Seeing the evidence of hypnosis

Tim will shortly be obtaining a state of the art piece of equipment from Japan that will show the client how deep a trance they are able to maintain.
By attaching the headband and relaying the information via Bluetooth technology, the client can see how effective hypnosis is.

BVA as a measuring device can show a professional when their client is in a receptive state, for effectively receiving hypnotherapy. IBVA brainwave data really is the 'convincer', and the sensor band can be worn during a session by the client. Hypnotists induce slow brain wave states, Alpha waves are present during the 'light hypnotic' state used by hypnotherapists for suggestion therapy. Hypersuggestibility is characterized by a narrow focus of attention and increased likelihood to act upon suggestions given by an operator.

Think Theta

The EEG display of persons under hypnosis reveal brain activity resembling an altered state of consciousness. In both people highly susceptible to hypnosis and people with low hypnotic susceptibility. Interestingly, the two categories of people displayed different patterns of EEG activity. During a baseline, or rest period, before undergoing hypnosis, higher Theta brain wave power was recorded in the frontal brain areas in those more susceptible to hypnosis. In the period of time before and after the hypnotic induction, those with a low susceptibility to hypnosis displayed an increase in Theta wave activity. Those with high susceptibility had lower Theta waves. All subjects demonstrated an increase in Theta waves during hypnotic induction and alpha wave activity increased as well. Delta waves are more visible when a subject is in a deep trance, Many scientists have spent a lot of time studying these basic brain waves of the EEG, so there is a lot of basic knowledge about them. Alpha waves are not always present in our brains. For example, in deep sleep there is no Alpha, and if someone is very highly aroused as in fear or anger, again there is virtually no Alpha. Theta waves are seen when there is drowsiness or light sleep. Alpha is seen in wakefulness where there is a relaxed and effortless alertness . So people susceptible to hypnosis may be more relaxed. This may be why so many assert that the mellow, relaxed state of hypnosis awakens the imagination and heightens learning and creativity. A person certainly has more difficultly being imaginative under stress.

he Hypnotic condition put to the test

Scientists Kossylan and Thompson of Harvard University also demonstrated that the brain changes while under hypnosis. They conducted an experiment on only highly hypnotizable people. These people were placed into a positron emission tomography scanner that measures cerebral blood flow in order for "pictures" of their brains to be taken while the experiment was conducted. The subjects were shown a pattern of multi-colored quadrilaterals. They were asked to mentally drain the color from these images. Later, these same people were shown gray rectangles and asked to color them with their minds. When not hypnotized, people who were asked to see color--- whether they did or not showed activity on the right side of the brain. When these people were told to see gray, activity changed on the right side of the brain only also. The experiment was repeated while the subjects were under hypnotism.
Interestingly, both the left and right side of the brains were active in the subject when the experiment was duplicated under the hypnotic condition. The researchers hypothesized that the left side of the brain registered what the subjects were told to see when hypnotized and that the right side registered what people were told to see whether or not they were hypnotized. This is interesting because the left side of the brain is correlated with logic and rational thought. In this experiment, the left side of the brain becomes engaged in what may be considered a creative right-brained activity, but only when it is under hypnosis. Kossylan states that this means that, "hypnosis changes the conscious experience in a way not possible when we are not under hypnosis"

Click here to download the full article and view the brainwave snapshots. (PDF file)