Recently, one of my hypnosis videos was deleted from YouTube for pretty much no darn reason. This is the banned video, hosted here on DailyMotion.
Cosmo Hypnotized Part 2- Magic Boots
Uploaded by BrizyComics. - Independent web videos.
My response to the deletion of this totally innocuous video was at first, a shocked tirade. Observe:
After I got all that out of my system, I returned to my natural self, which is a snide and derisive satirical cartoonist. Behold:
And now you're up to date. Normal blog entries will return next time. Ta.
-Briz
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
The Soon-To-Be-Famous Haahkk-Ptui Reinduction Method of Geniusness
This is my pal Tyler. Be inspired.
Roll With Me, Henry
~How the art of improvisation can be just as important as your skill as a hypnotist.~
With the popularity of such television programs as Whose Line Is It, Anyway? there is a surprising amount of people who fully understand the art of improv, or the ability of a person to apply the art of improvisation to an unexpected situation. At least, they understand what it is. Not many people have the means to pull it off.
Parties and friendly gatherings soon added games based upon the Who's Line show during the height of its popularity, sometimes ending in hilarious results from guests and buddies, other times ending in disaster. I recall a time at a church youth group meeting I helped host where we challenged the kids to a game of 90-Second Alphabet. In that improv game, a series of verbal exchanges is begun with a sentence beginning with the letter "A", the next with "B" and so on. ["Alfred spilled the chip dip tray!" "Because Alfred is a clod." "Clod—who are you calling a clod?" "Don't get me started." and so forth.] The idea is to run through the entire alphabet in under 90 seconds. With the right people, it can be a gas. I have learned that, conversely, with a room full of church-going teenagers, it leads to awkward silence and even the sharp-witted honor students staring blankly at one another with no clue of what to say.
Well, at a casual gathering or party, that can actually be part of the fun. But there are times when you need to access the art of improv and you need it lickety-split. Obviously, one of the most vital times to be able to improvise is during hypnosis.
I've inserted below a rather fun video I found on YouTube called "Messing About At Home With Mike Tweedie". As the title implies, it's a fun session showing 9 minutes of excerpts of a hypnotist working with a lad named Mike, surrounded by his friends. It's a charming little clip and I'd like you to watch it now before continuing with this article.
Fun, isn't it? The hypnotist in this clip clearly understands the basics and implementation of hypnosis, and he has a certain presence and a natural air of authority. He appears to know what he is doing. With that, there is no fault.
Now, as stated above, for the most part, this video is good clean hypnosis fun. All the same, there was one aspect to it which I found prevented me from enjoying it more fully. That being the complete absence of any ability on the part of the hypnotist to improvise. Once I got past the nails-on-chalkboard shrieking giggles of the little girl (okay, there was a second aspect—it's a major pet peeve of mine), I was able to make a blow-by-blow assessment of what I felt had not necessarily gone wrong but certainly could have gone better. Let's review:
While not lacking in any understanding of how hypnosis works, the hypnotist did show some signs that he lacks a certain amount of showmanship and an ability to build and preserve rapport with his subject.
I loved the whole pick-your-nose/stick-your-finger-in-your-ear bit. I may very well steal that. Yet following that, we get our first glimpse of the hypnotist's hesitation when he attempts to apply a new name to subject Mike, only to arrive at a pregnant pause as he silently searches for something comical enough. This could be a shift in his attention to amusing his audience rather than tending to his subject. As a result, midway through his clumsy suggestion, Mike rouses.
When Mike begins to wake up, the hypnotist immediately shuts everything down—possibly without considering WHY his subject was waking, nor, it appeared, to be reassuring Mike that all was well as he emerged from deep trance. For starters, after finding his finger stuck inside his nostril, Mike was overcome with confusion, thus his natural inclination is to come out of it. Right here our subject needs to be reminded that he still feels very good, told that he is comfortable and safe, and even assured that the confusion is actually amusing to him.
