The number of clients I see on a weekly basis is consistent and  changes dramatically.

I have not figured out why.

Some just want to try hypnosis. They fail, usually, because their expectations are too high. They demand results too soon.

I told a psychologist friend about a client who wanted to cure her anxiety, pain and binge eating in one session.

Raising her eyebrows, the psychologist opened her mouth in shock. She laughed at the ridiculousness of the demand.

Most clients come in only with the understanding of what they have seen on television and stage hypnotism shows. People go into a deep hypnotic trance quickly and do all sorts of whacky things. In good fun.

As I have written many times, audience members come away with a skewed understanding of what hypnosis is about.

They believe the hypnotized person will do anything.  Emphatically not true.

Volunteers chosen to go on stage at a show are somnambulists. Outside of hypnotherapy, a somnambulist is a person who walks in his sleep. Within hypnotherapy circles, a somnambulist is someone who rapidly will go to the deepest levels of hypnosis. (My record for hypnotizing a somnambulist from a state of full wakefulness was 1.5 seconds.)

One person in five is a somnambulist. With an audience of 100, a good hypnotist will have at least 20 people to choose from. A hypnotist never takes control of a person. Impossible.

For hypnosis to work, the subject will want to cooperate.

Any person who does not want to be hypnotized, will not and cannot be hypnotized. The participant must be willing to enter an hypnotic state.

If asked to jump off a 20-story building when fully awake, would you? If you would not do it when awake, you would not when hypnotized.  .

You are 100 percent aware of everything happening at all times.

Any person can break any hypnotic trance by merely opening his eyes and getting up.

When hypnotized you appear to be asleep but your subconscious retains everything heard or seen. It was discovered 140 years ago that when a person is asleep, he is asleep.

Hypnosis is incredibly powerful to help anyone who wants to try it. Often, though, hypnosis takes more than one quick session to to change your behaviors from those you get to those you want.

Hypnosis is safe, and it has been proven beneficial for many different issues.

Do not hesitate to contact me by telephone, 310.204.3321, or by email at nickpollak@hypnotherapy4you.net. See my website at www.hypnotherapy4you.net