hypnotism, good or bad?

[cainam_nazier]

I have some of the same issues with it.  I also have been considering going to one but more on a scientific exploration.  I wonder if certain abilities could be given more strength or control.  Both would be usefull.  Or even possibly open other doors.  

But I don't want to end up like Kevin Bacon in Stir of Echos......"I must Dig!"  That would mess with me too much.

I believe that it has its ups and downs.  One being you would have to trust the person you go to not to mess with you or alter your thinking beyond what you want.  Also they would have to know what to say and what not to say.

David Rogalski
cainam_nazier@hotmail.com

[Fenris]

My old man is quite skilled with hypnotism, just not as a professional is all! He used to mess around with vointeres at parties. Yes your fears are true, he ones told someone that they would "forget everything when they woke up". You know where tis story goes!

Veni Vidi Vici

[Ides315]

Hi all

Fenris is right. Do to situations i had to deal with, I have learned alot about hypnosis. I would only allow it to be done by about one person in the whole world to me. The only person I trust unconditionally. There is an amazing amount of access with hypnosis, and everybody has different "depths" they could be taken to right out of the box.

If the person doing the hypnosis knows some psychology, most of what you "wouldn't do" can be worked around. The effects are greatly enhanced with drugs.

On the positiive side, alot can be accomplished with hypnosis, and some magickal systems recomend or even demand the ability of self hypnosis to become fully capable in that system. It seems "magick mirrors" are more effective for scrying if you can attain a light trance. This would also include invokations to a non physical form.

If you decide to go that path, think about learning self hypnosis, or make darn sure you trust the person that is hypnotizing you.

[SilverSlider]

What about self induced hypnosis? I have a friend that is interested in this but I'm not so sure about his doing this. any suggestions?

[Ides315]

Hey, silverslider.

If you did some good research about what you wanted to accomplish, and did the programming in a positive way, it would be fine. There are some great benefits to hypnosis. It is like most tools, it all depends on what/how you use it. The potential mental implications of hypnosis make it a very sharp tool. Just don't get cut.

[Josh Redstone]

@Silverslider.

Hypnosis and self hypnosis are quite different. I think of self hypnosis kind of like meditation.
Hypnosis involves the individual greatly, the hypnotist just serves as a guide. You cant do anything you really dont want to do either, for all you curiouse people looking into hypnosis. There is a part of the mind called the Critical Faculty, a mental device which sets our limitations, defines reality, that sort of thing. In a hypnotic trance, this is inactive, thats why people can be talked into doing those crazy things, but as soon as the hypnotist steps over the line, the critical faculty comes into play.
Here is an example. I was on tour with my band, sitting in a hotel room without much to do. I had told my friend the drummer, about hypnosis, and he wanted to try it. He was curious and wanted to be hypnotised. As a result, I had him half asleep in about ten minutes. By the time I was finnished,  I had  made him walk around the hotel in a daze, loose touch with reality, forget what he looks like in a mirror, and I had almost no resistance from him.
On the walk past a guitar player in the same band aked what was wrong with him. I told him that I had hypnotized him. He wanted to try it, but was very set on not letting me take control. I tried to make him forget the names of everyone in the band, but he only got about three names mixed up. It was because he didn't want to surrender to the controll of the hypnotist (me) that it didn't work. Thats my theory anyway.

[astralc]

lucid dancer

there are some interesting and powerful thoughts coming out of this thread. I have worked as a hypnotherapist for the past 10 years, I don't do it as much now but I still use trance for healing emotional issues.

I would like to say that 'trust' is the first element in choosing a therapist, if you don't trust your therapist then you shouldn't be there. Hypnotherapy is different to stage hypnosis, a lot of damage has been done by some of the stage guys who have no repsonsibility for your wellbeing but just want to provide entertainment.

I studied hynosis when I worked as a meditation teacher, I put people into trance and did strange things with them but soon decided that I needed to know more about what I was doing in case I did something wrong. When I finished my hypnotheray studies I realised that I still knew very little about the workings of the mind, so I went to university and got my psychologists qualifications.

Now as a psychologist I still don't know enough, but I won't be going back to uni for that! I think we learn best by doing it, after we have the theory we have to put it into practice.

I have practiced self hypnosis for years, in combination with my tai chi, and I would recommend everyone go and learn it. Choose a trusted therapist, someone trained and qualified and registered, and that will give you a head start to going into trance and astral travel. Make sure you go for at least 6 sessions, don't expect the BIG BANG in the first one or two, you need to train to get to that stage.

Astralc


"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." Ralph Waldo Emerson
www.shoal.net.au/~astralc
"The marriage of the ancient arts of astrology, taoism, tantra and the modern science of psychology."

[lucid dancer]

I was just wondering what you guys think of hypnotism. I've always had mixed thoughts about it. I think I might look into it to solve a problem that I have. However, I'm nervous about actually going through with it. I don't want to leave myself spiritually vulnerable.  ...Please reply!  Any experiences?