We jump ahead at that point to find Mike deep under once again and the hypnotist referring to what could be notes on what he wants to do next or--I sincerely hope not--reading from a script. Either way, Mike's head is down and he appears to be comfortably back under.
Sliding easily into a nice rendition of number amnesia, the hypnotist is back on track. That is, until Mike insists he has six fingers rather than five, to compensate for the loss of his memory of the number 3. Then our hypnotist goes back to putting Mike under, trying to revert that finger count to 5. Instead, he might have run with that notion and had Mike count ALL his fingers, winding up with 11, rather than the 12 that 6+6 would have given him. Hilarity would ensue. Instead, at the advent of this unexpected turn, the routine is abandoned and both subject and hypnotist are the poorer for it.
Each hypnotist needs to roll with changes in situation, or with his original plan, in order to keep up with the varying response of the subject—and EVERY subject responds differently! If our hypnotist in the clip was indeed working off a script, it would explain his concern on getting an unexpected response from Mike--as well as demonstrating the pitfalls of adhering to a rigid set of scripted expectations.
The reaction of the hypnotist was to put a stop to everything when things went off-script, rather than use that moment as an opportunity to not only preserve the flow of events, but hone his natural improvisational skills. Were this to happen in front of a crowd, putting the brakes on and halting the show is really not an option. As hypnotists, we have to roll with it. When a subject surprises us, as so often the brighter ones will, we must roll with the punches, as the saying goes, and use whatever curve ball we've been thrown as best we can to make the session even more enjoyable to watch, and most importantly, enhance the experience for our subject.
To keep from sounding too harsh about our nice hypnotist seen above, it behooves us to note that he does so many things correctly. The hands stuck to knees was perfect. The switch of Mike's name with his buddy Rob was delightful. The final routine which transforms the handsome Mike into a chicken could have been even more fun than it was, had the clip sufficient time to let it run longer. But then, I'm biased in favor of the chicken routine and any chance to see a good-looking guy bucking and clucking is alright by me.
Beyond the lack of improv skills, the basic problem I can see with this otherwise enjoyable session is that there are no compliments, no praise for the subject. When checking to see if suggestions are registering, there needs to be warm encouragement for the subject at all times. "That's right, you're doing great. Superb. Fantastic. You're doing splendidly" You get the idea. More on that in a future post, perhaps. Back to improv.
One of the Cardinal Rules of the hypnotist working in an entertainment environment is remembering at all times that the subject is never your means to make yourself look good. Rather, you are the means to give your subject the spotlight. The subject is not a device, a prop, or a method. The subject is your partner. And as such, he is a person. If that person surprises you by going off-script or tossing you an unusual response, as long as it is safe to do so, you should go with it. A session in hypnosis is your gift to the subject. His individual response and originality is his gift to you.
With the popularity of such television programs as Whose Line Is It, Anyway? there is a surprising amount of people who fully understand the art of improv, or the ability of a person to apply the art of improvisation to an unexpected situation. At least, they understand what it is. Not many people have the means to pull it off.
Parties and friendly gatherings soon added games based upon the Who's Line show during the height of its popularity, sometimes ending in hilarious results from guests and buddies, other times ending in disaster. I recall a time at a church youth group meeting I helped host where we challenged the kids to a game of 90-Second Alphabet. In that improv game, a series of verbal exchanges is begun with a sentence beginning with the letter "A", the next with "B" and so on. ["Alfred spilled the chip dip tray!" "Because Alfred is a clod." "Clod—who are you calling a clod?" "Don't get me started." and so forth.] The idea is to run through the entire alphabet in under 90 seconds. With the right people, it can be a gas. I have learned that, conversely, with a room full of church-going teenagers, it leads to awkward silence and even the sharp-witted honor students staring blankly at one another with no clue of what to say.
Well, at a casual gathering or party, that can actually be part of the fun. But there are times when you need to access the art of improv and you need it lickety-split. Obviously, one of the most vital times to be able to improvise is during hypnosis.
