CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE

HYPNOTHERAPY AND NON-VERBAL 11 COMMUNICATION Proposal for a course for students in the Counseling and Guidance Program at California State University, Northridge

A graduate project submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts in Educational Psychology, Counseling and Guidance by lr1ichael Aharoni

August, 1979 The Thesis of Michael Aharoni is approved:

oe McNair, Ph.D.

Art Charlap-Hyman, Ph.D.

Marvin Chernoff, Ph.D. Chairperson

California State University, Northridge .-

ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank the following people for the help they have given me.

Dr. Marvin Chernoff, for encouraging me to go through the program and giving me great experiences in the program.

Dr. Dave Dobson, my friend, who believed in me and taught me so much about hypnosis.

Richard Bandler and John Grinder, for teaching me the art and magic of non-verbal communication.

The students who took the course, trusted in me, and made the course such a pleasant experience.

Last, but foremost, Bonnie--for being so support­ ive and patient with me, especially during the time I researched and wrote this project.

iii PREFACE

The Prince and the Magician

Once upon a time there was a young prince who believed in all things but three. He did not believe in princesses, he did not believe in islands, he did not believe in God. His father, the king, told him that such things did not exist. As there were no princesses or islands in his father's domains, and no sign 6£ God, the prince believed his father.

But then, one day, the prince ran away from his palace and came to the next land. There, to his astonish­ ment, from every coast he saw islands, and on these islands, strange and troubling creatures whom he dared not name. As he was searching for a boat, a man in full evening dress approached him along the shore.

"Are those real islands?" asked the young prince.

"Of course they are real islands," said the man in evening dress.

"And those strange and troubling creatures?"

"They are all genuine and authentic princesses."

"Then God must als.o exist!" cried the prince.

"I am God," replied the man in evening dress, with a bow.

The young man returned home as quickly as he could.

iv "So, you are back," said his father, the king.

"I have seen islands, I have seen princesses, I

have seen God," said the prince reproachfully.

The king was unmoved.

"Neither real islands, nor real princesses, nor a

real God exist."

"I saw them!"

"Tell me how God was dressed."

'"God was in full evening dress."

"Were the sleeves of his coat rolled back?"

The prince remembered that they had been. The

king smiled.

"That is the uniform of a magician. You have been deceived."

At this, the prince returned to the next land and went to the same shore, where once again he came upon the man in full evening dress.

"My father, the king, has told me who you are," said the prince indignantly. "You deceived me last time, but not again. Now I know that those are not real islands and real princesses, because yo~ are a magician."

The man on the shore smiled.

"It is you who are deceived, my boy. In your father's kingdom, there are many islands and many princesses. But you are under your father's spell, so you· cannot see them."

v The prince pensively returned home. When he saw

his father, he looked him in the eye.

"Father, is it true that you are not a real king,

but only a magician?"

The king smiled and rolled back his sleeves.

"Yes, my son, I'm only a magician."

"Then the man on the other shore was God."

"The man on the other shore was another magician."

"I must know the truth, the truth, beyond magic."

"There is no truth beyond magic," said the king.

The prince was full of sadness. He said, "I will kill myself."

The king by magic caused death to appear. Death stood in the door and beckoned to the prince. The prince shuddered. He remembered the beautiful but unreal islands and the unreal but beautiful princesses.

"Very well," he said, "I can bear it."

"You see, my son," said the king, "you, too, now begin to be a magician."

Reprinted from The Magus, by John Fowles, Dell Publishing Co., Inc.;pp. 499-500.

vi TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

~1?1?~()\7~ 1?1\(;~ . ..• ~ • • . • • . • • • . . . • . . . • • . • • • . • • • • . • • . . • • ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. . . . • ...... • . . . . . • . . iii

PREFACE. . . • ...... • . . . . . • • ...... i v

ABSTRACT ...... • viii

Chapter

1. INTRODUCTION...... • ...... • ...... 1

2. HYPNOTHERAPY AND NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION... 6

Introduction...... • ...... • . 6 Background: Hypnosis as a Therapeutic Mod a 1 ity . . . . ~ ...... 6 Definition...... 9 Misconceptions...... 11 Conscious vs. Subconscious...... 11 Depth of Hypnotic Trance...... 15 Suggestibility Tests...... 16 Hypnotic Techniques...... 18 Post-Hypnotic Suggestions...... 22 Non-Verbal Communication...... 24

3. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECO&~NTDATIONS.. 31

BIBLIOGRAPHY...... 35

APPENDIXES

A. COURSE OUTLINE...... • . . . . • . • ...... 3 9

B.. BIBLIOGRAPHY...... • . • ...... • • 41

C. HYPNOTHERAPY HANDOUTS...... 49·

D. SELECTED CLASS COMMENTS ...... • . • 61

vii ABSTRACT

HYPNOTHERAPY AND NON-VERBAL

COMMUNICATION

Proposal for a course for students in the Counseling and Guidance Program at California State University, Northridge

by

Michael Aharoni

Master of Arts in Educational Psychology,

Counseling and Guidance

The purpose of this project was to develop a course in the areas of hypnotherapy and non-verbal communication for the graduate students in the Counseling and Guidance

Program at California State University, Northridge. It was developed to acquaint students with these areas that are useful as tools in individual and family counseling.

The reasons for developing such a course were:

1) The areas of hypnotherapy and non-verbal·communication are not given sufficient attention in the Counseling and

Guidance Program, and 2) students expressed an interest

viii in gaining skills in these fields.

The course was taught in a seminar fashion by the author over a six-week period. Seventeen students attended. Specific theories and topics were presented and discussed, along with practical experience in eac~~ area. An extensive course outline was developed for teaching this information in a three-unit course.

The response of the students to the class was determined through the use of an evaluation form and student's personal comments regarding the class.

It was concluded that there is a definite n~ed for such a course in this program and that students would like to see such a course offered by the Educational Psychology

Department as a three-unit course ..

ix CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

The two year master's degree Counseling and

Guidance Program at California ·state University, Northridge

is designed to prepare students to become counselors.

This program focuses on a variety of theories and tech­

niques. Most of the techniques are traditional and

include such theories as Freudian, Adlerian, Gestalt,

Jungian, and Behaviorism.

In the past ten years there have· been many new

discoveries and advances in the fields of hypnotherapy and

non-verbal communication. More and more, psychologists

and counselors are searching for information in order to

use these tools in their work. Currently, there are very

few places which offer the students or professionals

quality training in these areas. Most of the available

courses and seminars are expensive and are often taught by

inexperienced people and organizations.

In reviewing the Counseling and Guidance Program

at California State University,.Northridge, I discovered

·that these two very impor£ant_areas are not given

sufficient attention in this program. ·The problem,

therefore, becomes: Where and how does the student, who

1 2

is going to become a counselor, get the training in these

areas that are becoming increasingly important in therapy.

There were several reasons why I chose to do this

project. First, in giving lectures and demonstrations to

Education Psychology classes, I found the response to be

largely favorable by both students and faculty. Secondly,

training in these two important areas are currently not

available in this program. Thirdly, as a practicing

hypnotherapist, I .found these tools to be extremely

helpful in doing counseling with individuals as well as

with groups.

I have been interested in the area of hypnosis for

many years. My curiosity led me to numerous books and

articles written ~n the subject. The successful use of

self-hypnosis for personal growth, led me to devote a

great deal of time and energy in developing my-knowledge

in this area. This included studying privately for one

and one-half years with Dr. David Dobson, Hypnotherapist;

attending numerous workshops and lectures, including those

given by the Southern California Society of Clinical

Hypnotists; the Professional Hypnotist's Association; as

. . well as individual training sessions with Erika Fromm,

Ph.D., William Kroger, M.D., and many others.

I was also accepted by the Southern California

Society of Clinical Hypnotists, in 1975, as a student member, and was certified by the Professional Hypnotist's 3

in 1975, as a student member, and was certified by the

Professional Hypnotist's Association as a professional hypnotist in 1976.

In 1976, I was introduced to non-verbal communi­ cation and system theories that were developed and taught by Milton Erickson, Richard Bandler and John Grinder, and

Virginia Satir. Further advanced training was received from Richard Bandler and John Grinder in the use of non­ verbal communication and hypnotherapy techniques to be used with clients in clinical and medical situations.

In the past five and a half years, I have worked with hundreds of. people using the above techniques with a high degree of success. This has included treating people for such conditions as: anxiety, nervousness, depression, we.ight problems; habit control, sexual dysfunctions, migraine headaches, ulce.rs, insomnia, and communication problems. In recent years, I have offered seminars and lectures in the areas of hypnosis and non-verbal communi­ cation to students in the field of Psychology, as well as to the lay person.

Students of Psychology were often very eager to learn more and were interested in where they could receive more extensive training and practice in these fields.

For the past three years, I have given lectures and demonstrations to many classes in this program.

Several things became apparent to me in giving these 4

lectures; 1) Students knew nothing or very little qbout

these subjects; 2) they wanted to know more; and 3) they

wished that courses on these subjects were readily

available to them.

