The Transparent Hypnotist

Using hypnosis for various pregnancy issues is a hot topic. There is hypno-birthing (utilizing hypnosis for pain control during actual labor), Lamaze self-hypnosis techniques, stress reduction for better conception practices, stress reduction for the pregnancy duration, stress relief for partners, self-confidence for the entire process and probably many more things (feel free to add to this list if you would like).

As a hypnotist occasionally working with this topic, I often run across people who have little or no health insurance. This can be a real problem if you are considering pregnancy, having trouble becoming pregnant, or actually having the baby. Many people come to me hoping that I will be an alternative to health insurance, of which I am NOT! In the pregnancy scenario for sure, I am complimentary to traditional medicine.

So, in trying to help these clients, I have done some research into maternity health care concepts and thought this might be of interest to others in similar situations. One particular web site seems to be fairly helpful (for those of you with clients without internet availability, suggest that they utilize their neighborhood library) is Maternity Health Insurance, known as Reproductive Access Solutions. RAS helps many women find solutions for their individual needs, especially with “Moms in the Middle” - women who do not have great maternity benefits from their employers or do not qualify for maternity health insurance.

The RAS web site is easily navigated, not cluttered, and concise. They ask for those interested to fill out a form, which includes a telephone number and email so that the person needing benefits can be called and helped individually. To quote their web site, they help with:

Identifying reproductive health resources for women who are seeking financial help.

RAS not only helps with just financial concepts, but is a network of information and advice.

So please do pass this on to those who may need this service. If I come across them in my business, surely many of you do as well.

Click here for Ellie’s Disclosure Policy.

After spending a few days in foreign places and being introduced to a variety of people, the inevitable questions about hypnosis traveled with me. I am not complaining. I am always thrilled to have an opportunity to discuss my favorite subject. That is one of the fun aspects of telling people about what I do - there seems to always be a fascination. Do brain surgeons get this or do people just smile and say “that’s interesting” and go about their day? Or do they get, “How fascinating. I’ve always wanted an up-close-and-personal view of the raw brain. Tell me, is brain matter more grey or pink?”

After listening to these questions (about hypnosis, not brain surgery) it made me think about some of the comments you have posted, emailed me, or that I have seen on various forum discussions. There seems to be a huge variety of opinions of how hypnosis is best used. It runs a large gamut from esoteric study to healing arts, not to mention the entertainment value. And many of us indulge in all of it. The poll is located on the upper right side of the blog.

So that led me to today’s poll topic of hypno uses. Please vote for your favorite options and if you put “other,” please consider posting what that “other” is on this posting’s comments.

Sorry all. I am headed out for the weekend and must away with not so much as a “how do you do” or a decent hypno reference.

See you on Monday.

As you may have figured out, the subject of group hypnosis has been on my mind lately. There is a part of me that feels like it is a good thing because a lot of hypnotist do well with groups. I am just not sure I am one of them. Do you ever feel like there is something out there that you should be doing because it seems to be the thing to do? Or is this peer pressure (probably imagined peer pressure).

During an evaluation several years ago, while working in a group situation, I received some interesting feedback from the team leader. She said that I had hurt the group by not giving more of myself to the group overall. It was obvious I had much to offer, but chose instead to do so on an individual basis rather than the playing the group dynamic.

I have thought about this over the years, trying to see the wisdom of it, but what I always, ALWAYS come back to is that some people are group oriented and some are not. I fall into the latter category apparently, but I do not think this is a bad thing. My strength seems to be in connecting individually. After meetings, I am always pulled aside by various people who want the personal attention.

Hypnosis wise I think this idea of individual attention plays large with me. I did a group session once where we worked on creating a “safe space within our mind,” and rather than leading the group to a beach or a stream in the forest, we worked on finding that wonderful place individually. Halfway through, I noticed one of the participants sobbing. It was not tears streaming down, but loud, heart-wrenching sobs. Not knowing what she was experiencing, I gave suggestions for the group to either stay in their constructed space or go to a place within their memory that was happy or peaceful. The sobbing grew worse. Restlessness set in for the other participants. I then gave suggestions to either allow the sounds in the background to take them deeper into relaxation or if they chose they could bring themselves back to normal consciousness by counting from one to five in their minds and opening their eyes when they were ready. Sadly, my crier did not open her eyes, but sobbed even more. So, I had the group count down in their minds from 25 down to one, allowing each number to help them stabilize any emotions, letting go of any anxiety, releasing all sadness. This worked and we continued. Upon finishing, many pulled me aside afterward and asked if everything was alright and I explained how the release process can cause great emotion and that seemed to ebb the curiosity. I ended up spending more time with the crier afterwards. As it turned out, she had a large break through and had understood something within, mourning childhood and such. Sadly though, she has not returned to hypnosis because she had come for stress relief and found herself more stressed in the process. Even though she said a great weight had been lifted, hypnosis was not for her.