I've inserted below a rather fun video I found on YouTube called "Messing About At Home With Mike Tweedie". As the title implies, it's a fun session showing 9 minutes of excerpts of a hypnotist working with a lad named Mike, surrounded by his friends. It's a charming little clip and I'd like you to watch it now before continuing with this article.
Fun, isn't it? The hypnotist in this clip clearly understands the basics and implementation of hypnosis, and he has a certain presence and a natural air of authority. He appears to know what he is doing. With that, there is no fault.
Now, as stated above, for the most part, this video is good clean hypnosis fun. All the same, there was one aspect to it which I found prevented me from enjoying it more fully. That being the complete absence of any ability on the part of the hypnotist to improvise. Once I got past the nails-on-chalkboard shrieking giggles of the little girl (okay, there was a second aspect—it's a major pet peeve of mine), I was able to make a blow-by-blow assessment of what I felt had not necessarily gone wrong but certainly could have gone better. Let's review:
While not lacking in any understanding of how hypnosis works, the hypnotist did show some signs that he lacks a certain amount of showmanship and an ability to build and preserve rapport with his subject.
I loved the whole pick-your-nose/stick-your-finger-in-your-ear bit. I may very well steal that. Yet following that, we get our first glimpse of the hypnotist's hesitation when he attempts to apply a new name to subject Mike, only to arrive at a pregnant pause as he silently searches for something comical enough. This could be a shift in his attention to amusing his audience rather than tending to his subject. As a result, midway through his clumsy suggestion, Mike rouses.
When Mike begins to wake up, the hypnotist immediately shuts everything down—possibly without considering WHY his subject was waking, nor, it appeared, to be reassuring Mike that all was well as he emerged from deep trance. For starters, after finding his finger stuck inside his nostril, Mike was overcome with confusion, thus his natural inclination is to come out of it. Right here our subject needs to be reminded that he still feels very good, told that he is comfortable and safe, and even assured that the confusion is actually amusing to him.
We jump ahead at that point to find Mike deep under once again and the hypnotist referring to what could be notes on what he wants to do next or--I sincerely hope not--reading from a script. Either way, Mike's head is down and he appears to be comfortably back under.
Sliding easily into a nice rendition of number amnesia, the hypnotist is back on track. That is, until Mike insists he has six fingers rather than five, to compensate for the loss of his memory of the number 3. Then our hypnotist goes back to putting Mike under, trying to revert that finger count to 5. Instead, he might have run with that notion and had Mike count ALL his fingers, winding up with 11, rather than the 12 that 6+6 would have given him. Hilarity would ensue. Instead, at the advent of this unexpected turn, the routine is abandoned and both subject and hypnotist are the poorer for it.
Each hypnotist needs to roll with changes in situation, or with his original plan, in order to keep up with the varying response of the subject—and EVERY subject responds differently! If our hypnotist in the clip was indeed working off a script, it would explain his concern on getting an unexpected response from Mike--as well as demonstrating the pitfalls of adhering to a rigid set of scripted expectations.
The reaction of the hypnotist was to put a stop to everything when things went off-script, rather than use that moment as an opportunity to not only preserve the flow of events, but hone his natural improvisational skills. Were this to happen in front of a crowd, putting the brakes on and halting the show is really not an option. As hypnotists, we have to roll with it. When a subject surprises us, as so often the brighter ones will, we must roll with the punches, as the saying goes, and use whatever curve ball we've been thrown as best we can to make the session even more enjoyable to watch, and most importantly, enhance the experience for our subject.
To keep from sounding too harsh about our nice hypnotist seen above, it behooves us to note that he does so many things correctly. The hands stuck to knees was perfect. The switch of Mike's name with his buddy Rob was delightful. The final routine which transforms the handsome Mike into a chicken could have been even more fun than it was, had the clip sufficient time to let it run longer. But then, I'm biased in favor of the chicken routine and any chance to see a good-looking guy bucking and clucking is alright by me.