In the Fall of 1978, I decided to develop and offer

a course on these subjects to the Educational Psychology

students as part of my graduate project.

I received a great deal of encouragement from the

committee's chair person, Dr. Harvin Chernoff, the

department's chair p~rson, Dr. Rie Mitchell, and fellow

students. I felt that this was one approach for intro­

ducing this type of course into the program and for

determining the student's reaction to such a course.

This project was designed with three considerations

in mind; 1) To acquaint graduate students in the Coun­

seling and Gpidance Program with some basic skills in the

areas of Hypnosis and Non-verbal Communication, 2) to . I

evaluate the response from the students in order to

determine whether or not such a course should be offered

as part of the program, and 3) to develop a course outline

that would be appropriate for graduate students in the

Counseling and Guidance Progr~.

The course included a variety of topiCs in the

areas o.f hypnosis and non-verbal communication. Some of the topics discussed were·hypnotic techniques, resistance, medical uses of hypnosis, clinical uses of hypnosis, time 5

distortion, suggestibility tests, representational systems, incongruity,.and more. They were discussed in detail, and in· some cases demonstrated to the c.lass as well as practiced by the students. Due to the limitation of this paper, only a sample of some topics. and the way in which I taught the class is included in the following chapter of this paper. Also included in the next chapter are refer­ ences from which material was gathered and presented.

A complete course outline is presented in Appendix

A. The outline is divided into the two areas and is including techniques, phenomenon, cases, handouts, and practical experience in class. A sample of various hand­ outs distributed in class is given in Appendix C. I would like to emphasize that many papers on each area of the outline, including clinical and experimental case studies, are available for handing ou:t in class, .but it is beyond the scope of this paper to include all of them. CHAPTER II

HYPNOTHERAPY AND NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Introduction

The following is a basic sample of the way in which

the course was conducted. This section will focus on the

material presented in the class, which is based on research

and clinical work done by such people as Milton Erickson,

Bandler and Grinder, J. Haley, Kroger, and LeCron, as well

as my own clinical and medical experience in the use of

hypnosis.

Due to the limitation of this paper and for clarity,

it is impossible to include some of the process of the

class interaction and the exact sequence in which some of

the material was presented. Also for clarity, the outline

was divided into separate areas, beginning with basic

understanding and leading to more advanced techniques and

phenomenon.

Background: Hypnosis as a Therapeutic Modality

The evolution of hypnosis as a therapeutic

. modaii ty has been going on for thousands of years with a ·

great deal of controversy. (Kroger~ 1964, and Wolberg,

1967) To this day, experts on the subject· disagree on

theoretical and experimental grounds as to what hypnosis

6 7 .

is or is not. In the past, hypnosis has been used as magic by "magicians" and "witches" as a means to influence people, as well as by philosophers, religious leaders, politicians, and faith healers to cure illness.

Although the word "hypnosis" was coined by Dr.

Braid in the.l700's, the technique for hypnotizing a subject is basically the same now as it was thousands of years ago. Hypnosis has been hailed as the only effective method for treating emotional problems by some; for others, it has been held as a fraud. Freud himself, began as a clinical hypnotist, then renounced the techniques. This led other clinicians in Europe to do the same. Freud, however, re-discovered the uses of hypnosis just before his death. Hypnosis has been the property of medicine, psychiatry, charlatans, and show business. It is not necessary for this course to trace in depth the history of this subject. Many books have been devoted to this task and a list of such books appear on the Recommended Reading

List that was distributed to the class (Appendix B).

Hypnosis, whatever its course has been, is now recognized as a valuable therapeutic adjunct. By the

1970's hypnosis had been officially endorsed as a thera­ peutic modality by medical, dental, psychiatric, a.nd psychological associations throughout the world (Encyclo­ pedia Britanica: The New Macropedia, 1974).

While experimentalists still argue as to a precise 8

definition of hypnosis, clinicians are recognizing its I value as an additional and powerful therapeutic tool.~oth I the British and American Medical Associations have passed

resolutions on the desirability of teaching hypnosis in medical schools (Marcuse, 1974). In California, until as I recently as 1977, the only professional mental health l

helpers who could not use hypnosis legally were licensed

Marriage, Family and Child Counselors. The Board of

Behavioral Sciences which regulates licensing for Marriage,

Family and Child Counselors changed that ruling in January,

1977 to allow the use of hypnosis.

Many police departments, including the Los Angeles Police Department, now use hypnosis to aid witnesses and \ officers in recalling important details~ t In California, as well as many other states, there \ \ are a number of professional societies dedicated to .i promoting hypnosis as a therapeutic modality. One such \ group is the Los Angeles County Association of Clinical \ \ \ Hypnosis, a division of the American Society of Clinical I Hypnosis, which is a component of The American Medical jI f Association. Another is the Southern California·· Society of Clinical Hypnosis, open only to physicians, dentists, lI i N and psychologists. (I was privileged to be accepted by. this society in 1975 as a student member.) A third group I is the California Professional Hypnotist Association, a I state chartered organization which is devoted to the task 9

of upgrading hypnosis as a modality and hypnotists as

professionals. (In 1976 I was certified by this associ-

atlon as a "Professional Hypnotist.") Such organizations

clearly establish the acceptance of hypnosis as a thera-

peutic modality within the helping profession. It is

important to keep in mind that ..• "Hypnosis is of itself a

tool and not a therapy" (Cooke & Von Vogt, 1965, p. 53).

Definition

The purpose here is to consolidate and report to

you upon the most widely accepted and used definitions of

hypnosis and the hypnotic states. Let me caution you not

to accept these definitions as complete, all encompassing,

or exact. The argument as to what hypnosis is or is not

still goes on, and will probably continue for years to

come. However, through years of case reports , theoretica·l

debate and discussion, and experimentations, certain

common aspects have been agreed upon and are now·held

universal.

Hypnosis is considered to be a state of heightened

suggestibility and concentration, "a condition of emotional

readiness, during which, perceptual alterations can be

induced~ •• an altered state of organism in which suggestion

is more effective than usual" (Marcuse, 19 59, p. 7} .

. Characteristics cons.idered typical of the hypnotic state include alterations in thinking, disturbed time

sense, perceptual changes, and changes in emotional 10

reactions. Kroger has stated that hypnosis is "a restructuring in perceptual and object relationships. This involves a reorganizationof what constitutes reality for the subject 11 (Kroger, 1963, p. 7). Milton Erickson, M.D., who is considered to be the most notable hypnotherapist. today, and one whom I refer to in class most often, defines hypnosis as 11 nothing more than a special state of conscious awareness in which certain chosen behaviors of everyday life are manifested in a direct manner usually with the aid of another person; however, it is possible to be self­ hypnotized. Hypnosis is a special, but normal type of behavior, encountered when attention and thinking processes. are directed to the body of experiencial learning and acquired from or achieved in the experience of living."

(EriGkson, 1970).

Barber reports that the hypnotic state results in, or results from, deep muscle and emotional relaxation with the subjects often reporting that they experienced feelings of well being and peace. While in the hypnot'ic state, the subject becomes relatively inattentive to the general environment (Barber, 1957).

Let me suggest to you that since people are hardly ever in a constant state of consciousness, then the­ hypnotic state is a very natural phenomenon. 11

(/Misconceptions: \ There are many misconceptions held by the public

today. These misconceptions are not only shared by the

lay person, but also by professional people such as

physicians, psychologists, lawyers, etc. It is extremely important th<;tf/~ hypnotist not only explain what hypnosis / i is, but also what it isn't.

The s'irnplest wayto find out the misconceptions

held by a client is by asking him what he thinks hypnosis

is. In most cases the client will have some ideas about

hypnosis. Although some will be accurate, others will be

based on misconceptions. In some cases the client will

claim that he does not know anything about what hypnosis

is. In either case, I believe it is the hypnotist's

responsibility to clear as m~ny misconceptions as he can

think of. Some of the misconceptions typically brought up

by most people are: "Hypnotized people lose consciousness";

"Hypnosis weakens the will"; "Losing control";"Hypnosis

is like magic"; and "A hypnotist can make a subject do and

say things which are against his basic belief and morals".

These misconceptions need to be clarified and explained ..

Conscious vs. Subconscious

Over the years, in working with people, I find it

important for the client to understand some basic

di;fferences between the conscious and the subconscious 12

mind. In order to establish____a_common understanding of how

the mind operates, consider the following explanation:

The conscious mind is the part of us that is responsible

for analyzing information. It is where we do our critical

thinking and logical reasoning. Some researchers now

believe that these tasks are produced by the left hemis­

phere. of the brain.

· The subconscious, on the other hand, does not

analyze. It takes information literally. For example,

if I were to ask a person in hypnosis, "Can you tell me

what time it is?", he will probably answer, "yes" or "no."

A person out of hypnosis will answer by giving the actual

time. The subconscious also controls all of our automatic

physical functions such as breathing, heart rate, blood

flow, chemical changes, and energy flow. It is also

responsible for changes ·in feelings and emotions.

