Hypnosis Thread

Jul 26, 2008
470
0
NJ
Hypnosis. There's no real, specific definition for it. There's not an easy way to explain it or describe it. Yet most mentalists and people who have had experience with this mysteriously powerful force will agree that it definitely exists. So why are there people who don't believe in it? And why does that disbelief challenge the effect on hypnosis if it's proven that hypnosis works? All of the reasons behind hypnosis, i.e. brainwaves, subconscious, etc. don't amount to anything if the person being hypnotized doesn't entertain the notion of it. We all know the mind is more powerful than the body, and it doesn't take the Matrix to prove it. With moms lifting cars off their children and people walking on fire and glass, it's easy to see that humans can do anything they put their mind too (in a realistic sense of the phrase, of course).

So here are my questions for discussion today. Listen closely, and think about your answers for a while.

1. What makes hypnosis so powerful? Be it confidence, willpower, or whatever else you can think of, how is it possible to control another person's body?
2. Which brings me to my next question - Is hypnosis really controlling another person's body? Or is it just tricking someone into thinking they are under some kind of influence?
3. Why do some people still not believe in hypnosis?
4. Why does disbelief affect the strength of hypnosis?

Have fun, kids.
 
Pardon if this is offence to anyone.
if you want to watch an interesting explination, watch penn and tellers bullsh*t episode on hypnosis.

search it up on google.
some things i might not agree with but on the whole its basically it

also, hypnosis is proven in lab settings, where certain parts of the brain are stimulated

on the whole walking on glass and fire thing, thats only mind power to the point where the person has enough courage to walk on it. Bill Nye walked on fire and glass in one of his tv shows. so thats no MIND over Matter thing. its a trick.


1.Hypnosis is only as powerfull as the person who is being hypnotized makes it out to be. depending on who is hypnotizing who. Some people are more receptive to it than others. Some people want to believe in it, and some dont.
2. hypnosis is putting an idea into someones head and having them follow it. they have to be cooperative enough to go through with it. You cant make someone jump off a cliff if they are hypnotized.
3. Why do or dont people believe in God? there is a lot of answers and reasons. Some just think that no one can control them. some people dont fully understand what hypnosis is. some people are afraid, some people are ignorant.
4. Hypnosis is someone giving a suggestion to someone else and having the other person follow through with that suggestion. You ask a person why they did what they did after being hypnotized, they will say. idk i just did. they did because you tell them to.

I personally use hypnosis in some of my shows and some times just for friends and friends of friends and for fun. the experience differs for everyone and everyone acts upon it differently.

but i hope that helped. if i am wrong with any of this please tell me and i'll try to edit it.
thanks
 
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Jan 18, 2009
146
1
Penn and Teller did a story on hypnosis and I watched it and they are the ones bullsh!tt!ng this time. If a person believes that another can hypnotize them and the hypnotizer has experience then all should go well. The mind is so easy to fool if put to the right circumstances, when they listen and pay attention and follow directions then become hypnotized.

I believe anybody can be hypnotized if they put their mind to it. They don't have to want to be hypnotized but like I said, paying attention is the key ingredient.

I am working on becoming a hypnotherapist after the Navy and have done some successfully in making others feel much better about themselves. Anyways what you said is somewhat along those lines. The suggestion techniques have to make sense, jumping out of the building does not serve a purpose but if put to enough strain that jumping will ease all their problems, all of the stress etc. will be gone then it's possible they may jump. Then again lets hope no one tries that.
 
May 3, 2008
858
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I'm not going to answer the other questions but I think I believe why most don't believe in hypnosis. I have been performing it for quite some time and it seems like people seem to just have the wrong idea on hypnosis or not truly know what it is. Most people think it's like complete mind control however all it is is putting the subject into a relaxing sleep. And yes, some people can be made to do things but that is only a certain amount of people who are suggestible which means that if someone tells them to do something they may do it and those are the type of people that you see being hypnotized on stage.