Beyond the lack of improv skills, the basic problem I can see with this otherwise enjoyable session is that there are no compliments, no praise for the subject. When checking to see if suggestions are registering, there needs to be warm encouragement for the subject at all times. "That's right, you're doing great. Superb. Fantastic. You're doing splendidly" You get the idea. More on that in a future post, perhaps. Back to improv.
One of the Cardinal Rules of the hypnotist working in an entertainment environment is remembering at all times that the subject is never your means to make yourself look good. Rather, you are the means to give your subject the spotlight. The subject is not a device, a prop, or a method. The subject is your partner. And as such, he is a person. If that person surprises you by going off-script or tossing you an unusual response, as long as it is safe to do so, you should go with it. A session in hypnosis is your gift to the subject. His individual response and originality is his gift to you.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Let's Dispel Some Hypnosis Myths!
The response to my session with my pal Eric has been astounding and overwhelmingly positive. So rather than write my usual blog entry talking about some of the silliness of older (and some recent!) television programs and movies getting wrong the fundamental relationship of hypnotist and subject, I thought it'd be more fun to let Eric do it! Enjoy.
To see the full 11-part (yes, eleven! I KNOW!) session with Eric, simply visit my official YouTube channel page at:
http://www.youtube.com/user/BrizyComics
Ta!
To see the full 11-part (yes, eleven! I KNOW!) session with Eric, simply visit my official YouTube channel page at:
http://www.youtube.com/user/BrizyComics
Ta!
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Your Arm Is A Pump Handle
I thought it was high time I posted an example of a full hypnosis induction by me. I often hypnotize a subject before I begin filming him for a video posting, or I simply apply rapid inductions to "get the show on the road". What follows below is a video in which I put a very wonderful friend and remarkable fellow, Eric, into trance for the very first time.
In this example, I make use of one of my favorite induction approaches of my own invention. Having the subject visualize his arm as the handle of an old-fashioned water pump. It sounds odd on the face of it, but I think you will find it both interesting and see that it is highly effective!
Enjoy.
In this example, I make use of one of my favorite induction approaches of my own invention. Having the subject visualize his arm as the handle of an old-fashioned water pump. It sounds odd on the face of it, but I think you will find it both interesting and see that it is highly effective!
Enjoy.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Happy Holiday Hypnosis (Hurrah!)
One of the things I love about Christmastime is getting together with extended family at my sister's house. It's the one time of year that my siblings are all together, along with my nieces and nephew. Throw into the mix cousins, their spouses, a handful of dear friends, and of course...a couple truly awesome 2nd cousins who are also brilliant hypnosis subjects. Presto. All the ingredients for a perfect holiday get-together.
Last year at Christmas I was still studying hypnosis under the ingenious Nathan Thomas through the International Association of Teenage Hypnotists. At that family Christmas gathering, amidst all the food and fun, I first hypnotized my cousin Patty's remarkable son Brandon and my cousin Joe's wonderful son Caleb. Both of them, being very bright and cheerful young men, proved to be excellent subjects. But this year was the first year I had arrived to the party as an official Certified Hypnotist. We's was gonna haves us some fun.
Now, we had fun with our hypnosis session last year, make no mistake, but due to the actions of our junior town criers, my nephew Bobby and Caleb's little brother Ethan, racing through the house screaming, "Uncle Brain's HYPno-tizing people! Come SEE!!!" we drew an unexpected audience that put an unintentional damper on things. Having a cluster of relatives and curious passersby crowding the room and staring, a few shouting out unwelcome suggestions, the littlest ones giggling as if they've been sucking down ten-gallon vats of nitrous oxide, and an overexcited mom snapping pictures can all quickly drain the spontaneity from the room and make even the most brilliant subject tense and unresponsive. This year I planned on it being different.
