entertainment
purposes only.
There is much debate about the ethics of stage Hypnosis
with many of its detractors calling for it to be banned. It
is typically a comic show in which members of the
audience will be selected to be Hypnotised whilst in this
state they will be directed to behave in bizarre ways,
two common depictions are for them to behave like a
dog or a chicken.
I find many people considering Hypnosis for the first
time to be concerned about this aspect.
Therefore one of the first things I do is to explain to the
client that Practising Hypnosis is not connected with
stage Hypnosis, they are two completely different
things.

Personally I have no quarrel with stage Hypnosis, the

people who attend the shows know in advance the type
of venue they are attending and realise it is purely for
entertainment.
In the same way as Practising Hypnotists it is up to us
to dispel the fears of would be clients and assure them
that our Hypnosis is carried out purely for their well
being.

11. Stress

Modern life is full of demands, hassles, deadlines, and

frustrations, for many people, stress are so
commonplace that it has become a way of life.
However stress isnt always bad. In small doses, it helps
you perform under pressure and motivates you to do
your best. But when youre constantly running in
emergency mode, your mind and body pay the price.

If you frequently find yourself feeling under pressure,

overwhelmed and unable to cope, its time to take
action to bring your nervous system back into balance.
It is essential at this time you seek help.
The symptoms of stress will not just go away if ignored,
they will increase spiralling you toward ill health and
maybe even complete breakdown.

Effects of chronic stress

When youre stressed over a busy schedule, an
argument with someone close, a traffic jam, or a pile of
bills, your body reacts as it would if you were facing a
life-or-death situation. If you have a lot of pressures and
responsibilities, commitments and worries, your
emergency stress response may be on most of the
time. The more stressed you are, and the more frequent
this is, the harder it becomes for you to shut off and
your bodys stress system is permanently activated.
Long-term exposure to stress can lead to serious health
problems. Chronic stress affects nearly every system in
your body. It can raise blood pressure, suppress the
immune system, increase the risk of heart attack and
stroke, contribute to infertility, and speed up the aging
process. Long-term stress can even rewire the brain,
leaving you more vulnerable to anxiety and depression.

Many health problems are caused or exacerbated by

stress, including:

Pain of any kind

Heart disease
Digestive problems
Sleep problems
Depression
Obesity
Autoimmune diseases
Skin conditions such as eczema

All these and many more problems can be caused by

stress. Some types of cancer have even been linked to
stress

Steps need to be taken to reduce the harmful effects.

By learning to recognize the early signs and symptoms,
it is possible to avoid an escalation into stress overload.
By seeking help in the early stages the harmful effects,
and awful symptoms, can be greatly reduced and very
often completely avoided.
Hypnosis is an effective method of relaxing and finding
an inner peace.

As it is impossible to be relaxed and anxious at the

same time our bodies release the stress and anxiety
which we have been carrying around with us.

12. Recap

To conclude this course we are going to do a detailed

re-cap of the full Hypnotic session.
1. Ensure the clients comfort, are they sitting/laying in a
comfortable position. Are they warm enough?
2. Talk your client through what they can expect during
the session
3. Ask your client to tell you about the problems they
wish to work through in the session.
Gather as much information as possible do not be afraid
to ask questions.
Listen to what your client is saying, do not assume
anything.
Feel free to make notes on the key issues as you will
refer to these throughout the session.
Once you have gathered as much relevant information
as possible you can begin the Hypnosis session.
4. Begin your induction in the way described
previously.

5. Look for signs of Hypnosis in your client using

deepening techniques should you feel your client is
drifting toward the surface.
6. Build your therapy around the problem your client
wishes to address, using the information gained from
the consultation you have just completed with them to
personalise their Hypnotherapy session.
7. Use plenty of positive affirmations which are
relevant to your client throughout the session.
8. Implant Post Hypnotic suggestions which the subconscious will store and act upon in the future.
9. Once you have completed your session re-surface
your client.

13. How to obtain your certificate.

Congratulations on completing the Foundation course.

Please email me at [email protected]
giving me your full name and email address and I will
be delighted to send you your Foundation in Hypnosis
certificate.
Please make sure that your email is titled Foundation
in Hypnosis.
Thank you for taking my course and may I wish you
every success in the future.