Human beings don’t generally think about their breathing, their eyes blinking, or their heartbeats. These bodily functions continue to perform without thought underneath conscious awareness.  People have the ability to hear their own thoughts and respond to their environments in a personally unique fashion. We think about some aspects of our existence yet filter others out of our awareness. These actions are a product of the remarkable human brain or more specifically, the human mind.

Whereas a reference to the brain is a reference to the physical organ, the mind does not exist in a physical sense. The mind is a term used to describe the various functions and roles of the brain; such as self-awareness, behavior, perception and memory.

 There are three parts to the mind; the unconscious mind, the conscious mind, and the subconscious mind. These facets of mind are interdependent yet each has its own role and function. Together, these aspects of mind respond to and interpret lived and internal experience.

 A common description for these layers of mind is the Iceberg Metaphor. The mind, like an iceberg, is a complete and cohesive unit. When looking at an iceberg, one only sees a small portion of the object – the bulk of the ice remains beneath the surface hidden from view.

Similarly, the conscious mind, the analytical part that we use to navigate our daily experiences, is just a small portion of the mind. Two other important facets of mind remain hidden beneath the surface. Our unconscious mind controls our bodily functions while all of the thoughts, memories, emotions, and feelings held outside of our conscious awareness are stored within the subconscious mind.

 The Unconscious Mind

The unconscious mind is the part of the mind that controls all automatic functions so that there is no need to consciously attend to them. This level of human mind holds the control of the basic functions of the human body such as breathing, immunity, heartbeat, digestion, and reflexes. It works underneath conscious awareness, even though the conscious mind can influence some of these functions.

 The Conscious Mind

 The conscious mind is the analytical part of the mind; the part of the mind that people utilize during most of their waking life to relate to their environment. It analyzes information, rationalizes our behavior, deals in the realm of willpower, and provides us with working short-term memory.

The conscious mind is the intellectual part of mind. It thinks in a linear fashion and uses deductive reasoning, evaluating and judging the environmental stimuli that it acquires through the five senses. It is the logical, analytical part of the mind that helps us make decisions based and draws conclusions about the best course of action based upon the information it processes. It also gives us motives for the things that we do. In this way, our conscious mind rationalizes our behaviors based upon the judgments it has made about our interaction within the environment.

In addition to processing environmental stimuli, the conscious mind serves as the gatekeeper to the subconscious level of mind. It filters the information that reaches the subconscious mind, deciding which beliefs, thoughts or feelings will pass to the subconscious mind.

 The Critical Factor of the Conscious Mind

 The critical factor of the conscious mind filters the information allowed into the subconscious; it makes decisions about the validity of input based on the way it perceives information from the past.  

The conscious mind must do things in a logical fashion and always has a reason for everything it does.  It must have a reason to allow any information through to the subconscious mind. If the input from the environment does not mesh with prior programming the incoming information (such as a hypnotic suggestion or an affirmation) will be rejected.

 The critical factor evaluates incoming information, including affirmations and hypnotic suggestions, to determine whether or not it matches with current beliefs. If it does, the information slips through and becomes a part of the person. If not, the incoming information is rejected.

It is possible for new information to slip past this innate defense of the conscious mind by suspending the critical factor of the conscious mind so that new information can reach the subconscious. Once a suggestion, affirmation or new idea is accepted by the subconscious mind, it must happen.

Image by Lars Sundstrom

The Subconscious Mind

The word subconscious literally means below the conscious.  The subconscious mind exists and operates beneath the conscious mind. It is the most powerful level of mind.

The subconscious mind is often compared to a very complex computer program. Unlike the conscious mind, it is not analytical and does not make decisions  based on rational judgments.  The subconscious mind simply functions off of the programming that it has received via life experiences, personal belief systems, thoughts, and ideas.

All of our life experiences make us the unique individuals that we are. These experiences and our perceptions about them form the basis of the programming installed in the subconscious mind. Every life experience is recorded and their memories are stored permanently within the subconscious mind.

The subconscious mind records every experience and all of the information picked up from the environment. It uses each of our five senses to record everything heard, seen, smelled, tasted and touched and stores this information with all memories, facts, ideas and thoughts beneath the surface of the conscious mind. Our conscious mind provides working memory; our subconscious mind stores everything else.