Now, before I go on to describe my holiday hypnosis sessions, there's something else you must know. Thrilled as I was to share my good news with the family that I had passed my certification exam with flying colors, after the initial glow of pride and congratulations were shared, I quickly became the butt of many good-natured jokes and prods. Busting chops is an essential part of any show of family affection, and an Irish Catholic family like mine, perhaps a bit more so. My cousin Mike, an accomplished athlete as well as a medical professional, led the charge with some "probing questions" and as often as not had us all laughing. I happily played the straight man and answered without scorn or derision. ("No, I can't hypnotize your dislocated vertebrae to go back into place.") When Mike asked me "What if the subject is just a hopeless nutcase beyond the help of hypnosis, what do you do then?" I smiled and told him I'd guide the subject to the nearest phone book and help him look up a good doctor.
When our festive banter had died down, I was eager to have some hypno-fun with my 2nd cousins. Knowing that the younger boys would be hovering around waiting to pounce the moment I drifted toward my intended subjects, I devised a plan. I first approached Caleb, pretending to talk to him about something else (the youngsters were on us in a heartbeat, What are you doing? Are you hypnotizing yet? What's going on??), but I discreetly told my cousin's son to wait for me to leave the room, count to 20, and then follow me. It worked like a charm. Since we did not depart together, the little kids were none the wiser. Caleb and I found an empty room in the large house and had no end of fun.
I introduced Caleb to instant induction, which he took to like a fish to water. He face-planted into a spongy contour pillow upon the soft bed and seemed to love it there. We had fun with name amnesia, and I graciously gave him the name Marshmellow Fluff for a while (there was an incredible dessert tray in the kitchen that was clearly still on my mind) and later I gave him his "real" name back and he was glad to once again call himself Chocolatey Goodness (did I mention the dessert tray?). As Caleb realized the silly name was not truly his but could refer to himself as nothing else, he got to see me turn invisible and make a teddy bear seem to dance about on its own. Caleb himself found he could teleport from one spot in the room to another as I erased his memory of walking the distance to and from. At one point Caleb found his face stuck fast to the soft pillow, something he didn't seem to mind at all.
An approaching winter storm cut our visit short. The 90-minute car ride home would have to begin immediately if we were to avoid the blizzard. I quickly brought Caleb back to the waking world and removed all triggers, but he was left feeling fantastic and with a bright smile on his face to prove it. I hurriedly sought out my other subject Brandon, and gave a very speedy example of ZAP hypnosis, putting him under in less than a second. One of the younger kids was on hand for that, and seeing Brandon's fluttering eyelids and gently swaying form, the little one declared, "He's faking! He's not really asleep!" I told the lad that no, Brandon was not actually asleep, and that no one was controlling him. But because Brandon was so smart, he'd respond wonderfully. Which of course he did. I left the freckle-faced and handsome Brandon energized and feeling great. We both wished we'd had more time.
As coats were thrown back on and boots jumped into, I made my rounds and said my rushed goodbyes. Various cousins, Mike included, sat on the couch before the big-screen TV and wished us a safe trip, with a few jokes about my newly-certified skills thrown in. I looked at Caleb seated on the end of the couch and said to him, "Wanna show 'em what we can do?" My prize subject just smiled and nodded. With a quick arm pull and a command of "Sleep!", Caleb was out like a light, head flopped onto a thick comforter and body limp as a rag doll. Suddenly all jokes were forgotten. As I rested a gentle hand atop my 2nd cousin's head, suggesting how relaxed he was and how good he'd feel, questions came in surprised whispers, "Is he faking that?" "Is that for real?" "Holy cow, he's really under!"
I left Caleb with an extra burst of positive energy and even an added plus that all the food he chose to eat the rest of the evening would taste even better than it already did. Shared hugs and kisses were peppered with new remarks, along the lines of "Can you use that to help with migraines?", "I so need to relax at work!", and "I have this friend who wants to quit smoking." As I left, I was smiling as broadly as before, but this time for altogether different reasons.