Since the subconscious mind does not use logic, it

operates largely on images. Dr. Maxwell Maltz,· in his

book Psycho-Cybernetics, compares the inner mind to a

computer. Every experience we have from the moment of

birth is recorded in that computer and is affecting our

behavior in one way or another. Some .experiments show

.. t.~at it might be that even pre-natal experiences are

recorded and.are responsible for some of our behavior.

The following is one case that may help to demon­

strate hmv powerful the subconscious is. In a seminar I 13

attended that was given by the Southern California Society

of Clinical Hypnotist-s, Dr. Ray LaScola, M.D. 1 a well­

known hypnotherapist 1 reported a case where a 28 year old

male patient had become blind at the age of six for no ·

apparent reason. After becoming blind, the.child was taken

to eye·specialists,·psychologists, and other clinics

wi thou·t success. · None of the. doctors who were consul ted

were able to find any physical reason for his blindness.

After a number of sessions, training. the patient t.o go into

hypnosis, Dr. LaScola regressed the patient to the time

just previous to the blindness and asked him to describe

what he saw happening. The patient described ·that he was

outside at the time and a house in the neighborhood was

on·fire. The people living in the house were able to get

out safely 1 but through the second-floo.r window he could

see.the family's dog. Unable to get out, the dog caught

on fire and at that moment the boy said to himself, 11 I

can't look at that," "I can't see that." At that moment,

he became blind. According to LaScola, the boy accepted

the suggestion literally, by passing the critical portion

of his mind and therefore, literally, became blind. In

the following sessions, Dr. LaScola was·able to help the

. patient. regain his vision by re-programming his 11 computer 11

to take the suggestions analytically rather than literally.

According to Pavlov's conditioning response theory,

we are conditioned to react through repetition and associ- 14

ation. Hypnosis is only one way by which one can learn to enter the subconscious mind and begin to understand and control some of his conditioned behaviors.

Most people can understand the concept of electricity more easily than the concept of how_mind energy works. Dr. D. Dobson, a former associate of mine, used the· concept of electricity as an analogy to mind energy as follows:

generator = mind wires = nerve fibers S'i¥i tches/plugs = muscles/fantacies One must have a source of energy, a generator, to create electricity. The electricity is then moved through insulated wires tc such locations as a house. The wires are connected to switches and plug outlets so that the energy can be used by people. Electricity by itself is neither good or bad. It could be used to light a bulb, which is a positive outcome, or it could be used to hurt or even kill a person by touching the wires. ·Mind energy is very similar. The energy flows to the muscles via the nervous system and the results can either be positive or negative. Muscles can be used for such activities as walking, writing, ·and playing tennis, or for headaches, ulcers, and tension.

According to Erickson, LeCron, and otherresearchers whenever the will (conscious) and the imagination

(subconscious) are at odds with each other, the imagination, 15 .

or subconscious, always wins. I found this to be true in my practice.

Depth of Hypnotic Trance:

Kroger (1963), LeCron (1964 & 1968) and Van Pelt

(1950) divide the state of hypnosis into three categories.

These categories are based on the depth of the trance and are classified as light, medium, and deep trances. There is no "fine line" between each state.

They claim that there are some common phenomena that are generally attributed to each state. A light trance is usually associated with; relaxation, eye closure, slowing of muscle activity and the ability to perform simple post-hypnotic suggestions. A medium trance is associated with glove anesthesia, partial amnesia, and catalepsy. A deep trance is associated with ability to open eyes without affecting the trance, post-hypnotic anesthesia, positive and negative hallucinations; time distortion and age regression.

These phenomena, we will learn to recognize and achieve in class through observations and practical experience. Although certain phenomena are generally characteristic of each of the three states of depth, individual responses of course, may vary.

You will now learn a method of recognizing the depth of your own hypnotic state. This will be done by providing the whole class an opportunity to enter into a 16 '

hypnotic state. (After approximately fifteen minutes of hypnotic induction, they were told the following) :

" .•• Now that you are relaxed and more comfortable,

I would like you to imagine a scale of 6 to 30. 0 repre­ sents being out of hypnosis and 30 represents·the deepest hypnotic state possible. In a minute I will count from 1 to 3 and snap my fingers. The second I snap my fingers, a number on that scale will appear in your mind automat­ ically. This number will represent how deep you were oh this scale. You will remember this number after you come outofhypnosis ... (pause) ... l, 2, 3, snap ... (pause)."

This method of recognizing the depth of a hypnotic state was developed by Davis and Husband, as reported in the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 26:175,1931.

Suggestibility Tests:

Suggestibility tests were developed over the years by state and experimental hypnotists. It is a quick and simple way to recognize how easily one will go into hypnosis. The tests are also used at times to "convince" or "prove" to the subject that he is.in a hypnotic state.

Some of the common tests that are in usetoday are; arm levitation, swaying, hand clasp, and eye closure.

It must be remembered, according to Erickson and

LeCrOn, that these tests are only generalizations, there­ fore there are some people who will not respond to a 1.7

suggestibility test, but who will still prove to be a

good hypno·tic subject. It is also possible for a person

to respond to one suggestibility test and not to another.

We will practice all of these tests and you are

encouraged to practice with other people outside of the

class.

All of the above four suggestibility tests will

be detailed and experienced in class·. The most commonly

used test of suggestibility is the arm levitation test.

The following are typical suggestions given for achieving

arm levitation:

" ... Sit comfortably in your chair. Let your eyes close. Now concentrate on both of your hands and arms ... notice the sensations in your hands .. . You might find your hands feeling tingly or numb .. . warm or cool ... or maybe other sensations ... (pause). As you concentrate, you'll soon begin to feel one of your hands getting lighter and lighter {pause) ... lighter and lighter. It's becoming so light that is feels as light as a feather ... (pause) ... Soon your hand will begin to lift up ••. higher and higher ... higher and higher (pause) ... If you'd like, you might imagine a very large balloon, filled with helium, above you ... A string is attached to the balloon and the other end of the string is tied to your wrist ... (pause~ .. Now see the balloon going up higher and higher ... "

The above suggestions are repeated, with some variety in the wording, for about seven minutes. (By the end of this time, most of the students had one of their arms up in the air. The speed in which the arm lifted and the height are fairly good indicators of how easily the subject will go into hypnosis.) 18

~pnotic Techniques:

There are probably as many hypnotic techniques as there are hypnotists. In this course you will learn approximately ten of the most common techniques used today by myself as well as by Erickson, Bandler and Grinder, and others. I would like you to keep in mind at this point that in reality, all hypnosis is self-hypnosis. You are not hypnotizing a subject, rather you are helping and teaching your subject how to reach the state of hypnosis.

The technique that is used most often (and is probably the simplest) is based on suggestions of relax­ ation. I would like to demonstrate to you how this is done by putting the entire group into hypnosis using this technique. We will discuss your experiences and reactions after you come out of the state.

Right now, I would like each of you to get into a comfortable position. (At this point everyone iri the room made some change in his body position. I pointed out to the class how most of us are conditioned to sit in a position which is not the most comfortable and relaxing to us.) Now that you are more comfortable, I would like you to do nothing but simply to listen to my voice and follow some of the simple suggestions that I will give. Most people, in their first experience with hypnosis, are concerned about several things. These generally are; "Am 19

I doing it right?," "How deep am I into hypnosis?," and

"Did I understand the suggestions?" I would like you, for this experience, to simply have an attitude that whatever happens happens. You will only go as deep into hypnosis as you will allow yourself to go. {This statement gives the subject permission to go into hypnosis rather than forcing it on him.) Now that I have your attention,

I will begin to take you into as deep a state as you would like to go:

" •.. Now take a couple of deep breaths and exhale slowly, (pause) ...... If your eye lids are still open, let them close so that you may feel more relaxed. (pause) .... Let other sounds in the room go into the background as if they were "background music." Begin to notice how your body feels, the kind of sensations you have, ..... You will probably begin to feel some heaviness and some tingly sensations .... (pause) ... You are now becoming more and more relaxed, perhaps you are feeling the pleasant sensations of your body as you begin feeling more and more tired and relaxed ... You continue to go deeper and deeper.and become more and more relaxed ... with every breath that you take, you are becoming more and more relaxed ..• every word I say takes you down deeper and deeper ... Don't try too hard, just let yourself go. You'll be able to hear my voice at all times ... You will continue to go deeper until I bring you back up again ... ! will now take you into a deeper state of hypnosis. I would like you to imagine an elevator (before the induction; I asked if anyone had a fear of elevators. No one did.) You are on the lOth floor, waiting for the elevator door to open and take you down to the first floor (pause) ... Now the door opens and you walk into the elevator ... Facing the door, you push the number 1 to your right ... As the elevator begins to go down, I will call out the floor number ... with each floar, you will go deeper .... 9 ... going deeper .... B••.. 7 ..•• more and more relaxed .... 6 .... 5 ... . 4 ..•. going deeper .... 3 .... 2 •.. almost there ... 20

••• l .... just letting go and becoming more relaxed ... Just let the elevator disappear now and notice how pleasant you feel .... (pause) .... I will now count from 1 to 10. With every number I count, You will bring yourself up .... By the time I get to 10 you will open your eyes and be wide awake, alert, and refreshed .... l,2,3,4,5,6,7, 8, 9, arid 10 ... Wide awake. "

(The suggestions in the above technique were repeated several times with different wording. It took approximately twenty minutes to complete the induction.)