Our memories are recorded based upon our perceptions surrounding the event at the time it occurred. Our beliefs, ideas, perceptions and opinions all color our lived experience, and as such, they influence our memories.

Unlike the conscious mind, the subconscious mind uses inductive reasoning, viewing the environment and stimuli based on its prior programming. It never analyzes, judges, or rationalizes; it merely accepts all information that is passed to it without analysis. It has no ability to analyze information or reprogram itself. It simply acts based on what was programmed into it. Most of this programming occurs early in childhood. Young children use the subconscious level of mind as their primary mode of awareness until their conscious minds begin to develop and gain dominance. The large amount of information taken in by the subconscious mind during these years will form the basis of the belief systems that will be carried with them for a lifetime.

Another task of the subconscious mind is to carry out all of our habituated patterns of behavior, thought, feelings and reactions. This includes our daily rituals, our personal idiosyncrasies, our posture, facial expressions, and even habits such as over-eating or smoking.

The subconscious mind is where the emotions reside and emerge. The conscious mind cannot deal with emotions; these are the realm of the subconscious mind.  Any situation involving emotion is automatically processed by the subconscious mind.

Emotions are the root cause of human behavior. They can create pain and pleasure, as such; our emotions determine our propensity towards certain behaviors. The strength of our emotional response is what gives the subconscious dominance over the conscious; our feelings will always overrule any analytical judgment. If there is a conflict between the conscious and subconscious mind – it is the subconscious mind that triumphs.

Our memories are intertwined with our emotions. Current experiences often evoke memories from the past with a similar emotional feeling. Sometimes this process can happen beneath conscious awareness where someone finds that they experience an emotional response towards unknown stimuli due to a forgotten memory stored in the subconscious.

The subconscious is also the protective part of the human mind whose primary intention is to protect its host from danger, either real or imagined. It minds cannot differentiate between an imagined event and a realistic one. Any event imagined by the subconscious mind is processed just as though it were actually happening. As a consequence, every suggestion accepted into the subconscious mind is processed as though it were real. It will impact behavior and create change.

Our subconscious mind makes us who we are. It is a catalog of all of our experiences, perceptions, beliefs, and ideas. These provide the programming for our subconscious mind. It must operate based upon the programming placed into it. If that programming is changed it must operate based on the new information.

The critical factor of the conscious mind guards the subconscious mind, protecting it from accepting information contrary to one’s rational belief systems, morals or ethics. This is the piece that connects the conscious and subconscious mind. The process of hypnosis allows one to bypass the critical factor of the conscious mind thus allowing the old programming to be replaced with something more beneficial.

Next Week’s Post: Rules of the Subconscious Mind

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James Braid

To be sure, there are numerous definitions of hypnosis and they vary widely as they are often a reflection of the author’s training and theoretical perspective.  For this reason, hypnosis can be a rather difficult phenomenon to describe.

Hypnosis can be succinctly explained as a state of focused concentration in which a person is highly open to suggestion.  Notice that there is no mention of the word sleep or relaxation. It is true that most people people perceive hypnosis to be a form of sleep or to be induced by relaxation.  Certainly under-stimulation, as in highly relaxed states, can produce hypnosis in people; over-stimulation, as in states of confusion, can also produce the phenomenon. Hypnosis is not necessarily, in and of itself, a state of relaxation although most hypnotherapists usually tie the experience into this peaceful state.    

The correlation with sleep can be attributed to James Braid, the father of hypnosis.  He coined the term hypnosis after the Greek God of Sleep, Hypnos, because he initially concluded that hypnosis was a form of sleep. Later, however, Braid realized that his initial description of hypnosis was incorrect and began to characterize it as a state of physical relaxation associated with mental concentration.  Braid, then, tried to rename the phenomenon monoideism – but it was too late.  The term hypnosis stuck and we still use it to this very day. 

Perhaps it is easier to explain hypnosis as an altered state of consciousness that differs from normal waking state. Outside of our normal waking state (the beta brainwave state), the mind is highly suggestible. 

 The human brain functions within four general states governed by the frequency of the electricity generated by the exchange of chemicals in its neural pathways. The four states are beta, alpha, theta, and delta.  These four states relate to the electrical activity in the brain and are defined by frequency ranges on an EEG.

Click here to learn more about these four altered states of consciousness and to download files to help you experience them for yourself.

