Module 4 ORGANIZING THE SESSIONS

MODULE 4: ORGANIZING THE SESSION

You have now had the opportunity to learn about suggestibility tests. You have learned the difference between analytical and non-analytical subjects. This Module will aid you with the organization of all this material so you will know how to create a session as a result of the suggestibility tests. The chart below gives you the basic format of how to put together a session for an analytical or non-analytical client. Of course, the way you find out whether your client is analytical or non-analytical is as a result of the suggestibility tests that you gave them at the beginning of the interview. If they responded favorably and reacted to the suggestions given in the suggestibility tests and you found them to rank on the right hand side of the scale that you used earlier to gauge analytical and not analytical subjects.

Then you can use the non-analytical information on the next page. If they ended up on the left side of the scales you would use the analytical information on the left of the chart. The information on the chart is just a guide or an example to be used. Each step can be substituted with a similar script. For instance on the non- analytical side, the progressive relaxation may be substituted for the simple body scan, the eyestrain method or any similar non-analytical type induction. Just as the non-analytical test may be substituted with any of the test that you have. If you find that while you are conducting the session with a non-analytical client that he is just not responding well to your test and he earlier tested non-analytically but near the center of the scale, you may want to change over during the session and swap to an analytical approach which as you learned earlier works for all clients. Sometimes when judging whether someone is analytical on non-analytical they may vary a little from where you thought they were. You thought they may have been slightly non- analytical and they were more analytical than you had expected. Always be prepared to change midway if you feel there is a need to.

Instructions on non-analytical Sessions

It is important to understand before we begin instruction on this section that approximately 80% of society is non-analytical and approximately 20% of society is analytical. Now even though only 20% of society is analytical, the analytical session is effective on everyone. The reason for this is that the purpose of the analytical session is designed to keep your clients’ mind busy in giving them a task to do while you are simultaneously delivering the helpful suggestions that they require. It is very simple to keep someone’s mind busy and it can be done to anybody however not everyone can relax or even enjoys relaxing.

Understanding this concept will greatly assist you in having a successful session every time. For example if you’re conducting a non-analytical session and you find that your client is not relaxed enough to the depth required to deliver your suggestions you now have a choice to simply transfer them over to an analytical session which works on everyone.

It is important to realize that before you conduct any session you must conduct your suggestibility test to find which type of session is best suited for your client. If in conducting your two suggestibility test you find that your client is very non-analytical you may want to add a third suggestibility test which can greatly help your session through the building of expectation. The more expectation that you can create in your client, the better results your session will have.

Once you have conducted your suggestibility tests you will then know which session to conduct whether it be analytical or non-analytical. For training purposes we will first describe the non-analytical session.

The first part of the non-analytical session is to choose an induction. The purpose of the induction is simply to calm your client down and help them to relax. It is all about letting go and bringing them to the moment. It is important when conducting your induction that you do it very slowly, giving them enough time to relax completely. Don’t worry about being too boring while doing the induction as that is exactly what you are shooting for.

Once you have conducted your induction it is then time to test your client to see how relaxed they actually are. The way you test this is by using a depth test. It is important not to confuse the depth test with a suggestibility test as they have two entirely different purposes.

An example of a depth test would be the “Yardstick Test”. Basically with this test you are asking your client how relaxed they are in association with the 36 numbers on a yardstick. The number 1 would be as if they were not relaxed at all and the number 36 would be the most relaxed they could possibly be. Between number one and 36 they are to choose the number that would best represent how relaxed they are. If they would choose the number 5 that would mean that they were not relaxed enough to conduct your session further and you would need to take them deeper into relaxation through the process of conducting a deepener after which you would then test them one more time. On the other hand, if when you tested them they said they were relaxed at the number 30 then you would simply continue on with your session, as they are

relaxed enough. For the most part if your client said the number 17 or more, they were most likely relaxed enough to continue.

Notice as we stated earlier, if your client was not relaxed enough you would conduct a deepener. A deepener is designed to deepen the relaxation level of your client. In most cases the deepener is just a vehicle to relax or bore them into letting go. Even if your client reacted really well with the depth test showing that they were a number 17 or above, in most cases you would still conduct a deepener whether it was required or not. Just consider it icing on the cake. The purpose of doing it either way is to lengthen the session and give them a better experience. Without a deepener your entire session would probably be only about 15 minutes but inserting a deepener will serve two purposes. The deepener is the part of the session that most people are familiar with. It is the part of the hypnosis session where they can travel in their minds and possibly see beautiful images and experience the deep relaxation that they are looking forward to.

In the event that you had to conduct a second depth test and they were still not deep enough, you have a choice of conducting a second deepener or swapping them over to an analytical session.

Keep in mind that the analytical session works on everyone while the non- analytical session only works on approximately 80% of society. The reason for this is that not everyone is able to relax however with the analytical session, anyone’s mind can be kept busy.

Upon completion of your deepener or even your second depth tests if it was required you are now ready to conduct your suggestions or scripts. The suggestions are whatever you would need to tell your client to help them to change or improve their present situation. The word “script” is simply a shortened version of the word prescription and means the same thing as the suggestions.