Like I said, I love Christmas with the family.
Blessings to all,
-Briz
[Photos shown above: My charming and delightful 2nd cousin Caleb, shown BEFORE and DURING hypnosis. We need to do this more than once a year!]
Last year at Christmas I was still studying hypnosis under the ingenious Nathan Thomas through the International Association of Teenage Hypnotists. At that family Christmas gathering, amidst all the food and fun, I first hypnotized my cousin Patty's remarkable son Brandon and my cousin Joe's wonderful son Caleb. Both of them, being very bright and cheerful young men, proved to be excellent subjects. But this year was the first year I had arrived to the party as an official Certified Hypnotist. We's was gonna haves us some fun.
Now, we had fun with our hypnosis session last year, make no mistake, but due to the actions of our junior town criers, my nephew Bobby and Caleb's little brother Ethan, racing through the house screaming, "Uncle Brain's HYPno-tizing people! Come SEE!!!" we drew an unexpected audience that put an unintentional damper on things. Having a cluster of relatives and curious passersby crowding the room and staring, a few shouting out unwelcome suggestions, the littlest ones giggling as if they've been sucking down ten-gallon vats of nitrous oxide, and an overexcited mom snapping pictures can all quickly drain the spontaneity from the room and make even the most brilliant subject tense and unresponsive. This year I planned on it being different.
Now, before I go on to describe my holiday hypnosis sessions, there's something else you must know. Thrilled as I was to share my good news with the family that I had passed my certification exam with flying colors, after the initial glow of pride and congratulations were shared, I quickly became the butt of many good-natured jokes and prods. Busting chops is an essential part of any show of family affection, and an Irish Catholic family like mine, perhaps a bit more so. My cousin Mike, an accomplished athlete as well as a medical professional, led the charge with some "probing questions" and as often as not had us all laughing. I happily played the straight man and answered without scorn or derision. ("No, I can't hypnotize your dislocated vertebrae to go back into place.") When Mike asked me "What if the subject is just a hopeless nutcase beyond the help of hypnosis, what do you do then?" I smiled and told him I'd guide the subject to the nearest phone book and help him look up a good doctor.
When our festive banter had died down, I was eager to have some hypno-fun with my 2nd cousins. Knowing that the younger boys would be hovering around waiting to pounce the moment I drifted toward my intended subjects, I devised a plan. I first approached Caleb, pretending to talk to him about something else (the youngsters were on us in a heartbeat, What are you doing? Are you hypnotizing yet? What's going on??), but I discreetly told my cousin's son to wait for me to leave the room, count to 20, and then follow me. It worked like a charm. Since we did not depart together, the little kids were none the wiser. Caleb and I found an empty room in the large house and had no end of fun.
I introduced Caleb to instant induction, which he took to like a fish to water. He face-planted into a spongy contour pillow upon the soft bed and seemed to love it there. We had fun with name amnesia, and I graciously gave him the name Marshmellow Fluff for a while (there was an incredible dessert tray in the kitchen that was clearly still on my mind) and later I gave him his "real" name back and he was glad to once again call himself Chocolatey Goodness (did I mention the dessert tray?). As Caleb realized the silly name was not truly his but could refer to himself as nothing else, he got to see me turn invisible and make a teddy bear seem to dance about on its own. Caleb himself found he could teleport from one spot in the room to another as I erased his memory of walking the distance to and from. At one point Caleb found his face stuck fast to the soft pillow, something he didn't seem to mind at all.
An approaching winter storm cut our visit short. The 90-minute car ride home would have to begin immediately if we were to avoid the blizzard. I quickly brought Caleb back to the waking world and removed all triggers, but he was left feeling fantastic and with a bright smile on his face to prove it. I hurriedly sought out my other subject Brandon, and gave a very speedy example of ZAP hypnosis, putting him under in less than a second. One of the younger kids was on hand for that, and seeing Brandon's fluttering eyelids and gently swaying form, the little one declared, "He's faking! He's not really asleep!" I told the lad that no, Brandon was not actually asleep, and that no one was controlling him. But because Brandon was so smart, he'd respond wonderfully. Which of course he did. I left the freckle-faced and handsome Brandon energized and feeling great. We both wished we'd had more time.