The beta brainwave state occurs when the majority of the electrical activity in the brain is in the 14-35 Hz range. This is the state in which people spend most of their waking hours and is characterized by conscious attentiveness.  This is state of mind is also referred to as full awakening consciousness.  This is the state in which people can evaluate information, make decisions, and evaluate and assess situations. 

 The alpha brainwave state occurs when brain activity is in the 8-13 Hz range. It is most prominent when one is daydreaming, falling asleep or waking up.  This state provides a link between the conscious and subconscious mind.  It is a very pleasant state where one becomes more relaxed, more imaginative, more suggestible, and stored memories become more easily accessible.  Most people can enter into this state quite easily, although they may not realize that they are hypnotized because they are fully conscious of everything going on around them. 

The theta brainwave state occurs when brain activity is in 4-7 Hz range. These waves are of greater amplitude and slower frequency than those seen in the Alpha State.  This state is associated with learning, creativity, and memorization. It is often seen in states of deep hypnosis or meditation. 

 The delta brainwave state occurs when brain activity is in the .5-3 Hz range. It is the state where the brainwaves are of the greatest amplitude and slowest frequency.  This state of mind is associated with deep sleep.   Most hypnosis takes place in the alpha or theta range, states that people generally experience on a daily basis.  Accordingly, hypnosis is not an abnormal state of mind.  On the contrary, hypnosis is a natural state of mind that everyone has undoubtedly experienced many times without realizing it.  People experience this shift in brainwave state at least twice per day as the brain enters the alpha state just prior to falling asleep and waking up.  Then, while sleeping, people enter the theta and delta states.   The fact is that most people experience a shift in consciousness several times per day; the average person goes into an altered state of consciousness several times per day (around every 90 minutes or so).

Most people have a tendency to enter into an altered state of mind while performing monotonous and repetitive tasks such as driving, mowing the lawn, or cleaning.  People can also enter into trance while engaging in tasks which engross our attention like reading a novel or watching a movie. 

 Why do monotonous tasks create an altered state of consciousness?  The answer is that any monotonous activity or boring sequence of events brings triggers the brain to produce serotonin: The serotonin stimulates an alpha brainwave pattern.   Most people experience this shift as relaxation.  Because it is a natural state of mind, hypnosis is a perfectly safe state that can be of benefit to anyone. 

 Hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness in which the analytical process of the conscious mind is set aside to allow an individual to enter into a state of focused attention and hyper-suggestibility. 

In this state, the mind cannot differentiate between fantasy and reality. Therefore anything imagined within the mind is felt and recorded as thought it were actually occurring. So, an individual will approach suggestions given by a trusted person as if they are reality.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take the Lemon Suggestibility Test

In order to gain an awareness of the power that the mind holds over the body, you can try this simple visualization.

Take a deep breath in and imagine in a way that is right for you, that it is a hot summer day and you are standing in your kitchen near the refrigerator. Take a plump yellow lemon out of the refrigerator and hold it in front of you. Notice the texture of the lemon’s waxy yellow skin and how good the weight of the cold fruit feels in your hands. Raise the lemon to your nose and picture it in your minds eye until you can smell its lemony fragrance.

Now, place the lemon on a cutting board. Pick up a knife and slice the lemon in four pieces. As you hear the knife slice the fruit, you see the juices run and strengthen the smell of the lemon’s fresh scent. Pick up a thick slice of the lemon. Feel the juice trickle down your fingers as you slowly bring the lemon towards your mouth and take a deep bite of it. Imagine the taste the tart juice as it bursts in your mouth.

As you were imagining this scene, did you experience a physical reaction? Did your lips pucker? Did your mouth water? For most people, the visualization causes significant salivation because the autonomic nervous system promptly responds to our mental imagery. This simple exercise demonstrates that our thoughts can produce very real physiological changes within our bodies.

 In an altered state of consciousness, a person often feels relaxed and uninhibited.  Presumably, this is because the conscious mind is suspended.  Thus all worries, concerns, and doubts that are born of the conscious mind are dulled during the experience, giving an individual the freedom to be more natural while outside of conscious control so long as he or she feels safe.  During hypnosis one‘s sense of safety and morality remain intact.  In other words, a hypnotist cannot get a person to do anything that is against his or her natural inclination or moral values.  For this reason, it is widely accepted that all hypnosis is self-hypnosis.  Hypnotists merely guide others into the empowering state of hypnosis.  It is up to the individual, however, to submit to the changes and accept the suggestions.  

