The Transparent Hypnotist

They show up, looking behind them, surveying the parking lot, reading my words on confidentiality and privacy closely, and tell me that they want no one to know that they are seeing a hypnotist. If we see each other in passing, I am not to be hurt if they do not “know” me. Then they breathe and unpack their life and fears.

And sometimes I wonder if those with a heightened sense of paranoia are not a little wiser than the rest of us. Today while perusing the blog world for marketing ideas, I came across
GimmieTheScoop.com (Random blatherings - I love it!), a so-called Marketing Blog. Though I am not sure I gained perspective in that area, it kept my attention. The blog has different sections for health, business, and politics, among others.

The recent post in health was about China’s food safety issues. Where have I been? Last I heard, one had to be careful with toothpaste, now food? See why perhaps those that are a little paranoid maybe right in their ideas? If you read the post before that one, there seems to be some issue with Chinese Medicine as well. Great. The articles do not go into great depth on specifics, but it is enough to make one read labels a little more closely. But what I want to know, does this affect Chinese Herbals? What are the ramifications?

I have been looking into Chinese herbs and their potential to help with PMS (it has been said, I am not sure by whom, that the Chinese do not have the problems we have with PMS). Now I guess I will move a little slower and even more cautiously.

And how will this affect the 2008 Olympics in Beijing? I had entertained an idea of trying to go on holiday then. Or am I just feeding into media frenzy?

On a more positive note, in their Business Blog section, there is a posting on some fabulous new toys that are coming out for businesses. I just might need a cell phone that is a transformer. Perhaps it will protect me from any intruder subplot planing to disrupt the tranquility of my garden room office.

So, as always, feel free to share your thoughts on the whole paranoia idea, Chinese medicine (hey, some of you are herbalist out there, I know you are there, let me hear from you), or if you too need a cell phone that doubles as a toy.

Yes, I know I have been going crazy with posting today, but apparently I have a lot say. Today has been my sit-at-the-computer-and-enjoy-the-cyber-world day.

A topic we have touched on a bit this week is the verbal impact of words. It reminded me when I referred to Michael as a “subject” about a conversation we had a few months back (see “Verbal Impact“). We had discussed getting rid of the term “subject” (see “Throwing Out A Few Words“), which is why I mentioned all that. But today, I was also researching drug treatment plans and addiction counseling. I came across Stone Hawk, a facility offering those types of things. They do not refer to clients as “patients,” but as “students” because they feel that these clients are learning a new way to live. Once the students “graduate,” they are done. Finished. No need for weekly meetings or sponsors; they are considered fully recovered. Stone Hawk’s drug treatment is apparently in the 70% success rate with their philosophies and teachings.

Talk about positive belief structures. I would be more apt to recommend clients to a program such as this rather than to a regular 12 step because it is closer to what we do as hypnotists. We deal with the problem, rather than drawing it out (painfully) so that clients can move on with their lives. Also, no drugs are used in the recovery process (for us or Stone Hawk). They choose to utilize natural detoxification. In looking at their program more carefully, it is a Narconon program, which was the brain child of L. Ron Hubbard, at least partially. Do not groan so loudly, please. Yes, he may have been the founder of Scientology, a photographer, a science fiction author, but he was also a hypnotist and had a great interest in health issues. I go through periods when I think he was a complete genius (even if I am not a Scientologist), but I am still on the cusp of my learning curve about him.

So when you put it all together, a positive program based in ridding clients of their drug and alcohol demons without using crutches or substitution, it makes total sense that someone of our ilk would be in the creation of such a program. The program does not treat clients as having a disease, but helps them learn how to function better in life. Also, this site offers a library of articles related to drug and alcohol (from their perspective) and a decent glossary of drug information (if you have a client coming to you for such things, its is always good to know more about what they have ingested).

And back to the point about the power of words. Hmmm. This is another example of the power of positive wording. Not “patients,” but “students.” Maybe this would be a great way to think of our clients?

Okay, I am now posting this and turning off the computer and heading to bed. Good night.

Okay, this is just so cool, I have to say something.

Yesterday I added the widget from iratemyday.com to monitor my moods. Today, I updated it, but at first it did not appear to change on my blog. I was a bit bummed. But when I checked a moment ago, indeed it did change to show my mood.

Fun, fun, fun.

My partner and I have been discussing the concept of presenting team building workshops. My role would be to facilitate a self-hypnosis section and be

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.

It is time for another book discussion since I just finished reading Edith Fiore’s The Unquiet Dead: A Psychologist Treats Spiritual Possession. Are you grimacing again with Ellie’s interest with the uncanny? Hopefully not.

A fellow hypnotist told me she was reading this and it sounded interesting, so I decided to give it a go. The premise is that a lot of our problems are caused by spirit possession. This sort of possession is not like demonic possession, apparently. Most people do not know that they are possessed and according to Fiore, feel much better after a simple hypnotic process. I have personally never worked with anything like this, nor have I been asked to do so, and I am not sure how I really feel about the idea. The positive thing is that the author does not hammer in a necessary belief in spirit co-habitation to be successful.

Anyway I really enjoyed it. Have any of you read it?

And by the by, what you currently reading?

Oh, also I suspect you may be a fan of AlibrisBooksellers (Over 60 million used, new, and out-of-print books!). I am pretty addicted to them as my book source, so if you have not tried them for your reading needs (and perhaps Edith Fiore’s book), you should! I have had great luck finding hard to find books there and even out of print publications. Here’s a fun trick, though. If you go to couponchief.com, they offer promo codes for various discounts and savings, including Alibris.com coupons. Click here for the deals at Alibris. For instance, at the moment, they have a $3 off $30 deal (before July 22). Pretty nice. And every hypnotist I know is a book junky, so enjoy. And the same site has other decent deals for many online stores, so check those out as well.

Click here for Ellie’s Disclosure Policy.

Are you going to the NGH (National Guild of hypnotist) conference coming up in August? Or are you just like me and have not been able to commit to going (I know, sad, sad, sad). I am just getting to the point where I am really considering it, but know that reservations probably will not happen at the conference hotel. So, I have decided to enlist the help of the internet and thought I would share.

In researching the cost and details of this trip (Marlboro, Mass.), I narrowed the playing field down by going to Hotel Discounts, known as HotelReservations.com. Everything you need to make travel arrangements seems to be centrally located on the main page. It is all there. Flights. Hotels. Rental cars. These are the standards, but this site also includes options for condo rentals, vacation rentals, and more. Though there is a lot of information on the main page, if you just take a deep breath and pay attention, this is a great way to arrange travel, plus it is very competitive price-wise with its competition.

It seems to be right in line with the other sites; sometimes the same, sometimes a little more, but often lower. I was especially please that it offered discount rates to various bed and breakfast (my personal preference).

For those who are not native to English speaking countries and prefer to make their hotel reservations, flights, rental decisions in their native language, this site actually offers corresponding web pages for a variety of other countries. In other words, you are not forced to stumble through the English language and can research travel in your preferred language.

And if you are like me and may need to change or cancel your reservations, there is no charge from this site to do so. A few years ago, during a family emergency, I ended up changing holiday plans at the last minute and was charged a few extra hundred dollars by another discount hotel site, so this is a nice to see.

I thought sharing this information might be helpful to those of you considering going to the NGH conference in August or for any of your travel needs.

And do let me know if you are going.

Click here to see Ellie’s Disclosure Policy.