Why Hypnosis & NLP Don’t Work
I was at a hypnosis seminar recently and the instructor was taking everyone through the Dave Elman induction. Early in that induction you go for catelpsy of the eyes. It goes something like, “Now, relax your eyes and the muscles around your eyes so completely that they won’t work. When you’ve got them so relaxed that they won’t work, test them and find that the harder you try to open them, the more they stay closed.”
The point is to get critical factor bypass. According to Elman’s theories, that helps get past the conscious mind.
You Can’t Make Me!
Well, I decided, rather than participate in the induction, I’d look around. One guy’s eyes popped open. He had a look on his face I interpreted as “See. My eyes don’t stay closed just ’cause you say so.”
My Mind Is Too Strong
It reminds me of a time I was doing a seminar in Sedona. We were doing kind of an instant induction thing where the hypnotist goes through set of steps and then blows on the hypnotee’s forehead. The person being hypnotized falls over backwards into this interesting REM state (usually).
I could see from across the room that one fellow being hypnotized was having problems with it. He would start to go over backwards and then catch himself (he had people behind him to catch him). I heard him say, “I guess my mind is too strong for this.”
I think you can probably guess why it was not working for him. He equated going into trance in this particualar way with having a weak mind.
Why Hypnosis & NLP Don’t Work
As for the guy who’s eyes popped open–it may have been a similar issue. Some folks have a vested interest in not going into trance, not being able to visualize, not having NLP or hypnosis work for them or not getting over some issue.
For instance, some people have a strong sense of identity around their problems. While they might sincerely want to move forward, they might also have a fear of what might happen if they no longer formed their identities around being an abuse survivor or an accident victim or a sufferer of a disease.
Perhaps their situation gives them a way to be unique.
But If We Let Our Problems Define Us Then The Terrorists Have Won!
The point is that sometimes we run into folks who want to change and also have a motivation to not change. We meet those who want to be hypnotized and being hypnotized means something negative to them. We run into people who feel unique and special because they “can’t visualize” or “NLP just doesn’t work for me.”
If we want to make helping them easier, it’s good to answer all of their needs.
Meeting Needs
I got a chance to do an exercise with the guy who’s eyes popped open. I led him through the first part of the Elman induction and changed the wording a bit. I emphasized that he was to maintain the relaxation in his eyes. As long as he maintained that relaxation, he would find that his eyes stayed closed. It worked.
As for the guy in Sedona, I threw one of the Sleight of Mouth patterns at him. I asked “Is your mind strong enough to let it happen?” He went down like a rock.
Enjoy,
Keith
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Now that’s what I call utilization! Cool beans, Keith. Sleight of Mouth is the blasting powder of change
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I remember that instant induction-type exercise from my Sedona class with you. It is amazing when it works as planned and pretty frustrating when it doesn’t.
What I love about this post is that it reminds me how important it is to utilize both what we think we know about hypnosis and whatever the client brings with them.
Thanks for bringing out these deeper levels of skill. Now I have to ask myself; “Is my mind strong enough to remember to use this knowledge every time…”
John,
Good to hear from you–good thoughts.
Keith
Excellent, I often have this same problem when I do self Hypnosis. I wonder how I can make it work for me. I also seem to be unable to get change with NLP techniques and feel like a freak at times. I am a Master NLP practitioner and really have difficulty believing I can help others when I don’t get change in myself. maybe their is a way I haven’t uncovered yet. Thanks.
Hi Bill,
I’m sure there are many ways you haven’t uncovered yet.
One of my first clients had been to multiple NLP trainings with most of the pioneers in NLP. He said he found it difficult to visualize and was feeling a lack of confidence when he was working with people and asking them to visualize. If he couldn’t do it himself, how could he ask them to?
When you actually paid attention to his internal processes (as opposed to a generic process which works for most people), and used his particular structure, it was pretty easy for him to visualize.
I’ve had the same experience with lots of folks who have been to many hypnosis seminars but feel they have yet to experience hypnosis. Typically, when you tailor your approach to them it works.
As Erickson said when asked if he’d ever failed to hypnotize anyone… “No, and there’s some I’m still working with.”
Keith
When I started practicing first, my concentration was on doing everything correctly – doing all of the techniques exactly the way I had been taught. The longer I practice, the more I understand that the induction must suit the client, and so, the responsibility is for me as a hypnotherapist to mould my techniques to suit the particular client, and to be aware enoough of the client to notice what they are doing and incorporate that into what it is I say and do.
Utilize what emerges and voilà.