This demonstration is only one version of the relaxation technique. I urge students to be creative when employing suggestions. For example, one can substi- tute an escalator for the elevator, or a black-board with the number 10 to 1. One can find o·ther complete versions in books such as: Self-Hypnotism, LeCron, 1964, Hypnotism

Today, LeCron and Bordeaux, 1947, and Techniques of Psycho- therapy, Wolberg, 1967.

Milton Erickson has developed a technique which is called the "confusion technique." This technique has a high degree of success when done correctly, although it is very difficult to master. It requires a great deal of practice, a good understanding of human behavior, and a great deal of concentration on t~e part of the hypnotist.

It is a play on words or communication of some sort that introduces progressively an element of confusion into the question of what is meant, thereby leading to -an inhibition ofresponses called for. As an example: "If it isn't 21

not raining then it is raining," or "I am here and you are

not here and New York is not here, so you must be in New

York because you are there, not here and New York is there,

not here" (Haley, 1967). (For a more detailed explanation

and other examples of this technique, I would refer the

reader to J. Haley's book, Advanced Techniques ofHypnosis

and Therapy, pages 130-157).

There is one more induction technique that I would

like to describe in this paper. This technique was

presented to the class in the same manner as all the others,

through demonstration and discussion. The technique is

called the "Non-Verbal Technique" and is used by Bahdler

and Grinder, Erickson, and Virginia Satir, with individuals

as well as. with families in therapy. The principle behind

this technique is that we give many non-verbal messages,

while communicating, without being aware of them (tone of

voice, body posture, social expression, etc.).

Erickson discovered, in 1959, that he could

hypnotize people through pantomime. By using body

language, gestures, social expressions, etc., he hypnotized

a woman who did not speak a word of English at a meeting

of an American Society of Clinical Hypnosis in Mexico

. (Erickson 1 1964).

Virginia Satir, a well-known family therapist,

describes in her book Peoplemaking, 1972, how she does

family therapy by making the family aware of the non-verbal 22

messages given and received by family members. She

separates people's responses.into four patterns: Placate, blame, distract and compute.

In my experiences I found that I was able to hypnotize a subject by first pacing his behavior (body

language) and then by leading him into hypnosis by giving non-verbal messages of being tired and relaxed (behaviors such as yawning, lowering and softening the tone of voice, closing the eye lids, etc.}.

Post-hypnotic Suggestions

One of the most important and interesting hypnotic phenomena is post-hypnotic suggestion, whereby we are able to transfer all the conditions of a trance to the waking state.· We can take advantage of this phenomena by implanting suggestions in the mind during hypnosis to take effect later in time (LeCrone and Bordeaux, 1947).

It is possible, for example, to give a subject such suggestions as: "In 10 minutes you will feel very thirsty and will get up to get a glass of water." In 10 minutes he will perform the task, very often without. remembering that he was told to do so. Instructions to carry out a suggestion could be designated for weeks, months or even years in the future.

Many investigators, such a LiebeaUlt and Estabrooks report that in some cases post-hypnotic suggestions lasted for as long as twenty years later. Patten conducted tests 23

on the duration of post-hypnotic suggestions. From his

investigations, he concluded that several repetitions of

the suggestion tend to lead to its indefinite persistence,

a conditioned reflex having been established (Hull, 1933).

This type of report helps to refute one of the greatest

criticisms of hypnotherapy -. that the effects of the

suggestion wear off rapidly and therefore are t_~mporary.

Perhaps the most common use of post-hypnotic

suggestion is in quickening later trance induction sessions by telling the subject to enter a hypnotic state on a giv~n

signal.

Although we attribute the phenomenon of post­ hypnotic suggestion to hypnosis, one must _keep in mind that most p~ople function daily on different post-hypnotic suggestions without ever being "hypnotized." An example of this couldbe found in a client who complains of

"over-eating" or "feeling a need to finish everything on the plate." Very often we find that such a client is reacting to a suggestion given to him early in life by his parents.

Another example is one of a 26 year old client that came to see me complaining of insomnia. Through hypnosis we ~iscovered that as a child he recited the prayer, nNow.I lay me down to sleep ••... If I should die before I wake ..... " every night. As an adult, he was 24

reacting to the part of the prayer of possible death while asleep.

It is important to understand that post-hypnotic suggestions work best when attached to a specific cue, such as time (i.e., 8 a.m., 6 p.m~, etc.) or thing

(i.e., person 1 color, etc.).

I believe that most "neurotic" behaviors were learned through post-hypnotic experiences or suggestions.

Giving a client positive post-hypnotic suggestions allows him to have a better choice as to how he will react or behave in specific situations.

Non-Verbal Communication

Like hypnosis, non-verbal communication has been around since the beginning of mankind. Many theories and research have been developed to understand non-verbal communica·tion. Whenever two or more people communicate with each other, they do so on two levels; 1) Verbal or conscious, and 2} Non-verbal or subconscious.

In this course we will mostly focus on the new developments in the area of non-verbal communication which has been done by Milton Erickson, M.D., Virginia Satir, and Richard Bandler and John Grinder.

Virginia Satir, writes in her book, Peoplemaking:

"What goes on in· a moment in time between two people has many more levels than are visible on the surface. The 25

surface represents only a small portion of what is going on, much in the same way that only a very small part of an ic~berg is visible" (Satir, 1972).

Satir separates people's responses to avoid the threat of rejection into four universal patterns:

1) Placate - To appear helpless so that the other person will not get angry.

2) Blame - To appear strong.

3) Distract- To ignore the threat, as if it were not there.

4} Compute - Using big words to establish self-worth.

With the above reactions, the body learned to accomodate these feelings of self-worth and most often without the individual's conscious knowledge (Satir, 1972).

Another method of communication, which I find to be extremely useful in my clinical work,. is Neuro-Linguistic

Programming.

Neuro-Li~guistic Programming was coined by two young men in Palo Alto, Richard Bandler and John Grinder.

They developed this method after studying the work of

Milton Erickson in great detail. Handler and Grinder, in their 1975 book, The Structure of Magic I, make the point that there is an irreducible difference between the world and our experience of it. Human beings do not operate directly on the world. Each individual creates a repre- sentation of the world in which he lives, that is, he 26

creates a map or model which he uses to generate his

behavior. His representations of the world determine to

a iarge degree what his experience of the world will be,

how he will perceive the world, and what choices he will

see available to him as he lives in the world.

According to Bandler and Grinder there are physical

phenomena which lie outside the limits of the five sensory

channels. For example: sound waves below 20 cycles per

second or above 20,000 cycles per second and wave forms

below 380 and above 680 milli-microns etc. Therefore, one

way in which one's model of the world is different from

the world itself is that the nervous system systematically

distorts and deletes whole portions· of the real world.

This constitutes the first set of filters which

distinguish the world from one's representation of the world. There are two other sets of filters, one is Social

and the other Individual.

In order to understand why some people continue

to cause themselves pain and anguish, it is important to

realize that they act upon the world with their perception

of the world and, perhaps they do not have enough choices available to them. · In order for a "people-helper11 to be effective, he must not only hear the words, but also must

understand the process of the message on the "Meta-model."

Very often, when a client communicates to the

therapist through the use of language, he only uses the 27

words which describe what is going on in his world. There

seem to be three general mechanisms by which he does this;

Generalization, Deletion, _and Distortion. It is therefore the therapist's task to help the client, through 1-1eta­ modeling, to become aware of his own model of the world by manipulating the language processes. That is to say that y:ou need to explore with the client the specifics which lead to the generalizations, what is deleted, and what and where the distortion is in the client's story.

In a later book, ~he Structure of Magic II, Grinder and Bandler point out that there are three major input channels by which human beings receive. information about the world - vision, audition, and kinesthetics.

The information received through one channel may be stored in the brain in one of the other channels. For example; a car crash could create an image of that crash, or looking at a nude picture could create a kinesthetic sensation.

In order to describe an experience, people use the language which corresponds to the experience. When one describes a visual experience, he may use words such as black, clear, spiral, image, etc. To re-create an auditory experience, he may use words such as tinkling, silent, squeal, blast, etc. and the words bitter, heavy,

touch, light 1 etc. for kinesthetic experiences. 28

Each individual has one of these representation

systems as a primary system which he uses most often. In

order for you to identify your client's most highly valued

representational system, you have to listen to the pre-

dictates which the client uses to describe his experience.

The following sentences are examples of this:

1) "He felt badly about the way she held the crawling child."

2) "The dazzling woman -v;atched the silver car streak past the qlittering disPlay." - 3) "He called out loudly as he heard the squeal of the tires of the car on the quiet street."

