[Each month a member of the International Registry of Professional Hypnotherapists writes a Guest Expert article for you.]

By Lois Prinz, CH, CI

You probably won't be surprised to learn the National Institutes of Health discovered that two out of three people seeing a medical doctor are also seeing an alternative health practitioner. That is, about two thirds of the unhealthy American population are seeking additional advice from complementary health practitioners.

In this new era of medicine, Americans are asking Medical Doctors for alternative treatments to their healthcare that does not include prescribed drugs or unnecessary surgery. As a result of this escalating trend, many accredited colleges, universities, nursing schools, counseling and hypnosis centers are teaching Hypnosis as a complementary health protocol and a legitimate healing tool.

Hypnosis can address presenting issues of insomnia or restless sleep, chronic lethargy and fatigue, depression, anxiety or long-term issues with chronic pain, hypertension, weight loss (or weight gain), smoking abatement, low self-esteem and mind mastery.

One of today's fastest-growing groups of complementary health practitioners is the Certified Hypnotist. Hypnosis continues growing in popularity with the general public because it is proving to be an effective curative tool in correcting human behavioral ailments. The powerful potential of Hypnotherapy explains why it is exploding in use as a practical and beneficial and economical approach to mind-body health.

We have all encountered states of trance throughout our lives. Truth be known, each of us passes through momentary states of Hypnosis throughout the day, everyday. It's a natural altered awareness that represents a shift from the everyday waking consciousness.

Have you ever zoned out in front of the TV, or became engaged in reading a good book? How about daydreaming? That's kind of what hypnosis feels like. Some of my clients swear they fell asleep during our hypnosis session, and although Hypnosis originates from Greek for "sleep-like", it really is not sleep. Rather, it is an empowering state of mind, that when directly addressed, can perform quick, amazing positive changes in human behavior.

Now and then, I come across a few folks who are concerned that maybe they cannot be hypnotized. The truth is, almost everyone is hypnotizable. People with limited intelligence or fearful of hypnotic relaxation or fearful of inviting change, provide the greatest challenge to the Hypnotist and most likely wouldn't be encouraged to engage in the hypnotic experience. For the most part, most coming to see me are good candidates . . .they're open to change, and willing to do what needs to be done to habituate their positive changes.

It's important to be aware that Hypnosis is a natural state and a very comfortable one. It is different for everyone who experiences it. In fact, you may not even "feel like you were hypnotized" at all. Most people I work with cannot tell the difference between a hypnotized state and a waking state. There is no one common hypnotized feeling, but most will report a feeling of heaviness or lightness, or a tingling sensation. However, most hypnosis users feel definitely relaxed after a dose of Hypnosis.

Hypnosis is NOT relaxation; however, relaxation is a very important healing byproduct of the experience. Whatever is experienced, it is like your body falls asleep, but the mind stays awake.

Your mind has had a lot to do with how you are feeling today. If you woke up this morning feeling peppy, fresh and renewed, you're probably having a good day. You realize that if you think happier thoughts, you will actually begin to feel happier, and feeling happier can create becoming happier. So, how you feel depends on how you think.

Thoughts are the most powerful of all the universal forces. Thoughts create! It's the truth! The article you are reading right now began as an idea. And for that matter, your hairstyle began as a creative concept. And might I add, before you were conceived, you were only a twinkle in your parents' eye?

Thoughts are creative. It is through thought that action is born. Without thought, there can be no action. Now you can begin to understand how your thoughts have been creating the life you are choosing to live. Using Hypnosis allows you to delete "negative, old internalized thought tapes or programs" so you can replace them with new positive ways to think and feel that create new behaviors.

So, Hypnosis is a beneficial behavioral tool that is learned quickly and can be used for a lifetime. Utilizing Hypnosis to alter your internal self-dialog day by day, allows more appropriate messages to be sent and reinforced to the creative subconscious awareness. And the better you think, the better you'll feel.

This is not rocket science and is not so difficult to understand. In a few short hours, anyone can learn the basics to designing their best life using the protocol of hypnotic autosuggestion. With time, practice, repetition and rehearsal of the new message, positive results are bound to happen.

HYPNOSIS: a proven alternative health protocol whose time has come!

Lois Prinz is a Certified Hypnotist with over two decades empowering others toward change using Hypnosis. She is the founder and director of the Center For Hypnosis & Wellness, and is founder of National Hypnotherapy Training Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Ms. Prinz is a trainer's trainer and prepares students for certification with both the International Medical and Dental Hypnosis Association, and the National Guild of Hypnotists, the oldest and largest organization of its kind. Contact Lois at Hypnosis4change or 505-292-2237.

Lois Prinz, CHt, CI
Founder/Director
National Hypnotherapy Training Center/Center For Hypnosis
2420 Juan Tabo, NE
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87112
505-292-2237
1-877-952-2237