TOP U.K 

"Ray Ronson is a First-Class Professional Stage Hypnotist,
whose act is both entertaining and intriguing" 
(Rev. Lionel Fanthorpe, Presenter of Channel 4 and the Sci-Fi Channel's 'Fortean TV')

WHAT IS HYPNOSIS?

There are many misconceptions about hypnosis,. many of these fallacies can be traced back to the unfortunate early use of not-always-ethical demonstrations of hypnosis as a form of entertainment on stage and television.

The best way to view hypnosis is as a state of intense relaxation and concentration, in which the mind becomes remote and detached from everyday cares and concerns. In this relaxed state the subconscious part of the mind is best able to respond creatively to suggestion and imagery. It can focus on the things you wish to change and on the ways you can best do so, free from analytical or anxious thoughts.

You are, however, not asleep nor are you unconscious. You are in an altered or alternative state of consciousness in which you ‘let things happen’ through your subconscious mind rather than trying to make them happen with your conscious mind. Because you are deeply relaxed, the suggestions given to you by the hypnotist will be acted upon more easily by the subconscious. Posthypnotic suggestions are those that will be carried out by you when you come out of the hypnotic state.

There are some people on whom hypnosis should not be used or only with care, i.e. those suffering from epilepsy, psychosis, schizophrenia, etc.

The Subconscious and Human Mind

The human mind is like an onion with many layers. The outer layer is our conscious mind which helps with our daily decision-making processes working according to the reality principle. It is intelligent, realistic, logical and proactive, especially in new situations where we have to apply rational thought processes to work out what to do and how to do it. However, it can only deal with between five and nine things at any one time and is easily overloaded.

The subconscious or main hidden layer of the onion works on ‘auto pilot’ i.e. reacting according to the pleasure principle in that it seeks to avoid pain and obtain pleasure and survival, regardless of external considerations. It is concerned with our emotions, imagination, and memories as well as our autonomic nervous system which controls our internal organs automatically. These four main functions are very closely interlinked - in other words the mind affects the body and the body affects the mind. It is powerful and very clever at dealing with many complex instructions at any one time but is not ‘intelligent’.

Stage Hypnosis

Throughout history there have been those who have given public demonstrations and exhibitions of hypnotic phenomena, often giving private consultations after their shows. By the early 1850s performances were common across America, Canada, Europe and Britain. Unfortunately the art, although very popular, was slowly reduced to a mockery by sometimes fake hypnotists who used stooges and crude routines. In the UK the 1952 Hypnotism Act was brought in to protect the public from dangerous and pornographic hypnotists. 

Early in this century genuine stage hypnosis was revived with the success of an American hypnotist, Ormond McGill. He was a pioneer in presenting hypnotism on television and is known world-wide as the Dean of American Hypnotists. His book, The Encyclopedia of Genuine Stage Hypnotism written in 1947 became know as `The Bible' of stage hypnotists. In 1970 a second book was written called The Art of Stage Hypnotism. Now a third and definitive book is available, The New Encyclopedia of Stage Hypnotism.

Ormond, now in his eighties, was in Britain in April 1997 to present a training seminar, an unforgettable event for all those interested in the development of hypnosis. In addition to his international stage reputation, he has written many excellent books on aspects of hypnosis, magic, meditation, mysticism, etc. He is also a certified clinical hypnotherapist and a gifted trainer.

A stage hypnotist performs his act on a mass of people and is the most highly skilled of all hypnotists. The phenomena is genuine and can serve to create a real interest in the subject of hypnotism. The secret lies in selecting only those who are highly suggestible, can go quickly and deeply into the deeper stages of hypnosis, and are likely to prove entertaining.

Unfortunately a stage hypnotist with no therapy background will not know whether the subject has any serious emotional or medical problems which might make them unsuitable for some of the tasks they might be asked to perform. 

Ultimately the greatest safety for the public lies in ensuring that the stage hypnotist is also a qualified and practicing hypnotherapist who will be aware of potential problems and can handle any unexpected reactions which may occur.

Levels of  Hypnosis