In recognizing the predictates used by the client,

you can match your own world to that of your clients, and,

therefore, have a better understanding of your client's world.

Bandler and Grinder noticed in their training

seminars, therapists who asked questions of their clients with no knowledge of representational systems used.

Typically, the therapist used predictates of his own

representation system. For example:

client (visual): "My husband just doesn't see me as a valuable person."

therapist (kinesthetic): "How do you feel about it?"

client (visual): "What?"

therapist (kinesthetic) : "How do you feel about your husband's not feeling that you are a person?" 29

client (visual): "That's a hard question, I don ' t know. "

The above therapist continued with not much success and reported at the end of the session how frus- trated he felt. Then Bandler and Grinder went back to the session with the therapist and continued:

therapist: "How do you know he doesn't see you as valuable?"

client: 11 I dress up for him and he doesn't notice." (The client is assuming that her husband also has a visual model of the world,- as she does.)·

therapist: "How do you know he doesn't notice?"

client: "He just paws me and doesn't even look." (He responds kinesthetically and doesn't stand back far enough to see.)

(Grinder/Bandler, 1976)

The therapist who has the knowledge of the repre- sentational systems can do two thin~s in the above example to help the client; 1) Teach her that she and her husband experience the world differently and her reality is different than his, and 2) He can begin to develop this woman's kinesthetic system which will expand her experi- ences.

Bandler, Grinder, ahd Satir, in working with families, found that there are often double messages

(incongruities) given by members of the same family. 30

Usually, the incongruities consist of the words as one message and the non-verbal expression as the other

(Bandler, Grinder, and Satir, 1976). CHAPTER III

SU~~RY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary

This project was designed with two assumptions in mind; 1) Many students in the Educational Psychology program at California State University, Northridge lack knowledge and information in the areas of Hypnotherapy, and ~on-verbal Communications; and 2) they have a desire to learn about these subjects. An appropriate course outline was then developed to be proposed to theEducational

Psychology Department as a new course in the program.

The course was given on an experimen·tal basis, in the Fall of 1978 and had seventeen students. (Of the twenty who registered by phone, two cancelled prior to the start of class and one student dropped out in the second session.) The course was offered for six weeks and was given one night a week for three hours per night.

Because of the limited time available for the course, it was necessary to choose material that I felt was most useful and appropriate for students who wanted to be introduced to these areas as well as obtain some practical experience in self hypnosis and recognizing non­ verbal messages. I also asked the students in the first

31 32

meeting to write down specific areas, within these fields,

that they wished to discuss or to get more information on.

The course was taught in seminar fashion. I

introduced theories and cases by such people as; Milton

Erickson, Richard Bandler and John Grinder, Virginia

Satir, Barbara Brown, as well as including my own personal.

experiences.

Although it was impossible to cover all the material

I prepared for the course, the students reported that they

had learned a great deal and some had already started to

use the information in their work.

At the last meeting, I asked the students to fill out an evaluation sheet with the following four questions

about the course:

1) I would like to see this class offered every semester.

2) Material presented is helpful to me as a counselor.

3) I would like to see this class extended to a three unit class.

4) I would recommend that students take this class in the future.

The evaluation was on a scale of 5 to 1, with 5 being "very descriptive" of the course and 1 being "not at all descriptive" of the course.

A summary of the seventeen completed evaluation forms showed the follmving: 33

1) All seventeen students marked the number 5 for Questions 1, 3, and 4.

2) Fifteen students marked the number 5 for Question 2.

3) Two students marked the number 4 for Question 2.

Along with the Evaluation form the class was asked to write personal· comments regarding ·their experience in the course. Samples of their comments are found in

Appendix D.

Students concluded that such a course is extremely valuable to them as counselors and that they would like to see a course on these subjects offered in this program regularly.

Conclusions and Reconunend:ations

I would like to make some conclusions based on my experience in teaching this course and the comments made by students who took the course. The most important conclusion I can draw is that there is a very definite need by students to learn and explore the areas of

Hypnotherapy, and Non-verbal Communication.

Since giving this course, many students have contacted me, asking if this course will be offered again.

More and more students are being exposed to these areas, but for the most part, the student's knowledge in these areas is very sketchy, and certainly not enough for them 34

to use adequately in their work as counselors. In addition, for those interested in becoming Marriage and

Family Counselors, as of January, 1978, the Board of

Behavioral Sciences requires a licensed Marriage, Family, and Child Counselor (MFCC) to have a minimum of forty hours in hypnosis to be able to practice hypnosis.

The course, at California State University,

Northridge could be taught in a variety of ways. In my opinion, it would be valuable offered as a regular three unit course. It would be taught by an instructor who specializes in both areas of hypnosis and non-verbal communication; preferably, by someone who is not oply a teacher, but also is a practitioner. This course would be most effective in seminar format: Teaching theories, class discussions, class practical experience in self~ hypnosis, exercises to recogn_ize non-verbal messages, and discussion of cases should all be included.

I believe that it would also be appropriate and valuable to teach each area separately as a one-unit seminar or workshop.

However the course is taught, I believe that because of changes in the field and responses from our students, there is strong support for the claim that our graduate students in counseling would benefit tremendously from gaining more knowledge and experience about the areas covered in this project. 35

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bandler, R. , and Grinder, J., The Structure of Magic I, Science and Behavior Books, Inc., Palo Alto, 1976.

Bandler, R., and Grinder, J., Patterns of the Hypnotic Techniques of Milton H. Erickson, M.D., Volume I, Meta Publications, Cupertino, 1975.

Bandler, R., Grinder, J., and Satir, V., Changing With Families, Scienc~ and Behavior Books, Inc. Palo Alto, 1976.

Barber, T. X.,. Hypnosis as Perceptual Cognitive Restructuring: I. Analysis of Concepts. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 1957, ~, 147-166.

Cooke, c. E. , & · VanVogt, A. E. ,• Hypnotism Handbook. Alhambra, ·calif.: Bardon Publishing, 1965.

Eisenberg, M. A., and Smith, R. R., Non-verbal Communi­ cation, Bobbs-Merrill, Indianapolis, 1971.

Erickson, M. H., and Kubie, L. S., "The successful treatment of a case of acute hysterical depression by return under hypnosis to a critical phase of childhood," Psychoanalysis Quarterly, 10: 592, 1941.

Erickson, M. H., "Pantomime Techniques in Hypnosis and the Implications," American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 7, 64-70, 1964.

Erickson, M. H., "Hypnosis- a treatment modality," American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 1970, Vol. 13 (2): 71-89.

Grinder, J., and Bandler, R., The Structure of Magic II, Science and Behavior Books, Inc., Palo Alto, 1976.

Green, A.M., Green, E. E. and Walters, E. D., "Self­ r~gulation of Internal States." In Progress of Cybernetics: Proceedings of the International Congress of Cybernetics, London, 1969. 36

Green, A.M., Green, E. E. and Walters, E. D., "Psychb­ physiological Training for Creativity," Presented at the Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, D. c., 197l.

Haley, J., Uncommon Therapy, Grune and Stratton, New York, 1968.

Haley, J., Advanced Techniques of Hypnosis and Therapy, Selected papers of Milton H. Erickson, M.D., Grune & Stratton, Inc., New York, 1967.

Harrison, P. R., Beyond Words, Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1974.

"Hypnosis," The New Encyclopaedia Britanica, Macropaedia, Vol. XVIII, l974.

Jacobson, E., Progressive Relaxation, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, l958.

Knapp, M., Non-Verbal Communication in Human Interaction, Hold, Reinhart and Winston, New York, 1972.

Kroger, W., M.D. Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Philadelphia, Lippincott, 1964.

LeCron, L., "A Study of Age Regression Under Hypnosis," Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosisf 1950.

LeCron, K., Experimental Hypnosis, Citadel Press, 1968.

Lipowski, J., Psyr.hosomatic Medicine Today, Psychiatrica Polska, 9(4): 377-388, l975.

Luthe, W., "Autogenic Training: Method, Research and Application in Medicine," American Journal of Psychotherapy, 17-174-195, 1963.

Marcuse, F. L. Hypnosis: Fact and Fiction. Baltimore: Penquin, 1959.

Marcuse, F. L. (Ed.), gypnosis Throughout the World. Springfield, Ill., Thomas Publishing, 1964.

Muhl, A. M., Automatic Writing, T. Steinkopff, Dresden, 1930.

Satir, V., Peoplemaking, Science and Behavior Books, Inc. Palo Alto, 1972. 37

Satir, V., Conjoint Family Therapy, Science and Behavior Books, Inc., Palo Alto, 1964.

Vaihinger, H., The Philosophy of "As-If," Routledge, Kegan and Paul, Ltd., London, 1924.

Van Pelt, S. J., Hypnotism and the Power Within, Skeffington and Son, Ltd., London, 1950.

Whitlow, J. E., M.D., "A Rapid Method for the Induction of Hypnosis," Experimental Hypnosis, 58-63, 1968.

Wolberg, L. R. Hypnosis in Reconditioning. In R. Rhodes (Ed.) Therapy Through Hypnosis. No. Hollywood, Calif., Wilshire Book Company, 1967.