As coats were thrown back on and boots jumped into, I made my rounds and said my rushed goodbyes. Various cousins, Mike included, sat on the couch before the big-screen TV and wished us a safe trip, with a few jokes about my newly-certified skills thrown in. I looked at Caleb seated on the end of the couch and said to him, "Wanna show 'em what we can do?" My prize subject just smiled and nodded. With a quick arm pull and a command of "Sleep!", Caleb was out like a light, head flopped onto a thick comforter and body limp as a rag doll. Suddenly all jokes were forgotten. As I rested a gentle hand atop my 2nd cousin's head, suggesting how relaxed he was and how good he'd feel, questions came in surprised whispers, "Is he faking that?" "Is that for real?" "Holy cow, he's really under!"
I left Caleb with an extra burst of positive energy and even an added plus that all the food he chose to eat the rest of the evening would taste even better than it already did. Shared hugs and kisses were peppered with new remarks, along the lines of "Can you use that to help with migraines?", "I so need to relax at work!", and "I have this friend who wants to quit smoking." As I left, I was smiling as broadly as before, but this time for altogether different reasons.
Like I said, I love Christmas with the family.
Blessings to all,
-Briz
[Photos shown above: My charming and delightful 2nd cousin Caleb, shown BEFORE and DURING hypnosis. We need to do this more than once a year!]
Sunday, December 27, 2009
The Modern Hypnotist's Worst Enemy
Motivational speaker and self-help guru Tony Robbins once made a wisecrack to the effect that he couldn't understand why so many people spent exorbitant amounts of money to go through hypnotherapy and be put into trance. To Tony Robbins, the big challenge was getting people out of trance.
To no small extent, the good Mr. Robbins is right. As anyone with even a modicum of understanding about hypnosis knows, we put ourselves into trance(s) every single day. We have trained ourselves rigorously--intentionally or otherwise--to respond to all manner of triggers which cause us to fade in and fade out on cue all day long. Be it the sound of our alarm clock, a particular voice familiar to us, or a visual indicator, we can pop into trance instantly and experience changes in our behavior, conditioned responses, and a host of other things due to our personal trance-inducing triggers.
Young people especially are susceptible to self-hypnosis triggers and are guilty of continually reinforcing, if not clinging to one, repeatedly. I am speaking of what I consider to be the bane of the modern hypnotist's existence:
Cell phones.
I don't think there is an instrument large enough to measure my loathing of cell phones. Many's a time when what would have been an otherwise successful hypnosis session was ruined by those ringing, singing, buzzing, and vibrating little bastards of technology. One very responsive subject of 22 sat for fifteen minutes on the couch across from me fielding call after call on his little pocket telephone. It was doing what we of old once called "ringing off the hook". That is, if the damnable little device had a hook. When I insisted he shut it off so we could proceed, he assured me, "I'll turn the ringer off." He then spent an additional twenty minutes responding to text messages. GAH!!
I once had a rather brilliant young man of 18 deep in trance, flopped over in a comfy chair like a rag doll, breathing deeply and receiving and accepting my commands. Then his cell phone rang. Instantly--and I do mean instantly--he sprang upright, fully awake, eyes wide and totally alert, body stiff. Out of nowhere he had his wretched cell phone in his hand, up to his ear, saying, "Hello?" I had never seen anything like it. I have helped people quit smoking, stick to their diets, improve their exercise regimen. I have turned intelligent men into yapping puppy dogs, made pals cluck like chickens, and had subjects think the rubber farm boots I stuck them in were magic enough to make them dance around the room as if they were at a barn dance. Yet I have never induced anyone to respond so promptly, so completely, so irresistibly, as when a god-cursed cell phone goes off.
