No, All Hypnosis is Not Self-Hypnosis

All hypnosis is not self-hypnosis (especially not with erotic hypnosis). So why do hypnotists say it is? To combat the popular misconception of the hypnotist controlling their subjects.

Since the 1950s,  comic books, movies and TV shows have been portraying hypnosis as a way for villains to gain complete control over someone. Nearly every comic book superhero from Underdog to Batman has faced mind-controlling villains. (Daredevil faced at least 3.)  In the 1970s, TV detective shows did the same. Hart to Hart, Charlie’s Angels, Hawaii 5-O, and VIP all showed hypnotists turning women into criminals.

For the hypnofetishist, those portrayals are sexy. For the educated hypnosis enthusiast (who’s not a fetishist), those portrayals are laughable. But for professional hypnotherapists, those portrayals have been a major problem. In the 1960s-80s (before the internet) many people only learned about hypnosis through comic books and TV shows. And many people believed those portrayals were realistic. Hypnotherapy professionals needed to reassure their clients that they weren’t mind-controlling villains. So they adopted the marketing slogan ‘all hypnosis is self-hypnosis’ to combat clients’ misconceptions and assuage their fears.

In truth, hypnosis is a cooperative effort between the hypnotist and subject. One hypnotist put it like this:

The hypnotherapist simply acts as a “coach” to help you access the unconscious mind and the place of healing residing there. Hypnosis is not mind control; there’s never been a documented case that I’m aware of where that’s happened, outside of the movies. Even the stage hypnotists understand this. If you’ve ever been to one of those shows, you’ll note that the hypnotist asks for volunteers, knowing that the act of raising the hand is really saying, “let me help you entertain this crowd.”

When musicians take lessons from other musicians, they don’t say they’re self-taught. When athletes hire a coach, they don’t say they’re self-coached. So I only use the term ‘self-hypnosis’ when someone is guiding themselves into a trance.  When a hypnotist guides their client into a trance, that client is free to accept or reject any suggestion. But it’s a cooperative effort, not self-hypnosis.

Read more about how hypnosis works and other popular misconceptions.