Wolberg, L. R. The Techniques of Psychotherapy, (2nd ed. , 2 Vols.) New York: Grune & Stratton, 1967. APPENDIX A

COURSE OUTLINE

38 39

APPENDIX A

COURSE OUTLINE

Description of Course

I. Hypnotherapy

A. Auto-hypnosis/Self-hypnosis

B. Hetro-hypnosis c. Induction techniques

D. Phenomena

E. Uses in clinical and medical situations

F. Theories

G. Practical experience in class

II. Non-Verbal Communication

A. Theories

B. Practical experience in class

C. Advantages for using in clinical situation

D. Latest works by Erickson, Satir, and Bandler and Grinder.

III. Interaction of Above Fields

IV. Clinical Cases in Above Fields

V. Recommended Reading List (See Appendix B) 40

Hypnotherapy

I. Description and Definitions by:

A. Milton Erickson, M.D.

B. R. Bandler and J. Grinder c. Leslie LeCron D. William Kroger, M.D.

E. Sigmund Freud

II. Conscious versus Subconscious

III. Depth of Hypnotis Trance

A. Light Trance

1. Relaxation 2. Eye closure 3. Slowing of muscular activity. 4. Ability to perform simple post-hypnosis suggestions.

B. Medium Trance

1. Glove anesthesia -I 2. Partial amnesia 3. Catalepsy of entire skeletal musculature

C. Deep Trance

1. Ability to open eyes without affecting trance 2. Post-hypnotic anesthesia 3. Positive hallucinations 4. Negative hallucinations 5. Subjective feelings of detachment

IV. Self-Hypnotic Techniques

A. Self-relaxation

B. Arm levitation 41

C. Guided imagery

D. Progressive relaxation

V. Written Material on Hypnotherapy Distributed to Class (See Appendix C)

VI. Misconceptions

A. Loss of consciousness B. Weakening of the will C. Loss of control D. Magic E. Do and say things against will

VII. Hetro-Hypnotic Techniques

A. Coin techniques

B. Guided imagery

C. Eye fixation

D. Arm levitation

E. Confusion technique

F. Non-verbal technique G. Progressive relaxation H. Practical experience in above techniques VIII. Principles Used in Induction Techniques

A. Capture attention B. Motivation C. Prestige

D. Indirect suggestions E. Double-bind F. Repetition· 42

G. Imagination

H. Attaching emotions to suggestion

I. Positive versus negative suggestions

J. Visual versus kinesthetic versus auditory

K. Metaphors/Story telling (Milton Erickson, M.D.)

IX. Post-Hypnotic Suggestions

A. Usefulness

B. Types of

C. Cues

X. Methods of Tapping the Unconscious Mind

A. Age Regression

B. Automatic writing

C. Disassociation

D. Projective techniques

E. Finger levitation

F. Pendulum

G. Practical experience by class in the above

XI. Medical Uses of Hypnosis

A. Obstetrics and Gynecology

1. Alleviation of fears and anxieties over pregnancy. 2. Relaxation for childbirth 3. Alleviation of menopausal symptoms 4. Cases

B. Surgery

1. Pre-operative relief of apprehension 2. Reduction of amount of chemical anesthesia 3. Length of hospitalization reduced 4. Cases 43

c. Pediatrics 1. Nail biting 2. Enuresis 3. Behavioral problems 4. Lack of confidence 5. Cases D. General Medicine 1. Relaxation for stress reduction 2. Tension headaches 3. Migraine headaches 4. Obesity 5. Excessive smoking 6. Insomnia XII. Clinical Psychology - Hypnotic Suggestion in A. Anxiety states B. Sexual disorders

C. Neuroses D. Behavioral modification E •. Memory and concentration F. Phobias G. Self-esteem H. Cases XIII. Hallucination A. Positive B. Negative c. Visual D. Auditory E. Kinesthetic

F. Uses of XIV. Dissociation

A. Uses of

B. Partial c. Total

XV. Time Distortion

A. Condensing time

B. Stretching time c. Uses of

XVI. Anesthesis

A. Uses of

B. Medical c. Dental

XVII. Suggestibility Tests

A. Hand clasp

B. Eye closure c. Swaying 1.:: 4..;

Non-Verbal Communication

I. Bandler and Grinder Model

A. Experience and perception as an active process

1. Neurological constraints 2. Social contraints 3. Individual constraints B. Model of the world

1. Generalization 2. Deletion 3. Distortion C. Linguistic Process 1. Deep structure 2. Surface structure 3. Presupposition

D. Representational Systems

1. Visual system 2. Auditory system 3. Kinesthetic system

E. Identifying the most highly valued system 1. Use of predicates 2. Eye movements 3. Gestures F. Speaking the client's language

l. Matching predicates 2. Matching body language G. Switching Representational Systems H. Incongruity 1. Multiple messages 2. Paramessages 46

I. Responding to Incongruities

J. Sorting Client's Incongruities into Polarities

1. Spatial sorting 2. Fantasy sorting 3. Psychodramatic sorting 4. Representational System sorting 5. Anchoring K. Fuzzy Functions 1. Mind reading II. Satir Model

A. Elements of Communication 1. Body 2. Values 3. Expectations 4. Sense organs 5. Words 6. Brain

B. Patterns of Communication

1. Placing 2. Blaming 3. Computing 4. Distracting APPENDIX B

47 48

BIBLIOGRAPHY

LeCron, Leslie. Self Hypnotism

LeCron, L. and Bordeaus, J. Hypnotism Today

LeCron, L. ed., Experimental Hypnosis

Estabrooks, G., Hypnotism

Kroger, W., Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis

Haley, Jay, Advanced Techniques of Hypnosis and Therapy

Haley, Jay, Strategies of Psychotherapy

Haley, Jay, Uncommon Therapy

Erickson, Milton, (any of his books)

Bandler, R., and Grinder, J., Patterns of the Hypnotic Techniques of Milton H. Erickson, M.D., Vol. 1 and 2

Bandler, R., and Grinder, J., The Structure of Magic, Vol. 1 and 2

Bandler, R., and Grinder, J., and Satir, Virginia, Changing With Families

Satir, Virginia, Peoplemaking APPENDIX C

HYPNOTHERAPY HANDOUTS

49 50

-EGO STRENGTHE~l f NG 1 have found this routine to be equally valuable in preceding plain symptom removal or the more involved hypno-~n~lytical techniques, Constant repetition not only strengthens the ego-defences and thus lessens the likelihood of relapse, but s=eti"les en.:Jbles the patient to co-operate in an analytical investig~tion ~>ohich he r.1ight otherwise have been unfitt·ed to face. The system is by no m~ans rigid since it forms a fr~mework into which modified or additional suggestions can easily be fitted to suit each individual case.

Every day ••• you will become physically stronger and fitter. You will bec

Every day,,.your nerves wi II become stronger and steadier.

You wi I I become so deeply interested in whatever you are doing ... so dc~ply interested in wh~tcvcr is going on ••• that your mind wi II become much less pre-occupied with ycurself ... .3nd you wiH become much le~s conscious of yuurself ••• and your own feelings.

Every day ••• ycur mind will beccme much calmer and clearer ••• more composed •• ,more placid ••• more tranquil. You wi II become much less easily ~crried ••• much less easily agitated ••• muc~ less fearful and apprehensive ••• much less easily upset.

You will be able to think more clearly ••• you will be able to concentrate more easily ••• your memory wi II improve ••• and you ~i !I be able to see things in their true perspective ••. without magnifying them ••• without allowing them to get out of proportion.

Every day ... you wi II become emotionally much calme·r ••• much more settled •• much less easily disturbed. And, every day ••• you wil I feel a greater feeling of personal weil-being ••• a greater feeling of personal safety and security ••• than you nave felt for a long, long time. Every .day ... you will becO"-e ••• and you will remain ••• more and mo~e completely relaxed ••• both mentally and physical ly ••• even when you are no lonser with me.