 What kind of changes can be made with hypnosis?

The Brilliant Human Mind

As has been noted, hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness characterized by relaxation, focused attention, heightened suggestibility and vivid imagination.  Hypnosis does involve inducing an altered state of consciousness for the purpose of temporarily setting aside the conscious mind so that one can present his or her subconscious mind with new information which will form the seeds of a new lifestyle. This is the primary purpose of hypnotherapy.

 Hypnotherapy is a method of psychotherapy which aims to reprogram patterns of behavior within the human mind for the purpose of empowerment and positive development.  Hypnosis can help one realize new patterns of thought, which in turn will change habits, and positively impact lifestyles.  Hypnosis can help people

•  Free themselves from worry, sadness and negative thinking while becoming happy, free and confident;
• Improve academic, career, or sports performance;
• Increase creativity, assertiveness and self acceptance;
• Lose weight, exercise more, and alter eating habits;
• Stop smoking and other habits which impede health and happiness;
• Fall asleep easier;
• And more.

 Next Week’s Post: The Three Levels of Mind

 Do you want the next lesson delivered to your inbox?  

Sign up for our newsletter now!

James Braid

To be sure, there are numerous definitions of hypnosis and they vary widely as they are often a reflection of the author’s training and theoretical perspective.  For this reason, hypnosis can be a rather difficult phenomenon to describe.

Hypnosis can be succinctly explained as a state of focused concentration in which a person is highly open to suggestion.  Notice that there is no mention of the word sleep or relaxation. It is true that most people people perceive hypnosis to be a form of sleep or to be induced by relaxation.  Certainly under-stimulation, as in highly relaxed states, can produce hypnosis in people; over-stimulation, as in states of confusion, can also produce the phenomenon. Hypnosis is not necessarily, in and of itself, a state of relaxation although most hypnotherapists usually tie the experience into this peaceful state.    

The correlation with sleep can be attributed to James Braid, the father of hypnosis.  He coined the term hypnosis after the Greek God of Sleep, Hypnos, because he initially concluded that hypnosis was a form of sleep. Later, however, Braid realized that his initial description of hypnosis was incorrect and began to characterize it as a state of physical relaxation associated with mental concentration.  Braid, then, tried to rename the phenomenon monoideism – but it was too late.  The term hypnosis stuck and we still use it to this very day. 

Perhaps it is easier to explain hypnosis as an altered state of consciousness that differs from normal waking state. Outside of our normal waking state (the beta brainwave state), the mind is highly suggestible. 

 The human brain functions within four general states governed by the frequency of the electricity generated by the exchange of chemicals in its neural pathways. The four states are beta, alpha, theta, and delta.  These four states relate to the electrical activity in the brain and are defined by frequency ranges on an EEG.

Click here to learn more about these four altered states of consciousness and to download files to help you experience them for yourself.

The beta brainwave state occurs when the majority of the electrical activity in the brain is in the 14-35 Hz range. This is the state in which people spend most of their waking hours and is characterized by conscious attentiveness.  This is state of mind is also referred to as full awakening consciousness.  This is the state in which people can evaluate information, make decisions, and evaluate and assess situations. 

 The alpha brainwave state occurs when brain activity is in the 8-13 Hz range. It is most prominent when one is daydreaming, falling asleep or waking up.  This state provides a link between the conscious and subconscious mind.  It is a very pleasant state where one becomes more relaxed, more imaginative, more suggestible, and stored memories become more easily accessible.  Most people can enter into this state quite easily, although they may not realize that they are hypnotized because they are fully conscious of everything going on around them. 

The theta brainwave state occurs when brain activity is in 4-7 Hz range. These waves are of greater amplitude and slower frequency than those seen in the Alpha State.  This state is associated with learning, creativity, and memorization. It is often seen in states of deep hypnosis or meditation. 

