Backing up Blog Post Part 8 from DrakeG's blog
Here we are at the last part of this series. Today we will be discussing waking and aftercare. As always, this is based on my experience and opinions.
Now that changes have been made, the hypnotist needs to wake the subject up. As with most other parts of hypnosis, there are other names. Some call it emerging the subject because they are not really asleep. Personally I go with waking since most people relate hypnosis to sleep and it can help to play upon that popular perception.
Regardless of what you call it, right before the hypnotist starts, it can be useful to go over the suggestions made during the session. As discussed last time, repetition helps with retention so one last time before waking can bring it full circle. Then, the hypnotist gives suggestions about how the subject can come out of the trance. They can suggest that, as the person wakes, the suggestions become a permanent part of the subject. The hypnotist should also suggest that when the subject awakes, they will be fully aware and feeling great. This is important as coming out of trance can cause disorientation or headaches.
The hypnotist then suggests the person can bring their self out or guide them out. If they are bringing their self out, the suggestion would be something like, “When you are ready, you will find you are wide awake.” If the hypnotist is guiding them, then it is useful to give them something sequential. Counting to 3, 5 or 10 is common, letting the subject know that with each number they will awake a little more. When guiding the subject, it also is useful for the hypnotist to start to transition from the hypnotic voice (normally a lower and slower way of speaking) back to their normal voice. Then, when they get to the point where the subject is wake, give some denotation to separate the trance from being awake like a snap or clap. I also will say wide awake now as I snap.
Now that the subject is awake, the hypnotist should talk with the person for the next five to ten minutes. Don’t discuss the suggestions, or show any doubt that it worked. It is possible that for those first few minutes that the person is still susceptible to suggestions, so if the hypnotist or someone else that they respect questions the process it can cause the subject to doubt it and undo the work that was just done. The closest the subject should come to discussing the changes that were made is to tell the subject how well they did or that they are a good subject. This builds their confidence and can reinforce the changes that were made. The worse case scenario if the hypnotist uses this method is that the person wasn’t susceptible during those few minutes and nothing changed.
With that we are at the end of the hypnosis process. Next time we will move on to discussing other aspects of hypnosis.
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