Hypnosis

[gabemagggic]

Who tried this: Manchurian approach?
It's safe?So we can't do something wrong with the spectators nerve? (I know that this is a stupid question, but I really want to know)
THX

 

[Randomwrath]

Hypnosis itself is neither dangerous nor safe. It's based very heavily on the belief of the subject (the person you're hypnotising); you'll find that in general, a skeptical subject will be harder to hypnotise than an open minded and willing participant. Because of this, if the subject believes that something could go wrong, there is a chance that it could (or the subject just won't allow themselves to be hypnotised at all). Hypnotists usually give what is known as a pre-talk to dispel any fears and misconceptions that the participant may have about hypnosis. If done properly, this should be enough. With the exception of that, the only real dangers will occur by poor communication on the part of the hypnotist, and are not because of hypnosis itself.

One other thing it's worth being aware of is a phenomenon called 'abreactions'. From what I understand, these are very rare, and are caused by a subject having some bad memory or experience triggered whilst in hypnosis. They involve subjects becoming incredibly emotional. There are ways of dealing with abreactions, on the off chance that one will occur (as I said, it's rare) but you should know what to do just to be safe.

I don't own the Manchurian Approach, but have heard very good things about it. As a dvd about hypnosis, it will probably cover any worries you may have about safety and whathaveyou, but if not, more information is available from a quick google search. Really though, hypnosis is not dangerous, assuming the hypnotist is competent and can communicate well with his/her subjects.

 

[Craig Browning]

Contrary to the the hype bought into by most, Hypnosis does NOT rob people of their will or for that matter, their awareness of what's going on during the process. I'd suggest you get a copy of Anthony Jouquin's REALITY IS PLASTIC and/or Ormond McGill's Encyclopedia of Stage Hypnosis in that BOTH will give you some more accurate insights as to what is and isn't Hypnosis vs. all the silliness so many folks ASSUME hypnosisi is.

I guess what I'm saying is, learn about the science in question before you jump on a soap box of panic tied to it. I for an example, do Readings, it is a common practice to the school of discipline I adhere to when it comes to Mentalism. There are those in our industry that assume that any and all Readers are evil, manipulative and bring harm to their patrons simply because they have a head full of Randi, Shermer, Rowland and Joe Nichol vs. facts about what that art form is actually about and how it all works, why, etc. (you can start by reading Ron Martin's famed "Tarot Reader's Notebook")

Just as Reading work and Guns, Hypnosis is only as dangerous as the fool behind it; if you don't study and actually LEARN what its all about you and others can get hurt. On the other hand, if you are educated on the subject those risks go down.