 The delta brainwave state occurs when brain activity is in the .5-3 Hz range. It is the state where the brainwaves are of the greatest amplitude and slowest frequency.  This state of mind is associated with deep sleep.   Most hypnosis takes place in the alpha or theta range, states that people generally experience on a daily basis.  Accordingly, hypnosis is not an abnormal state of mind.  On the contrary, hypnosis is a natural state of mind that everyone has undoubtedly experienced many times without realizing it.  People experience this shift in brainwave state at least twice per day as the brain enters the alpha state just prior to falling asleep and waking up.  Then, while sleeping, people enter the theta and delta states.   The fact is that most people experience a shift in consciousness several times per day; the average person goes into an altered state of consciousness several times per day (around every 90 minutes or so).

Most people have a tendency to enter into an altered state of mind while performing monotonous and repetitive tasks such as driving, mowing the lawn, or cleaning.  People can also enter into trance while engaging in tasks which engross our attention like reading a novel or watching a movie. 

 Why do monotonous tasks create an altered state of consciousness?  The answer is that any monotonous activity or boring sequence of events brings triggers the brain to produce serotonin: The serotonin stimulates an alpha brainwave pattern.   Most people experience this shift as relaxation.  Because it is a natural state of mind, hypnosis is a perfectly safe state that can be of benefit to anyone. 

 Hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness in which the analytical process of the conscious mind is set aside to allow an individual to enter into a state of focused attention and hyper-suggestibility. 

In this state, the mind cannot differentiate between fantasy and reality. Therefore anything imagined within the mind is felt and recorded as thought it were actually occurring. So, an individual will approach suggestions given by a trusted person as if they are reality.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take the Lemon Suggestibility Test

In order to gain an awareness of the power that the mind holds over the body, you can try this simple visualization.

Take a deep breath in and imagine in a way that is right for you, that it is a hot summer day and you are standing in your kitchen near the refrigerator. Take a plump yellow lemon out of the refrigerator and hold it in front of you. Notice the texture of the lemon’s waxy yellow skin and how good the weight of the cold fruit feels in your hands. Raise the lemon to your nose and picture it in your minds eye until you can smell its lemony fragrance.

Now, place the lemon on a cutting board. Pick up a knife and slice the lemon in four pieces. As you hear the knife slice the fruit, you see the juices run and strengthen the smell of the lemon’s fresh scent. Pick up a thick slice of the lemon. Feel the juice trickle down your fingers as you slowly bring the lemon towards your mouth and take a deep bite of it. Imagine the taste the tart juice as it bursts in your mouth.

As you were imagining this scene, did you experience a physical reaction? Did your lips pucker? Did your mouth water? For most people, the visualization causes significant salivation because the autonomic nervous system promptly responds to our mental imagery. This simple exercise demonstrates that our thoughts can produce very real physiological changes within our bodies.

 In an altered state of consciousness, a person often feels relaxed and uninhibited.  Presumably, this is because the conscious mind is suspended.  Thus all worries, concerns, and doubts that are born of the conscious mind are dulled during the experience, giving an individual the freedom to be more natural while outside of conscious control so long as he or she feels safe.  During hypnosis one‘s sense of safety and morality remain intact.  In other words, a hypnotist cannot get a person to do anything that is against his or her natural inclination or moral values.  For this reason, it is widely accepted that all hypnosis is self-hypnosis.  Hypnotists merely guide others into the empowering state of hypnosis.  It is up to the individual, however, to submit to the changes and accept the suggestions.  

 What kind of changes can be made with hypnosis?

The Brilliant Human Mind

As has been noted, hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness characterized by relaxation, focused attention, heightened suggestibility and vivid imagination.  Hypnosis does involve inducing an altered state of consciousness for the purpose of temporarily setting aside the conscious mind so that one can present his or her subconscious mind with new information which will form the seeds of a new lifestyle. This is the primary purpose of hypnotherapy.

 Hypnotherapy is a method of psychotherapy which aims to reprogram patterns of behavior within the human mind for the purpose of empowerment and positive development.  Hypnosis can help one realize new patterns of thought, which in turn will change habits, and positively impact lifestyles.  Hypnosis can help people

•  Free themselves from worry, sadness and negative thinking while becoming happy, free and confident;
• Improve academic, career, or sports performance;
• Increase creativity, assertiveness and self acceptance;
• Lose weight, exercise more, and alter eating habits;
• Stop smoking and other habits which impede health and happiness;
• Fall asleep easier;
• And more.

 Next Week’s Post: The Three Levels of Mind

 Do you want the next lesson delivered to your inbox?  

Sign up for our newsletter now!