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Hypnosis, Dreaming and REM
The deepest trance
state you ever experience is when you are dreaming. During dreaming,
you are completely immersed in a self-created imaginary reality
with little or no awareness that it is not ‘for real' (similar to
the hypnotised stage subject).
Dreaming is an amazing demonstration of your brain’s ability to
'simulate reality' and a clear indicator of why hypnosis works.
It is fairly common for a hypnotized subject to vividly experience
an imagined reality, less so than in dreaming perhaps, but absorbing
nonetheless.
The rapid
eye movement (REM) of dreaming is also often observed during
hypnosis. And indeed, a traditional way to induce hypnosis was by
swinging a watch in front of the subject’s eyes.
Since dreaming is largely concerned with ‘clearing' the brain of
emotional arousal, it is not hard to see one reason why hypnosis
is so good for helping people with emotional problems.
Hypnosis, Catalepsy and Dreaming
A famous stage trick is to lie a hypnotised subject between two
chairs and stand on their stomach. This is the sort of demonstration
that has led to the idea that hypnosis is something strange. (Don’t
try this at home by the way, it’s really bad for your back! )
However, when we consider the link to the dream state, the reason
this is possible becomes much clearer. When you are dreaming, your
ability to move is inhibited for obvious reasons - acting out your
dreams would be highly dangerous for you and your sleeping partner.
This phenomenon
also occurs during hypnosis
and allows us to create 'catalepsy'
where parts of the body can become immobile or self supported for
long periods without discomfort.
Next, Self Hypnosis