-Charlie
 
Jan 13, 2008
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First of all, hypnosis isn't "proven" to be "real"...as far as actual scientific studies (mostly psychological studies), there is far from a consensus on whether or not hypnosis is a real altered state. The fact that it only works on some, not all, people, and the fact that you can only get the people to do certain things (particularly things that don't cause harm to the individual--it's not possible to get someone to do anything that would cause harm to them in any way), seems to be the main things holding back the clear consensus. That, and the fact that it's unknown how/why it works (as in, the actual mechanisms happening inside of the brain). I remember this topic coming up in one of my psychology classes...it was interesting to learn about. I also find it interesting that people would train in hypnotherapy to use hypnosis to "cure" people, when they have no idea how what they're doing is actually having an effect on the person. That's mind boggling to me. Although, that's kind of getting off topic.

Recently I went to see a Kreskin show, since he's doing a tour of the smaller towns across Canada (I had to travel a fair distance to see him, but it was well worth it). He ended his set with a "suggestion" routine. Essentially it's a hypnotism routine, but he doesn't call it that--he doesn't believe in hypnotism. He says that it's all suggestion; that there is no "altered state" or anything like that. He didn't do much of an induction (I was watching closely, as I'm interested in getting into stage hypnotism), but everything seemed to work out alright (or he made it seem that way, if things weren't exactly going his way). But yeah, the main thing is that he doesn't believe in an altered state or anything like that--he says that it's purely suggestion; the way I read into what he was saying, is that it's just a confident person getting those he's speaking to to go along with what he's saying (not necessarily at a fully conscious level).

With that said, like I mentioned, I'm still interested in learning stage hypnotism, as it's very entertaining to watch, and I definitely wouldn't mind adding such an entertaining piece to my repertoire. How it works isn't all that important to me...it seems like it's just suggestion anyway (it usually only works with a confident performer and a very willing subject--coincidence? ;))...it looks fun, and that's what matters. :)
 
Dec 4, 2007
1,074
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www.thrallmind.com
1. What makes hypnosis so powerful? Be it confidence, willpower, or whatever else you can think of, how is it possible to control another person's body?

You aren't controlling another persons body. You are a facilitator, not a driver.

2. Which brings me to my next question - Is hypnosis really controlling another person's body? Or is it just tricking someone into thinking they are under some kind of influence?

People will not do what they ethically believe is wrong. It also has nothing to do with trickery.

3. Why do some people still not believe in hypnosis?

Ignorance.

4. Why does disbelief affect the strength of hypnosis?

Believe it or not, those who do not believe in it may actually be easier subjects.

-ThrallMind
 
Aug 31, 2007
369
0
Hartford, CT
*sigh* Here I go again. :)

Pretty much everyone above hit it on the head.

Hypnosis is not an "altered state" nor is it "mind control". Hypnosis is simply like going to the movies. The only difference is that instead of a big screen and flashy CGI and loud music, the hypnotist convinces the subject to simply use their imagination. To daydream, as it were.

It's the same effect as watching a movie, watching tv or even reading a book. For example, your mind right now is focusing on these words to some degree. If I typed "dont' think of a purple cow", most of you, not all, would think of a purple cow. The point is that because you are focused on what is on the page, you are more open to suggestions. It's up to you whether you follow the suggestions or not.

Hypnotism is exactly the same thing. Instead of a movie, (which is the example I use when I do a show), I "paint a picture" of emotions, images and suggestions with words. My audience is willing and believes.

Nothing mysterious, nothing powerful and certainly not mind control.

As to some people who are unbelievers who seem to be more succeptable to this, yes, I've come across that. That's a little more complicated because I think those people really really want it to work on them, but their pride or something like that is holding them back. Those are the people who just simply want an excuse for it to work, so it's not "their fault", e.g. "Oh, he surprised me", "He confused me", etc. Again, nothing magical, just giving someone a suggestion that they are open to.
 
Sep 5, 2007
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Believe it or not, those who do not believe in it may actually be easier subjects.

I have to disagree. In my experience, those who are most hypnotizable are the ones who do believe in it. The ones who don't usually sit in the chair and snicker, let their eyelids flutter, etc. When I have brought up hypnosis, I look for the people who give a serious sort of nod, or a glow of excitement.
 
Nov 8, 2008
3
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Alabama
He worded it wrong in a sense about people who dont agree with hypnosis. The easiest hypnotic subjects are the ones that are strong minded or believe they are strong minded because they listen the best and it becomes simpler to put them under.
 
