How long does Hypnosis take to work and how does it work in the brain?

If you are excited about the concept of hypnosis and hypnotherapy and are looking to get a clear picture of what it really is, then you are in the right place.

Hypnosis can be quite useful when it comes to dealing with conditions like smoking and anxiety. But to be able to take better advantage of this treatment, it’s crucial that you familiarize yourself with all its aspects.

In this article, you’ll learn about hypnosis, its uses, how long does it take for hypnosis to work, and how does hypnosis work on the brain?

What is hypnosis?

Hypnosis can be described as a mental therapy that involves reduced peripheral awareness, focused attention, and an enhanced ability to respond to proposals. You can also look at hypnosis as an induced state of consciousness whereby a person loses their power to take action voluntarily.

While in this state, the individual is highly responsive to direction and suggestion. The practice of hypnosis is referred to as hypnotherapy. Keep reading to find out how does hypnosis work on the brain?

The uses of hypnosis

The reason that hypnosis has grown so popular in recent times is thanks to its uses. If you are looking to get more information on hypnotherapy, you probably are looking to also benefit from its applications. Here the five most notable uses of hypnosis that you can benefit from.

Smoking cessation

Addition to smoking can be quite hard to deal with. Even the CDC acknowledges that quitting smoking is likely to take more than one attempt thanks to the highly addictive nature of nicotine in tobacco.

Most healthcare professionals recommend trying other smoking cessation techniques together with hypnosis to increase the chances of success. Hypnosis creates a favorable environment for you as a smoking addict, to make tangible progress towards quitting.

A remedy for phobias and fears

There is no doubt that phobias and fears can be a challenge to live with. If you have a phobia for some of the things that you are likely to interact with on a day to day basis, it means that you won’t be able to live a normal life.

Hypnosis is used as a remedy for phobias and fears. It has been successfully used to manage the severity of phobias and anxiety, but the jury is still out on whether it’s really a treatment.

Promoting weight loss

Trying to lose excess weight is beyond hectic. You might have reached a point where despite exercising and dieting, you are making very little progress on losing your excess weight. You can take advantage of hypnosis and other weight loss techniques to further your progress on losing the extra weight.

Self-esteem booster

Having low self-esteem can lead to you having quite a miserable life. You can boost your self-confidence through hypnosis. This can be specifically helpful if you are trying to pursue a new partner or a new position at work.

Anesthesiology for surgery

In some cases, surgeons have enlisted the help of hypnotherapists to perform hypnosis on patients as anesthesia. Hypnotherapy has even been used as the only anesthesia in some surgical procedure though rarely.

Some of the surgeries that have commonly taken advantage of hypnotherapy are amputation, gall bladder removal, hysterectomy, and amputation.

Related reading: 13 Valuable Self-hypnosis Benefits you Need to Know – Opens in new tab

How long does it take for hypnosis to work?

Now that you understand the benefits of hypnosis, you must be wondering – how long does it take for hypnosis to work?

There is no clear-cut answer to this question because how long hypnosis will take to work for you will entirely depend on you, your hypnotherapist, and the application. You should know that a regular hypnotherapy session will take about an hour, and this is the baseline for other uses.

Most people start experiencing the full effect of hypnosis 10 minutes into the hypnotherapy session. In cases of a gastric band or smoking cessation hypnotherapy, the sessions can be as long as two hours.

You should know that a single hypnotherapy session is not enough for you to achieve what you want. It will take several sessions and time before you can see the changes you are looking for.

Here is an overview of how long it will take for you to see the full effects of hypnosis depending on your needs.

If you are undertaking hypnosis to lose weight, you can expect to achieve the best results after 3 months of regular sessions. How long does it take for hypnosis to work, in this case, will also depend on what other weight loss techniques you are using? According to research conducted on the success of hypnosis for weight loss, all of the 60 subjects who participated reported a 2 % to 3 % weight loss in 3 months.
When it comes to using hypnosis as a relief for phobias, how long it will take for the therapy to work will depend on how big of a phobia you have. Additionally, your willingness to conquer your fear will also be taken into account. In most cases where hypnotherapy was applied for this particular use, it took roughly 3 to 6 months of regular sessions for the patients to get over their fear.
If you are looking to boost your self-esteem through hypnosis, you won’t need more than a few sessions. This is unless other mental disorders like depression accompany your case. Within a month or two of hypnotherapy, you will have a grip on your self-esteem, and all will be alright.
When it comes to smoking cessation, this is more of an uphill task. This is because to be free of your smoking addiction, you will have to engage in long-term recovery. This is even more so if you have been smoking for years. Typically, to successfully quit smoking, you may have to undergo hypnosis for longer than six months.

Check these Guided Self-Hypnosis Recordings

How does hypnosis work on the brain?

How does hypnosis work on the brain to bring about all these benefits associated with it? The mind is one of the most sensitive parts of your body. Understanding how hypnotherapy works on the brain will play a vital role in your decision making on whether or not to engage in it.

Hypnosis works by letting your subconscious mind take center stage while your conscious mind takes the back seat. This is achieved through relaxation. As you can tell from this explanation, there is nothing out of the ordinary taking place during the hypnotherapy.

Under normal circumstances, your conscious mind handles most of your activities. This is from thinking through problems, making decisions, and being aware of the surroundings.

On the other hand, the subconscious mind handles the behind the scenes thinking. Your conscious and subconscious mind usually work together perfectly, and this lets you go about your business normally.

The subconscious mind has access to massive information reservoirs. This is what help you do complex tasks like locate your keys, construct sentences, and even solve problems.

So, if you see an idea come to you from the blue, that’s the work of your subconscious mind. It is also responsible for all the things that you happen to do automatically, including life-sustaining activities like breathing.

When you are driving, you don’t have to think through every little detail as your subconscious takes care of that. Taking this into account, it’s easy to say that the subconscious is the real force behind everything you do.

During hypnosis, your conscious will take the backseat, and your subconscious will take center stage. This will give the hypnotist a chance to work directly with your subconscious to achieve the desired results. If you are addicted to smoking, the hypnotist can train your subconscious not to want the usual nicotine boost.

This means that your brain will make the first step of not demanding you to smoke as much as before. For you to be entirely free of the smoking addiction, you have to go the rest of the way and implement other addiction suppressing techniques. This means that hypnosis will make the battle to fight smoking addiction much more comfortable than it would initially be.

Related reading: Is Hypnosis Real? | The Science Behind Hypnosis – Opens in new tab

How often should you do hypnosis?

You might be so motivated to get the benefits of hypnosis and feel so enthusiastic about undertaking the hypnotherapy. In this case, you must be wondering – how often should you do hypnosis?

For the first week of your hypnotherapy, it’s vital that you partake in the sessions every day.

This will help your mind adjust faster to the therapy. After the first week, you can take the sessions every other day until you achieve the effects that you desire. How long does it take for hypnosis to work for you will also depend on how often you do it.

You should know that hypnotherapy is totally safe, and there is no harm in doing it daily if possible. Additionally, it has no side effects that you have to worry about. You can also introduce a child in need to hypnotherapy without worries. If this is the case, you should consider hypnosis programs designed for children to get the best results.

If you are looking to start your hypnotherapy sessions, you have two options – you can find a qualified hypnotherapist and visit them for your sessions or download your therapy sessions online. How hypnosis work on the brain for downloaded and physical hypnosis is almost the same. Moreover, there are pros and cons to both options and what you settle for depends on your personal preference.

Do you want to learn more about hypnosis and self-hypnosis? Check out our recommendations at “Hypnosis Bookshelf” and many free resources at our “Free Hypnosis Library“