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Writer's pictureDean Draper

Interpreting Responses in Hypnotherapy: A Journey into the Subconscious

Updated: Apr 19

In the nuanced world of hypnotherapy, patient responses during sessions are more than just words; they are gateways into the subconscious mind. As a hypnotist, I've observed that how patients react under hypnosis can reveal profound insights into their inner conflicts and emotional states. This blog explores three specific responses in hypnotherapy and their implications for understanding and addressing the root of patients' issues.


1. Feeling Nothing During Revivification Under Hypnosis In hypnotherapy, revivification involves guiding patients to relive past experiences in a hypnotic state. An intriguing response is when a patient feels 'nothing' during this process. This absence of emotion might suggest a protective dissociation from painful memories or emotions. Alternatively, it could indicate a deeper blockage in accessing emotions, often seen in depression or certain personality disorders. This understanding helps in navigating these blockades with sensitivity, using hypnotherapy to gently access and heal these deeper wounds. Often what is not said is more telling than what is spoken.


2. Becoming Overly Talkative and Lost in Narratives During Hypnosis Some patients become exceedingly talkative under hypnosis, often losing themselves in their stories. This can be a defense mechanism, where verbosity serves as a distraction from the deeper, more painful issues that hypnosis is attempting to uncover. It might also reflect an unmet need for being heard or understood, possibly stemming from past experiences of neglect or invalidation. Recognizing this, we can direct the hypnotic dialogue to more introspective avenues, facilitating deeper self-exploration and healing. Often, the stories, like dreams, are loaded with subconcious metaphores and clues to issues that the subconscious is too guarded to release to the concious mind and itself. In this way we can see that the subconcious operates as a collection of semi-independant parts just like any other system be it digestive or immune etc.


3. Mind Drifting in Unrelated Directions Under Hypnosis When a patient’s thoughts wander in seemingly in random directions and the patient is not talkative it often points to a deeper issue. This pattern often reveals internal conflict or subconscious resistance to confronting specific issues. Instead of telling stories like in point 2, it just avoids the entire process and goes somepace else completely unrealed. It may signify a part of the subconscious not yet ready to deal with certain memories or emotions. This understanding is crucial in hypnotherapy, as it guides us in either addressing this resistance or adapting our techniques to help the patient focus and reduce underlying anxiety. There are ways to refocus the mind while not forcing it and letting things happen at an acceptable pace.

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