Hypnotherapy is a therapy to assist people to find meaningful alternatives to their present ways of thinking, feeling or behaving which maybe challenging. Hypnotherapy can also help one become more accepting both of oneself and others and can be useful in promoting personal development and unlocking inner potential. It is a two way process between the therapist and the client- a professional partnership. A person cannot be hypnotized unless he or she agrees and co-operates. This cannot be stressed enough.
The hypnotic trance is still something of a mystery. It is not “sleep” but seems to be a state of focused concentration or awareness similar to the experienced in mediation or daydreaming.
Theoretically, during hypnosis, the conscious mind is “deactivated”, allowing the unconscious mind to be accessed directly. We do our everyday thinking with our conscious mind, but is is merely the tip of the iceberg; most of our behaviour is determined by our unconscious mind. The unconscious mind is programmed by our experiences and by what we are taught by our parents, teachers and peers, but it is rather like a robot: once it has been programmed, it can also be readily achieved through hypnosis.