For me, I was exhausted. It felt like doing mental gymnastics (and I am no gymnast) to keep the session balanced. I know this is all part of hypnosis and that I probably grew a lot from it, but it strengthened my concept that I much prefer the one on one.

Gosh, sounds as if I am justifying something here. Hmmm.

Looking at the calender this morning, there is a note in my schedule to think about sending a thank you gift to a doctor who sends me a huge number of referrals. I know this is a touchy subject, as I do not want to be accused of bribing this source of monetary support. But it has been a year as of today that we have been doing business together and and I want to hallmark this occasion by showing how appreciative I am of the referrals.Well, thanks to keepcash.com and their online shopping coupons, inspiration has occurred. I know, I know - Ellie and her sweet (as one teenage client says) deals, but what can I say, I enjoy Internet shopping and researching prices and such. There is nothing wrong with being an informed consumer and it always feels good to know that you have saved money. Okay, so what inspired me this morning? To be exact, my inspiration is an MP3 player. Through the keepcash.com site, I found one that is incredibly affordable (plus someone gave me one at Christmas last year and I have had great luck with it). With CompUSA’s great deals, I can give a token gift that is usable and personal. I will load several of my hypnosis for relaxation audios on to it. What doctor cannot use a stress break every so often? The other benefit of this is that it provides a personal touch and reinforces the idea of what I do, so perhaps it will inspire more referrals.

The great thing about keepcash.com is that the site is updated daily with new deals and coupons. And if you have a favorite merchant, there is a huge chance that they will have some sort of special of which you can take advantage. The site is easy to use and is can be browsed quickly. If you do any sort of Internet shopping, it only takes a few moments to find what you are looking for and the payoffs can be large.

Anyway, just thought I would share both my good fortune (finding a great deal) and my inspiration with you. Perhaps, you too, will be inspired by them.

Also, if you give similar gifts, please feel free to share your ideas as well.

So, were you with me? Did we connect?

After awaking, throwing on my Yoga pants and a t-shirt, sitting in the dampness of the new morning, I spent the first thoughts of the day in meditation, working on firing the grid. The morning was so quiet,except for the crickets and some deer in the field beyond the house. The solitude was as ever, very nice, just me and the morning…and maybe thousands of other people. I began to wonder who else was sitting in contemplation of healing the earth at the same moment. Such thoughts often filtered through and for a moment, I actually felt the connectedness, not just to the wood on the porch under me, but to all those who were doing the same thing. There was a slight sensation of euphoria with this thought, a lifting of the burdens, a breath of hope in what feels like an inevitable course of time.

And so, this turned into the theme of today’s post - the invisible processes of the group dynamic. Not really knowing what I would write about, the cup of tea and me have made it to this point.

The idea of groups intrigues me and I wonder about its potential. If you are a “Universal Consciousness” believer, it seems like group hypnosis could be very powerful with under currents running the gamut from intuitive support to helping with feelings canceling out loneliness. I wonder about the whole vibration or frequency concept with groups. I know little about the psychics involved with vibration or frequency, but it seems like they could be elevated by a group of simpatico souls (Yes, I have also just read The Tenth Insight and yes, I read the whole thing but did not enjoy it nearly as much as The Celestine Prophecy).

Before this morning, I might not have actually been aware of the potential of group hypnosis, perhaps did not understand it at all. I know it is not a new concept, it is just something that has been enigma to me. I think I will let this rest for now and come back to it tomorrow.

Hope your day is peaceful.

This morning, indulging in the absolute laziest of ways, I have microwaved yesterday’s leftover coffee and am enjoying its cloying, thickness at the moment. Some how it fits this groggy Monday.

I have just checked my email and discovered a few emails about “Fire the Grid.” Have you heard about this? Though it is not directly related to hypnosis, it is related to positive thinking and meditation. It is the idea of a world-wide healing through positive thought (meditation) and an invitation to anyone who wants to participate. It begins tomorrow at 11:11 GMT.

I think I am going to do this. I hope you will as well.

I am quoting one email for the rest of this so that you can better understand:

This is Shelly Yates’ amazing story about her near-death experience of drowning with her son, and both of them being revived in order to facilitate this important global opportunity. They died for over 30 minutes and yet, miraculously came back to life. She is now on assignment from Heaven to orchestrate a Universal healing for Mother Earth on July 17 at 11:11 GMT.

In the words of Shelley Yates “Whatever method you choose to use, or who you choose to sit with: the ultimate defining moment for each of us during this window of opportunity is, “Are we holding love and optimism in our hearts as this cosmic event facilitates our vibrational uplifting?”

