Evoking the Skills and States They

Need: Using Imagination, Hypnosis

& Metaphor to Increase Resilience
Shelly Lear & Mary Wake
With slides by Michael Cammarata
 Context for today’s workshop

 CCNY 2012 – intro to hypnotherapy and a request

for more
 NOT hypnosis training – you have to find your
own workshops or training for that if you want to
practice
 Understand the ways most of us already do some
trance work – guided imagery work;

2
 Introductions

Who are we? Who are you?

 Experience with  Professional

 Hypnosis experience with
hypnosis or
 Training hypnotherapy?
 Use in therapy  Personal experience
with hypnosis or
hypnotherapy?
 What is hypnosis?

 Definitions
 Myths
 Everyday examples
 The phenomenology of
trance
 Time distortion
 Suggestibility/openness
 Common physiological
aspects
 2003 Definition of Hypnosis

“Hypnosis is a procedure during which a

health professional or researcher suggests
that a client, patient, or subject experience
changes in sensations, perceptions,
thoughts or behavior.”
 APA, Div.30, Society of Psychological Hypnosis
II. Common Myths about Hypnosis

NONE OF THESE ARE TRUE

People in hypnosis lose control and can be made to say or do

whatever the hypnotist wants.
People may not be able to come out of hypnosis.
Hypnosis only affects weak-willed or gullible people.
Hypnosis reliably enhances the accuracy of memory.
Hypnosis enables people to re-experience a past life.
Hypnosis depends primarily on the skill of the hypnotist.

* From APA Div 30 slides From

on 6Hypnosis
Some simple practice

A few practice experiences for fun

 Traditional models of therapy vs.
hypnotherapy frame
Old paradigm Solution-oriented paradigm

 “Pathology” oriented • Resources, resilience

 Looking for historical
causes – Dx
 Insight or behavior change
is the cure
 Cure comes from “peeling
back the onion”
oriented - “it’s in there!”
• Focused on solutions not
causes
• Doesn’t matter if you
understand why it works
• Change comes through
creating flexibility and
options –
• Opening up possibilities
 Example

Proprioceptive anxiety symptoms –

rapid heart beat

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 Trance language:

 Both/and (rather than either/or)

 Creating possibilities (“and maybe you
will decide to feel…”)
 Dialectics/paradox – “you can be exactly
where you should be and still need to
change”
 Story telling and metaphor as indirection
techniques
Hypnotherapy

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The Tx Planning Model - Ericksonian
- Bill O’Hanlon

Presenting Intervention
Link to
Problem
Problem Context

Class of Class of
Problem Opposite
solution
The Autonomic Nervous System

 Hypnosis is great with the flight/fight/freeze

symptoms
 We can change the “unchangeable” if we can think
of an example

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Autonomic nervous system and
physiological arousal

Sympathetic Parasympathetic
division (arousing) division (calming)
Pupils dilate EYES Pupils contract
Decreases SALIVATION Increases
Perspires SKIN Dries
Increases RESPIRATION Decreases
Accelerates HEART Slows
Inhibits DIGESTION Activates
Secrete stress ADRENAL Decreases
hormones GLANDS secretion of
stress
hormones
 What is going on in your head
- Bill O’Hanlon

Class of Class of
Problems Solutions
• Confidence
• Anxiety • Mastery
• Curiosity

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 What is the class of solution for anxiety
problems? What are some interventions
we could use?

 When does the problem

• Metaphors?
NOT happen?
• Stories?
 What would need to
change in his/her • Experiences we
attitudes & beliefs for could evoke?
things to improve? • “anchors”?
 What abilities do you • Real life examples?
want them to recognize • Task assignments?
that they have that they • Trance phenomena?
may not be aware of? 16
Try one together…

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The Tx Planning Model - Ericksonian
- Bill O’Hanlon
STEP 1

Presenting Intervention
Link to
Problem
Problem Context

Class of Class of
Problem Opposite
solution
What is going on in the your head?

Class of Class of
Problems Solutions

• Depression •?

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 Methods/interventions
STEP 2

• stories

Hypnotic methods
Nonhypnotic methods

• stories
• Reminder of • Reminder of
every day every day
experiences experiences
• Analogies & • Analogies &
metaphors metaphors
• Task • Trance
assignment phenomena

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 What is the class of solution for anxiety
problems? What are some interventions
we could use?

 When does the problem

• Metaphors?
NOT happen?
• Stories?
 What would need to
change in his/her • Experiences we
attitudes & beliefs for could evoke?
things to improve? • “anchors”?
 What abilities do you • Real life examples?
want them to recognize • Task assignments?
that they have that they • Trance phenomena?
may not be aware of? 21
Invitation to trance experience

 Group experience with induction and

trance – for anxiety or depression
 Pros/Cons of Hypnotherapy
Pros:
 Suggestions to the unconscious
mind vs. the conscious mind
 Ego-strengthening techniques with Contraindications:
people who believe they can’t do
something
 Giving clients autonomic control  Very dissociative clients, or
they didn’t know they had – e.g., psychotic, those who have
heart rate trouble with grasp on reality
 Strengthening the belief in
“regular” therapy through hypnotic  Very cognitively, intellectually
experiments inclined if they aren’t willing to
 Relaxation suspend their control a little
 It’s fun for the therapist, too
 Resistant, defended clients  Those who are too afraid
Questions and discussion