After that incident, the session was pretty much over. I had the lad set his phone down on the coffee table, and although he did, it held his entire concentration. He glanced back at it 17 times in the course of one minute. Yes, I counted. I urged him to put his focus back on what we were doing, but he responded with a babbled, "Yeah, but my friend said she was gonna call me and let me know about this thing and I don't want to be under when she does, 'cause then I might miss it and we really—" He went on for a few minutes, not even remotely aware of the fact that I could've put him under with chloroform and he'd still most likely spring to his feet wide awake if his cell rang.
Another subject, 19, and brilliantly responsive, cannot even get into trance if he has his cell phone with him. He suggested we try some ZAP hypnosis while he waited on a friend, saying we had "about 25 minutes". ZAP hypnosis induces trance in less than one second. I figured we had time. I figured wrong. He kept referring to his phone, pulling it out of his pocket, putting it back, setting it down, picking it up, all to double-check to see if he'd somehow mysteriously missed his call. It was maddening! And this subject, who can usually be put under by nothing more than a snap of the fingers and the suggestion to "Sleep", could have been yanked around the room then by consecutive arm pulls and still never gone under.
Don't get me wrong, I know what it's like to be young and self-programmed with my own trance responses. In the summer of 1984, when the movie Ghostbusters hit the silver screen, it was impossible to flip on the radio without hearing its theme song being hollered out by Ray Parker Jr. For whatever reason, I loved that song and no matter what I was doing when it came on, I always stopped to get up and dance. I even had my own moves and routines worked out (yeah, I was a geek). Well, imagine my surprise when one evening, after a long day of school, my paper route, time with friends, and whatnot, I collapsed on my bed and fell asleep with the radio playing...only to find myself being shaken awake not long after, and coming to my senses to find myself, alone, dancing in the middle of the room because the Ghostbusters theme had come on. Sound asleep (read: in trance state) and dead to the world, I still got up and danced when I heard my trigger.
But this cell phone business takes things to a degree well beyond throwing yourself into a favorite Top 40 hit. Telling a young subject to leave the cell phone off, or worse yet, in the car, is not unlike telling a terminal kidney patient that you need them to leave their dialysis machine in the next room for a couple of hours. Plus, the phones seem to breed tremendous impatience, particularly with the young ladies. I had one subject under for a session, and he was among those whose phone buzzed or vibrated in excess of fifty times a minute. Not knowing how to deactivate the darn thing myself, once my subject was under I buried his phone under a mound of pillows. During our hypnosis time, I heard the damned thing buzzing away, but thankfully my subject did not. After our ten-minute session was over, I returned his phone and he was in awe to find that he had missed six calls. I am not making this up. I am not exaggerating. Six calls. All from his impatient, overbearing girlfriend. She was coming to pick him up, and kept calling to both let my subject know she was en route and also to verify the correct address. By the time he dialed her back, she was in a fit of pique, swearing a blue streak, and already back on the expressway heading toward the next county at high speed. "If you're going to ignore my calls and not even bother to get back to me, you can just go to hell!"
Our hypnosis session had lasted, please recall, only ten minutes. The snotty and inconsiderate girlfriend's half dozen cell phone calls spanned a time frame of less than four. All within the last five minutes of my subject's trance.
So take the advice of a frustrated hypnotist and leave the cell phone behind if you are going to be hypnotized. It will enrich your experience immeasurably and allow you to fully enjoy the wonder and joy that comes of an uninterrupted session of hypnosis. Please free yourself of the distraction. Turn the thing off, put it away, leave it in the car, or better yet, leave it at home. Otherwise, I will be more than happy to put you under deeply, slip you into a pair of huge, heavy-soled boots, and make you dance to your heart's content to the strains of Ghostbusters. With the miserable little cursed cell phone placed beneath your heels.
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