Each human is to participate in his or her own way with acceptance for where each of us lives in our consciousness (spiritual) journey. Use the method, prayer, meditation, thought, intention, or whatever best brings you peace and joy, and give thanks and gratitude for life and for this experience, keeping your heart light and filled with joy and/or gratitude and love, for this significant hour. Two or more gathering together will amplify the intention and connection. “It is the gratitude that will fire the grid and you will consciously place your vote among millions for the direction we wish our world to move towards……….open the heart and allow the spiraling filaments of golden, “liquid light” that live in the aura around human beings…to fill you.”

* * * If you are unable to participate during this hour, Shelley recommends the following: “Simply write a note to your inner being, no matter what name you give that inner being, it could be soul or God-force or merely my inner self. Write your inner being a letter giving that inner piece of yourself permission to connect with the grid of spiritual light on your behalf on July 17 at 4:11 PDT. On this earthly plane we continue to have free will and therefore we must give our inner being permission to connect on our behalf. THEN, simply state the things that bring you joy and bliss ~ and give thanks for those moments. Clearly state your intention to manifest the world we desire then sign your note to leave your personal energy with your intention. Then go to bed or work or what ever task you must do and be assured that your soul will register your vote by firing your inner system and uniting it with the many, many people who will be joining us on that day with the intention to create a peaceful and loving world…….allowing the natural harmony and grace of life to flourish.”

For more information, go to www.firethegrid.com.

After a slight discussion about smoking cessation this past week, it seems like this is a good topic for the Sunday question.

What is the most import element in helping others with smoking cessation?

There are several answers, I suspect. But smoking cessation is one of those things that I truly do not totally understand, as I have never been a smoker. Michael mentioned in a post from last week that he feels that it is good to ingrain the idea of “gain” rather than “loss.” So perhaps this is a key ingredient.

I would love to hear from both hypnotists and those who have given up smoking.

Well, it is Saturday (yet again) and it seems like a reason to celebrate. In positive thinking, celebrations of life in general seem important.

So, should I put the disclaimer here: Do not try this unless you are of the legal drinking age for your particular state of being? Or the Transparent Hypnotist does not endorse the idea of continual, over indulgence of alcoholic beverages? Moderation, moderation, moderation (sounds like a good motto or mantra).

Good grief, I am merely a human.

So, anyway, I have noticed HQ Hpnotiq Liqueur here and there. It comes in a lovely blue bottle or perhaps the content is blue? I truly cannot say as I have not tried this beverage, but I am intrigued and think (rather hope) it may be the next best thing to Moet White Star for celebrating. Vodka, Cognac, and tropical fruit juices. Sounds delightful.

Check out their web site at www.hpnotiq.com. Its fun, though I now have the song from it playing on a loop in my mind.

Care to join me for a drink?

The other day I mentioned working with a client on smoking cessation. I hope you read Michael’s comment on it. It was very helpful.

In listening to my client, she mentioned that someone had suggested she try a mass hypnosis session for her goal of being free from cigarettes. These sessions are done by a traveling hypnotist who comes to town once a year and does a mass hypnosis session with several hundred people at once, relatively cheaply. Interestingly enough, this particular client choose to do individual sessions because she wanted the one on one experience and thought it would be more beneficial.

But guess what, I am not going to rally against the hypnotists who do this sort of work. I know there has been some news in the past about frauds, etc. and I am sure there may be some. Rather, I will say that my favorite “confusion” induction comes from Robert Otto, a hypnotist who engages in mass hypnosis and seems to have great success. Indeed, I am a bit envious of his talents, and use this to motivate myself to continue learning.

Many clients ask me about these mass sessions and if they “work.” I admit to a little delight (and a sigh of relief) when I hear that they thought about going to such a session, but opted for me instead, simply because it means that they are making an effort. They have put some thought into their process of change. It is not that they chose me over another hypnotist, but that they weighed the options and made a choice. It shows initiative to some degree and this is always positive.

Now the people who attend the mass hypnosis sessions, do I think little of them. I certainly do not. I do not begrudge anyone in their efforts to help themselves. I hope that they have educated themselves in the process and made the correct choice that will work for them. There are just as many success stories with mass hypnosis, as not.

The client who brought all this to mind mentioned mass hypnosis because the person who told her about the mass session idea wanted to know why she chose to quit smoking in several sessions, when perhaps she could have done it in one. It was her choice to ween herself off rather than just diving in, and she had under lying reasons for this as well. It was not just smoking she wanted to work on, but wanted greater insight into herself (regression, etc.). With a mass session, the attention is focused to a group, and my client wanted the individual attention.