Hypnosis, people have been fascinated by this topic for generations and have devised many uses for it from on stage entertainment to the recovery of repressed memories. But is it a legitimate form of therapy or should the practice be reserved for traveling showmen?
Answer: Yes and No.
Many people believe that hypnosis can enhance memory, aiding in the recovery of repressed childhood memories or details of crime that someone witnessed. However, the evidence shows that is probably not the case. While it does increase the amount of information we recall, much of this information is woefully inaccurate and it can lead us to have more confidence in the truth of inaccurate memories.
However, some of the other uses for hypnosis show some promise regarding the powers of suggestion. Everyone is influenced by the suggestions of others in our daily lives because we are constantly responding what other people say and do and even their body language even when we don't realize it. Hypnosis seeks to harness the power of suggestion in positive ways. Studies have shown that hypnosis can aid people in their attempts to do things like quit smoking of lose weight. The Journal of Applied Psychology from the University of Iowa claims that hypnosis is three times more effective than the nicotine patch in helping people to quit smoking and fifteen times more effective than will power alone. However, hypnosis doesn't always work on everyone; some people are just more suggestible than others.
The Power of Suggestion
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I have heard people getting hypnotized to lose wait or quit smoking and it being successful, but personally I think it is a placebo effect. They have the mind set that it is going to be easier to quit smoking now or lose more weight and because of that they get more will power. I watched people get hypnotized and talked to them later. They were conscious of their surroundings, they just felt more "free" to let lose. I just think hypnosis is only a game.
I've always been decently skeptical of hypnosis. Even while reading about this I still was because all I was thinking was some gaudy character on stage acting all goofy. I thought it was interesting to learn that people use hypnosis as a way to lose weight or quit smoking. I didn't know it could work that way.
I would have to highly agree that hypnosis is deeply rooted in the power of suggestion. Personally, I feel that I would not be hypnotized if someone tried...and from what I've heard, if you do not believe, it won't happen.
I recall seeing a bunch of my classmates being hypnotized at an even once, and there were some people who totally hammed it up, others were fairly convincing.
Because of such an outcome, I think that hypnotism could almost be considered wholly a pseudoscience. If you think something will happen to you, it will.
One thing that I'm interested in is to see just how effective hypnosis is at giving improved recall of actual events. I know that a good chunk of the results are recalling fake details, but is there perhaps truths that slip out and if so, how many? Even though hypnosis is far from reliable when it comes to producing reliable recall, figuring out if it can improve real facts would be interesting to determine.
Hypnosis is a very interesting subject. I have never personally been hypnotized but I can definitely see how hypnosis can be helpful or harmful. It could be very beneficial if it works, but if it doesn't, it could potentially backfire and leave the patient worse off than before. I agree with the statement that some people are more suggestible than others and I think it would be helpful to assess the patient beforehand to see if hypnosis would be the best option as far as therapy is concerned.