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So, what's the difference?

The root of the word "hypnosis" is a Greek word meaning "sleep". In hypnotherapy, the practitioner induces a state where the subject is less conscious than full waking, but not completely asleep, in order to bring forward repressed memories, or introduce positive suggestions. It's called a "trance state".

The practice of guided imagery relies on inducing a trance state as well, in order to reach past the intellect and engage the imagination. Guided imagery can be used for exactly the same purposes as hypnosis, as well as for bringing forward creativity through the imagination, exploring inner feelings, or tapping into higher states of awareness. But then, a hypnotherapist can do those things as well.

A guided meditation also uses an induction process, like hypnotherapy or guided imagery, and typically takes the listener on an inner journey to still the mind, experience peace and tranquility, get in touch with spiritual figures, tapping higher states of awareness, exploring inner feelings...

Is this starting to sound familiar? If it is, that's because basically, all three are exactly the same!

The main difference is what the person leading the process chooses to call it. In general, hypnotherapists do "hypnotherapy", psychotherapists do "hypnotherapy" or "guided imagery", and spiritual teachers, spiritual coaches, and everyone else does "guided meditations". Potato potato. Personally, I prefer potatoes.

What about recordings? There's a long history of hypnosis recordings going back to "tapes", for curing everything from warts to shyness. Guided imagery and guided meditation recordings go back almost as far.

But there is something to be said for doing guided imagery/hypnosis/guided meditation with a therapist who can work with you in real time, one on one. By watching you carefully during the process and soliciting feedback as you proceed, your therapist can taylor the experience to your responses, determine the most productive directions as things unfold, and take you deeper into areas that seem to hold more for you. Working in this way takes practice and training, and it's a skill that is best developed with professional supervision over time.

There are hypnosis, guided imagery, and guided meditation recordings on the market for just about everything you can think of, and the more popular themes (weight loss!) have hundreds if not thousands of listings available. The quality is all over the map, though. So if you've tried recordings and haven't connected with them, don't give up without sampling those from other authors. Just about anyone can make a recording, but it takes a lot of work to make a great one, and not everyone is up to the task.

No matter what you call them, some of the most popular programs available are online at The Healing Waterfall, where you can download a free guided meditation by Laura Downall.

According to one source, hypnosis in the west was derived from the practices of Asian shamans brought West by Jesuit missionaries. However, ancient Celtic priests already claimed to possess a skill called "glamour" which meant to dazzle another's mind, often with only words.

The man credited with discovering hypnosis in the West is Marquis DePuysegur, a disciple of Dr. Franz Mesmer (1733-1851). From his studies of primitive shamanistic trances, Mesmer developed "animal Magnetism," an early form of hypnotism. DePuysegur carried on mesmer's research and during one session he observed one of his patients entering a trance-like state of true hypnotism.

By the mid-1800's, DePuysegur's hypnotism (a.k.a "magnetic sleep") was being used to relieve patients pain during operations in London. After observing patients reactions while in magnetic sleep Sigmund Freud formulated his theory of the unconscious mind.

In 1852, Researcher James Braid coined the term "hypnosis." Since the, hypnotism has been used to heal and to entertain. Hypnotism has also been used by mind-slayers for dark purposes.

Whether you know it or not, you've been in a hypnotic state literally thousands of times. Anytime you've been caught daydreaming or being absent-minded, you've been under a form of hypnosis. Ninety percent of people can be deliberately hypnotized to some degree and of that number, fully 10 percent are highly suggestible and thus susceptible to being in deep levels of trance.

How does hypnotism work? We still don't know. We do know, however, that effective hypnotism depends on the power of suggestion.

The term absent-minded is appropriate since during hypnosis our usual controlling conscious "higher" mind is temporarily absent or asleep, while our "lower" subconscious "shadow mind" (responsible for emotion and motor control) is still awake.

Under hypnosis, our brains go to sleep while our lower brains, accustomed to being given commands by our higher brains, continue to take orders from the hypnotist. Thus, under hypnosis, this lower brain simply substitutes the outside commands of the hypnotist for the commands of its sleeping higher brain.

Three things make this hypnosis possible:

First, the subjects focus is narrowed to the point where only a single source of information is coming into the subjects brain, information controlled by the hypnotist. The hypnotist the literally defines reality for the victims subconscious mind.

Second, it is important the subject believe in the process of hypnosis and in the hypnotist.

Finally, for hypnotism to be successful the subject must be willing to suspend logic and temporarily accept distortions in cause and effect, and in his perception of time and space.

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Quitting smoking is no joke! It is a real challenge and a very hard thing to do especially if you have been smoking for long enough. If you have been smoking for quite a long time now and you want to quit it, hypnosis can help. Smoking in general is very hazardous to health and planning to get rid of it is the wisest decision you will ever make. The fact that smoking can cause a wide range of deadly diseases and one is cancer, it is just sensible to quit smoking. While there are lots of methods that aim to help people quit smoking like nicotine lozenges, chewing gum, counselling, patches and other cessation methods, one significant alternative is hypnosis or hypnotherapy.

Hypnotherapy is proven to help kick the bad habit and empower patients to completely quit smoking. In general, hypnosis is defined as an altered state of awareness by which the individual is brought under a trance or a sleep state. Clinical hypnosis is done to treat certain psychological or physical problems such as pain, weight issues, bad habits, behaviours, fear, anxety, phobia, speech disorders, insomnia, addiction problems and more. There have been many arguments about the effectiveness of hypnosis; some people are still sceptical about it, thinking that it is some kind of spell of magic. But if one only knows the truth about hypnosis and how it can help alleviate such conditions, they sure will embrace it.

One significant benefit of hypnosis or hypnotherapy is the ability to help smokers to quit their bad habits of smoking and live a healthier life. During hypnosis for smoking cessation, the hypnotist often asks the patient to imagine the unpleasant outcomes of smoking. He will be brought in some kind of a relaxed state and will give suggestion to the patient like for example, cigarette smoke smells like truck or smoking will leave the patient totally ill because of its effects. Depending on the hypnotists, he or she will conduct effective smoking cessation methods like letting the patient think that smoking poisons the body, that you need your body to live and that you must respect your body and protect it. Every time and any time that the smoker feels or desire to smoke, the hypnotist will teach the patient self-hypnosis wherein he or she will ask himself or herself these affirmations.

While it is true that hypnosis is effective in ceasing smoking habits, but it does not work for everyone. About one in four people cannot be hypnotized and in terms of results, it may vary because not all patients are the same, each is unique. But when the procedure is successful, the impact of hypnosis is very beneficial. Hypnotists help smokers achieve their goal of quitting the habit on a regular basis and forever. The great thing about this procedure is that patients are empowered to quit smoking by using their imagination and creating a smoke-free future. After a series of hypnosis cessation session, patients felt very positive and stopping smoking becomes their very best choice.

Talk to a Hypnotist San Antonio about how hypnosis can help in quitting smoking. Discover how hypnotherapy San Antonio can bring a very positive outlook to your life.