Upon completion of the suggestions you would simply conduct your awakening to bring the client back to the here and now. Once your client comes back, you may want to take a few moments to let them reflect on their experience and even ask them questions about what had occurred.

Instructions on Analytical Sessions

Now let’s speak about the analytical session. To conduct an analytical session all that is really required is to use an analytical vehicle, the suggestions and the awakening.

The reason for this is that with an analytical client, relaxation is not required. All you need to do is to keep their mind busy. So you can begin right with the analytical vehicle and while their mind is busy deliver the suggestions. Although conducting a session this way would be completely effective, the analytical client would probably not be happy that the entire process went so quickly. Doing it this way would probably take up approximately 10 to 15 minutes. In other words it would be over before they even realized it was started. Therefore we conduct an induction and a depth test before the actual analytical vehicle.

You may be asking yourself right now why would you conduct an induction or a depth test on an analytical subject? That’s a good question. Realizing that analytical people do not like to relax, the analytical induction is designed differently than the nonanalytical. An analytical induction does help you to relax but does it in a busier manner. It keeps the mind more occupied usually with movement, or instilling more thought process.

As for a depth test, whether your client passes or fails the depth test does not matter. Remember the purpose of the depth test is simply to see how deep your client is in relaxation and since it is not important for an analytical client to relax, then the results of this test does not matter. After conducting the test, if your client passed the test write that information down on your intake sheet because it will give you ammunition that you can use later on if your client comes back next week and states that he was not in a deep enough state of hypnosis or that he doesn’t feel it worked. You would have the results from the depth test to show them that they were. What about if they did not pass the depth test? In the event of using the yardstick depth test if they responded that they were only at number five you would simply respond with “very good, you have a strong mind” and continue along with your session.

It is important to keep in mind that wherever they land on the depth test, that relaxation is not a prerequisite for the analytical mind. Once you begin the analytical vehicle which will keep their mind busy everything will be the way it should be for you to deliver your suggestions. Once again upon delivering your suggestions you would simply conduct your awakening and then take a few moments if you choose to discuss their experience.

Whether conducting an analytical or non-analytical session one of the most effective statements that you can say upon their emerging from hypnosis is, “from when you close your eyes at the beginning of the session until you just opened them right now how long did it seem like to you?” Then wait for their response. In the case of nonanalytical clients, most of them will respond with approximately 5 minutes or even less.

You will find that the analytical client will be more aware of time so don’t be surprised if they get the time exactly on the minute. The purpose of this question is to see if there was a “time distortion” that occurred for your client.

Many times even though your session may have taken 35 to 45 minutes, because of how relaxed the client was they might have only recalled four to five minutes. This is called a time distortion. You will learn in an upcoming Module that there are basically six levels of hypnosis. Keep in mind that they will be hearing everything as you say it and still taking in your suggestions however they will not remember some of it consciously afterwards. Therefore if they were in level four or higher, even though the session may have been 45 minutes, as soon as they passed that level, time will have seemed as if it were still.

Troubleshooting

From time to time you may run into situations with clients that are difficult to manage. It is important to stay confident.

Common challenges

• Clients that take a long time to relax and go under

• Clients that have trouble waking after session is concluded

• Clients that don't respond to cues and requests from hypnotist

• Clients that react with uncontrollable crying or laughter while under trance

How to know when to refer out Whenever there is a topic that you are not welcome verse in or not comfortable speaking about, referring out to a qualified and trained practitioner is crucial. This doesn't always mean not continuing with the client. Sometimes, working in conjunction with a mental health practitioner or another, more experienced, hypnotist can build more trust with the client and lead to better results.

How to professionally break up with a client Not all clients are your clients. In order for hypnosis to be successful the client needs to first feel comfortable with you and, second, be willing to do the work on their own. This is where clearly defining responsibilities and expectations becomes imperative. If there is no way to continue with the client, referring them out to another practitioner is

always the best way to end the relationship. Leaving the client cold with no options can cause more problems.

How to monitor progress It is important to use SMART goals from the beginning so that both you and the client can track success. Smart goals are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-trackable. Most of the results are self- reported. Because change is sometimes more gradual than drastic, it is helpful to set measurable metrics from the very beginning.

Language to look for Because all hypnosis is self hypnosis, we all walk around hypnotizing ourselves with out thoughts all day long. When a client becomes aware of negative spoken language in their day to day, it becomes easier for them to identify what the core negative belief may be that is driving their unwanted results. Words like "can't", "always", "never", and "should" are just some examples of language patterns that clients can be coached to reframe in the moment that they hear them come out of their mouths.

How to recognize non verbal cues Not all language is spoken. Body language can help us to gauge the level of engagement a client has in the process of hypnosis. During the session as well as the interview process, watch for body cues that tell you that the client is resistant to what you are saying. If their arms and/or legs are crossed, it may mean that they are not aligned with what you are saying. If you notice that they begin to lean away from you, retrace your steps, you may have said something that they do not believe to be true or that they are against. Try reframing what you said with different language and also asking the client what they may be in resistance to.

Module 4 Notes: