200.07 - Establishing Context

A lot of guides to hypnosis have weird superstitions about asking for permission to hypnotize someone having some effect on the subconscious - in reality it’s far simpler. All we’re doing is changing social context. It’s like going from chatting outside of the car before heading to a diner, to getting in the car and giving directions in the passenger seat.

You don’t need to be as rigid as “I would like consent to hypnotize you” unless that’s your vibe. “All right, ready to give this a go?” is cromulent. After you’ve worked with the same partner a few times, you’ll probably find they start automatically responding to your hypnotic patter.

The big idea is that you’ll be giving directions, and they’ll follow. If you ask them to imagine something, they’ll imagine it to the best of their abilities. If you ask them to focus or think of something, they’ll try their best there too. Back with the car metaphor - they’re in the driver’s seat, and you’re the rockstar expert backseat driver.

James Tripp does a great job of giving you a process for doing this in detail in Hypnosis Without Trance. (I will keep recommending this book until my fingers break.)

Tips

I need to watch Helluva Boss one of these days…

Even though the answers to these questions don’t exactly matter, you can get a feel for how someone intends to respond later.

• Do you have a good imagination? Are you ready to see what it can do?
• “Let’s do a ‘test’ suggestion.” (Do magnetic hands, a hand stick, whatever.) Ask them what they were doing and thinking.
• What do you expect it to feel like following my suggestions?
• A bit awkward, but tell them you’d like to get a feel for them as a subject. Start suggesting something - perhaps relaxation, ask them to close their eyes, or even arm heaviness. Do a quick check in. You can quickly rotate through iterations until you know they’re actively participating (or you realize they’re just there to disprove you.)