And as you become ••• and as you remain ••• more relaxeci ••• and less tense each day ••• so you wi II develop much more confidence in yourself ••• Much more confidence in your ability to do ... not only·~,h.Jt you have to do each d~y ••• but also ••• much more confidence in your ability to do what­ ever you ought to be able to do, •• v1ithout fear of failure ••. 1·tithout fear of cons~qucnces ••• without unnecessary anxiety ••• without uneasiness. Because of this ... every day, •• ycu will feel more and more inacpcndcnt ••• more able to 'stick up for yourself' ••• to 'stand upon your. m·m feet' ... to 1 hold your own' ... no matter how difficult or trying things may be. And. because all these things wil I happen ••• exactly as I tel I you they will happen ••• you are going to feel much happier •••much more contented ••• much more cheerful ••• much more optimistic ... much less easily discouraged ... much less easily depressed, JOHN HARTJ.);tJO, ,'1. B. , Ch. 8. Medical and O..::nt1i Hy:;nfl>is London, EngLJn

ANALEPTIC~ CYCLE OF PROGRESS

As you continue to relax, just letting yourself ddft down deeper and deeper relaxed ••• you relax completely throughout ewery fiber of your being; relaxing physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. And as you relax so completely in this fashion, concentrating your mind, listening to each word that I say, you let each sUJ9s~stion take c.;;,-,pi~tc and thorough effect to help you, deeply and autor:~a;~tically, on both t.'1e conscious and subconscious levels of mind activit~. You ex~end th~ principles of relaxation and concentr

Just drifting down no\v, •• way down ••• deeper relaxed. And you realize that as you are more relaxed and as you are capable of greater concen­ tration, you evaluate things even more thorou3hly and co~pletely; you reach decisions even more easily and readily; you act even more efficiently ond effectively ond you continually build your self~confi­ dencc, self-reliance, self-acceptance, and self-esteem ••• growing stronger and more copoble every dily in alI situations. As you do this, vou feel even more relaxed and you are cilpablc of even greater concentration. As you drift d01-m deeper relaxed, you let all of these suggestions s~at themselves deeply, permanently in your sub­ consciQus mind. And as you apply these principles in your I ife automatically every coy, in every situation and in every circumstance in which you find yourself, whether alone or with others, you relax more and more deeply, you concentr

INDUCT I ON TECHrH QUE

AN INDUCT I ON TECHNIQUE

We are not including induction techniques in this H~ndbook because these are readily available in oth~r sources. An exception is made for Dr. Erickson's contribution. Dr. Erickson is known as a world-wide authority on clinical hypnosis. (Editor) He writes:

Following is the exact wording of a technique that I have applied over and over again hundreds of tir.1cs to induce a :ranee. I use It because it is such ~n C~$Y t~~hnique, bec~use it proves very satisfactory, and because it eliminates any resistance.

Now that you ~av~ described your problem to me, I would li~e to have you tal..e a comfort~blc position in your chair with your legs uncrossed, your feet flat on the floor, and your elbows at the sides of ycur chest and with your hands on your thighs, but without your thumbs touching e~:h other. Look about the room and pick sorr.e srr.a;51 spot to loc.k at · steadily. Don't move a single muscle in your body. just keep looking at that spot. Don't even speak. Just listen. In that way you will keep your ears in the same position and you wi II he.1r !Tie more :learly. As you look at that spot and continue to look at tbat spot,there will occur within you a number of changes.

You probably have not realized it but already the rhythm of your breathing has changed. It is slower, it is comfortable, .:ond it is good rhythm. I can see your ;JU 1se in the temp I e {or neck) and I can tell you thilt your heart has slo~1ed do•m a little bit and that means that your blood pressure has I01-1ered to meet the resting condition of your body.

N

As i talk to you, you can keep right on looking mer-tally at that mental picture. As I talk to you, if you want to, you can hear Jny sounds that you wish: a sonic boom, the cars on the street, the noise in the next room, but actuill ly the only important thing for you right now is the sound of my voice and the meaning of what I say to you, so you don't rc~lly need to give attention to anythin9 else unrcss you have a particular interest in the sonic boom, or the cars on the street, or the birds outside.

Now I am going to discuss your problem and I will do it in this way. I will sketch it in gcncrill ilnd I want you to realize that 1 am going to a>k of you only the things that are actually possible for you to do. There are many things that we can do of which we ~•e unaware. We can {Conti n~.;t.d) ·fl()ll TECH III QUE .:-- . ncinued)

attend a lecture ~nd bec~use the lecturer is interesting and stimulating we don't even notice the p.:lSS.Jge of time and are just interested in what he is saying. But if we attended a lecture where the lecturer was dul I, boring and tiresome, one wou I d feel the h.Jrdness of the seat of the ch~ir, and yet it is the s.J~e ch.:1ir in which you could sit .Jnd I isten to an interesting lecturer and never feel all the discomforts and distress of not moving and the hardness of the seat, but with the good lecturer you don't even hear anything except his voice. Now you are here to listen to me. You are here to do certain things. In your lifetime of experience you have felt things and you have not felt some things that you could have felt if you had paid attention to them. You have had much experience in forgetting things that would seem upon ordinary thinking to be unforgettable.

For exn do.

First of all, I want you to enjoy feeling very comfortable. In fact, you can enjoy yourself so much that you can let your unconscious mind listen to me while your conscious mind can sleep or busy itself with thoughts about things far removed from this office, because many of the things that I want to assist you in accomplishing are governed by your unconscious mind, and so now continue as you are, at ease, in comfort, and at the prcper time I will give you all the directions necessary for you to take care of your problems, all of those I need to deal with.

"·:ow this technique of instruction is very simpfe. The patient sits immobile, ::e swallowing reflex is arrested, and if there is any point in it I can lift •··C ar::: to demonstrate catalepsy; I can ask the patient to open his mouth; I :~n ask him to st~nd up; I can tell him that in the future I might ask him to !evelop this same state now present in him, th.Jt any desirable state he might ·i~h can be achieved on his next visit by looking at the same spot or any :":t.:r spot. You c.Jn repeat this procedure in the same way or you may ha.ve • i., count backward from t•·1cnty to one or for\·1ard from one to twenty, just ~.~ing certain that the counting is done silently,

~ •en of greater importance, it is necessary for the operator to know that his ·-~ject really can do everything that is asked. It is hard to understand why ·~operator will say, 'The subject can go into a trance for you but he can't '.r t:lc,' If he can go into a trunce for anybody he can go into a trance for ···:rybody "hom he wishes to. The operator should know th.Jt the patient comes :. hi~ with ful I respect ~nd wi I I be entirely willing to develop a trance if :·~operator docs not first suggest by manner, attitude or bearing the idea ~:It maybe he c

OBESITY

SUGGESTIONS ~~SED ON UNLIMITED CALORIE, LOW CARBOHYDRATE DIET

Although a light trance state is effective in enhancing therapeutic sugges­ tions, deeper trance levels are desirable in isolating patients fro:n external distractions and focusing attention on new l~arnings. Experiencing a wealth of hypnotic phenomena aids immeasurably in building confiaence - a charact·.!r­ istic lacking in many obese people. With that in mind, suggestions for trance deepening m

The following verbali:z

After a few minutes spent with one of the formal or natural induction tech­ niques, tr~nce deepening and therapy may proceed as foll~•s:

As you relax comfortably, I am going to offer ideas and suggestions that will be most helpful in attaining deeper levels of relaxation and in controlling your desire for fattening food. It isn't really necessary for you to pay close attention to what I have to say. You may involve yourself in your own thoughts, your own body feelings, your own sensa­ tions. In its unique way, your subconscious mind listens and responds to new learnings and experiences. Your eyes are growing ~ore heavy, and a delightful feeling of d~~o relaxation is spre~ding through the muscles of your f

Your attempts in the past to starve yourself into reducing body weight developed tension, anxiety, and frustration. That is all over. New you have the ••onderful opportunity to associate relaxation of body and mind with a relaxed attitude to•,,ard eating. You find yourself c=.r'ort­ ably choosing only those foods that are good for y0u, and passing up the foods that are fattening. E~ch p

At this time I would like you to focus attention on feelings in your left hand. Imagine that colored balloons are tied to the fingers of your left hand and that several bal lo0ns are tied to your left wrist. Feel the lightness in your fingers and v1rist as th..: b.:tlloons in their upward flight support the "'eight of your fingers and hand. As your hand feels lighter and lighter and you go more deeply relaxed, your subconscious mind wi II readily accept ideas for m

Reduction of body weight can be accompl ishcd by learning to thoroughly enjoy those foods that do not contribute to the fornation of body fat while el imin;Jting s1·:ects and starches. Your cnjoy~cnt of those foods that arc good for you can be mar~cdly cnhJnccd. To help you ~ppreci­ ate the plc

..-- £SlTY (Continued)

beverage. He permits himself the luxury of enjoying the delicate aroma ~nd bouquet. Only then docs he allow a few drops of the liquid to touch his lips and tongu~, and to bring into play the sensitive taste buds. Taking full advantage of the organs of sight, smel I, ~nd taste, he derives the most exquisite gustatory pleasure.

Eating is an art. You are learning to apply techniques that give you r::ore satisfaction and cnjoyr.1cnt in eating than you have ever experienced in the past. You automatically find yourself e.Jting sl01·•ly, appreciating tho:: color and fragrance of those foods th.:lt are good for you. You take small bites of food .:1nd devote time to appreciate their subtle flavors and textures. As you establish new and delightful patterns of eating, you enjoy a feeling of release from anxiety and frustr.:~tion, a feeling of increased confidence in your ability to achieve your goal.

As you continue to relax more deeply and comfortably, I will touch your left hand and lower it to your lap. The lightness disappears as you go deeper into trance and feel more confident in your ability to carry out instructions and recoD~cndations. As time goes on you find yourself eating only those foods that are good for you and that wi II permit your body to Jo'se excess ~·eight. You may eat as much meat, poultry, and fish as you I ike. You need net remove fat from any food. In fact, you may use fat from other sources. Sweet and sour cream, butter, margarine, 1 oils, and salad dressings areal I allowed. Many vcgct~blcs and .:1 variet/ of fruit low in sug~r content are described in the printed material giv~n you as a written guide, A number of foods are forbidden because of~th~ir high carbohydrate content. The~e include sweets and starchy foods such as brc~d, crackers, cake, rice, potatoes, and spaghetti. These items are fully described in your food guide.

