Are you afraid of me? Or, more to the point are you afraid of what I do? It is always a surprise to me when I offer to help someone and they refuse the help because they are afraid of hypnosis. Sometimes they will tell me they don’t believe in hypnosis, but usually that is a fear based belief.
First of all, saying you do or don’t believe in hypnosis is kind of like saying you do or don’t believe in thinking. Whether or not you want to believe in it, you will think. Same thing with hypnosis; it exists and it is real and you will experience it at some level throughout your life. Now, you may not believe it works and if that is the case, it probably won’t work for you. If you are open to the possibility of it working, most likely it will work for you.
I love when a new client says they have heard good things about hypnosis, but they aren’t sure if they can be hypnotized. This shows me that they are about to uncover some amazing abilities they never knew they had.
The term for the fear of being hypnotized is called hypnophobia (that is for the full-blown irrational fear). This term is also used to mean a fear of sleep, but not all hypnophobes are afraid of sleeping at night. In its mild state, people might only be slightly concerned of what might happen to them if they were hypnotized, but in its fullest expression, this fear becomes haunting and may greatly affect how well people are able to pursue their lives. These aren’t rational fears; most people can’t be hypnotized against their will or forced to do anything they don’t want to when under hypnosis. Phobias, though, aren’t rational, and so these fears build.
I have done quite a bit of work with sleep issues. It began when my husband could not sleep after his quadruple bypass. We worked together to get him to sleep peacefully. He was suffering and unable to sleep, after a few sessions, he could put himself to sleep in a matter of minutes. This led me to working with other heart patients; eventually expanding to other sleep issues. So, when a neighbor of mine had a traumatic experience that was affecting her sleep, I offered her a free hypnosis session. Her response was visceral, instant rejection. We have remained friends, but I will respect her boundaries.
Recently another person posted on Facebook about sleep issues. A friend of mine, who has used hypnosis for sleep encouraged her to see me. When I reached out, I heard crickets. Again, I will respect her choice not to use hypnosis, it just makes me sad that someone who can’t sleep also can’t get help because of a fear.
So, I ask you, dear reader, are you afraid of hypnosis? Are you willing to let that fear control your life? After all, if hypnosis can help you resolve your worries and overcome your obstacles, why not give it a try? If you read the FAQ’s on hypnosis, does that change your mind? What will it take for you to be free in 2016?
