The information you are about to read was graciously provided by Trinity Family dentist in Whitby. If you're looking to go to a comedy show, you'll find comedians with a all sorts of gimmicks. Some do straight stand-up while others make use of props or magic tricks. Still others do hypnosis on volunteers to the audience and make them do hilarious and embarrassing things in front of their co-workers or peers. If you've ever wondered what hypnosis is, how it works, or whether is has applications outside of comedy shows, this article should fill you in.
Many people assume that hypnotists put their volunteers to sleep, but that's not the case. Hypnosis is actually a trance state where a person is extremely relaxed and open to suggestions. In this state, people are also very imaginative - much like they are in dreams. The hypnotic state is reached through extreme concentration and shutting out distractions such as laughs from the audience or thoughts of the stress had
in the week. Some hypnotists believe that in this state, volunteers are residing entirely in their subconscious mind.
Not everyone is susceptible to hypnosis. About 80% of the population are of medium susceptibility according to university studies while 10% of people are very hard to hypnotize and the other 10% are very easy. Very practical people are hard to hypnotize while daydreamers and people who have escaped trauma by mentally disassociating themselves from it are easy to hypnotize. In order to be hypnotized, you have to want to be hypnotized. The hypnotic state cannot be forced on you.
Because hypnotized people are in a state where they are more open to suggestions, hypnotism is often used in therapeutic programs in addition to comedy segments. When a physiotherapist is not able to help a patient overcome pain, hypnotherapy may be used to convince the patient the pain is not bad. Other conditions often treated with hypnotherapy include drug addictions, phobias, anxiety, obesity, and post traumatic stress. Success rates for hypnotherapy depend on the suggestibility of the patient.
If you would like to try hypnosis, either to help give you an edge when you compete, stop smoking or to help you relax, you should seek out a registered hypnotherapist. Hypnotherapy for weight loss and quitting smoking can be done by people who are not doctors, but for other conditions, such as depression or compulsive behavior, you will need to see a licensed psychiatrist. As for comedy routines, they are very hit or miss, as not everyone is suggestible. Many shows are helped along by planted audience members who are actors hired to stir up the audience into a state of mass delusion.
| 