I recently made a video about why self-hypnosis is so great. There's a link above if you missed it.
Now I'm going to teach you exactly how to do self-hypnosis. I know there are already lots of
self-hypnosis videos on YouTube but I noticed that they mostly don't go into any depth. They don't
teach you all the skills you need to get the best out of self-hypnosis. So in this series of videos
I'm going to teach you everything you need to perform self-hypnosis properly in just five days.
It will be a step-by-step guide to the procedure for self-hypnosis. You will learn the stages of
hypnosis. You will learn different induction methods so you can find one that suits you.
You will learn how to set goals. You will learn how to write scripts to help you reach those goals
and if you have an anxiety disorder or phobia you will learn how to combine hypnosis with
CBT which is the most effective combination for treating anxiety.
And I will give you lots of tips and examples to help you get the best out of your self-hypnosis.
I will also be giving you tasks to do as that's the best way to learn.
Now if all that sounds too much for you and you just want to experience hypnosis then
take a look at my hypnosis playlist where you'll find hypnosis videos for various anxiety issues.
However the suggestions given in those videos are general so if you want to learn self-hypnosis
so you can write your custom designed hypnosis scripts for your individual needs then continue
watching and make sure you subscribe and click the notification bell as YouTube does not
automatically show all videos to all subscribers. So let's get started with day one and the basic
structure of self-hypnosis. The first stage of self-hypnosis is the pre-induction stage.
The purpose of the pre-induction is to focus your attention and start to relax you.
The next stage is the induction which really focuses your mind and gets you nice and relaxed.
The next stage is the deepener. This is an optional stage for those who want to reach
a deeper state of relaxation of hypnosis. The next stage is suggestion. Here you give positive
suggestions to help you reach your specific goals. Speaking of suggestions if you like
what I'm doing please click on like because it helps me reach my goal of reaching as many
people as I can on YouTube. And the final stage is the awakening which is a bit of a misleading
term as you're not actually asleep. It's more of a gentle return of your focus to your environment.
So let's learn the pre-induction. There are many methods for the pre-induction and what
works for one may not work for others so I will give you a couple of options.
The pre-induction is just something to get you started. It's the first step in getting
you focused and relaxed. A common pre-induction is to take three deep breaths. For most people taking
deep breaths is a good way of relaxing but some people particularly those who get panic attacks
worry about their breathing a lot so if you're not comfortable focusing on your breathing skip to the
eye focus pre-induction which you can use instead. I've included chapters to make it easier to skip
but if you're okay with focusing on your breathing keep watching. First get yourself
in a comfortable position. Somewhere you are unlikely to be disturbed. Then close your eyes.
What you're going to do is take three deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth.
As you breathe imagine that you are breathing in calmness.
If it helps say silently in your mind as I breathe I'm breathing in calmness. Then as you
breathe out imagine all the stresses and worries of the day leaving you. Again you can say this
silently in your mind. As I breathe out, all the stresses and worries of the day are leaving me.
After the first deep breaths you can breathe normally for a bit before taking the second
and then the third. Just so you know what sort of pace to use I will give a demonstration.
As I take my first deep breath I think of calmness.
As I breathe out I'm letting all the worries and stresses of the day leave me.
When I'm ready I take my second deep breath, imagining I'm breathing in calmness
and then as I breathe out I'm letting all the stress and anxiety leave me
When I'm ready I take the third deep breath breathing in calmness
and as I breathe out I let all the tension and anxiety leave me.
Pause the video and give it a try yourself. When you don't have time for a full hypnosis
session you can use this pre-induction as just a quick way of relaxing or calming yourself down.
So that's the first pre-induction done. For those who are not comfortable focusing on
their breathing the alternative is the eye fixation method.
Get yourself in a comfortable sitting position where you will not be disturbed.
Pick a spot somewhere in the room something small like a mark on the wall or a light switch or the
centre of a clock. Choose something mundane. Keep focusing on that point.
You'll find that your mind will wander and that's okay. Just each time your mind wanders
bring your attention back to that spot or whatever you've chosen to focus on.
If you focus on it silently in your mind give yourself suggestions like as I focus on that
spot I'm starting to feel relaxed. I'm started to feel calmer. My stress and anxiety is leaving me.
As time goes on your eyes may become tired and you may blink more. Even if they don't encourage
a sense of tiredness with suggestions like as I continue to focus my eyelids are becoming heavier
and the more I blink the more relaxed I feel.
Carry on with positive suggestions of relaxation like as I continue to
focus I can feel all the tension stress and anxiety leaving me.
When your eyelids start to feel heavy you allow them to close and add a suggestion like as my
eyes close I feel pleasantly relaxed. I feel calm as I leave my worries and anxiety behind.
How long it takes before your eyes get tired varies from person to person but don't try to have
a battle with yourself. If they haven't felt tired after five minutes or so just close them anyway.
Pacing is important in hypnosis so I'm going to demonstrate this technique so you can see
the sort of pace to use. So as I focus on this spot I'm starting to feel relaxed
I'm starting to feel calmer my stress and anxiety is leaving me.
As I bring my attention back to that spot I can continue to relax
to feel calmer
leaving all my tension and stress behind.
My eyes are starting to feel tired
and each time I blink I feel more and more relaxed
As my eyelids feel heavier and heavier I can just allow them to close
and as they close I feel pleasantly relaxed and calm. So that's two pre-induction options covered.
Now some tips for pre-inductions. You might start to notice little changes
in your body and these vary from person to person. You might notice you swallow more.
This is completely normal. It's a sign of relaxation. When we're anxious we get a
dry mouth but as we relax we produce more saliva which makes us swallow.
Some people start to twitch a bit like you might do before you fall asleep.
Again this is completely normal and it's just a sign of relaxation.
Often people who suffer anxiety have forgotten what it feels like to be relaxed so it can
actually feel a bit strange for them. During any stage of hypnosis you might notice these
or other signs of relaxation like heaviness in the limbs. It's not harmful it's not a sign of
anything wrong. In fact it's a good sign that your body is becoming relaxed which is good for you.
All sorts of positive things happen in your body when you relax.
So practice whichever pre-induction you've chosen. It can be difficult to focus at first particularly
if you suffer from anxiety but the more you practice the easier it gets and the quicker
you'll be able to reach a state of relaxation. So be patient with yourself and keep practicing.
In the day two video I'm going to cover the induction so make sure you've subscribed and
clicked on the notification bell and when the day 2 video is released it will appear here.