Hypnosis is a state of concentration and focused attention. Almost everyone has had this experience. What happens is that we are inwardly absorbed. Hypnosis can be used by athletes who use visualization to improve their skills. It is very useful during periods of injury as it allows a form of practice that has been shown to help maintain muscle memory. Hypnosis can be used as a form of pain control. It has been proven to be very effective in reducing post operative recovery discomfort and as an aid in healing post operatively. People trained in hypnosis learn ways to help control stress and manage anxiety.
How does Hypnosis work? It's very much like using a magnifying glass in the sunlight. When you use a magnifying glass to focus and concentrate the rays of the sun into a pinpoint of light, the sun's rays become more powerful. When they are concentrated, the sun's rays can burn a hole through sheet metal or start a fire. Similarly when we focus and concentrate our mind's attention, it allows us to use our own mind in a much more powerful way.
Without realizing it, many people use spontaneous, informal trance states in a negative manner. For instance, we visualize negative outcomes or memories that stir up anxiety or depression. It's also not uncommon for us to speak internally to ourselves in quite critical ways. As we criticize and put ourselves down, we are essentially in light trance states, preoccupied and internally focused. It is thus important to realize that thoughts, imaginations and internal dialogue can be positive and helpful, or counterproductive.
Hypnosis is a method of focusing your mind and using your imagination and thoughts to stir feelings and to alter your behavior and attitudes. In a sense, in hypnosis you are altering your internal world. When you change how you think, visualize and imagine things to be, your feelings and behavior will begin to change. It is commonly believed that we use only five or ten percent of our mental potential. Hypnosis is simply a focused state of attention and concentration that allows your to use more of that potential and power of your own mind. In a very real sense, hypnosis is actually the ultimate in a self-control skill.
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