The change in your eating habits results in loss of excess weight, a more attractive figure, and increased pep and energy. You develop confidence in your ability to be a dynamic and effective person. Your subconscious mind has a tremendous capacity for learning, and as you continue to relax more deeply your new learnings automatically become an integral part of your total personality. You respond to ideas and suggestions that arc most helpful in establishing a new point of view, a new orientation, a new way of life.

In a few moments, I will count slowly from I to 20. As I do, you will go deeper and deeper relaxed. After a short time, I will count backward from 20 to I as a 5ignal for you to comfortably become more and more alert as the count proceeds toward I. When you are fully alert, I will again count from I to 20 as you automatically respond by going in a deep tran.ce. The count backward wi II ag

(Continued) 56

PSYCHOAit"

litlOERSTAriO PROBLEM: CRI Gi u· OF FEELINGS REGARDING PROBLEM

This is a suggestion designed to help the process of psychoanalysis. (Editor)

As you let yourself drift along deeper relaxed, becoming more and more comfortable, letting yourself sink down ••• 1~ay dO\-m ••• deeper and deeper relaxed, you become more and more aware that the key to tne solution of your problem is to co~pletcly and totally understand and accept it. It docs absolutely no good to blame yourself or others; it does absol~ utcly no gouJ to try to e~cu>e yourself or other~ or to ju~tify or rationalize your condition and behavior. The only thing that do-::.~ any goo;:t·at all is undcrst;:~n:.!ing .•• under~tanding coupled '"'ith .Jn attitud<.: /of acceptance. This al l~im;:>ortant ·understanding must occur at n,o :levels of awareness. You must achieve intellectual understanding anj_ most important of all you must achieve emotional understanding. You must cor:1e to the point 1,here you totally understand and accq:t the facts with regard to your probler.1 and you must come to the point 1·mere you totally accept and understand the feelings of your problem. 3oth of these can be obtained casily ••• with patience, persistence, and unqualified determination.

As you drift down deeper and deeper relaxed, you realize more and more that the mind is a biological comouter that completely records every~ thing you_ever experience in your life. You put data or information into the mind by gathering information with the five senses. AI I of this is recorded perfectly and permanently in the ~emory bank of ycur subconscious mind, together with any and all feelings and reactions that you have at the time of any particular experience. So you see, it is not enough to recall the facts ••• you must bring up the emotions ••• you must experience, or be ~ware of, the feelings that you had when your problem started and at any time that it was aggravated, fortified or reinforced in any way.

Now, right now, as you drift down more deeply relaxed than you have ever been before, you permit yourself to drift all the way back •.• you drift back to the time when your problem first started and you alia~' yourself to expcricnce ••• to co~plctcly re~expcrience all of the emotions, feelings and reactions that are necessary for you to gain the insight and understanding that you need to solve your problem completely, totally ••• permanently. You drift back ••• all the ·da'r back and you focus your mind and emotions on the origins of your problem so that you can bring all of the necessary facts and feelings, most important of all, you bring alI of the necessary feelings and reactions into your a1·1are~ ness, so that you can gain the necessary insight and understanding to completely resolve this and any other problem th~t interferes with your life; th;Jt interfere •·lith you achieving your most usclul, positive, beneficial, constructive goals.

As you drift back to· the time and circumstances ~~hen your problem originated or was aggravoted ~nd fortified, you prepare to bring alI the n.::ccss~ry facts Jnu ic:cling5 into your ~warcness, i•:o~cdi>Jtely if possible, so that you can 1-1rite them down and discuss them; so that

(Continued) f"•'""1 -::JJ

PS VCHOANAL YT I C SUGGESTIONS

(Continued}

you can study them and gain the insight and understanding ••• the insight and understanding that you need in order to c~pletcly resolve your· problem. (Pause) You may prefer to allow any essential important facts, feelings and reactions to drift up into your awareness gradually and completely, by steps and in stages, in the form of thoughts, feelings, ideas, emotions, or dreams ••• safely, co~fortably, completely ••• thus allowing yourself to obtain and be aware of all of the necessary infor.nation and deep-seated c~otional responses that must be brought to I ight in order for you to solve your problem completely and pennanently.

DOUGLAS M. GREGG, M.D. San Diego, California 58

.t:!M!I PATTERNS BECOME AWARE OF HABIT PATTERNS

On each word that I say you let alI other thoughts, all other feelings, all other sounds fade, fade away into the distance so that each sugges­ tion th.:Jt I give you may take complete and permanent effect upon you to help you with any problem. As I giv~ you e.:Jch suggestion, you let yourself relax more and more co~plctely, and without even thinking about it your mind automatic<:~lly m<:~kes c.:Jch sugg\!~tion a part of your cveryd<~y life, helping you to solve <:~ny problem. A~ you drift .:Jlong, you feel yourself rel.:Jx, deeper and deeper relaxed ••• way down .•• so that more a~d more you can come to re<:~lize that there are ~<:~bits, there are patterns in your life. There are patterns in your way of thinking .:Jna feeling, patterns in your way of re<:~ctinq to yourself, to others and to the things around you. NO\• ••• right now,- you begin to permit these habits, these patterns and their functions, their purposes, their causes to drift up into your conscious a\·,arenass ••• you per~it these behavior patterns and the needs that they attempt to fulfill to drift up into your conscious .:Jwun.:ness gr.:Jdu<:~lly, safely .:Jnd c~oletely. This happens autom.:Jtical ly •.• without your even thinking .:Jbout it. You do this so that any neg

One of the ways th.:Jt you can permit these habit patterns, these behavior patterns to come into your conscious awaren~ss is to pay very close attention to your thoughts and feelings, your speech and your reactions. Pay very close attention to your favorite words, phra,ses or expressions; pay very close attention to your favorite stories or jokes, to any favorite or recurrent song. Pay very close attention to anything that makes you really laugh hard ••• or cry. Become a\·,are of any peculiar or unusual uses of 1·1ords, any inappropriate uses of words. Become aware of your habitual or recurrent thoughts and daydrea~s. Secane aware of your vilrious gestures and postures. AI I of these things can provide you with very ir.~portant and significant clues as to the ·content and activity of your subconscious mind. Gradually, as you are more and more a\~are of all these things and as you let yc·urself become more and more aware of your word choice in conversation, you learn to sit back, as it were, and watch your mind think. That is what alI of these tech­ niques te.:Jch you to do: they teach you to w.:Jtch your mind think. More and more you become aw

Your subconscious mind is a masterful, obedient and wi I Hng servant; to use it to maximum efficiency, you need only learn to understand and control it by communicating with it properly and in its I.:Jnguagc of symbols and visual images.

Now, as you drift along deeper relaxed, deeper and deeper relaxed ••• way down ••• you let all of these suggestions sink down, do~m into the deepest reaches of your subconscious mind where they automatically

(Continued} 59

r .PATTERNS .:.--1 cccnt inued}

bec~e completely, totally and permanently effective ••• to help you to develop more and more penetrating in$ight and an ever deepening under­ standing of yourself ••• of the patterns of thought and feeling in your subconscious mind as-you permit yourself to become that person you alw.Jys admired, always wanted to be ••• that person you are truly c

DOUGLAS M. GREGG, M.D. San Diego, California APPENDIX D

SELECTED CLASS COMMENTS

60 61

"! can guarantee that this class in hypnotism will be a deinite popular· course that will be greatly

appreciated. From my personal experiences in attending

I have benefited both in my personal life and in giving

me another tool to use with clients."

"I really enjoyed this course and found it very

interesting. I would like to pursue this area in the

future."

"I hope that this course will be offered so that others may benefit."

"This class was valuable to me personally and as a counselor. I would like to see it become a full semester course."

"The material covered in this class has given a whole new perspective on dealing with clients. The information discussed in the class helps in self-awareness and understanding as well."

"I highly recommend this class to anyone who desires to better themselves of help others in a thera- peutic manner." 62

"It is time the academic conununity realized the extent to which the mind can be developed and stop equating hypnosis with black magic. This course should be taught on a regular semester basis. I can think of no field of education which would not be enhanced by one's understanding of his mind and its abilities."

"I would like to see the course offered for credit, and extended to include greater breadth of material. Could be developed into a larger curricular addition."

"This was a valuable, exciting experience for me. I have been exposed to hypnosis and bio-feedback and many of the things that Michael (the instructor) covered somehow brought it all together."

"Would be nice to have it longer than six weeks."

"Hypnotherapy has added a new dimension to my training in the Counseling Center at California State

University, Northridge. The class has been very informative and interesting."

"I will be promoting these kinds of classes with the professional and non-professional staff in the

Counseling Center."