This weekend I'm heading over to Tempe to see Flip Orley at Tempe Improv. Hypnosis is like magic to me -- I never understand how they do it, but I am amazed and intrigued by it. I am told that Orley's show is Tempe Improv's all-time attendance record breaker. While he does not have a degree in psychology, Flip studied at University Of Arizona in Tucson with the intention of becoming a clinical hypnotist. He later decided to combine that knowledge with comedy.
Despite the fact that I consider my self a highly intelligent person, I won't let Flip know. That's because the common understanding is that more intelligent people are more susceptible to hypnosis than others. Also, one has to be willing to be hypnotized in order for it to work, so I will tweet Flip before the show to let him know that I am neither willing nor bright. That should keep me off the stage. Seriously, I understand that he does not embarrass his volunteers, and makes sure that the stars of his show remember everything, so they can have as much fun as the audience.
Actually, many years ago I saw a hypnotherapist for stress relief. It was an interesting process, I had no trouble "going under" and she actually taught me how to relax myself so that I could take 60-second relaxation breaks -- like mini-naps -- and feel refreshed after. It worked! Somehow, I didn't keep up with it, though, and I got out of practice.
Have you ever seen a hypnotist for entertainment purposes or a professional hypnotherapist for health reasons? What did you think? You can add your comments below.
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Comments
Just about anyone can be hypnotized, level of intelligence doesn’t make a difference. As long as you are accepting of suggestions and have a bit of an imagination, it’s likely that you can be hypnotized.
Stage hypnotists are great entertainment and they showcase the power of hypnosis. If you’re ever considering a hypnotherapy session, don’t let stage hypnosis scare you – you can only do things that you want to do. Hypnosis is by no means mind control, and it’s important to keep that in mind when seeing a stage hypnotist. The reason people can bark like a dog or think their chair is covered in sharp tacs is because of their desire to entertain the audience.
I work for a hypnotherapy clinic in downtown Toronto, Ontario. I find that a lot of people come in for stress reduction and phobia cures. But people also come in for fertility issues, sports enhancement, confidence building, quitting smoking, losing weight and many other issues. While I haven’t personally seen any clients come in for this, studies have shown that hypnotherapy can get rid of allergies, help people remember where they left something and even help cure some illnesses. Pretty cool stuff!