Dec 4, 2007
1,074
2
www.thrallmind.com
I have to disagree. In my experience, those who are most hypnotizable are the ones who do believe in it. The ones who don't usually sit in the chair and snicker, let their eyelids flutter, etc. When I have brought up hypnosis, I look for the people who give a serious sort of nod, or a glow of excitement.

Hence why I said "may" :)

Depending on the methods and inductions used, it can vary. Which is why scientists cannot validate that hypnosis is fact.

They take a bunch of subjects, and use the same induction on them! Of course it isn't going to work for everyone. You have to tailor your methods based on what you are given.

Please don't assume that your experience is the same for everyone, though :p

-ThrallMind
 
Sep 1, 2007
3,786
15
Penn and Teller did a story on hypnosis and I watched it and they are the ones bullsh!tt!ng this time.

Technically they didn't refute hypnosis proper, just the quack theories surrounding it, like the idea that you can enlarge your breasts or regrow hair through hypnotherapy. There is no biological or psychological precedent to support that.

Furthermore, they've also disputed the claims the hypnosis can effect past life regressions. Again, there simply is no scientific data to corroborate that claim.
 
Aug 31, 2007
369
0
Hartford, CT
Technically they didn't refute hypnosis proper, just the quack theories surrounding it, like the idea that you can enlarge your breasts or regrow hair through hypnotherapy. There is no biological or psychological precedent to support that.

Furthermore, they've also disputed the claims the hypnosis can effect past life regressions. Again, there simply is no scientific data to corroborate that claim.

To go further with this, there is no scientific evidence that says that hypnosis can make a person "regress" in age. (i.e., making a 30 year old person regress to 8 years old). In fact, the evidence tends to show that the person who is hypnotized to "regressed to a younger age" is actually acting like a younger person. The language patterns, the movements, the cognitive thinking is still that of the older person. There is no real "regression" that happens.
 
Jan 1, 2009
2,241
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Back in Time
I've always read that you can't hypnotize people to do something they normally wouldn't do. This this begs the question why you can get them to cluck like a chicken or think they are naked. Specially the X rated guy who can make people think they are in orgies.
 
Aug 31, 2007
369
0
Hartford, CT
I've always read that you can't hypnotize people to do something they normally wouldn't do. This this begs the question why you can get them to cluck like a chicken or think they are naked. Specially the X rated guy who can make people think they are in orgies.

I explained that in a previous post. Because these people wouldn't do it normally, but on stage, with a) them in the spotlight, b) the excuse that it wasn't their idea, (e.g. it was the hypnotist's fault) c) they WANT and expect to something fun happen.

Let me give you a for instance. It's true I strictly do X-rated shows. I do them at parties where adults want something X-rated to happen. There's the desire right there: I have 80% of my work done, and done by the audience. :)

Another way of putting it is that it's like Halloween. If you have ever dressed up for Halloween, what did you dress as for Halloween? Would you dress that way normally? Of course not. You did because it was a special occasion, it was harmless fun, others were doing it and it was entertaining with you in the spotlight for the moment. Same kind of thinking going on with a hypnosis show. :)
 
Jan 1, 2009
2,241
3
Back in Time
I explained that in a previous post. Because these people wouldn't do it normally, but on stage, with a) them in the spotlight, b) the excuse that it wasn't their idea, (e.g. it was the hypnotist's fault) c) they WANT and expect to something fun happen.

Let me give you a for instance. It's true I strictly do X-rated shows. I do them at parties where adults want something X-rated to happen. There's the desire right there: I have 80% of my work done, and done by the audience. :)

Another way of putting it is that it's like Halloween. If you have ever dressed up for Halloween, what did you dress as for Halloween? Would you dress that way normally? Of course not. You did because it was a special occasion, it was harmless fun, others were doing it and it was entertaining with you in the spotlight for the moment. Same kind of thinking going on with a hypnosis show. :)

Which still goes to show why a lot of hypnotists joke about not being able to use it to get girls.

I did see the Mythbusters pretty much disprove the mind control thing. I think what they did was have somebody hypnotize grant to write a heart or whatever on one of his battle bots whenever he heard a specific word, All it did in the end was cause him giggle every time he heard the word.

Altho it would be pretty funny if you could actually mind control people do things off the stage. Like after a show, they still hear that word and end up acting out the thing that happened on stage.
 
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